Dear Ann Landers,
"Marijuana is not the innocuous drug many would have us believe. Nor is it the deadly poison that scaremongers describe. However, all agree that it is a drug, which acts on the brain. In sufficient doses this drug induces confu-sion, disorientation, hallucinations and delusion. In my long experience working with Peace Corps returnees and other patients in their teens or early twenties, marijuana in sufficient doses has the capacity to trigger serious men-tal illness in susceptible persons. "These psychotic episodes, some of them lasting for months, would never have occurred had the person not been exposed to substantial amounts of marijuana. Although alcohol and marijuana act somewhat differently on the central nervous system, they are both toxins (or poisons). Just as people who don't drink alcohol don't get D.T.'s (delirium tremens), emotionally unstable people who stay away from marijuana in high doses reduce their chances of spending some time in a psychiatric hospital. It is true that some people can indulge in occasional or periodic use of marijuana without noticeable ill effects, but the emotionally unstable young who use it are playing Russian roulette." Who smokes pot? There is no classic pot smoker. Some are as young as nine years of age. Recently a pot smoker turned up in a Detroit home for the aged. He was celebrating his hundredth birthday. (He attributed his long life to "a shot of bourbon every day and a reefer [pot] whenever I felt like it.") In-depth interviews on college campuses turned up the following facts: At least half of the students admitted they tried pot at least once. (My own hunch is that the figure is closer to 85 percent.) Almost every student who said he had tried pot said he did because he wanted to be part of the scene or "to see what it was like." When asked if pot made them homy (interested in sex), most said no but some said yes. While talking to college students about pot, one interviewer noted a sharp division between the social smoker who lights up at weekend parties and the head who has made marijuana an impor-tant part of his life. These kids were as different as night from day. They not only looked different and sounded different, but they smelled different. Is marijuana physically addictive? There is almost unanimous agreement on this question. The answer is no for people using low doses on occasion as a recreational drug. But when the dose rises as with the use of hashish, some experts feel that dependence does occur in mild form. Dr. Francis Braceland, former President and Director, now Senior Con-sultant of the Institute for Living in Hartford, Connecticut, points out that marijuana can be psychologically addictive, and this may be as compelling a force as physical addiction. The desire to experience again and again the high feeling or the release of tension can be "habit-forming" in a very real sense. Some psychiatrists say the users who become psychologically hooked on pot are people who have difficulty handling their problems and had they started on alcohol, they would probably have become alcoholics. The real question is whether or not most marijuana smokers go on to use other drugs. The answer is no. Most marijuana smokers do not go on to harder drugs. But the facts when viewed from the other end of the telescope are a bit scary. Almost every survey and study reveals that approximately 90 percent of the heroin addicts when questioned about the history of their drug addiction say, "I started smoking pot." Is marijuana harmful? Smoking it probably carries the same lung risks as would occur with the use of an equivalent number of cigarettes. Driving a vehicle under the influence of pot is definitely dangerous. With higher doses (hashish) the risks of developing psychological dependence in-creases and psychotic episodes can occur. The most important factor is the emotional stability of the smoker. All au-thorities whom I respect agree that an emotionally healthy person who has a reasonably high degree of self-esteem will not get into serious emotional or physical trouble if he smokes pot on occasion with friends. The problem lies in the stability of the user. But if the dose and frequency increase, the risk of problems in functioning vocationally, socially and sexually increases exactly as is the case with other drugs. The most intact person in the world should not smoke hash or have two martinis and attempt to fly a jet. The strongest evidence of the harmful aspects of marijuana were cited by Dr. Harvey Powelson, chief of the Department of Psychiatry at the Univer-sity of California at Berkeley. Dr. Powelson said: "Five years ago I testified before the state legislature that marijuana was harmless. I have changed my mind. At that time my experience with users was limited and literature was sparse. Most of what I had read and heard led me to the conclusion that there was no proof of long-term harm. The Psychi-atric