TOWNHALL MEETING: PANEL BLASTS POT LAW

The invited, then uninvited, leader of the B.C. Marijuana Party got an
icy reception at MP Mark Warawa's townhall meeting to discuss
marijuana and grow operations in Langley.

There were few surprises at MP Mark Warawa's marijuana townhall forum
on Wednesday night.

Panelists and the majority of the 200-plus people who came to listen
to them at Newlands Golf Club didn't want marijuana use
decriminalized, and instead wanted tougher laws and harsher penalties
for operators in the marijuana trade.

And everybody wanted grow ops out of their neighbourhoods.

The forum was divided into two sections. The first half of the evening
was directed at Bill C-17, legislation proposed by the federal
government to decriminalize personal marijuana use, while increasing
penalties for grow operators.

Panelists were: Dr. Darryl Plecas, a criminology instructor at
University College of the Fraser Valley; Kerry Bennington, filling in
for B.C. Solicitor General and Fort Langley-Aldergrove MLA Rich
Coleman who was unable to attend; and Christine Palmer, an addiction
counsellor at Langley Family Services.

Each explained, through their areas of expertise, why they felt Bill
C-17 is inadequate or inappropriate.

Plecas termed it "defeatist legislation." He said it was "no
deterrent, and no way to stop people from getting into drugs in the
first place."

During the ensuing question period, he was asked if Bill C-17's
"personal use" marijuana limit should be reduced from 30 grams to five
grams, or even two. His response was, "They should bring it down to
zero. I think this is an absolutely stupid bill."

Bennington reiterated Coleman's previous pronouncements that the
provincial government is opposed to decriminalization.

He was also concerned that the federal legislation could not work
without a great cost to the provinces. Proposed tickets for marijuana
possession offences will be disputed in provincial courts, he noted,
and it appears the federal government will offload the cost of
collecting fines, as well.

Palmer covered some health concerns related to marijuana use,
including its propensity to cause risky social behaviour including
impaired driving, many of the same health hazards of smoking tobacco,
and potential addiction for some users.

Marc Emery, initially invited by Warawa to join the panel, and then
refused a place at the table [Pot party's forum voice stifled, Mar.
29, Langley Advance News], showed up and attempted to make a case for
legalization during the question period.

The leader of the B.C. Marijuana Party, who plans to contest Coleman's
local seat in the legislature in the May election, garnered jeers and
boos by charging that the room was filled with hypocrisy.

"Everybody here uses dangerous substances," he said, citing everything
from poor diet, guns, and fast cars.

During the second question period, after a new set of panelists
discussed grow ops in Langley, Warawa ruled him out of order when he
again raised legalization as a way of undercutting organized crime's
hold on marijuana production.

The MP maintained that Emery was still discussing Bill C-17, which was
the topic of the first panel.

Emery was shouted down by the audience as he continued to try to make
the case that, if everyone was allowed to grow their own marijuana in
their backyards, grow ops would become obsolete.

But both police officers in the second panel discussion, Dave Fleugel
of the local RCMP drug squad and organized crime investigator Brian
Cantera, said the huge market for marijuana in the United States would
continue to fuel the demand for grow ops.

They also discussed the violence born of grow ops, as marijuana is
exchanged for guns and harder drugs in the U.S., and make their way
north of the border.

With medical technology improving, Cantera said, murder statistics
aren't rising - but attempted murders are increasing
significantly.

"We're saving their lives," he said.

Plecas spoke of the victimization of children, who are turning up at
hospitals with respiratory problems from pesticides and other grow op
residuals.

Entire families are found living in a kitchen, while the rest of the
house has been converted for marijuana production, he said.

Further to Township Assistant Fire Chief Len Foss's presentation on
the dangers faced when fighting grow op fires, Plecas noted that,
compared to an normal home, a grow op house has 24 times the risk of
having a fire, and on average, grow op fires cause twice the amount of
damage.