FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS DOUBLE STANDARD ABOUT MEDICINAL MARIJUANA

Dear editor,

It seems to me that our Canadian government has adopted a double
standard when it comes to the use of medicinal marijuana.

Even though marijuana has been proven to be a multi-purposed practical
natural medicine, and Health Canada has approved its use medicinally,
why then are Comox Valley residents having difficulty in obtaining a
doctor referral?

I believe that people should have the right in choosing the medicine
that works best for them. I believe that people, not government, know
which type of medicine allows them to enjoy an improved standard of
living.

Marijuana's illegal cost is undeniable.

It is well-known that billions of tax dollars dollars each year end up
underground, away from public coffers. Those same billions of dollars
could end up being tax revenue, could help decrease poverty, increase
the services of universal health care, improve social programs,
stimulate job creation, finance low-income housing, and pay into the
deficit.

Billions of dollars are needlessly wasted in clogging up the legal
system with archaic marijuana laws.

The current government is planning to spend billions of dollars to
build prisons when the crime rate is falling. Is there something wrong
with this picture?

The time has come Canadians to vote for a socially responsible
government in Canada. If we do not, then we have no one but ourselves
to blame.

Filipe Andrade,

Comox Valley