Clinic in Berkeley sees approximately three thousand students a year. My thinking began to shift when I noticed that formerly bright students were finding it difficult to concentrate, to memorize and to think straight. "They would insist that they were feeling things more acutely, getting unu-sual insights into situations and loving humanity more. But I could see no ev-idence that any of this was true when those students spoke to me. I heard patches of lucidity and sometimes brilliance. Suddenly they would fall into a hole of confusion and be unable to extricate themselves. A common state-ment from such a student: 'I am lost.' Or: 'I forget what I was trying to prove.' "I have now come to believe that the effects of marijuana are cumulative, that after a period of prolonged use, say, six months or a year, if pure marijuana is used in frequent dosage, chronic changes can occur which are similar to those seen in organic brain disease." A striking confirmation of Dr. Harvey Powelson's testimony was presented in a study by two Philadelphia psychiatrists, Dr. Harold Kolansky and Dr. William T. Moore. Their statement in the Journal of the American Medical Association reported that all thirty-eight patients in their study were ad-versely affected by smoking pot (lots of it, frequently). Of eight who became psychotic, four tried to commit suicide, and of the thirteen unmarried girls who became sexually promiscuous (some with other girls), seven became pregnant. Eighteen developed anxiety, depression, apathy and had trouble remembering and distinguishing fact from fantasy. None of the patients, who were from thirteen to twenty-four years old, used any drug but pot, and none had a history of mental illness. Some psychiatrists did not believe Dr. Kolansky and Dr. Moore had proved anything. One of the principal critics was Dr. Lester Grinspoon, a Harvard psychiatrist. He warned against "alarming reports based on slim data." He said, "Such reports widen the credibility gap between doctors and adolescents." Dr. Grinspoon, who believes marijuana should be legalized, strongly opposes the use of marijuana by teenagers. He said, "Many or-dinarily harmless drugs can set off a psychosis in people who have shaky egos, and in adolescence, a shaky ego is a normal condition of life." TAKING POT LUCK DEAR ANN: Please publish this for young people who think pot is so great: Philosophy of a Pot-Head- Or Nothing Matters My pockets are empty-SO WHAT? I owe everybody-LET 'EM WAIT. I have no job--LET OTHERS WORK. My car broke down-DAD'LL GET IT FIXED. I dropped out of school-WHO NEEDS IT? My life is a mess-ISN'T EVERY-BODY'S? But I have good friends-COP-OUTS LIKE ME. And I'm happy-AM I??? Yes, but give me a few minutes to get high first.

DEAR FRIEND,
I'm sure a lot of marijuana users will laugh their heads off and call the poem ridiculous, but now it seems pot is turning out to be riskier than ever. Lately I've been hearing from teen-agers who are getting Angel Dust mixed in with their pot. (Street dealers can be pretty scummy.) The kids are ending up in emergency rooms of hos-pitals, freaked out like you wouldn't believe. So-watch it, out there. Advice from Ann Landers- and I'm No Authority I'm Just a Columnist Who Happens to Love Kids and Cares What Happens to Them I have tried to present both sides of the marijuana story. You have here scientific data and opinions of physicians, academicians and psychiatrists, and some of them are poles apart in their thinking. Here's mine: At this writing, I am fifty-nine years old. People tell me I look like forty and I can tell you I feel like twenty-one. I believe my youthful appearance and enormous energy has a lot to do with the fact that I have never smoked cigarettes or messed around with alcohol or drugs. When I was a high school freshman (age fifteen) I realized God had been very good to me. He gave me a healthy body and a pretty good set of brains. I wanted to count for something-to make a contribution to society. I de-cided I needed all the energy and brainpower I could muster in order to make it in a competitive world. I made the decision then, at age fifteen, no booze, no drugs, no cigarettes. It was one of the best moves I've ever made in my life. I am opposed to any and all mind-altering agents, "drugs," "alcohol," whatever you call them, especially for teenagers. Pot can make you passive, lethargic, unmotivated and can be, if nothing else, a terrible waste of time. In the years (junior high and high school especially) when you should be absorbing knowledge, getting it all together, setting goals and planning your future, smoking pot will not help you see things more clearly. Some kids say they don't want to be the "oddball," that the social pres-sures to smoke are great, they need to be part of the crowd. My answer is: You will never be looked down on or respected less because you stuck to your principles. In fact, the opposite is true. They may call you "chicken" or a "nerd" but deep down, they will admire your independence. They know it takes guts to split with the crowd and go your own way. The final findings on marijuana are still being examined. My guess is that when all the clinical facts are in, it will be decided that for well-adjusted adults low-dose occasional use of pot is relatively harmless, and may even be a suitable relaxing agent, comparable to low-dose occasional use of alcohol. For others, it could be quite damaging. My advice is-leave it alone. Don't take any chances with your health or your head. You need them both. They are irreplaceable. There's a lot to be said for being in complete control of yourself at all times. I like the feeling. credit: Ann Landers. HALLUCINOGENS These drugs usually stimulate the brain before producing the depressant effect, but in addition they produce a false sensory experience, usually of a visual nature. Primitive tribes occasionally use these drugs but use in these societies does not result in abuse, for the occasions of use are controlled by traditions which prescribe certain times, usually religious ceremonies and certain group condi-tions, which result in control of the extraordinary experience undergone by those taking these drugs. We will discuss only a few members of this large class of drugs. LSD LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is a man-made chemical developed in 1936 by Dr. Alfred Hoffmann and a colleague, both chemists for Sandoz, Ltd., a Swiss pharmaceutical company. LSD is a derivative of ergot obtained from a fungus that grows on rye and wheat. This fungus is considered an ag-ricultural disease. In 1943, Dr. Hoffmann accidentally ingested LSD and here is his description of how it affected him: "I noted with dismay that my environment was undergoing progressive change. Everything seemed strange and I had great difficulty expressing my-self. My visual fields wavered and everything appeared deformed, as if I was looking in a faulty mirror. The faces of those around me appeared as gro-tesque, colored masks. I shouted half-insane, incoherent words. I was over-come by a fear that I was going crazy." LSD is a hallucinogenic drug and, like most illegal drugs, much of it is manufactured in underground laboratories-often the kitchenette of a chem-istry student's pad. This means a wide range of quality and no dosage guides. LSD is colorless and tasteless. It can be prepared in liquid form, powder, capsules or pills. Illicit peddlers can transport LSD in candy, aspirin, liquor or sugar cubes, and even on the backs of postage stamps. Known in the late sixties to the hippie cult as acid, a dose of 50 to 200 micrograms (no larger than the point of a pin) can produce a trip. Why do people take LSD? The early use of LSD was solely for investi-gation of schizophrenia and associated psychotic states. Its effects appeared to simulate the disassociation of the personality from the body which is char-acteristic of acute schizophrenia. The earliest glowing reports of its mood-al-tering and exciting extrasensory effects were first publicized by Aldous Huxley. Later Timothy Leary and a group of psychologists used LSD as a research tool in psychology at Harvard University and elsewhere. Leaving the world of reality and escaping to a dream state of screaming colors and total aban-don appealed to young students who were bored and having difficulty coping with daily problems. LSD became the "in-trip" as a result of Leary's endorse-ment and encouragement, which went far beyond accepted standards of aca-demic and research integrity. To date, the studies done on LSD indicate that most users tried it for the first time "to see what it was like" or "to understand myself better" or "be-cause I didn't want to be chicken." Some said they were in search of religious insights and were told that LSD would free them from the world of reality, which they decided was "rotten, corrupt, polluted and hopeless." The drug, they were told, would open doors to a world of creativity, exciting color, sound, fabulous geometric visions and unbelievable ecstasy. What are the physical effects of LSD? An average dose of LSD, which is no more than a tiny speck, can produce an eight-hour trip. The blood pres-sure and temperature go up, the heartbeat is accelerated and the pupils be-come dilated. Often the hands tremble, the palms become clammy, breathing is labored and chills develop. Waves of nausea sometimes occur. If the trip is a "good" one, it is called a "joyride" and the "passenger" comes down okay. If the trip is a "bummer" he will "think he has died and gone to hell"-in the words of a user who described his experience. Repeated LSD use is associated with tolerance if the doses are taken fairly frequently. This means the user will need a higher dose to get the same effect, but there is no development of physical or psychological dependence. Here is a letter from someone who has been there: