WHO IS DELUDED ABOUT MARIJUANA?

To hear it from William Bennett ("Marijuana delusions," Commentary,
Tuesday), the number of Americans "seeking" treatment for marijuana is
rising.

The former drug czar is deliberately misrepresenting government
data in an effort to justify the war on some drugs. Record numbers of
Americans arrested for marijuana possession have been forced into treatment
by the criminal justice system. The resulting distortion of treatment
statistics is then used to make the claim that marijuana is "addictive."

There is a big difference between voluntary treatment and
government-coerced treatment. Zero-tolerance drug laws do not distinguish
between occasional use and chronic abuse. The coercion of Americans who
prefer marijuana to martinis into taxpayer-funded treatment centers says a
lot about U.S. government priorities, but absolutely nothing about the
relative harm of marijuana.

For an objective take on marijuana, look to
Canada. After months of research, the Canadian Senate recently concluded
that marijuana is relatively harmless, marijuana prohibition contributes to
organized crime and law-enforcement efforts have little impact on patterns
of use. In the words of Sen. Pierre Claude Nolin, "Scientific evidence
overwhelmingly indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than
alcohol and should be treated not as a criminal issue but as a social and
public health issue."

ROBERT SHARPE, Program officer, Drug Policy Alliance, Washington