POT ARGUMENT WASTES OUR TIME

Oh for God's sake, legalize the stuff.

I am much weary of the whole marijuana argument; it does nothing but
promote time-wasting discussions at dinner when other more sensible
things could be debated, like the merits of Canadian literature or
whose butt is more attractive, that which belongs to Antonio Banderas
as opposed to that which is attached to Russell Crowe or what might
have happened if Hitler had not insisted on fighting the Second World
War on three separate fronts.

Marijuana is not heroin; neither is it cocaine.

The point is that for all the energy we put into tracking down
cannabis criminals, we could be using that same amount of time
fighting against those who troll our schools seeking to hook kids on
hard drugs. However, I hasten to say that this is not a column about
legalizing anything but marijuana -- I have no intentions of getting
myself mired in an argument over whether all drugs should or should
not be legalized. I leave that to others.

This is a column about marijuana, the legalization
thereof.

I am for it.

And yes, I did inhale. Don't now, but did. And it was fun while it
lasted. And I'd hate to think I could have gone to jail for getting
high, for buying marijuana, for sharing marijuana. Moreover, I'm not
interested in seeing the people who grow the stuff going to jail, either.

Something else I'm bored with is silly arguments over whether
marijuana is "good" or "bad."

It is neither. Just like booze.

Both marijuana and booze are simply there, to be used not at all,
sparingly, moderately or excessively; they can be used recreationally
or medicinally, for fun or as an excuse. Yes, they can be misused. So
can food, shopping and sex. In fact, almost anything can be overdone,
especially by those of us who tend to be obsessive or who have what
may be called an "addictive personality."

A friend in Vancouver can't seem to stop gobbling chocolate bars, a
fact which has resulted in a rise in his weight and his cholesterol --
but neither he nor his doctor is considering petitioning the feds to
outlaw chocolate. I had trouble with drinking and had to stop --
haven't had a drink in over 10 years -- but I'm not about to tell
anyone else to stop, nor am I interested in banning booze.

Alcohol can be dangerous, people can die from alcohol poisoning yet,
other than during prohibition, nobody ever suggests we make drinking
or selling booze a crime -- unless of course we're talking about
selling liquor to kids.

As for addictions -- how about gambling? Or again, booze. Or food.
There's exercise, there's not eating or anorexia. These are among the
substances or habits to which people may become addicted and none of
them is illegal, nor should they be.

And then there is the biggest addiction of all -- tobacco. If I had to
choose a substance to outlaw, it would be tobacco. Not marijuana.

You want addictions? I'll give you addictions.

Anybody who's ever tried to quit smoking can define addiction -- it is
tobacco. Quitting cigarettes was the hardest thing I've ever done in
my life. Desisting from drinking was nothing in comparison. Yet the
bottom line is I don't want tobacco outlawed, either. Let's just
regulate its usage to the point where those of us who want to eat
dinner in a smoke-free restaurant can do so.

The Canadian Police Association does not agree with anything I've just
written.

"When illicit drugs are legalized, drug usage increases, the demand
for chemical drugs increases and crime increases," said Dale Orban,
the group's spokesman at a recent press conference.

With all due respect to the some 30,000 boys and girls in blue who
make up the association, I have two things to say: 1) Phooey and 2)
The Association of Canadian Police Chiefs and some RCMP officers are
on record as having recommended decriminalization.

Besides, this is an attempt to drag out the old slippery slope
argument, the one-thing-leads-to-another prediction.

Drinking buckets of milk and barrels-full of coffee did not lead me to
drinking too much beer -- at least I don't think so ... maybe I'm
wrong. I'll have to rethink that one.

Where was I? Oh yes, let's criminalize tobacco. Or was it, let's bring
back prohibition?

Poverty is a problem. War is a problem. The plight of women in
Afghanistan is a problem. Addiction is a problem.

Marijuana isn't.

Let's all get a grip here and legalize the damned stuff.

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Lyn Cockburn can be reached by e-mail at lcockburn@wpgsun.com