WHERE THERE'S SMOKE ...

The decriminalization of simple possession of small amounts of
marijuana - as proposed by federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon -
has a certain amount of appeal.

And taken in isolation of other Ottawa Liberal initiatives, it appears
to be at least worth looking at.

Sure we can understand Alberta Justice Minister Dave Hancock's
concerns - echoed by many Canadian police officials - that pot smoking
is a stepping stone to harder, far more addictive drugs which require
large amounts of money to purchase and generally lead to criminal activity.

But with the political acceptance of marijuana as a valid treatment
for some forms of chronic pain - the medical jury is still out until
the feds can come up with some valid clinical studies - continuing to
include possession of pot as a crime may appear hard to justify. On
the surface at least.

But with all things the federal government does these days, the
downgrading of the offence of marijuana possession to something closer
to a speeding ticket has its ironies and inconsistencies.

The most obvious is the effect it will have on the already soured
relations the federal Liberals have with our American cousins and the
further crackdown on travel to the United States that this will almost
inevitably entail if Ottawa goes ahead with the plan.

While the feds are actively contemplating taking marijuana possession
out of the Criminal Code to supposedly spare thousands of Canadian pot
users the burden of a lifetime criminal record, the same government,
in a few days, intends to turn an even larger number of Canadians into
instant criminals for not registering their shotguns and sporting
rifles by Jan. 1.

A confusing message if there ever was one.

And while the crackdown on drivers impaired by alcohol is one of the
major o ngoing policing initiatives in the country these days, the
feds appear to be loosening their grip on another mood-altering drug.
By turning a pot-possession offence into little more than a user fee -
similar to the City of Edmonton's escort licence - a barrier to
increased marijuana usage has been removed.

Presumably this includes use behind the wheel for which there is no
specific penalty.

But likely the most negative consequence is the effect Cauchon's
proposed changes will have on the United States which has a low
tolerance towards drug use.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks - and the Liberals' less-than-sympathetic
response - keeping the free flow of goods and people between Canada
and the United States has constantly been under threat.

American drug officials have already warned Ottawa there could be
negative consequences for relaxing the country's drug laws. Hopefully
the feds have thought this through. But we doubt it.