A CLOSER LOOK

If there is any reassurance or consolation to be taken from the horrible
tragedy last week, in which four RCMP officers were gunned down by a
lunatic on an Alberta farm, it's the fact the vast majority of Canadians
are shocked, and deeply sympathetic for families involved.

It speaks to the high regard we hold for Mounties, and police officers in
general, and the appreciation we have for the dangerous job they do on our
behalf.

Beyond that, however, the polarized debate that has resulted over grow ops
and marijuana laws is perplexing.

Howling for tougher sentencing for grow operators and pot trafficking makes
no sense under the circumstances, since the officers did not originally
arrive at the farm of James Roszko to bust a grow op, but to execute a
search warrant on suspected stolen auto parts.

In the course of that, the police discovered a number of pot plants and
seedlings.

Roszko was a nutcase with a violent history, a fondness for guns and a
hatred of police and other authorities. He was not some gang member
defending his grow op. He was a ticking bomb waiting for a time and place
to explode.

He finally did, taking the lives of four officers with his own.

How would this have been avoided under tougher pot laws?

There are many issues raised by this case, not least of which are the
quality of background information officers had on Roszko, the adequacy of
their training, the failure of the system in containing potentially violent
people, and the futility of the country's gun registration program.

Instead, the country is gripped in a fresh debate over what to do with the
burgeoning illicit pot trade.

That's not to say the discussion ought not to take place. It certainly
should, just not in the context of this tragedy.

The pot industry - largely gang-controlled - is massively profitable and
equally problematic.

Prohibition has not worked, here nor in the U.S., where tougher laws have
existed for decades.

There is simply too much money involved, and too many people willing to
take the risk.

I'm a law-and-order guy at heart. I think the justice system is weighted in
favour of criminals, and police are hamstrung by excessive civil rights and
burden of proof.

But even with improvements in those areas, I cannot believe the illegal pot
trade is going to be driven out of Surrey or anywhere else by stricter laws.

But let the debate carry on. Ultimately, there will be a creative,
contemporary solution.

Meantime, let's not lose sight of what occurred last week.

Four young men in uniform laid down their lives for their beliefs and
principles in the service of their fellow citizens.

For that we should honour them. And there's no debating that.