IMPARTIAL PRESS?

Dear Editor:

As I recall from civics class, an impartial press is one of the foundations
of a democratic society. I was reminded of this fact last weekend, as I
read a couple of pieces in the national press about our parliamentarians,
who are conducting a thorough review of our drug laws with a view to the
sort of reforms adopted in a number of countries, most recently the U.K. In
both cases, the writers took time and care to present the issues, not only
from "both sides," but from a number of perspectives.

It was with some regret, then, that I learned that, here in Cape Breton,
the press is actively assisting the police in the enforcement of our
misguided and antiquated laws on cannabis (re: "Pot pursuit in downtown
Sydney: C.B. bureau chief ends up holding the bag as speeding fugitive
ditches $25,000 stash," The Sunday Herald, July 14).

It might well be argued that when Tera Camus picked up that garbage bag
filled with pot, she succeeded as a "good citizen." Lamentably, she failed
us as a journalist.

Bruce Milsom, Port Hawkesbury