TWO CAMPS EMERGE ON TOKING AND DRIVING

Sharp Points Of View On Marijuana Issue

MY recent column on marijuana use and driving drew a lot of
response.

The theme of the article was that while I have no problem with the
legalization of marijuana, we need to develop an accurate field test
that would discourage people from smoking dope and driving. This is
just one of the ways that a person can be impaired, and others would
include medications, fatigue, and perhaps even an overdose of chocolate.

The letters fell into several categories, with two extremes. On the
one hand were those who still believe that pot leads to harder stuff
and should be totally banned. This seems rather unrealistic, since
dope doesn't make you nasty but at worst, just temporarily stupid.
Take it out of the realm of crime, make it taxable, and I doubt it
will lead most users into the depths of depravity. If a person has a
truly addictive personality, then everything from cough syrup to
Coca-Cola can pose a danger.

The other kind of mail came from those who generally welcomed my
position but did not see any danger in smoking pot while behind the
wheel. Both extreme letter types came with links to a whole bunch of
studies supposedly supporting their case. Apparently, for example,
there is research that proves that people may even drive better while
under the influence of marijuana. There are other, equally convincing
papers for the other side, that demonstrate that pot rots the brain,
destroys willpower and causes acne.

Sorry folks, we all know that there are enough studies around that you
can always find one to support an idea, no matter how wild. Convinced
that aliens are behind low-carb diets? I'm sure there is a research
paper somewhere that appears to prove this.

When it comes to driving, in the absence of real performance-measuring
research, we have to go with empirical evidence.

I have never seen anybody drive better, or even well, after having
smoked dope, and we don't really need a new definition for universal
joint. I'm willing to be proven wrong, but it is far too early for
that. Push the credibility envelope too far and it could backfire.

Think of this. You are about to board a plane for a flight to Europe.
On the gangway are the three pilots, passing a fattie back and forth,
and acting rather giddy. Do you feel really good about trusting them
with your life and the lives of your loved ones? How about a report
from a traffic helicopter that starts with "dude, this is so cool." A
fighter pilot who takes one last hit on a joint then prepares for a
carrier launch? Drivers at the Indy 500 lighting up in the garage
before the start?

The Fraser Institute recently came out in support of legalizing
marijuana. This was not a social study, but a hard dollars-and-cents
evaluation of potential benefits. That is good, but in the absence of
better information, keep it off the roads. Right here and now, we
can't ignore the potential dangers of something that impairs motor
skills and concentration.