WASTE OF MONEY

In response to "Alabama authorities eradicate pot" (The News,
Wednesday), I'd like to point out that by the Drug Enforcement
Administration's own admission, 98 percent of the estimated 223
million marijuana plants destroyed by law enforcement in 2005 were
classified as "ditchweed," a term the agency uses to define "wild,
scattered marijuana plants (with) no evidence of planting, fertilizing
or tending."

Unlike cultivated marijuana, feral hemp contains virtually no
detectable levels of THC, the psychoactive component in cannabis, and
does not contribute to the black market marijuana trade.

So, how much money is Alabama wasting by using helicopters and the
National Guard to harass elderly men suffering from multiple sclerosis
and to pull up and burn feral hemp plants that are of no value in the
black market?

Loretta Nall

Alexander City