DRUG HYPOCRISY

Thank you for raising awareness of Ritalin abuse (Tribune, Nov. 19). While
America continues to wage its $50 billion war on consensual vices, our
children are routinely prescribed legal drugs with effects similar to
cocaine and methamphetamine.

The goal of a "drug-free" America that so many politicians claim to be
working toward applies only to certain drugs. Specifically, natural drugs
that cannot be patented by the pharmaceutical industry, one of Washington's
most powerful lobbies.

New lifestyle drugs are granted fast-track government approval by the Food
and Drug Administration, while marijuana, which has been used medicinally
for thousands of years, allegedly requires further research.

Despite a relatively brief period on the market, the blatantly recreational
drug Viagra has already killed more people than marijuana, a relatively
benign plant which has never been shown to cause an overdose death.
Nationwide, cancer and AIDS patients are being locked up at taxpayers'
expense for using medical marijuana, while 2-year-olds are prescribed
Ritalin. So much for protecting the children from drugs. One need only
follow the money trail to find out why a given policy exists.

ROBERT SHARPE
The Lindesmith Center Drug Policy Foundation
Washington, D.C.