Using Drugs

I beg to differ with letter writer Debra Dresbach (Jan. 17) regarding drug usage. Whether her friends earn six-figures or more--or less--while partaking of drugs gauges nothing but their ability to earn money despite being stoned, a scant and dubious measure of success or happiness in life.

To paraphrase, of those who “dabbled in cocaine in the ‘70s”: the strong ones abstained, the weak ones dabbled and the sick ones became addicted.

Saying that drug availability does not determine usage is like saying gun availability does not determine shootings. It’s self-justifying nonsense.

PHYLLIS SPIVA

Santa Monica