VANCOUVER MAYOR BACKS LEGAL POT

Federal government needs to take a hard look at the best way to manage
marijuana

A City of Vancouver report, with the backing of Mayor Larry Campbell, is
calling for the legalization of marijuana -- not just "decriminalization" as
proposed by legislation stalled in Parliament.

If this wins the backing of city council next week and survives six or seven
months of public scrutiny and "input," the proposal could end up in the lap
of Prime Minister Paul Martin -- assuming he has survived during that period
as well.

Just think of it: Canada's third-largest city, with the highest drug problem
in the land, advocating that possession of pot should be legal, and its
production regulated and taxed, just like anything else. It would put Martin
in a tight spot, having promised to bring Canada's cities into the
decision-making process in Ottawa.

He said on Monday that he will consult mayors before every budget, and that
cities should "help establish the objectives of the nation" and "guide where
we as a country are going." It's not likely that he was anticipating the
kind of guidance that Campbell offers.

Putting aside the political fallout of telling the mayor to stick to things
like roads and sewers and supervised injection sites, the feds should keep
their knees from jerking and give this a thought. For Campbell has some good
points.

Removing the threat of a prison sentence and criminal record from anyone
found with small amounts of marijuana, and subjecting them to simple fines,
like traffic tickets, while increasing penalties for trafficking, sends a
mixed message -- "that it (pot) is OK, but that it's a crime to obtain it."

Making pot legal would allow teachers and others trying to prevent drug
abuse to talk to teenagers about it realistically, the way they talk about
the dangers of alcohol and cigarettes now.

The attitude so far has been to say that since it's against the law to smoke
marijuana -- even though 225,000 teens are doing so every day -- they can be
told only: "Just say No." Teaching moderation in the use of a substance that
many health professionals say does less harm than alcohol and cigarettes is
impossible if that condones law-breaking.

Furthermore, prohibiting marijuana and other illegal drugs hasn't reduced
their availability or prevented the harm that results from their abuse.

It means governments can't regulate drugs and ensures profits for criminals.

The Canadian Senate recommended in 2002 that marijuana possession should be
legal. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Mary Southin has observed that if the
courts find marijuana use doesn't pose a serious risk, there's no reason
Parliament should regulate its use at all, and provinces should regulate it
as they do liquor.

And although the Supreme Court of Canada found in 2003 that Parliament has
the authority to prescribe criminal or other sanctions against the use of
cannabis, since its health risks are not "insignificant or trivial," three
of seven justices on the case said the government hasn't shown pot causes
serious enough harm to justify criminalization.

The government's proposal to remove criminal sanctions for possession of
minor amounts is refreshingly more progressive than the majority on our top
court. It's a recognition that public opinion is realizing that the current
anti-pot regime just doesn't work.

It's probably too much to expect this minority government to push boldly
ahead with its marijuana legislation. But when it, or a successor, is
emboldened to try, it should realize that what it proposes is but the first,
cautious step along the way that Campbell is offering to guide the country.

His proposal deserves open and widespread discussion. Even if our society is
not ready to adopt it overnight, it should not be pushed aside out of fear
of offending American law-enforcement authorities or outmoded sentiments
like that expressed in the 1938 Toronto Star headline: "Marijuana smokers
seized with sudden craze to kill."

Legally obtainable marijuana is a concept that is growing as rapidly as any
weed. It can no longer be nipped in the bud.