IN PRAISE OF MARIJUANA

This letter is in response to all four front-page articles published on
March 19. The underlying themes of "'New' New Deal" and "Freedom of speech,
Freedom of choice" are also relevant.

What if there were a solution to the school board's lack of education funds,
our state's tobacco woes, our dependence on foreign oil and also our
extinction of birds? What if the solution could boost the textile industry,
protect our forests, aerate our soil and offer pain relief? What if the
solution actually could derail globalization by giving the power and wealth
back to the people?

As a food it is the most easily digestible protein; add water it triples in
size and nutritional value; add dirt and it can grow 10 to 20 feet tall in
one growing season almost anywhere. The fatty acid content makes it a bird
favorite. How about saving protein-starved children worldwide or our
funding-starved local schools? (By lessening prison and drug testing costs,
we free money for our schools.)

What if North Carolina could enter the energy industry via biomass instead
of nuclear? This solution has been written out of our textbooks and ignored
by media, impairing America's freedom of choice. Freedom of speech is
overruled by fear ingrained into our subconscious minds from childhood
through adulthood.

Dare we change our perspective on marijuana? Isn't it about time North
Carolina takes another look at the Earth's premier renewable resource? God
gave us all seed-bearing plants, according to Genesis. If not now, when?

CLIFTON INGRAM

Clemmons.