Pubdate: Thu, 23 Jan 2014
Source: Standard Freeholder (Cornwall, CN ON)
Copyright: 2014 David Reid
Contact: http://www.standard-freeholder.com/letters
Website: http://www.standard-freeholder.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1169
Author: David Reid
Note Two of two letters

POT MYTHS

All Justin Trudeau jokes aside, the war on drugs, especially
concerning marijuana, has been an abject failure. Larry Comeau, in his
letter to the editor, states that Obama is being irresponsible by
claiming pot is no more harmful than alcohol. I agree, alcohol kills
at least 6,000 Canadians every year, marijuana, zero.

Another fallacy, brought on by the anti marijuana faction, is the
'stepping stone drug' myth. I contend that most teens drink alcohol,
or smoke tobacco, before they ever try marijuana, and even Rob Ford
admitted he was in a "drunken stupor" when he tried smoking crack.

I won't even go into the medicinal benefits that have been attributed
to marijuana, because most Canadians now realize that they have been
lied to about this subject. The psychosis claim is not only
hypocritical but another red herring, brought to you by the same
people who make money from these archaic laws. If you really want to
see what psychosis looks like, head over to the market at 2 in the
morning and watch what our police have to deal with every weekend
because of alcohol over-indulgence.

Another point, the nay-sayers seem to forget is that through
legalization, comes taxation. The estimates, from B.C. alone, put the
value of marijuana cultivation, at $2-$10 billion dollars, making it
one of the top three industries in that province. All that taxable
income, could be used to fix our crumbling infrastructure, and prop up
our failing health care system. We spend at least $400 million dollars
a year, fighting this ridiculous war, while close to 60% of Canadians
agree it's time to rethink our strategy concerning incarceration
versus addiction treatment. If you don't believe that we can find a
viable solution to this dilemma, look no further than Portugal, and
what they have discovered, since they ended this un-winnable and costly war.

David Reid via Email  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D