In the Chronicle Nov. 21 article, "Professor leads the charge in
battle against drug war," Donald Hollingsworth, drug policy
coordinator for Mayor Lee Brown and Tom Arp, assistant commander of
the Texas Department of Public Safety's narcotics unit, both agree
that marijuana is a "gateway" drug to more insidious substances. This
is an argument repeatedly offered by proponents of the drug war.

However, the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, a major source
of national survey data on drug use in the United states and conducted
by the federal government since 1973, reports to the contrary.

In 1997 NHSDA data showed that 36 percent of the population over 12
years old reported some drug use in their lifetimes, but that number
dropped to 11 percent for use in the past year and to 6 percent in the
past month.

These percentages have not changed significantly in the national data
in a generation and show that most illicit drug users are not "hard
core" addicts. Experimental or casual use does not eventuate in
continued or regular use.

Rob Hellyer,
Houston