CRITICS RESORT TO 'REEFER MADNESS'

In recent weeks two "studies" on the effects of marijuana use have
been spreading like some sort of aggressive disease. This happens
every year or so and it seems to always be the same two studies.

The first one proposes the idea that smoking even one joint could
raise your risk of developing schizophrenia later in life by an
astronomical 40 percent. However, if one takes the time to look at
actual rates of schizophrenia among the entire world population, you
will see that the rate has always been around 1 percent, with no real
fluctuation. If the schizophrenia claim was actually true, we would
have seen a huge jump in the number of people diagnosed with
schizophrenia.

The second one claims a link between marijuana and lung cancer. It
states that one joint is as bad as five cigarettes. However, Dr.
Donald Tashkin, who for many years worked in cahoots with the DEA to
try to prove this theory, recently released a study that shows smoking
marijuana does not cause lung cancer and may even have some
preventative effects.

This kind of fear-mongering about marijuana is true reefer
madness.

Loretta Nall

Alexander City