Pubdate: Wed, 21 Feb 2007 Source: Merritt Herald (CN BC) Copyright: 2007 Merritt Herald Contact: http://www.merrittherald.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1446 Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n181/a01.html Author: Robert Sharpe MAKE IT LEGAL Editor: Merritt's hazardous marijuana grow operations are a direct result of marijuana prohibition. Legitimate farmers do not steal electricity to grow produce in the basements of rented homes. If legal, growing marijuana would be less profitable then farming tomatoes. As it stands, the drug war distorts market forces such that an easily grown weed is literally worth its weight in gold. Rather than continue to subsidize organized crime, Canadian policymakers should ignore the reefer madness hysteria of the U.S. government and instead to to look their own Senate for guidance. In the words of Senator Pierre Claude Nolin, "Scientific evidence overwhelmingly indicates that cannabis is substantially less harmful than alcohol and should be treated not as a criminal issue but as a social and public health issue." Sincerely, Robert Sharpe, Washington, DC - --- MAP posted-by: Matt Elrod