ALCOHOL DESTROYS MORE LIVES

RE: LEGALIZATION of marijuana. I am continually amazed by the
ignorance shown by some people regarding marijuana. To equate
marijuana to coke (Jim Hill, Letters, Sept 13) is like comparing
aspirin to morphine.

Hill made a good point comparing today to the prohibition era. Think
of all the crime, murder and illicit money used in the illegal booze
trade of the prohibition era.

Then think of all the crime surrounding marijuana today. With the
technology criminals have today, our police are spending way too many
resources to stop criminal activity that would not even exist if it
were legal to use marijuana.

If legalized and controlled, marijuana would probably be more
beneficial to society than as a black market item that siphons more
tax dollars away from our governments. The only harm being done by
using marijuana is slight memory loss and the odd bizarre laughing
fit. Alcohol destroys more lives than marijuana ever will.

Calvin Barr

(Marijuana is a gateway drug. Few people stop there.)