SCALES OF JUSTICE

The federal government says it doesn't want people to use pot. That's why
it's going to let people have possession of up to 15 grams of marijuana
without worrying about getting a criminal record.

The federal government says it particularly doesn't want young people to
use pot. That's why the fines for possessing 15 grams of pot or less will
be up to $250 for youth, as opposed to a maximum of $400 for adults.

This is the point where you're supposed to ask what the Liberals are smoking.

Ottawa's long-awaited cannabis strategy, unveiled yesterday, is a
hodge-podge of contradictory goals that will almost certainly fail to
achieve the government's supposed objectives, and that's to "reduce the
supply and demand for drugs."

Call us cynical, but after watching the Liberal government's gun registry
go down in flames, we're mighty skeptical of any big-ticket social strategy
coming out of Ottawa.

For instance, the feds actually claim that ticketing pot users will lead to
a reduction in usage. Sure, like how photo radar results in fewer speeders.
By effectively decriminalizing small amounts of pot, Ottawa has decided
that occasional joint smokers caught by the cops will have to pay a pot
tax, in the same way that those who blow by the photo-radar van pay a
speeding tax.

The Grits admit that pot usage has been increasing, despite the risk of
carrying a permanent criminal record. Now, people are supposed to be
discouraged from pot usage by more lenient penalties for minor possession?

We suppose that in addition to carrying their sidearms, police officers in
Canada will now have to carry little electronic scales with them to weigh a
pothead's stash. (Well, at least we now know why the statue of justice is
always pictured holding a scale - it's to make sure someone's not carrying
more than 15 grams of marijuana.)

Sure, the Liberals say that they're going to crack down on growers and
dealers, but considering Ottawa is putting just $245 million over five
years into its national drug strategy - $49 million a year divided by 10
provinces for law enforcement, education, research and treatment programs
equals diddly over squat - it's likely not going to amount to much.

The combination of turning a blind eye to minor possession while trying to
crack down on big grow operations and still prohibiting anyone from growing
their own for personal use will end up, as Sun writer Jeremy Loome noted in
a column this past Monday, resulting in higher profits for the illegal
marijuana growers, many of whom have ties to organized crime.

And this is an improvement over the status quo how, exactly?