A POT WAR WE DON'T NEED

Can Justice Minister Martin Cauchon actually show us a cop who would lay a
criminal charge for simple possession of a couple of marijuana joints?

Very doubtful, unless there are other circumstances at play, other actual
crimes being committed.

Which begs the question, why the rush to decriminalize?

Most importantly, when the Americans are so determined not to allow even
small amounts of a drug they consider harmful across the border, why would
we rush headlong into changing a law that for practical purposes doesn't
need changing?

Without question, decriminalization will increase cannabis use -- the
Netherlands' experience makes that abundantly clear.

Supply meets demand, and in the absurd absence of any plan other than
stiffer penalties for trafficking, we know the effect of the legislation
will be to give greater incentive to organized crime to traffic the stuff.

If the justice minister had the political fortitude to make genuine --
rather than cosmetic -- change he would have gone all the way and proposed
legalizing pot, allowing its sale as a controlled substance complete with
the sorts of sin taxes that apply to liquor or tobacco.

A legal source of supply, with stiff penalties for illegal sale, would
eventually put most pot traffickers out of business, reduce the likelihood
of accompanying sales and promotion of undeniably dangerous designer drugs,
and put pot on the level where it clearly belongs ... right next to the
most widely abused mood-altering substance in the country, booze.

But not now. Not at this time, because legalization would be the wrong
thing to do.

As was the lifting of alcohol prohibition in the face of uncontrollable
bootlegging, legalizing marijuana is the right thing to do given the
unfortunate but undeniable reality that most young Canadians see toking as
a right of passage -- no more or less harmful, nor more dangerous than
liquor. But this is the wrong time for the change.

The pure pragmatics of our largest trading partner not agreeing with the
majority Canadian perspective on pot, means we are flirting with economic
disaster from hampered cross-border trade.

The U.S. government is not about to decriminalize or legalize what they
still see as the demon weed, an entry-level drug that leads to harder drugs.

Whether we agree with them or not on that score, it is reckless to ignore
their warnings that our unilateral decision to decriminalize could have the
effect of shutting down the border.

Sure, they recognize we're a sovereign nation and we have our right to
change whatever law we wish. But they'll make damned sure it doesn't affect
them. They'll put sniffer dogs on every train, plane, truck or car entering
the country from Canada. They'll arrest and mercilessly prosecute anyone
caught with even the smallest amount.

America is in Drug War mode whether we are or not, and if we want the
border to stay open, this is no time to be "fixing" laws that, except for
optics, don't need fixing.

Police are not currently charging and Crown attorneys are not currently
prosecuting for minor simple possession.

Officers use their discretion, and under the youth offence diversion
program couldn't prosecute a possession charge against a juvenile even if
they wanted to.

For cross-border travel and trade reasons alone, the Liberals must shelve
Project Pot.