POT SHOTS SLAM GRITS

Alberta Massacre Lights 'Grass' Fire

THE FORMER high school principal and retired parole board member was
visibly shaking at the microphone of the Liberal policy convention,
passionately arguing the need for tougher prison sentences for marijuana
growing operations. Most of all, Garth Goodhow was madder than hell at
mainly young Grits who were calling for the legalization of pot "when four
Mounties have just been killed upholding the laws."

"It's absolutely beyond belief," Goodhow seethed as he watched the Little
Libs perform their mass-mischief at this weekend's party policy conflab in
Ottawa.

"It's just incredibly insensitive to do this two days after four Mounties
were murdered," said the retired but definitely not retiring Goodhow, on
this day a decidedly grumpy old guy from North Bay.

Based on his experience with the parole board, I asked him, would tougher
laws on grow-ops have altered the dreadful tragedy that befell four young
RCMP officers in Alberta?

"Probably not," Goodhow readily conceded, noting that what killed the four
officers was a crazy man with a gun and a hatred for police, not a doper
trying to protect his pot crop.

No matter. A Liberal party voting to legalize marijuana before the four
slain officers are even in their graves, he said, "is just plain dumb
politically ... Can you just see the headlines tomorrow?"

Welcome to the wacky politics of marijuana, an issue more complex than
missile defence.

And if it is managed with the same clarity, deftness and communications
skills that Paul Martin's government has shown on other issues to date, the
pot debate is also headed for no end of smoke.

On the one hand, some argue convincingly that the best way to put grow ops
and their underworld bosses out of business is to legalize pot, and
regulate its production and distribution.

The parallels to the days of booze prohibition are obvious -- the violence,
the organized crime, its ultimate failure.

Polls have shown a lot of Canadians would support such a move, or don't
much care.

But a lot of Canadians are vehemently opposed to making pot legal -- among
them plenty of police, doctors, teachers and other professionals with
influence on public opinion.

There is also the not-so-minor matter of the current U.S. administration
that has already let Canada know that legalizing pot in this country could
be one fast way to create paralysis at the border.

Bottom line is the Martin government has no intention of legalizing pot.

Public Security Minister Anne McClellan made it clear yesterday that the
legalization of grass isn't happening on her watch.

"Young Liberals are young Liberals -- they are good organizers and they
have a right to put their resolutions on the floor," she said in an
interview yesterday.

"But the policy of this government is we do not support the legalization of
marijuana."

What it does support is decriminalizing the use of pot.

A bill currently before parliament would make simple possession of small
amounts of grass -- less than 15 grams or about enough for that many joints
- -- punishable by a fine of up to $400.

It would still be illegal to smoke up, just not criminal.

According to Statistics Canada and the latest RCMP criminal intelligence
reports, about 4.5 million Canadians broke the law and smoked dope during
the past year, including about a third of all students. Given those
figures, the government has wisely concluded that making simple possession
of pot a criminal offence has done little but give an estimated 600,000
Canadians criminal records.

Legalization or decriminalization, one thing is clear from this weekend's
Liberal gathering: Where there's smoke, there's political fire.