MARIJUANA LAWS BEYOND RIDICULOUS

Fairly Unbalanced

In 2003 I wrote a column arguing in favour of legalizing marijuana.

Since I may never have another chance to do this, I'm writing now to
tell you I was wrong. So wrong in fact I'm ashamed to have ever written it.

In that column I tried to argue that marijuana wasn't that bad for
you, wasn't any worse than alcohol or cigarettes, and tried to back
up my opinions with facts and logic. That was an obvious and idiotic mistake.

The issue has nothing to do with whether marijuana is bad for you.
The issue was and is do you deserve a criminal record or even jail
time simply for lighting a joint?

The answer is of course you don't . Criminal records are for
criminals. Rapists, murderers, child molesters, even drunk drivers
and petty vandals are criminals. Pot smokers are not.

That's the issue, not whether marijuana is bad for you. Cigarettes,
alcohol, gambling, fatty foods, reality television, and unprotected
sex with an endless parade of random strangers are bad for you. Yet
none of things are illegal and anyone who so much as suggested they
should be would immediately and rightly be dismissed as a puritanical fascist.

The Liberals proposed decriminalization (meaning a conviction for
possession would no longer get you a criminal record) of marijuana
when they were in power. But, like a lot of things, they never
actually got around to doing it. Canada's New Government won't even
consider this timid half-measure. In fact marijuana arrests are up
since they came to power.

But come on, decriminalization is a radical measure being pushed on
society by a bunch of hippies and anarchists right? At least that's
what opponents would like you to believe.

A 2004 SES poll asked Canadians flat out if simple possession should
net you a criminal record, 93 per cent said no. More over 57 per cent
said marijuana should be legal and regulated like alcohol. Kind of
shows you who the radicals are.

Surveys also say at least a third, probably closer to half, of all
Canadians have used marijuana at some point in their lives. That
means at least one in every three people you know is a criminal under
Canadian Law including your friends, neighbours, parents and children.

Marijuana laws aren't just wrong they're beyond ridiculous and nearly
everybody knows it. Everybody except our government apparently.