Pubdate: Thu, 11 Jan 2007 Source: Province, The (CN BC) Copyright: 2007 The Province Contact: http://www.canada.com/theprovince/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476 Author: George Kosinski DRUG PROHIBITION DOOMS US TO GANG VIOLENCE Richmond RCMP spokesman Cpl. Peter Thiessen is quoted as saying that the people who were in Dover Park at the time of last week's shootout "have absolutely no regard for public safety." Thiessen might as well have said that the politicians who run this country have absolutely no regard for public safety. The gang violence associated with the trade in illegal drugs is the inevitable result of the prohibition of these drugs. Gang members do not have recourse to such civil-dispute-resolution mechanisms as calling the police to report theft of their goods or pursuing litigation to resolve business disputes. I'm not aware of the RCMP having ever reported incidents of gang violence surrounding the production or distribution of tobacco or alcohol products. Can we learn from this? Or are we doomed by our insistence that "moral righteousness" should supersede all other considerations, even at the expense of making our communities less safe and moving ever closer to a police-state society? George Kosinski, Gibsons - --- MAP posted-by: Elaine