JUST SAY NO TO CRIMINALIZATION OF POT

Dear Editor:

Re: Legal Pot could fog up border issues, Flam. Post, Dec. 18.

The U.S. government's obsession with punishing citizens who prefer
marijuana to martinis is hardly reason to maintain the status quo in
Canada. After months of research the Senate's Special Committee on Illegal
Drugs concluded that marijuana is relatively benign, marijuana prohibition
contributes to organized crime, and law enforcement efforts have little
impact on patterns of use. Consider the experience of the former land of
the free and current record holder in citizens incarcerated.

The steady rise in police searches on public transit, drug-sniffing dogs in
schools and baseless drug testing have led to a loss of civil liberties in
the U.S. while failing miserably at preventing drug use. A majority of
European Union countries have decriminalized marijuana. Despite marijuana
prohibition and perhaps because of forbidden fruit appeal, lifetime use of
marijuana is higher in the U.S. than any European country.

Unlike alcohol, marijuana has never been shown to cause an overdose death,
nor does it share the addictive properties of tobacco. The short-term
health effects are inconsequential compared to the long-term effects of
criminal records. Canada should follow Europe and just say no to the
American Inquisition.

Robert Sharpe, Program Officer, Drug Policy Alliance, Washington, DC