Letters for October 24, 2002

What I know to be true about marijuana:

I’m a mother of three, who went back to school in 1993 after I left my ex-husband. I graduated with honors.

I started smoking marijuana in 1969. I was in the eighth grade, and I still indulge.

Throughout the years I have gone months without smoking, I have never experienced “addictive withdrawls.” When I have pot, I only smoke after work or weekends. I do not believe in going to work or driving stoned. I find that pot is the best way for me to relax after a long day.

Having smoked for so long, I have come to several conclusions. The first is that there are many people who are better off smoking a joint than drinking, myself included. I have alcoholic tendencies. I black out, and I say and do things that are not nice. My ex-husband was an alcoholic. When he drank, he hurt me. When he smoked pot, he would eat a lot. Second, pot (like alcohol) affects people differently. Yes, some get “stupid,” others kick back and still others are not even affected by it. (My brother could smoke primo and not get stoned.) Third, I don’t get hangovers from pot, which is something that gets longer as I get older with alcohol. Fourth, marijuana was not a “lead-in drug” for me or anybody else I know that smokes it. Most of us started with cigarettes (I use to steal them from my parents at the age of 11), beer or wine (my first drink was before I ever smoked pot).

I have never understood why marijuana is illegal while tobacco and alcohol are not. I have lost many friends and relations to both of the latter. Not one person I know has died as a result of marijuana.

I am tired of hiding something I enjoy. The unfortunate part of pot is it stays in your system a long time. I didn’t smoke for months but I had a drug test come up dirty. I lost a job I really needed, and I had to go on welfare and food stamps to survive. This is something I was not proud of doing, but when you have kids what are your choices?

My children are out of the house now. I have a great job, a wonderful husband and life is good. But it could be better if I didn’t have to hide.

Name withheld
Verdi

It’s guilt, not race
Re “Bad Blood” [RN&R News, Sept. 19]:

The article covering the Boice trial in Carson City was very precise in giving all the details surrounding the trial, including the allegations that the Boice trial had become a racial trial.

The media is helping Boice with the strategy his defense has created to lessen his sentence by publishing articles that insinuate that the Boice trial is racist. The fact that the jury is composed of mostly Caucasians does not affect the outcome of their decisions since they are dealing with members from two different minority groups. The reality is that Boice committed a crime, and a crime should be punished with the same severity regardless of race. Race has nothing to do with this trial and that is why Boice is going to receive the punishment he deserves.

Claudia L. Ortega
Reno

Lottery’s not far-fetched
Re “A Plan From the Farside” [RN&R, Sept. 26]:

I think that David Farside’s idea of implementing a state lottery is a very good idea. It seems that it would be very beneficial to our state to have a lottery to gain more money for important issue that need more support, such as funding for schools.

This has the potential to significantly assist in fixing the state budget crisis that Nevada faces. This issue needs to be addressed before the governor raises taxes.

Lindsay Joseph
Reno

Help the homeless
Re “Waking Up In Reno” [RN&R, Sept. 26]:

I was glad to see support for building a homeless shelter in the RN&R. I agree that action should be taken to address the growing number of homeless people residing along the streets in Reno. I am a freshman student at UNR. Since I moved here a month ago, I have noticed a disturbing number of homeless walking the streets. In my first month here, I witnessed a man attempt to grab a bag from an elderly man in the middle of the day in a crosswalk on North Virginia Street. It seems an oxymoron to have a nice string of casinos and yet homeless people right and left. I’ve seen women sleeping in parking lots, and children roaming the streets at night. It’s the responsibility of the city of Reno to create a shelter for those who are down on their luck.

Larissa Motto
Reno