From: NORML California <[canor m l] at [igc.apc.org]>

Drug Czar Lee Brown Spouts Reefer Madness
On Centennial of British Indian Hemp Drugs Report
(Nov. 1, 1894)

California NORML Press Release by Dale Gieringer (415) 563-5858

     October 28, 1994:  Almost 100 years to the day after the British
Indian Hemp Drugs Commission issued the first authoritative report
in support of legal marijuana, Drug Czar Lee Brown spewed forth ill-
informed fallacies about marijuana in a speech before the
Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America (broadcast  on CSPAN-2,
Oct. 29th 1 am PDT).
       The Drug Czar's opinion differed dramatically from that of the
Commission, whose 3,281-page report issued November 1, 1894
ranks as perhaps the most exhaustive survey of marijuana ever
conducted.  It concluded that "moderate use practically produces no
ill effects," "occasional use of hemp in moderate doses may be
beneficial [medicinally]," and "excessive use is comparatively
exceptional." It recommended to the British government that hemp
drugs not be prohibited India, but continue to be legally regulated
and taxed.
     In contrast, Czar Brown, an avowed prohibitionist, likened
marijuana to  "Russian roulette" and deplored the fact that many
youth do not think it is "very much harmful" and "dangerous."   Brown
called for better drug education, but went on to mangle and distort
the truth about marijuana at almost every point in his speech:

     Brown: "The marijuana used today contains anywhere from 10 to
25 times as much THC (its main psychoactive ingredient) as 20
years ago."
      Fact: According to National Institute on Drug Abuse potency
monitoring data, the average potency of marijuana is now around 3
to 4%, only twice what it was when the first accurate statistics
were recorded in the 1970s.  More potent varieties of marijuana,
including hashish, sinsemilla, hash oil, and medicinal tonics, have
been widely available for over a century.
     Brown:  "Marijuana can damage the central nervous system and
other vital organs."
     Fact:  There is no evidence for this.  Recent studies by the
National Center for Toxicological Research and SRI International
have refuted claims that marijuana causes brain damage in monkeys.
According to NIDA researchers, it is a myth that marijuana kills
brain cells or damages the reproductive system, as claimed by
President Clinton in an address to Framingham High School students
Oct. 20.
     Brown: "One year of heavy marijuana smoking causes as much
damage to the respiratory system as 10 to 20 years of cigarette
smoking."
     Fact:  There is no evidence for this.  Studies by UCLA doctors
Donald Tashkin and T-C Wu have found that one marijuana joint
equals about one to four tobacco cigarettes.   The long-term cancer
risk associated with marijuana smoking has not been established.
Unlike tobacco, marijuana probably does not cause heart disease or
emphysema.
     Brown:  Marijuana claims other innocent victims.  A recent
Maryland trauma study found  1/3 of accident victims had used
marijuana recently, and the National Transportation Safety Board
found 13% of truck drivers in fatal truck crashes tested positive for
marijuana.
     Fact:  This may be true, though neither study analyzed whether
marijuana actually caused the accidents in question.  However, what
Brown neglected to mention is that two major new driving studies
by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration have
both concluded that marijuana by itself is a relatively minor road
hazard compared to alcohol.  The first found alcohol in 51% of 1,882
fatal drivers versus marijuana in 7%, and noted there was "no
indication that marijuana by itself was a cause of fatal accidents."
The second found that marijuana's effects on driving are "relatively
small," and in no cases as severe as those of alcohol at .08% blood
concentration, the lowest legal limit for intoxication.
     Brown reiterated President Clinton's claim that "All illegal drugs
are dangerous," without saying whether this applies to legal drugs
like alcohol.
     He made no mention of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission nor of
the many other official reports that have endorsed decriminalization
of marijuana.

     FOR MORE INFO ON NOV. 1st
INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION CENTENNIAL CALL:
     Dr. Tod Mikuriya (510) 843-0279
     NORML: (202) 483-5500
     Dr. Lester Grinspoon (617) -277-3621
     Eric Sterling, Criminal Justice Policy Foundation:  (202) 835-9075



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