Letters

"Marijuana Madness"



Any human being who has any knowledge of the effects of marijuana on the human psyche would attest that the following statement is nothing more than an outrageous fallacy. Yet these words spoken before Congress in 1937 by the director of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, H.J. Anslinger, are the legal basis of marijuana's illegality in our country:
"The marihuana user imagines the most unbelievable things, giving way to monstrous extravagances. There are emotional disturbances during which the user is powerless to direct his thoughts, loses the power to resist emotions, and may commit violence that knows no bounds. This delirious state is accompanied by vivid kaleidoscopic visions usually of a gruesome nature, followed by a temporary amnesia of all that has transpired. The continued use of this drug leads to mental deterioration and frequently to insanity."

In spite of the absurdity of these claims Congress outlawed marijuana use in America. In spite of the lack of scientific evidence to validate these accusations marijuana remains illegal even today (there is currently a federal ban on the scientific research of marijuana). And in spite of the fact that the consequences of marijuana prohibition far outweigh the harms of actual marijuana use the Bush Administration is waging a war on marijuana and its users like never before. And they have armed themselves with the same "truths" as Mr. Anslinger in their justification of marijuana's prohibition:

1936 (fictitious marijuana film "Reefer Madness") "And more vicious, more deadly than these soul destroying drugs (cocaine and heroin) is the menace of marijuana"

1937 (US Federal Bureau of Narcotics) "The marihuana cigarette is the most insidious of all forms of dope."

2003 (White House Office of National Drug Control Policy) "No drug matches the threat posed by marijuana."

The White House says, "Outdated and false perceptions about marijuana are putting today's kids at risk." Yet the White House is adhering to outdated lies and deceptions which not only put kids at risk of enticement due to the profits of the criminal black market, but also at risk of a life destroyed in the criminal justice system.
END THE LIES ABOUT MARIJUANA!
END MARIJUANA PROHIBITION!


February 2003
© 2003 kgs


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