THE FOLLY OF THE WAR ON DRUGS

Editor:

Mandatory minimum sentencing is an insult to our judges.

Judges, who have extensive education and years of experience in the
justice system, are going to be dictated to by our federal government.

What Ottawa is saying to our judges is that it doesn't trust them to
make an informed decision.

Heaven forbid a judge might give a youth a break instead of a criminal
record.

Mandatory minimum sentencing is a step toward the American-style of
war on drugs. The Americans have spent trillions of dollars on the war
on drugs since 1982.

The results? More people are using illegal drugs than ever before,
street drugs are cheaper now than in1982 and a half-million people
have been criminalized simply for possession of marijuana.

It is time we recognized that addiction is a disability and needs to
be treated as such.

The Conservatives' Bill 26 is a waste of taxpayers money, and a
mistake.

We need to legalize all drugs.

Ken Salter

Kamloops