From: [huff 0013] at [itlabs.umn.edu] (Brian Huff)
Newsgroups: alt.drugs.pot,alt.drugs.pot.cultivation,rec.drugs.cannabis,rec.drugs.psychedelic,talk.politics.drugs
Subject: Re: So called "gateway drug" study
Date: 9 Jul 1997 18:16:02 GMT

Well, I went to the library and read all three articles in Science, and I
can say with a great deal of certainty that the researchers are mistaken
when they use their findings to demonstrate that marijuana is far more
dangerous than previously thought.

They themselves admit that no study has ever been able to get a lab animal
to self-administer marijuana or THC, which is the typical and universally
accepted definition of addiction.  They were able to prove two things...

One:  dopamine levels increase around the shell of the nucleus accumbens
after marijuana consumption.  The same is true for cocaine, morphine,
heroin, nicotene, and amphetamines.  They then make the false conclusion
that marijuana could be as addictive as the above drugs.  A causality is
NOT formed from a mere correlation... most sceintists agree to this.
However, in a nebulous region such as the brain, a correlation is as good
as it gets most of the time.

Two:  chemicals related to, but not necessarily caused by, withdrawl
symptoms are at higher levels than normal after a simulated cold-turkey
break from simulated long-term use.  These chemicals can cause great
stress, and in this "weakened" mental state, they assume one would be
more vulnerable to other forms of addiction.  In my opinion, these
conclusions are merely of acedemic interest, and are of little use in real
life.  If actual long term use and actual cutoff were used instead, the
researchers indirectly admit that the results would be almost impossible
to notice.

Artificial reproduction of withdrawl symptoms cannot possibly be used to
conclude that marijuana is addictive... maybe if no other research were
available I would tend to err on the side of caution and recommend that
marijuana be restricted.  However, there is a great body of evidence that
these researches admit to which demonstrates the non-addictiveness of
marijuana, and the complete inability to observe any withdrawl symptoms.

I do not believe that this research in any signifigant way supports the
gateway hypothesis.  However, it will be very detremental to the drug
rights movement.  Just when we think this myth is on its way out, more
"proof" surfaces that it is the case.

well, I've talked enough...

--

-- Brian Huff
[huff 0013] at [itlabs.umn.edu]

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When they took the fourth amendment, I was quiet because I didn't deal drugs.
When they took the fifth amendment, I was quiet because I wasn't a criminal.
When they took the second amendment, I was quiet because I didn't own a gun.
Now they've taken the first amendment, and I can say nothing about it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------