MARIJUANA: DISTRICT NOT TYPICAL OF DUTCH POT SCENE

Dear Editor,

I am puzzled by Troy Landreville's column [It still won't be legal, Jan. 7
Comment, Langley Advance News].

He begins by saying that "Marijuana advocates who use Holland as a poster
child of the legalization of the drug probably haven't spent much time in
Amsterdam's Red Light district at night."

Well, actually, I have, and so have many others, but so what? The Red Light
District is the oldest section of the city and home to the oldest
profession, but it is also home to many restaurants, bars, hotels
(including some very nice ones), and a large number of cannabis "coffee shops."

But it is certainly not typical of the whole city, much less the rest of
the country, nor is it typical of the Dutch cannabis scene. There are more
than 800 cannabis coffee shops in Holland, including many in smaller cities
similar to Langley.

If Mr. Landreville can tear himself away from the Red Light district, he
might walk a few blocks to Centraal Station and hop a train for the
15-minute ride to Haarlem, an incredibly beautiful city of 160,000 which is
home to 16 coffee shops.

During the past several years, the Haarlem police have not had a single
public disturbance call about these shops, whereas they have had thousands
of such calls to the city's more numerous bars. This is typical of the
situation in Amsterdam and other Dutch cities, but in Haarlem, away from
the tourist crowds, he could learn what cannabis legalization would mean
for Langley.

Mr. Landreville seems to want us to think that all manner of social
problems, even the "dusty" streets, were caused by cannabis, but in fact,
Holland has a lower rate of cannabis use, and more importantly, a much
lower rate of hard drug use than the US, the UK, or Canada.

Of course, one can't learn that or very much else by walking through the
Red Light district.

On the other hand, one can learn a lot about cannabis prohibition by
walking down Hastings Street in Vancouver, where kids are offered their
choice of cannabis, heroin, or cocaine for ten dollars.

The Dutch separated the hard and soft drug markets 25 years ago, and that's
something that desperately needs to be done in Canada.

As for his question, "Would it also send a message to kids that soft drug
use is okay?"

Well, does the legality of alcohol use or other adult activities "send a
message to kids" that these are okay for them? Of course, not. The same
logic applies.

Richard Cowan
Vancouver