DRUG'S FANS, FOES UNITED IN OPPOSITION

Concerns about drug-impaired drivers, law enforcement and government
policies surfaced yesterday after the tabling of proposed federal
legislation to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.

"Our reaction was profound disappointment," said David Griffin, executive
officer with the Canadian Police Association.

The association's concerns include impaired driving, grow operations,
prevention campaigns and relations with the U.S.

Soft Sentences

Griffin said when he speaks to officers working on the front lines against
drug trafficking and grow operations, they say soft jail sentences aren't
doing the job.

Mike Foster, owner of Crosstown Traffic, a paraphernalia store that caters
to the cannabis community, said he hopes the bill fails because while it
acknowledges that many people smoke pot, it doesn't permit cultivation for
personal use.

"I think it's a piece of garbage," he said, adding the issue will hinge on
how police enforce it as well as how courts interpret it.

MADD Canada was also unhappy with the announcement, but for different
reasons, demanding laws which allow police to deal with drug-impaired driving.

'Rampant' Use

"Drug use is rampant among youth," said Andrew Murie, MADD Canada's
executive director. He said teens have gotten the message about drinking
and driving, but they know police don't have the power to apprehend
drug-impaired drivers.

"This is the worst government policy decision I've ever seen."

Rick Reimer, a marijuana decriminalization proponent, practised law until
he was forced to retire due to illness. He has a medical exemption to use
marijuana from Health Canada.

"I'm grateful for the recognition that marijuana ought not to be treated as
such a problem, that decriminalization denotes a change in that
philosophy," he said.

"But the way they're going about it is completely backwards. How can you
increase demand by reducing penalties and then at the same time restrict
the supply routes? It's so stupid."