Pubdate: Fri, 10 Sep 2010 Source: Comox Valley Echo (CN BC) Copyright: 2010 Glenda Allard Barr Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouverisland/comoxvalleyecho/index.html Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/785 Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v10/n737/a10.html Author: Glenda Allard Barr A DISTURBING INCIDENT Re: Ooops RCMP drug bust nets tomatoes and dahlias This was truly a disturbing article. Do tomato growers need to fear the trauma of a late night police raid because RCMP have trouble differentiating their plants from cannabis? It seems that due diligence was not performed in investigating concerns about cannabis cultivation before subjecting these gardeners to an extreme intrusion into their right to a peaceful life. Could there not have been more investigation by a plain clothes foot patrol? Could this raid not have taken place during daylight hours and in a calmer way that would avoid the anxiety that was exacerbated by the late hour and the rough treatment? RCMP practices certainly need to be investigated and improved. Could the RCMP "overarching mantra of 'safe homes and safe communities'" not be better served in other ways rather than expending a large budget and manpower in the search for cannabis? It's only a plant, with medicinal properties that have been proven over many centuries of use. Time to end prohibition and put a stop to the human and financial costs of a failed drug war. Cannabis has never killed anyone, but this drug war has caused terror and death while funding criminal activity Glenda Allard Barr Lantzville - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake