PERSECUTION FOR POTHEADS

Regarding "Busted for pot" [Letters, May 6]: I've had this same
problem many times. But, thankfully, I've never been charged.

Police harassment usually comes on insistence from officers'
superiors, and there is ample evidence for this. Only a small minority
of police bully (these people generally do have deep-seated
psychological issues), and yes, they actually break the law while
enforcing it. In the case of your search, if you're charged, fight it
and you'll probably win because of this.

To all you potheads out there: just remember, never consent to
anything - especially when it's unjust. The police want marijuana to
stay illegal because they'll lose funding if it's legalized (less
crime, fewer officers different departments). Tell them and your local
MP that you don't want to be oppressed anymore.

And for all those who don't think it's oppression, ask your
grandparents about prohibition of alcohol and all the gangster-related
deaths that disappeared with its legality. I'm sick to death of
fighting for the right to enjoy something that isn't a poison like
tobacco or alcohol. Tell the RCMP to stop lying to us; they do it so
much and it makes me ill.

William B.

Kitchener, Ontario