CANNABIZ NOT A MODEL ENDEAVOUR

Last week's CBC documentary CannaBiz made clear one can't consider the
medical marijuana industry without considering prohibition.

The major problem with considering medical marijuana as an economic
development opportunity or the small-time producer as a viable business
model is there's always a risk the marijuana being grown for patients will
end up on the black market.

We learned that there's no investigatory framework to ensure the producer
is only growing as many plants as he or she is allowed under Health
Canada's licensing system. Another thing we learned about from this film
was "rippers" - people who break into grow-ops and steal at gunpoint. Both
medical and illegal grow-ops are vulnerable to this, although illegal
operators don't have the option of calling the police. Apparently, this
once happened to Taylor, meaning his small operation run with good
intentions led to more marijuana on the black market - not to mention that
the people who are interested in ripping off grow-ops bring guns and
violence to our community.

The filmmakers also interviewed Sam Mallace, a grower who hopes to see his
medical marijuana product shipped to drugstores. Mallace's operation
certainly looked secure, but how secure is it when it's being driven
around by low-paid delivery drivers. How does Mallace plan to keep them
and the general population safe if the police don't have a handle on drug
criminals?

The current Conservative government has made it clear that ending
prohibition isn't going to happen under their watch. And even if there
were an end to prohibition in Canada, the United States would still exist
as a lucrative market for smugglers.

This documentary shows that if things are to change, it needs to start at
the top, not the bottom and those doing the decision making need a
comprehensive plan.