Pubdate: Wed, 05 Nov 2003
Source: Sherwood Park News (CN AB)
Copyright: 2003 Sherwood Park News
Contact:  http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1730
Author: David Kilgour

DRUGS DO COST SOCIETY

Re: War on drugs

In his recent letter to the Sherwood Park News, John Wittan writes: ". . . 
if only we could get politicians and police to end the war on drugs, 
legalize everything for adults only, regulate it, tax it, and leave it for 
the free market."

Before we take the action Mr. Wittan suggests, I think we should all 
consider carefully the following:

. There are very clear health issues involved in regular drug usage, and 
equally serious concerns about drug impaired driving;

. Of the 12 U.S. states that have decriminalized possession of small 
amounts of marijuana, most have significant penalties for possession, 
including the seizure of a repeat offender's driver's licence;

. Under the policy of complete legalization, our trade relationship with 
the U.S. would suffer significantly;

. According to medical reports, marijuana grown in Canada today is 500 per 
cent more potent than that of just a decade ago, leading some to argue that 
today's marijuana is not a soft drug; and,

. Legalizing marijuana would seem counter to current provincial and federal 
government strategies aimed at actively educating Canadians on the damaging 
effects of cigarette smoking.

While I agree with Mr. Wittan's premise that responsible changes must take 
place, I am not convinced that any benefits attained from the total 
legalization of all drugs would justify the huge societal costs that would 
follow such legalization, including the exponential increase in drug use by 
young persons and others.

David Kilgour MP for Edmonton Southeast
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