Pubdate: Sun, 05 Dec 2004
Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2004, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  http://www.canoe.com/NewsStand/TorontoSun/home.html
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/457
Author: Ted Davidson
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n1694/a02.html

MARIJUANA LAWS REMAIN A JOKE

RICK KEEP'S letter (Nov. 28) makes a very good point. It's a point 
thousands of us have been making for years: Marijuana laws are so widely 
disregarded, they have become a joke. Your own article on grow houses shows 
the extent to which marijuana is obviously sought out in this country. Grow 
houses exist for two reasons: (1) it's illegal, so they have to hide and 
(2) the marijuana grown in these houses is apparently much more potent.

Legalization (not decriminalization) would address both of these problems. 
If marijuana were legal, the vast majority of users would simply grow their 
own in the garden. For the people that desire higher THC content, they 
would still purchase from hydroponic sources but if it were legal, the 
operation in Barrie would have simply been a viable business paying 
electricity bills and employing dozens of people. As for the trading of 
marijuana for guns, this is facilitated by the fact that criminal 
organizations make so much money from marijuana sales, they can afford this 
kind of expense. Cutting off their major source of income (and it is, by 
far) would reduce their ability to get involved in other far more 
detrimental pursuits.

Ted Davidson

Oshawa

(Unless it's made legal in the U.S., the major market for local grow-house 
pot, your argument doesn't fly) 
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