MEDICAL MARIJUANA, PRO AND CON

To the Editor:

Re "F.D.A. Dismisses Medical Benefit From Marijuana" (front page,
April 21):

The clash between the Food and Drug Administration and the Institute
of Medicine provides a great example of the difference between those
who exhibit black-and-white thinking and those who can see shades of
gray.

It is pretty clear that marijuana has both health benefits and costs --
like most drugs available to the public. The scientific community has
come to a consensus on this.

But the food and drug agency, and lawmakers who continue to fight the
study of marijuana, seem to have decided to act for ideological
reasons as opposed to accepting the possibility that further research
is warranted.

Meanwhile, thousands of Americans continue to suffer unnecessarily,
all because some feel the need to stick their heads in the sand and
not face the facts, whatever they may be.

David Kutz

New Orleans, April 21, 2006