THE MARIJUANA DEBATE

In "The case against legalization" (Dialog, Nov. 6) Aaron Byzak of
the North Coastal Prevention Coalition claims that 1 in 10 adults who
"ever start" marijuana, and between 1 in 4 and 1 in 2 who started in
adolescence become dependent upon it. As a retired psychiatrist and
addictionologist, in my 42-year career treating thousands of people
with serious mental and drug or alcohol addictive disorders - 80
percent of whom used or abused marijuana - only two patients were
actually addicted to it. Almost one-half of American adults, tens of
millions of people, have used marijuana, 25 to 50 percent of those in
adolescence. As with any substance we put in our bodies, marijuana
poses risks, but from a general health perspective, marijuana is less
dangerous than alcohol, cigarettes or even fatty foods, upon which
our population is far more dependent.

The conclusion, drawn from Byzak's numbers, that tens of millions of
adult Americans are "dependent" upon it, is a misleading distortion
intended to demonize the drug. Recent polls indicate that 50 percent
of Americans support marijuana legalization. We finally understand
that marijuana is not the "devil weed."

David B. Bergman, Rancho Santa Fe