Sir, - Your correspondent Derek Burton, in his letter of March 1st, declares that he has had to endure "low-intelligence, lowlife idiots advocate the harmlessness of this evil" (cannabis). Besides the fact that many respected physicians believe that cannabis is harmless, especially when compared with tobacco or alcohol, there is a growing scientific view that it holds the key to alleviating the symptoms of many crippling diseases such as glaucoma, AIDS and MS.
Indeed, the finest poet of this century, W.B. Yeats, smoked hash to help him capture the Muse. When describing people as lowlife, Mr Burton would do well to consider misinformed arrogance as part of the profile. - Yours, etc.,
Mountain View Cottages, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.