Pubdate: Mon, 24 Aug 2009
Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)
Copyright: 2009 Winnipeg Free Press
Contact: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/send_a_letter
Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/502
Author: Chris Grift

DRUG WAR UNWINNABLE

Kudos to our federal Conservative government for funding research to
study a link between pot use and mental illness. As part of the study,
they will create "educational materials aimed at decreasing the use of
illicit drugs among young people." From this, one can conclude that
Harper's government has finally realized this perpetual war on drugs
is simply unwinnable. They must be developing more tools for their
arsenal to educate the public about the negative health effects of
drug use once they roll out their new national policy on legalization
of marijuana.

With a drug policy that would allow Canadians the right to choose
whether or not they want to harm their bodies, such as with alcohol
and tobacco, the government would be able to establish an industry
standard for THC levels, regulate and tax the sale and growth of the
pot, and most importantly, snatch the profits from the hands of
increasingly violent and brazen gang members who rely on the drug
trade for their very existence.

With all the profits in government hands, we can focus on education of
the masses and treat marijuana use as a social health issue rather
than a criminal one. I'll bet they would have a lot more loot in their
coffers than the paltry $30 million in the current anti-drug strategy
and a lot less people would be gunned down on the streets of Winnipeg.

Chris Grift

Winnipeg
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