GROW-OPS SEED VIOLENCE

Cultivators Need Pruning No Matter How You Feel About Pot

Calgary's power bills contained more than the usual demand for cash this
past week, with the city stuffing a pamphlet on pot growing into the
envelope as a bonus.

It's not a how-to guide on farming weed, as some might wish -- instead, the
city is hoping concerned neighbours will help them crack down on rampant
home-based hydroponics, an indoor industry of which Calgary is now
considered one of the world's cultivation capitals.

The city's plan is sound, so long as it's Mr.-and-Mrs. Law-and-Order who
open the bill, read the pamphlet, and are encouraged to spy on the
neighbourhood for closed curtains and foggy windows.

The problem is, too many people in this city sympathize with those who
regularly purchase Zig-Zag rolling papers -- even if they aren't personally
putting Bic to bong, a lot of Calgarians believe pot is a harmless bit of
herbal recreation.

I have to agree -- for me, marijuana is unpleasant and best avoided, but I
have nothing against any of the many people I know who enjoy the stuff.
Personally, I find cigarettes more noxious, and as far as drugs go, there
are jittery caffeine addicts out there who are far more worrisome and
desperate than any pot smoker.

It wasn't so long ago that I counted myself with the many Calgarians who
not only believe marijuana should be legal, but that police should back off
and leave pot farmers alone.

And while I remain on the side of making weed the legal equivalent of beer,
my opinion on home-based growing operations has totally changed.

Those who imagine indoor pot farmers as Cheech-and-Chong type characters,
cultivating bud in tie-dyed Grateful Dead shirts, as I did, are way off.
Most of Calgary's marijuana industry is now in the hands of organized crime.

The other misconception is that the pot grown here is smoked locally -- in
fact, most of Calgary's cannabis is sold in the U.S., where prices for the
THC-laden product approaches that of premium drugs like cocaine and heroin.

A lot of the money made off pot sales comes back to Alberta in the form of
hard drugs, like crack-cocaine, while other profits are invested in
crystal-meth operations, and the weapons needed to protect them.

Add to that the destructive nature of growing operations -- houses worth
hundreds of thousands are ruined, then sold to unsuspecting buyers complete
with mould and rot -- and Calgary is in the midst of a serious crime wave.

"These are not mom and pop grow ops -- it has nothing to do with
decriminalization," says Staff Sgt. Trevor Daroux, head of the city's drug
squad.

"Organized crime sees marijuana as high profit-low risk, and uses the money
to fund other activity."

Growing awareness of the pot operations, as well as a combined effort with
other police forces, helped Calgary police seize $101.6 million worth of
weed last year, nearly double the haul of 2003. At the same time, more than
960 tips poured in, compared to 430 in 2003.

And though more people are starting to realize pot growing is more than a
harmless hobby, others refuse to open their bloodshot eyes to the cannabis
crime wave.

Maybe a look at the most recent crime statistics for Calgary would change
their minds -- in every category expect drug-use, crime is down. Fewer
people are being robbed, raped and run over, while trafficking in cocaine
and other hard drugs is at a record high.

If it was a simple case of drug sellers and drug users minding their own
business, that might be fine, but too often a business dispute in the dope
industry ends in violence -- and that puts all Calgarians at risk.

Days into 2005, a known drug dealer was gunned down at a Calgary mall, and
in the past few years, there have been dozens of drug-connected shooting
incidents, with bullets flying in all directions.

These thugs are not trained marksmen, and shots go astray.

Home-grown marijuana operations are the seed for much of this violence, and
even if the weed itself is harmless, the money it raises is anything but.

Someday in the future, pot may be legal, and legitimate growers and dealers
will force prices down and criminals out of business -- but that day is a
long way off, especially with the U.S. vehemently opposing the idea.

Marijuana grow operations are something all Calgarians should be trying to
snuff out, no matter how they feel about lighting up.