MANITOBA HAS SOMETHING TO TEACH US ABOUT YOUTH GANGS

Re: Boycott weed, stop gang violence, by Ed Watson, Issues & Ideas,
Feb. 20 I don't understand the logic of this op-ed piece about
boycotting marijuana to put a halt to gang violence. As the saying
has it, "those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Alcohol prohibition in the 1920s paved the way for gangsters to cash
in on a product everyone still wanted, regardless of its illegality.
Today we are experiencing the same problems, yet, as mind-boggling as
it is, some choose to point fingers at the consumer, rather than the
root of the problem.

As long as we continue having a black market that flourishes due to
archaic laws, we will experience these issues that come along with it.

Von Jeppesen

Oakville, Ont.