Pubdate: Fri, 19 Jun 2009
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2009 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Luke Andrechek

MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES A DISASTER

It is so baffling that Bill C-15 passed the House of Commons some days
ago. If you're not familiar with the bill, it's designed to replicate
U.S. laws that use mandatory minimum sentences to jail millions of its
own citizens for typically petty and non-violent drug crimes.

It has turned the U.S. into the very definition of a police state,
with the highest incarceration rate, by far, in the world for
non-violent crimes between consenting adults. Despite this assault on
basic human rights, the U.S. is the most thirsty country for drugs,
with all-time cheap prices too.

Anybody who's even glanced at this issue knows that the war on drugs
is counter-productive at best and an Orwellian nightmare at worst.

This bill will cost billions of dollars and ruin thousands of lives.
This, despite the fact that alcohol and tobacco, or prescription
drugs, are far deadlier than all illicit substances combined. What are
we thinking?

Luke Andrechek,

Nepean
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake