LEGALIZING MARIJUANA A DANGEROUS NOTION

After reading Andrew Brod's June 26 column (Ideas) on the economies
of legalizing marijuana, I have two reactions:

The issue of capital punishment costs, while true, is totally absurd.
If convicted and sentenced to execution, there should be one appeal
allowed to a person within the following 18 months. This would
provide sufficient time for legal proceedings and stop the practice
of spending 20-plus expensive years on death row.

Applying the term "relatively benign" to marijuana bespeaks a lack of
appreciation for the mind- and personality-altering power of this
drug. Failure to die from an overdose is not the medical or
psychiatric definition of a "relatively benign" drug.

I would feel even less safe in a society that financially benefited
from legalizing marijuana in a similar fashion as it has with alcohol
and tobacco. Marijuana, termed the "gateway" drug, has powerful
motivation-draining properties and can produce significant impairment
of cognitive function.

If the government needs more revenues, let's enforce highway safety
rules, close the giant corporate loopholes in the tax code or scale
back the exorbitant congressional retirement program.

Let's make sure the pot sold in our stores is metallic and not leafy green.

Joel H. Heller, M.D.Greensboro