COLUMNIST'S ATTEMPT TO FIND DANGERS IN MARIJUANA BORDER ON THE ABSURD

To the Editor:
I find it very interesting that all of Mr Aldrich's marijuana "facts" in a
column, "Marijuana a dangerous mind-altering drug" in the Feb. 22 Manhattan
Mercury all come from the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a mouthpiece
for the prohibitionist movement in this country.

All of the assertions he makes as to the dangers of marijuana are either
incorrect or have nothing to do with marijuana itself.

His initial statement that marijuana is very dangerous is simply not true.
No governmental or scientific study has ever concluded that marijuana is
dangerous and many have, in fact, come to just the opposite conclusion. He
states that marijuana is more dangerous than aspirin, yet no person has
ever died directly from marijuana while hundreds a year die from aspirin.
His assertion that marijuana is a gateway drug is also wrong.

The most recent report on marijuana by the National Institute of Medicine
concluded that marijuana is no more a gateway drug than milk. The most
recent numbers show that for every 100 or so marijuana users there is only
one cocaine user, a number much lower than would be expected if marijuana
led to harder drug use. Mr. Aldrich's attempts to find "dangers" in
marijuana become most absurd when he claims that the absorption of THC into
fatty tissues is a danger.

Several studies with THC have shown that this chemical inhibits the growth
of breast cancer cells and even kills brain cancer cells.

So, if the scientists are to be believed, having THC stored in ones body
may actually prove to be beneficial to an individual in the long run.
Perhaps Mr. Aldrich should read some real science for a change and maybe
even read the Bible, which states quite clearly that God made all the
seed-bearing plants (which surely includes marijuana) for us to use.

Matthew Hogg Microbiology and Molecular Genetics University of Vermont
Burlington, Vt.