RE: "ANGIE Klein Sings for Pot," Sept. 4. There's little doubt that
marijuana has many proven medicinal properties. The most popular, but
often ignored, is its ability to treat depression. The anti-drug
bureaucracy describes one of the "most troubling" effects of marijuana
as the euphoric "high."

Euphoria is defined by Webster's dictionary as "a strong feeling of
happiness, confidence or well-being." The same dictionary defines
depression as a feeling of "sadness and gloom." By their own
admission, aren't these anti-drug "professionals" acknowledging that
marijuana has a beneficial medicinal use? And since it makes a
depressed person feel euphoric, wouldn't that by definition be an
effective treatment for depression?

End marijuana prohibition and those who have vested their futures in
this black hole of U.S. drug policy stand to lose incredible amounts
of money. Under President Bill Clinton this drug war has ballooned and
promises to be the hot growth sector of the new millennium. Don't ever
believe that U.S. drug policy is really about illegal drugs. It's
about money and lots of it.

We've allowed Washington to create a policy that clearly enriches the
drug warriors politically and financially. These government officials
and public and private anti-drug industrialists won't push away from
this feast of pork until the citizens demand an end. Who knows, they
will probably continue in spite of the outcry. After all, the
drug-war tycoons are addicted to money and their pangs of withdrawal
from this gravy train will be excruciating.

Mike Plylar

(Using your dubious logic, cocaine should be legal too.)