LEARN FROM MISTAKES

Dear Editor:

Marijuana needs to be not only decriminalized, but legalized. However,
mistakes made with alcohol and legalized gambling must be avoided.
Unfortunately, I don't believe the governments in this province and country
can be trusted with the care of another addictive substance or activity.

Check out Marijuana Anonymous online and read the testimonies of
individuals who have gone down the path of addiction and recovery. Like
alcohol and gambling, up to 20 per cent of users will experience some level
of harmful involvement.

Still, I believe that we need to legalize the drug, and allow free choice
for our citizens. If this drug were controlled, we could reduce our
policing, judicial and prison costs by hundreds of millions of dollars
annually. We could take a huge cut into organized crime activity, reduce
street crime and likely pay down our heavy debt with the profits.

However, it will be up to our citizens to keep the government from throwing
profits into the general fund. Less than two per cent of profits from
alcohol, gambling, nicotine or other drug sales is recycled to help those
who spent the money and are most affected by addiction. No long-term
treatment centres exist in this province; few prevention measures are
funded. No media campaign exists to offset the advertising blitz of the
lotteries, casinos, beer ads, etc. Little wonder that addiction to and
harmful involvement with alcohol, gambling and prescription drugs continue
to climb.

Derek Toupin, Chignecto