LEGAL MARIJUANA WOULD BE A MENACE

I would like to differ with a Daily Herald commentary published on
Sunday, Oct. 25 by Froma Harrop in which she called the crusade
against marijuana ill-conceived. Harrop believes that by ending the
ban on pot gangs will go away. She also assumes that the illicit
profits earned by those dealing in drugs will instead result in
billions of dollars in tax revenues for states where marijuana is a
controlled substance. Chicago was classified in 2009 as a high
intensity drug trafficking area by the Office of National Drug Control
Policy in Washington, D.C. As such Chicago serves as the major
transportation hub and distribution center for the retail sale of
cocaine, heroin and marijuana throughout the Midwest and ranks second
only to Los Angeles County in California, a state that has legalized
the use of marijuana as medicine and where marijuana use has greatly
increased since its legalization. Many Americans see no harm in
legalizing cannabis. Last May the Illinois Senate narrowly passed
SB1381 to legalize marijuana as medicine. Should the House follow
through it would make Illinois the 14th state to allow the medical use
of marijuana. Recently the U.S. Justice Department gave marijuana a
nod of approval by announcing that it would ease up on prosecutions
for medical marijuana.

But does the legalization of marijuana as medicine really make sense?
There is already a synthetic drug on the market called Maritol which
contains all the active ingredients in marijuana to target pain
without smoking the marijuana weed.

Dispensaries in states which distribute marijuana are magnets for
crime and violence. And where are the safeguards to protect patients
from drug abuse absent recommended prescribed dosage levels for
illnesses or symptom? Lastly, shouldn't medical doctors and
scientists, not legislators, decide if marijuana is medicine? Critical
to the discussion of marijuana is that marijuana is the entry level
drug of choice for many young people, which often leads to drugs with
a bigger bang for the buck. Research shows that the earlier children
start using marijuana, the more likely they will go on to experiment
with cocaine and heroin. Short-term effects on teens who smoke
marijuana include problems with memory and learning, distorted
perception, trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor
coordination and an increased heart rate. As adults, teens who smoke
marijuana risk possible cancer, a potential to develop breathing
problems and lung infections and the possible impairment of their
immune systems.

Thousands in the military risk their lives to stop drug lords and
eradicate drugs in South America and the Middle East. As long as the
drug lords are allowed to roam at will here in Illinois and across the
nation (Massive marijuana-growing operations were discovered in two
Cook County forest preserves in the past two years with no major
arrests), people will continue to die every hour of every day from
drug lords, to the growers, to the shippers, to the pushers on corners
and the users.

Nancy J. Thorner

Lake Bluff