HIGH TIME

WHEN it comes to the legalities around medical marijuana,one wonders
what Canada has been smoking.

Our country's policies toward cannabis have always been
half-baked,but in the last few years, they've taken a turn for the
downright bizarre. The absurdity of our current situation was
underscored this week by the planned opening of a medical marijuana
dispensary in Deep Cove. As the authors of the North Vancouver bylaw
aimed at killing the project have pointed out,the facility has no
legal right to open its doors. In fact, no one in Canada -- including
the dozens of dispensaries that operate quietly across the country --
are legally allowed to do so.

When it comes to marijuana, the federal government is a snake with
two heads. One head, recognizing that the plant is a benign
alternative to certain more harmful prescription medications,has
licensed close to 10,000 sick Canadians to use it and a handful of
growers to produce it. The other, beset by groundless fears of
epidemic weed smoking, has refused to allow anyone to distribute it,
giving many legitimate users no real alternative but to break the law.

Given the choice between sending sick people to a regulated store run
by law-abiding citizens and forcing them to buy from violent,
multi-billion dollar crime syndicates, Ottawa has opted for the latter.

To call the system irrational is an understatement. Our leaders need
to show some courage, set ideology aside, and begin the long-overdue
process of fully legalizing and controlling this substance.