Editor:
Re: Spirited debate for three of Delta’s mayoralty hopefuls, Oct. 17
The three primary candidates for mayor – Sylvia Bishop, Jim Cessford and George Harvie -- apparently discussed a lot at the Probus Club on Wednesday of this week, but I am particularly concerned about the misrepresentation of marijuana as a “gateway drug” by Harvie and Bishop.
As reported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse in the U.S., it is important to note that notion is far, far from being a settled issue. The NIDA notes that (another way of saying “gateway”) “cross-sensitization is not unique to marijuana” and that “alcohol and nicotine also prime the brain for a heightened response to other drugs and are, like marijuana, also typically used before a person progresses to other, more harmful substances.”
The NIDA discusses other factors implicated in a person’s susceptibility to drug (of any kind) use and abuse.
Marijuana is also characterized as - versus as a “gateway” drug - an “exit” drug that can “control, prevent and even help end hard drug use.”
It is important to understand that when pronouncing publicly - particularly on matters such as this one - that a lot of the people we may be trying to influence by way of such discussions may be much more informed than many of us in these matters. Misinformed and perhaps reckless pronouncements about issues like this one can easily lead to cynicism and hardened attitudes that can get in the way of legitimate enquiries and study.
Marijuana cannot - at this point in time, at the very least - be called a “gateway” drug. Such a characterization would be challenged immediately by the millions and millions of current and former users, of all ages (many who are our neighbours and friends), who lead very successful and happy lives, free from any of the negative effects of substance abuse.
Firth Bateman
