CANNABIS PROHIBITION

Though I applaud The Province for allowing anti-prohibitionists to
have a voice, it is frustrating that there appear to be no counter
points being made.

For instance, one writer, Mr. Elrod, states that if you support
cannabis prohibition, you support violent criminals. One has to wonder
if Mr. Elrod also blames rape victims for their rape? Or that being a
violent criminal, and engaging in crime, is not a choice being made by
the perpetrator?

I would argue that the only person to blame in violence is the person
committing it.

What is never mentioned, in these so-called "conversations," is that
prohibition wasn't a failure. It actually worked. It took nearly 40
years for the alcoholism rates to reach the pre-prohibition levels
after it ended.

What will also never get mentioned are the significant and
well-documented health/mental issues involving cannabis. Sadly, it's
much easier to blame the police and the "war on drugs" than discuss
well-documented medical facts.

Or to discuss the real cost to society legalizing cannabis is going to
have from drug-related motorvehicle deaths and injuries, workplace
accidents, etc.

Shane Busch

Surrey