UP IN SMOKE

Unreason Prevails In The Case Of The Cannabis Cafe

I want to support Jim and Lynn Wood, really I do. I think the owners of the
Cannabis Cafe are getting a raw deal from the cops and the courts for
selling marijuana to consenting adults.

After all, we live in a liberal society and people should be allowed to
mess themselves up any way they choose, within reason.

I think most Saint Johners think the way I do - kind hearted, live and let
live types who see nothing wrong with marijuana use. Heck, we even
occasionally enjoy pot ourselves and we're eager to see it legalized.

We should be the ones quick to support the Cafe and it's beleaguered owners
in the struggle to legalize marijuana.

But the debate leaves us dazed and confused.

Wood was found guilty on February 21 for trafficking in marijuana, after
Provincial Court Judge Murray Cain rejected her defence of running a
compassion club. At the time of her arrest last spring, the cafe had a
membership list of about 150 people, some of which had authorization from
the federal government to possess pot for medicinal purposes.

The businesswoman claimed that she was operating out of empathy for the ill
and hurt. Judge Cain decided Wood was driven by another motivation and
found her guilty of trafficking.

But somehow I think there is something bigger here than our conflicted
views about pot use. Its time Saint John re-examined its attitudes towards
pot use. The rest of Canada clearly has.

According to a survey released by Statistics Canada last year, an estimated
three million people aged 15 or older reported that they used marijuana at
least once in 2002. About 10 per cent reported they had smoked pot on a
weekly basis, and another 10 per cent said they used it daily.

It is a trend reflected by pop culture. Flick on the television set or
listen to the radio and you would think we were in the Age of Aquarius all
over again. Shows like That 70s Show have built a running gag around
smoking pot in your parent's basement. Grammy award winning rap artist 50
Cent proudly boasts about getting stoned. Even 70s comedians Cheech and
Chong are getting back into the act.

The Abbot and Costello of High Times have recently announced plans to
reunite after a twenty-year hiatus and shoot another movie. At a press
conference they joked the film would be called Lord Of The Rings.

Even our political leaders can't decide on a course for the county. The
federal government seems so forgetful when it comes to pot that it leaves
people wondering if something is being slipped into the brownies in the
House of Commons.

In February 2004, the Martin Liberals introduced legislation making
possession of 15 grams punishable with a fine. The bill passed first and
second readings in the House of Commons. But it died a quiet death during
the lead-up to last spring's federal election.

Fortunately, for people like Wood, the legislation was reintroduced last
November and is once again before Parliament for debate. God only know when
it will pass.

In this atmosphere of fumbling and puffing is it so far-fetched to expect
someone like Wood to step up and try to fill a public demand? It seemed
almost a matter of time before local business jumped on the marijuana
bandwagon.

The reality is that pot is not a harmless drug - studies have linked heavy
use to cases of emphysema, lung cancer and schizophrenia. Doctors advise
pregnant or breastfeeding mothers to avoid pot out of fear of damaging the
newborn's neurological development. And studies in the UK have linked
diseases like Alzheimer's with heavy pot use during teen years.

But most Canadians support the medicinal use of marijuana and few people
would argue against decriminalization, largely because we live in a liberal
society. We consider it a right to be able to eat, drink - and smoke - our
way to perdition.

In May, Lynn Wood will appear once again before the court and Judge Caine
for sentencing.

Until then, Wood and her lawyer are considering appealing her conviction
based on the Charter.

I'm betting we won't see this case disappear in a puff of smoke.