DON'T WHACK WEED LAWS

Let's clear the air concerning all this talk of decriminalizing
possession of marijuana.

In May 2003, the federal government introduced its cannabis reform
bill. The bill aims to decriminalize possession of marijuana and hit
people caught with 15 grams or less of the plant with a fine instead
of criminal charges.

Department of Justice Canada spokesperson Patrick Charette said the
proposed bill was designed to free up resources spent combating
marijuana possession so law enforcement officials could combat harder
drugs. Charette's head must be in the clouds.

According to Maclean's magazine's three-part cover story in August on
the cannabis scene in Canada, B.C. bud is creating such a buzz in the
U.S. it is now displacing brands entering that country from Columbia
and Mexico. Quebec and Manitoba marijuana follows closely behind.
Feeding that demand are Canada's hydroponic grow operations, which are
being run with ruthless efficiency and have been taken over in
alarming numbers by organized crime.

The side effects are shootings, bombings and other attacks. In the
Toronto area, police officials and representatives from the Canadian
Criminal Intelligence Service met at the end of May with MPs to brief
them about the growing problems such as execution-style slayings
occurring in the York and Peel regions because of the marijuana grow
houses springing up. (There are an estimated 10,000 grow houses in
these areas alone.)

And to think, marijuana supporters will tout the weed as a "harmless
drug."

In September 2002, the Canadian Senate's Special Committee on Illegal
Drugs reported marijuana does not lead to crime and is not addictive.
The committee said its report was based on scientific evidence.

Had the committee picked up a 1998 copy of the Paediatrics Journal, it
would have found an article stating:

- -- Marijuana is an addictive, mind-altering drug capable of inducing
dependency.

- -- Marijuana should not be considered an innocuous
drug.

- -- There is little doubt that marijuana intoxication contributes
substantially to accidental deaths and injuries amongst
adolescents.

A magazine written by doctors. It doesn't get any more scientific than
that.

So, those 1.5-million Canadians who, according to the Canadian Medical
Association, smoke marijuana recreationally, can keep on spending
their free time high above the law. But when it comes to talk of
Canada decriminalizing marijuana, let's hope it's nothing more than
politicians blowing smoke.