OTTAWA MUST SETTLE POT LEGALIZATION ISSUE

The brutal killing of four RCMP officers who died while investigating an
Alberta marijuana grow-op is bound to stir up debates over whether
marijuana should be decriminalized and how strict the penalties should be
for growing it in large amounts.

In the past, we have printed letters on our editorial page arguing both
sides, and eventually we drew the debate to a close because neither side
could convince the others of the rightness of its views and the points were
becoming repetitive.

Once again, we see the two opposing arguments printed on Friday's news
pages. RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli suggested police should not
only crack down on large marijuana-growing operations, but the government
should also re-examine the notion of decriminalizing possession of small
amounts of cannabis.

On the other hand, former Alberta senator Nick Taylor -- who once was the
province's Liberal leader -- told reporters the deaths of the four officers
shows once again that prohibiting marijuana doesn't work. "I'm not saying
that the four men would be alive if we had legalized marijuana," Taylor
said, "but I suspect they might be."

Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan says she will now consider tougher
penalties for those who set up large grow-ops. The federal Liberals are
proposing a marijuana decriminalization bill, and Justice Minister Irwin
Cotler will join McLellan in determining whether the bill will go far
enough in dealing with large-scale growers.

We urge McLellan and Cotler to take a very comprehensive look at their new
bill and we call upon the federal government to settle this debate once and
for all.

The argument over legalization or decriminalization of marijuana boils down
to this: One side claims there would be no violence and criminality if
people could grow marijuana for their own use. Prohibition, they argue,
lures criminals to the lucrative crime, therefore the drug should be
decriminalized. The other side argues that the violence and crime that
characterize the illegal drug trade are proof that marijuana should be
illegal and the courts should be tougher on those who use and sell it, not
more lenient.

While the nation has been distracted by the debate over same-sex marriage,
the federal government has been able to ignore matters that require real
leadership and making some difficult decisions, such as the scandals being
uncovered by the Gomery commission and such serious matters as the U.S. ban
on Canadian beef and the softwood lumber issue.

Whatever decision the government arrives at, it should at least have the
guts to make a ruling and then stick by it.

There are valid arguments on both sides of the issue, but we are not going
to make that call. It is the government's job to research the data on both
sides of the debate and to make a decision that it will enforce.

Four young police officers died violently because a lawbreaker living on a
lonely country road decided to grow some plants. Their deaths will be in
vain if the government cannot come up with a workable solution to the
marijuana debate. Ottawa cannot dawdle over the issue any longer. The
stakes have suddenly become far too high.