DO WE PUNISH ALL RECREATIONAL DRUGS?

I'm writing about Bob Neiwoehner's thoughtful letter: "Could the
Senator Be Misinformed?" [July 6].

Perhaps Neiwoehner should have asked Sen. Dole whether she thinks all
users of recreational drugs should be punished. And what about those
who "push" recreational drugs on TV? Viagra, Levitra and Cialis are
all recreational drugs. All are designed for the sole purpose of
giving or enhancing pleasure.

So why are some recreational drugs given approval by our governmental
agencies, and not others? It's not safety, because in the few short
years that Viagra has been available, it has caused more deaths than
marijuana, which has been used for over 5,000 years with no documented
deaths.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that politicians receive
millions from the pharmaceutical industry and nothing from the
marijuana industry. (See the Web site www.saynotodrugs.org.)

Perhaps? Perhaps "perhaps" is the wrong word.

Kirk Muse

Mesa, Ariz.