ALCOHOL, NOT POT, IS MAJOR GATEWAY DRUG

I disagree with the Jan. 19, 2009 article on marijuana as the root to many
problems.

In response to Donna Manning about marijuana, she is not seeing the
truth. As a recovering addict myself, my experience is not through
someone else's eyes; I lived it. She is ignorant to the fact that
marijuana is not a gateway drug, the gateway is alcohol. Perfectly
legal alcohol.

Every drug I ever tried and was eventually addicted to started with
drinking. I was drunk the first time I smoked crack. Drunk the first
time I did meth, and yes, I was drunk the first time I smoked
marijuana. The only thing marijuana had led to was the
refrigerator.

I have done every drug under the sun, and it all leads back to
alcohol. Donna Manning needs to remember Prohibition. If you want to
take money from drug dealers and reduce crime, legalize marijuana. Not
only for the many medical purposes, but across the board.

Attack the real drug dealers, which are the medical doctors and
pharmacies. Prescriptions are legalized drugs, and that doesn't make
it right. Marijuana is not physically addictive and can relieve
millions. These are the true realities of life.

Jeremy Howell

Springfield