SOCIETY WOULD LOSE OUT BY LEGALIZING POT

The old debate over marijuana use and whether it should be legalized for
adults burns on.

The issue, as described in a package of stories in the Jan. 26 Coloradoan,
has changed little over the decades since pot was outlawed in the United
States in 1937.

Proponents of legalization say using the drug is no more harmful to an
individual than using alcohol or cigarettes, which are legal.

They also say the government's effort to stem its use has been a waste of
time and money and has added to the problem of overcrowded jails and
prisons.

Opponents of legalization say marijuana is indeed harmful to those who use
it and society as a whole.

It could lead to health problems, including cancer, among those who smoke
it, and it is a "gateway" drug that leads to the use of harder drugs that
play a prevalent role in violent crime.

Support of legalizing marijuana use and possession by adults appears to be
growing nationwide, according to a recent Time/CNN poll, which found that 34
percent of those polled supported the idea. That percentage has nearly
doubled since a similar poll was taken in 1986.

The same poll found that 72 percent of those responding favored fines rather
than jail time for people arrested for possessing small amounts of
marijuana.

But we're not convinced legalization is a good idea. There is little for
society to gain from its legalization and much to lose.

The most compelling reasons against legalization is the gateway drug theory.

Although long been dismissed by those who advocate marijuana use, an
eye-opening study recently published in the Journal of the American Medical
Association supports the theory.

Researchers studied 311 sets of twins in which one twin smoked marijuana
before the age of 17. The study found that the early marijuana smokers were
five times more likely than their twins to use harder drugs.

Just as social drinking does not necessarily lead to alcoholism, it's a long
way from smoking pot to heroin addiction.

But few addicts start out using debilitating intravenous drugs. They often
start by smoking pot.

What sort of message would it send -- particularly to the youths of society
- -- to say that use of a substance that's only purpose is intoxication is
acceptable? How could government, as some have suggested, play a role in
promoting the use of marijuana by licensing and taxing its production?
What's next? Methamphetamines, club drugs such as ecstasy or cocaine?

There may be some value in reducing the penalties for possession of
marijuana in order to relieve crowded court dockets and jails. And use of
marijuana for legitimate medical reasons should be legal and monitored just
as prescription drugs are.

But the wholesale legalization of pot is not in the best interests of
society.