`HARMLESS' DRUG DEADLY BUSINESS

Four men are dead following an attempt to shut down an operation growing
what the federal government proposes is no big deal for adults to possess.
What's wrong with this picture?

With the decriminalization of marijuana, if the federal Liberals still hope
to make it so, there will be even more demand for the drug, resulting in
more opportunity for criminals and more illegal grow-ops across the
country, which will result in more police officers being put in danger when
it comes time to shut down such operations?

How can you on one hand encourage more people to smoke it through
decriminalization, while on the other hand crack down on those who grow it
as a business? It's not as if the passive, weekend-only pot smoker is going
to spend the rest of his or her time growing his own supply.

When the Liberals unveiled their plan to decriminalize marijuana, they
tried to pass it off as something progressive, that it was akin to ending
Prohibition.

Former Prime Minister Jean Chretien even joked, "Perhaps I will try it when
it will no longer be criminal. I will have my money for my fine and a joint
in the other hand."

While many of us laughed at his foolish comments, a lot of people laughed
smugly with him, as if we were some sort of superior country and everything
would be rosy once we allowed people to freely get high.

Don't try and argue that legalizing the weed will result in sunny skies and
no deaths. Don't kid yourself, there is still a huge market to the south of
us that is too enticing for criminals and grow-ops will continue. And
officers will be put in harm's way trying to eradicate the producers.

As the Toronto Sun noted: Suddenly Jean Chretien's jokes about taking up
pot smoking once the Liberals decriminalized it don't seem so funny, do they?