DON'T RAISE KIDS IN A DRUG HOUSE

Question: What kind of a mother would bring her children up in a pot
factory? Answer: One who doesn't deserve to have kids.

That may seem like a harsh indictment of the Richmond woman who
earlier this week was arrested in connection with a marijuana grow
operation on Bridgeport Road that became targeted by grow rippers.
But when one considers the risks associated with drug houses, any
parent who would bring her children up in one is, in our view, unfit
to care for children.

First, there are the environmental and health risks associated with
growing pot. Power sources are usually rerouted in grow-ops, which
pose serious fire hazards. The heat and moisture in grow-ops can
cause mould and mildew to flourish, which cannot be good for small children.

But more importantly - as Wen Yan Wu found out to her horror earlier
this week - grow-ops are frequently the targets of home invasions.
What parent in their right mind would subject their kids to that kind of risk?

We should point out that Wu has only been charged so far in
association with the grow operation. She has not yet been found
guilty. But authorities have found it necessary to take her children,
aged two and three, into custody.

In some cases, operators of grow-ops are desperate for money. Many of
those who tend grow-ops don't own their properties. That's not the
case here. Wu owns the house that contained the grow-op, and it's no
shack. So we're not buying any pleas of poverty that might be made.

There really is no excuse for subjecting children to the dangers of a
drug house. Her only excuse may be that, in Canada, she thought
running a drug house really isn't a serious crime.

Sadly, judging by the courts, she would be right.