Pubdate: Sun, 31 Aug 2014
Source: Calgary Sun, The (CN AB)
Copyright: 2014 The Calgary Sun
Contact: http://www.calgarysun.com/letter-to-editor
Website: http://www.calgarysun.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/67
Author: Shane Mathews
Page: 18
Note: Parenthetical remark by the Sun editor.
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v14/n695/a06.html

TOUGH TO WEED OUT FACT FROM FICTION IN LEGAL POT DEBATE

(Re: Marc Patrone's weed talk article.)

Was this supposed to be a satire?

I don't even want to start with addressing the specific legalization 
issue but your "anyone paying attention knows liberals are addicted 
to controlling us..." Got a big belly laugh in a crowded restaurant. 
How can you reconcile that slanted view with any factual evidence?

Did Ezra write this for you because you couldn't make the deadline? 
The Harper government is pursuing a campaign of building jails when 
crime in most parts of the country is the lowest in 50 years! 
Calgary, for example, has the lowest crime rate since 1966, as per 
CPS. The Conservative government also created mandatory minimum 
sentencing. No less than the lawyers of Texas, of all places, sent a 
missive to the Harper government, decrying this failed policy which 
has done nothing in the U.S. but create "clients" for privatized 
prisons and a subclass of felons. Are you ignorant of these things, 
or willfully blind to them?

The Conservatives seems excited at the ideology of real, true 
control. I know it's the opinion pages in the Sun, a self professed 
"tabloid-style" newspaper, but my God man, give your head a shake. 
You seem like an educated man but maybe you just worship at the altar 
of the Harper, because regardless of political affiliation, any 
critical thinker would be offended by your slanted views. You caused 
me to look up the crime statistics in these legalized areas. Do you 
not research your articles? Much to my surprise, the first six months 
of police data from this year shows record declines in traffic 
fatalities, break-ins, opioid overdoses, etc. Many unintended 
improvement in socials problems have resulted, with drops between 
25-70%! These are the government's own numbers.

"And criminal activity didn't stop in Colorado after weed was 
legalized"... Yes, but is dramatically declined. My friend, you 
should be ashamed to call yourself a journalist, regardless of the 
fact this is an opinion piece. Wouldn't your opinions be based 
somewhat on factual evidence? Aren't you supposed to be creating 
critical thought processes through your work? To bring valid points 
for the masses to ponder? Don't you, as a journalist, have a social 
contract to provide these things? Or is it all about shock value? I 
think your best bet is to hire a high school kid as a researcher and 
fact checker, as a basic perusal of the web discredited your article 
to the point that you are a caricature of a journalist. Shame on you.

Shane Mathews

(Clearly, you disagree with Marc.)
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom