NEW DRUG STRATEGY SHOULD WORK

I never thought I would say it, but hats off to the federal
Conservative government. They saw a problem and took bold steps to
tackle it. Regardless of how I feel about Stephen Harper and his
crew, I have to respect that.

Harper's new anti-drug bill is going to handle an increasingly
serious problem - probably very effectively

For some time now, Vancouver Island pot growers have been growing
concerned about the price of their product. A crackdown at the U.S.
border has made it tough to get B.C.'s major export crop to market,
leading to a glut this side of the border.

Not all pot growers are economics majors, but most of them could tell
you that's going to mean the price is going to drop like a stone as
local producers have more product than the domestic market can
handle. It's pretty basic stuff.

It's also a major problem for pot growers. They have bills to pay and
families to feed.

And that's what it's really all about, isn't it? Money? Last time I
checked, people weren't hanging out on street corners at night
selling pot because of the high social status associated with being
the neighbourhood drug dealer. They do it because of the money. Lots
of it, a surprising amount, actually. When you consider the fact
marijuana is a weed which can grow pretty much anywhere on earth,
doesn't it strike you as odd its flowers are almost as expensive as gold?

There's a couple of reasons for that. First, naturally, there's a
market for it. People like it. It makes them feel good, and you
generally have to pay through the nose for things that make you feel good.

Second, it's illegal. This makes it a very risky business because,
quite apart from the mold, the mice, the slugs, the rabbits, the deer
and the ripoff artists, the pot grower has to deal with police - and
the possibility of all the heartache and hassle which follow from
getting busted.

Now, if the government really wanted to cut down on pot use, it seems
logical for it to attack one or both of those two branches. First,
disrupt the market. This has actually been done by the crackdown at
the border. B.C. People can grow kickass weed, but they can't smoke
all of it themselves. They need help from the U.S. With the market
flooded, local pot growers are seeing less bang for their hazardous buck.

Next, take the money out of the equation as much as possible.

Decriminalizing pot was aimed in this direction. Take away the big
risk and the price of marijuana would likely revert back towards
where it really should be - the price of a weed that can grow just
about anywhere - which ain't much.

If there's not much money, there's not much interest from organized
crime, either.

Pity the poor Island pot grower then, when it looked like the
Liberals were going to decriminalize pot and at the same time the
border with the U.S. slammed shut. What were they going to do? Take
up macrame and hang out at craft fairs? Maybe they could learn a
trade or something.

This wouldn't have just affected pot growers. Others make their
living out of the illicit dealing in drugs, too. RCMP drug
enforcement officers across the country could have been out of a job
if there were no grow ops to bust - which there wouldn't be if there
was no money in it. Well here's news flash for you: RCMP drug
enforcement officers have families, too.. What the heck were they
supposed to do?

Pretty bleak for them, I would think.

Decriminalization would have hit hard at the families of both pot
growers and RCMP drug enforcement officers - particularly in this
province. That's unacceptable, and Stephen Harper, bless him, knew it.

He tackled this one head-on, and kudos to him for it, I say.

This crackdown is going to send the price of pot - glut or no glut -
through the roof. The growers who manage to escape detection will be
in gravy. Not only that, I expect a hiring blitz for new RCMP drug
enforcement officers will be coming down the pipe - meaning possible
promotions for all those experienced veterans already on the force.

For some at least, good times could roll again in B.C.

Thanks Steve.