Photo courtesy of www.sxc.hu
TO THE EDITOR:
The December 4, 2009 edition of Inklings contained a front page article entitled, “Smoker’s Choice.”
While I know the intention of the article was neither to promote the use of marijuana nor to condone its use, some adults in the community who have seen the article have contended that it appears the article does just that, i.e., it encourages marijuana use as an alternative to the smoking of cigarettes.
I am writing to encourage you to prepare a follow-up that succinctly expresses your intent, which was simply to report the results of a random poll of students attending Staples High School, and was not designed to advocate the acceptability of marijuana use among students.
In fact, within the article, contrary to the perception of the critics, you make clear that “today’s marijuana can be nearly five times more powerful and dangerous than what was smoked in the seventies….[leading] to higher addiction rates.”
I believe it important that you assert publicly in the next publication of Inklings that it is a commonly held belief among students and the administrative, teaching and support staffs at Staples High School that both marijuana use and cigarette smoking are harmful to one’s health and should be avoided.
John Dodig,
Principal of Staples High School
Dr. Elliott Landon,
Superintendent of Westport Schools