TORIES TOUGH ON LESS CRIME

Re: Tory's tough stance on law and order justified - Minister of
Justice and Attorney General of Canada Vic Toews, NTW Sept. 6

Once again the Tories are governing with their ideology rather than
the facts. Common sense trumped by "belief."

Fact: In 2005, crime was down five per cent from the previous year.

Fact: Crime has been dropping steadily for about a decade, despite
the fact that our population has grown significantly in that time.

Fact: Mandatory minimum sentences are not proven to deter crime as
Toews asserts, and actually do more harm than good.

Fact: The more you "crack down" on drug producers or traffickers, the
more you drive up their profit margin.

Fact: The more drug dealers you jail, the more money there is for the
thousands that will never be caught.

Fact: Regulating all drugs like alcohol would thwart the gangs'
profit, and reduce property crime, sickness, gun-violence, and death.

Fact: Drug dealers carry guns, but bartenders and pharmacists don't.

But like any religious zealot, Toews "believes" in stricter
sentencing and more police enforcement and seems completely
unconcerned with "facts."

The fact that the Tories refuse to consider drug regulation leads me
to wonder just which side of the law these so-called "conservatives"
are really on. Exactly who or what are they trying to protect?

Russell Barth

Federal medical marijuana licence holder

Ottawa