Pubdate: Thu, 20 Dec 2012 Source: Toronto Star (CN ON) Copyright: 2012 The Toronto Star Contact: http://www.thestar.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456 Author: Ronald M. Wilson POT POLICY IS WRONG-HEADED The latest proposals on medical marijuana bring two questions to mind. Is Health Canada incompetent or simply a shill for big pharma? It appears both are true in this instance. Bottom line is that its proposals are not in the best interest of Canadians. Their suggestions will simply make the superior quality street product more attractive and force Canadians to choose. They show no leadership on this issue as the bigger issue now is legalized marijuana. The government continues to follow an unpopular position that daily continues to lose ground. Why is marijuana not available and taxed as are tobacco and alcohol? Both substances result in an excessive burden on the health care system and loss of human life and related suffering. Talk about hypocrisy. The government has lost the moral high ground on this issue and continues to dig the hole deeper for themselves. Putting marijuana users in jail may appear tough but is simply a further example of misdirected resources. Ronald M. Wilson, Westmeath - --- MAP posted-by: Matt