LEGAL MARIJUANA USE WILL OCCUR

Re "Un-American to harass the sick" (Speak Out, Aug. 30):

I have been an analyst of drug policy for 15 years, and it has become
obvious that it is inevitable that marijuana will become legal as the
new generation displaces the older people like myself. Among people
under 50 a solid majority is forming. The only question is when.

Various conflicts over marijuana are regularly in the news across the
country. Letter writer Loretta Nall describes one that like many is
particularly cruel and unnecessary in relation to medical use. All
this is about a drug that has been used for thousands of years and by
more than 100 million U.S. citizens without more than incidental harm
that will be there regardless of laws.

Our country faces major problems and should not have its attention
diverted by laws that do little more than make a potentially harmful
drug more dangerous through lack of regulation and provide the major
source of income for cartels that plague the world. Bear in mind that
marijuana is significantly less dangerous than alcohol and almost
everyone growing up today that uses alcohol regularly has at least
tried marijuana. Most of the relatively few people who actually have
a problem with marijuana also abuse alcohol.

Let's put this behind us and move on.

Jerry Epstein

President, Drug Policy Forum of Texas

Houston