Word: grinspoon
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...that marijuana smoking did not actually initiate their problems. Other critics cite the small number of cases investigated by Kolansky and Moore and point out that school troubles, promiscuity, and psychosis often occur in adolescents who have never experimented with drugs. Among the doubters is Harvard Psychiatrist Lester Grinspoon, author of the heavily documented new book Marihuana Reconsidered. "This is an uncontrolled study. You can't tell which is cause and which is effect-the drug, the life style, or the psychological problem." He adds a warning against "alarming reports" about the presumed hazards of pot based on "slim...
...must be said, though, that the book gives the escapist and sensual aspect of dope-taking a fair hearing as already mentioned, though, Grinspoon's list of responses is overly comprehensive to the point of possibly confusing or frightening the non-user...
Dope-smokers have long argued that the only harmful aspect of marihuana use is the possibility of being busted. Grinspoon agrees, and Marihuana Reconsidered makes a strong case for the legalization of marihuana. Grinspoon argues that grass should be legally available to people over 18 years old in cigarettes of controlled potency. No attempt is made to contend that marihuana is actually beneficial. . Rather, the argument for legalization is based on Grinspoon's conclusion that cannabis is-both psychologically and physiologically-less dangerous than alcohol or tobacco...
...MARIHUANA Reconsidered will make a lot of people angry. Grinspoon ridicules researchers who perform studies on biased samples (for example, taking subjects from mental institutions instead of a cross-section of the population), and he derides government agencies such as the National Institute of Mental Health which propagate ignorance about drugs. (Remember the "Happy 21st Birthday Johnny" ads that showed a 30-year-old Harvard grad with make-up as a supposed speed-freak...
Most criticism of Marihuana Reconsidered will likely argue that it is still too early to decide about the dangers of dope since "all the facts aren't in." Grinspoon disagrees with this attitude, arguing that enough experiments have been done to create a "strong impression" of the relative (to tobacco and alcohol) safety of marihuana. Meanwhile, the harm to young people done by punitive legislation and the harm to legal institutions caused by attitudes of mistrust among dope users are more damaging than the social use of marihuana could ever...