NO GOOD REASON TO PUNISH DRUG USERS

Dear Sir:

Re: Students thank Cst. Boychuk, (Carillon July 1)

The issue is not so much that children must be aware of the dangers of
drugs and alcohol, no argument there, but why those who ingest or sell
certain drugs are considered criminals, which is ridiculous. A police
officer is the last person who should be talking to the kids about
drugs.

I suspect the police do not attempt to indoctrinate kids older than
Grade 6 or so because older kids might ask tough questions like these
about the law.

1. Why are police presenting the program and not someone who really
knows about drugs, such as a user or physician?

2. If drugs are banned because they are harmful to users, why, then
are tobacco and alcohol not banned? Doesn't this seem unfair to those
who prefer illegal drugs? If we ban one harmful drug, shouldn't we ban
all harmful drugs?

3. Is it not true that, far from protecting users from harm, banning a
drug harms them much more than would otherwise be the case because it
cuts off access to drugs of known potency and purity? Weren't
thousands of Americans poisoned or blinded by adulterated alcohol
during prohibition. Didn't the problems vanish when alcohol was
legalized again?

4. Wasn't drug prohibition initiated a century ago as a racist program
to oppress certain non-white minorities (and to protect virtuous,
white Christian women from their seductive wiles) by banning the drugs
used by those minorities?

5. The 1973 Le Dain Commission concluded, "There appears to be little
permanent physiological damage from chronic use of pure opiate
narcotics." Why, then ban heroin?

6. If prohibition is so great, why did America give up on the
prohibition of alcohol?

7. Is it not true that if drugs and prostitution were legalized, the
power of the Hells Angels would be severely curtailed? After all,
prohibition created Al Capone, not the other way around.

8. Is it not true that if marijuana were legalized, marijuana grow
operations would be no more dangerous, do no more damage and steal no
more hydro than the average tomato grow operation?

For me, there is no more reason to punish drug users and dealers today
than there was in the past to hang witches, lynch blacks, incarcerate
Japanese Canadians or gas Jews.

Alan Randell

Victoria, BC