Pubdate: Sat, 12 Jan 2013
Source: Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA)
Copyright: 2013 Media General Communications Holdings, LLC.
Contact:  http://www.timesdispatch.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/365
Author: Richard Carchman
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v13/n016/a05.html

LEGALIZING POT WILL CAUSE MORE PROBLEMS

EDITOR, TIMES-DISPATCH:

In his Commentary column, "Glimmers of hope on the drug front," Neal 
Peirce touches on one dimension of the war on drugs: legalization of 
pot and the impact on criminal activity. There can be no doubt that 
such changes will decrease criminal activity, but what are the 
unintended consequences associated with this movement?

It is remarkable how little attention is brought forward on the 
health consequences of such actions. Smoking pot is analogous to 
smoking any combustion product derived from organic material. These 
products of combustion are little different than smoking tobacco but 
have additional impact on the user with respect to impairment of 
complex tasks such as driving. After just completing a 
multigenerational war against tobacco, to set in motion an even more 
complex public health debacle simply considering the criminal 
dimension seems at a minimum to reflect a poor examination of this issue.

RICHARD CARCHMAN.

COLUMBIA
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