LEGALIZING POT NOT SUCH A BAD IDEA

Right on, dude...looks like the feds are pondering the legalization of
marijuana. A Senate committee has unanimously called for the legalization
of the drug across the country. The idea has sparked debate across Canada
and has stirred criticism from the United States. The Senate committee also
wants government-licensed production and sale of the drug to any Canadian
over the age of 16.

In it's 600-page report, the committee concludes that dope is not harmful
and should be readily available to cannibis consumers. Purchasing the drug,
if it is legalized, would be as easy as purchasing tobacco or alcohol
products. Marijuana has been banned in Canada since 1923.

While the Senate committee is stoked about the idea of making pot legal,
other organizations are not so thrilled.

The Canadian Police Association is calling the plan "a back-to-school gift
for drug pushers."

Hardly. By legalizing pot, the senate is not encouraging it's use.
Legalization is not an endorsement of it's use.

It is a way of opening up some doors to accept a soft drug which does
nothing more than make the user see some really cool psychadelic colours.
Marijuana is not nearly as serious as heroin, for example. With dope, the
user does not share needles, does not risk disease, and does not ruin their
life. Hence the classification - soft drug...recreational use.

Domestic and international experts, along with regular Canadians have said
that imposing criminal records on users is unacceptable, at least in this
country. The attraction to the drug is that it's illegal. Maybe this
attraction is from the 12 to 17 year olds of our society. Without accusing
or singling out teens, the opportunity for them to try a soft drug without
harsh consequences makes it appealing. It should also be noted that nearly
two million Canadians over the age of 18 use cannibis on a daily basis.
That number is more than double the number of teens using the drug in the
same frequency. Liberal Senator Colin Kenny said making pot legal will
actually result in the decreased use of marijuana. Why? Because the risk of
being caught is taken away. The thrill of doing something illegal disappears.

Prosecuting drug charges in Canada costs close to $1.5 billion annually,
and nearly one third of those charges involve marijuana.

The committee's chair, Progressive Conservative Senator Pierre Claude
Nolin, said it's time to steer away from a "regime where we stick our heads
in the sand, like ostriches. We are aware that several hundred thousand
Canadians are using cannibis. The hipocrisy of the current system is not
the way to go."

The committee formed it's opinion after more than two years of studying
drug policy and interviewing 234 witnesses across Canada and around the
world. As a case-in-point, cannibis is technically illegal in Holland, but
is tolerated. More than 450 coffeeshops in Amsterdam offer a safe place to
sit down, chill out and smoke up. The Dutch are known for their tolerance,
and this is no different. The coffeeshops offer a place to buy and use soft
drugs, because they separate the soft drug users from the hard drug
dealers. In any coffeeshop you can roll a joint, smoke a pipe or get
blitzed from a bong. They too are regulated by the government on a local
level, which requires them to obtain a license and pay taxes.

The whole idea behind the Dutch tolerance of marijuana, amongst other
things, is that recreational use of pot is less harmful to society than
persecution and incarceration. It's time we took a lesson from the fine
folks over in Holland.

Legalization of this soft, harmless drug is a smart move by the Senate. It
is a simple, liberal, with-the-times move that allows those who are sick
easier access to a drug which will ease their pain. Those who want to get
blitzed for fun can do so. No big deal. At least they aren't costing the
health care system billions of dollars in treatment of lung cancer, or
addiction to alcohol.

I.R.