NEW POT LEGISLATION IS HALF-BAKED

Re: B.C. will need more jail space for pot growers, Nov. 21

On behalf of prosecutors, defence lawyers, the prison-industrial
complex and organized gangs all over the country, I would like to
thank the Stephen Harper government for making the pot industry more
profitable than it already is.

The "more illegal" a substance becomes, the greater the rewards that
stand to be gained by those who are willing to bear the increased
risks. Sure, the stiffer penalties will scare off some growers, but
they will likely be the ma-and-pa operators, single moms (just like
on the television show Weeds), and those growing small amounts for
personal use. Since it is typically only gangs and hardened criminals
who are willing to bear the risks, the Conservatives' legislation
will have the exact opposite effect of what was intended -- i.e., the
growth, sale and distribution of pot will fall even further into the
clutches of gangs, along with escalated violence and the collateral
damage that goes with it.

Nice going, Mr. Harper: If you want us to become more like the United
States -- with its high rate of incarceration and a federal prison
population of which two-thirds are drug offenders, yet with illicit
drugs more available than ever before -- you are on the right track.

Eric Lofgren

Vancouver