POT USERS 'STUPID,' SAYS PUBLIC SAFETY MINISTER

OTTAWA -- Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan said Tuesday the
government is committed to eradicating marijuana grow operations, and
that people who smoke pot are "stupid."

"I see grow-ops as one of the single biggest problems we face in our
communities -- they do represent a serious threat to public safety,"
McLellan told Canada's first national conference on the illicit operations.

She suggested delegates at the RCMP-hosted event embrace further
integration of law-enforcement agencies to better combat large-scale
cultivators.

McLellan denied the Liberal government's move toward decriminalizing
marijuana was counter-productive to the objectives of the conference.

"The message, whether it's from me, whether it's from the minister of
justice, the minister of health, is that marijuana continues to be
illegal in this country, and you're pretty stupid, in most cases, if
you smoke it."

She further stated "the jury's still out," when it comes to the drug's
medicinal effects.