THE ONLY ANSWER TO DRUG PROBLEMS IS A COMPLETE END TO PROHIBITION

Editor:

I have noticed that many Canadians seemed more upset about Dana
Larsen's (former NDP candidate in West Vancouver) involvement with
coca and poppy seeds than with the cannabis seeds.

It's a misplaced concern there, for sure; however, Canadians were
rightfully concerned about Larsen's drug use while at the controls of
a moving vehicle on a public road. My guess is that he was young and
trying desperately to get the public's attention.

Who amongst us has never driven under the influence of something like
alcohol, pain killers, sedatives or when sleepy or distracted? Larsen
is absolutely correct in that all seeds and products of nature are a
free individual's birthright.

The "don't drink and drive" approach should be applied fairly to all
intoxicants. Period. No other drug prohibition can be seen as fair,
given alcohol's legal status. Public safety is our only legitimate
concern.

Legalize cannabis, sell it from the corner booze store and turn every
grower into a tax-paying citizen. Methamphetamines, sedatives, cocaine
and opiates could be, and should be, dispensed under medical
supervision and then the harm from them could be minimized.

It would be the end of drug wars, the end of gangs, of grow homes and
meth labs, and of all of the side effects of prohibition. Just like in
the days of Al Capone, rum runners, bootleggers and speakeasies, it
would all come to an abrupt end.

The 17 tons of cocaine, found in the submarine that shared the news
headlines with Larsen, represents a drop in an unstoppable ocean of
drugs. Legitimize all drugs immediately.

All cocaine and opiates should be purchased in their entirety every
year to answer the world's need for drugs and to end the supply of
cash feeding the extremists and drug profiteers.

The educated among us know that nature is not to be mindlessly feared.
Cannabis, coca, and opiates come from plants. Think of all of the
famous artists and writers who used drugs to gain insight into the
nature of consciousness.

Are we going to negate all of those experiences such as Huxley's Doors
of Perception (about LSD), Coleridge's Kubla Khan (about opium), and
all of the other great drug-induced works? Prohibition itself, just as
with alcohol during the 1920's, is the only true problem.

As a public school teacher for the last 30 years, let me assure all of
my fellow Canadians that the present confusion over drugs is a proven
recipe for continuing disaster. Let's move on with new, logical
policies for the 21st century. Live and let live.

J.D. Bourgeois,
Surrey

Editor's note - The writer is a former candidate with the Marijuana
Party.