legal.

Mr. Curt Dawson, an admitted "old hippy'', said weed should be regulated the same way as alcohol -- although he says it is less harmful than drink.

And he attacked the Health Minister and drug counsellors for spreading "lies'' about the substance.

Mr. Dawson, of Bean Dale Road, Spanish Point, is 42 and married with two sons aged 11 and nine. He has his own business delivering yachts.

He spoke out after being "outraged'' by last week's claim by a US drug counsellor that marijuana can cause personality problems as bad as those caused by hard drugs.

The claim came from Mr. Paul Dromazos, a regular visitor to Bermuda who says he has discussed the subject with Health Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness.

Mr. Dromazos said: "I have seen many people using marijuana who were deeply disturbed human beings. It's not true that if the drug isn't as harmful, you are not as bad off.'' Mr. Dawson said teens would interpret such statements as meaning marijuana and hard drugs were basically the same. They would smoke marijuana, discover it had done them no harm, and want to try cocaine or heroin.

"He's going to cost some child his future because of his comments,'' he said.

Mr. Dawson also scorned the view that marijuana caused medical problems. Mr.

Edness has said long-term use can lead to heart attacks, while Mr. Dromazos believes weed is more dangerous to the lungs than tobacco.

"These allegations have been disproved by the American heart and lung associations,'' said Mr. Dawson. "The smoke problem is directly attributed to the amount you smoke, and nobody smokes 20 joints a day.'' He went on to ridicule claims the drug can cause laziness and erode motivation, re-stated recently by Mr. Edness and Addiction Services counsellor Mr. Bryant Richards, as well as Mr. Dromazos.

"This man Dromazos has ideas that were flushed down the drain 15 years ago,'' said Mr. Dawson. "I've been employed all my adult life. I've been using marijuana for 27 years and I go to work every day and do physical and mental labour.

"I would be pleased to sit down with the Times crossword with him and the clock running. I'd like to challenge this man.

"After 27 years these effects would have started by now. When you smoke marijuana you're in full control of your faculties. It does slow you down, but it goes away. It stays active for an hour or two.

"My mother told me when I was 17 that I could continue to smoke grass because I was a lot nicer when I'd been smoking than I'd been drinking. She called our family doctor and he said the only thing he could find wrong with it was that it was illegal.'' Mr. Dawson stressed he only uses marijuana off the Island: "I don't smoke in Bermuda because it's prohibitively expensive, it's hard to find, and the laws are draconian. I spend a lot of time delivering yachts, and I think at sea the captain is the final law.

"You can buy crack anywhere in Bermuda, and crack is a dangerous, dangerous, drug, but you can spend a whole evening looking for a bag of marijuana.

"It's bulky and it smells. Any dummy can find it, so people get busted.

Cocaine, heroin and crack are insidious drugs, but there's no reason for this heavy criminalisation of marijuana.

"It's screwing our tourist base. Something like 40 percent of Americans in my age group have smoked marijuana recently.

"Is it worth it to bust Joe Blow from New Jersey? The last word he ever wants to hear in his life is Bermuda.

"No-one has ever got crazed on marijuana and gone off and murdered families.

Drunks have, but no-one's talking about making drink illegal. "People from all walks of life in this Island smoke grass. Most of the people I know either do smoke, have smoked or don't mind if you do.'' Mr. Dawson called for marijuana to be available under the same classification as alcohol -- "although it's a lot less dangerous than alcohol''. He stressed that, like alcohol, marijuana should be kept away from children.

He predicted political fallout for Mr. Edness on the issue of mandatory workplace drug screening, which the Minister has backed for employees responsible for public safety.

"He's going to have a lot of trouble in the coming election,'' said Mr.

Dawson. "He's out of touch with reality. He's just using this whole drugs-testing strategy to get re-elected.''