Pubdate: Wed, 28 Dec 2016
Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)
Copyright: 2016 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: Carol sanders
Page: A1

QUARTER OF ADULTS WOULD TRY POT IF LEGAL: POLL

If marijuana is legalized in this province, nearly one-quarter of
Manitoba adults say they're prepared to get some. Rich or poor, NDP or
Progressive Conservative, man or woman, young or middle-aged - tens of
thousands are likely to try some pot.

The Winnipeg Free Press/Probe Research Inc. survey asked, "If
marijuana becomes legal in Canada, how likely would you be to use it
even just once?" Twenty-four per cent - nearly one-quarter of a
million adult Manitobans - said they would be likely to use it.

"That's a significant market," said Probe research associate Mary
Agnes Welch. "It's a little more than I thought."

Between one-quarter and one-fifth of respondents said they're open to
using legalized marijuana. Those most likely to use it were renters
(38 per cent), men between the ages of 18 and 34 (37 per cent) and
those with some post-secondary education (32 per cent). More men (28
per cent) than women (20 per cent) and more Winnipeg residents (28 per
cent) than rural Manitobans (19 per cent) would use it once, and more
18- to 34-year-olds (32 per cent) than 35- to 54-year-olds (26 per
cent) would use it once. Those least likely - 15 per cent - were over
the age of 55.

Income-wise, there wasn't much of a difference. Of those who make less
than $30,000 a year, 25 per cent were open to using legalized
marijuana, while 27 per cent of those who make more than $100,000 said
they'd use it.

The same with education - 22 per cent with high school or less said
they'd use it, and 22 per cent who graduated from university or
college said they would use it. Among Manitoba's three main political
parties, voters who identified as Liberal were the most likely to use
legalized pot (32 per cent), with NDP voters at 26 per cent and 19 per
cent of Progressive Conservatives saying they'd be likely to use it at
least once.

That's a significant cross-section of Manitobans, said Welch. "I think
there is a growing acceptance of this." Young men were the most open
to using legalized marijuana, but so were other groups, including the
middle-aged, well-off and conservative. "Even with the Tories, close
to 20 per cent said they were interested. Do you think that would've
happened 10 years ago?"

The legalization of recreational marijuana in eight U.S. states,
starting with Colorado, got the ball - or in this case, the joint -
rolling, she said.

"There has been so much talk about Colorado and how it could work and
the types of retail outlets there might be," said Welch. "There are
still many questions to ask: where would you want to buy it? How much
would you buy at a time? Have you used it in the last year? If you
haven't, do you have any concerns?"

One concern, especially for middle-aged Manitobans who haven't smoked
pot in a very long time, may be reports its potency has tripled in the
last 20 years. A U.S. study of 38,600 samples of seized marijuana over
20 years found the level of THC - tetrahydrocannabinol, which produces
the high in marijuana - is three times as high as it was in 1995.

"Will knowing it's regulated make you more likely and more comfortable
to use it?" Welch asked. "In what context would you use it - at a
party, or would it be a private thing? There's a million questions
around this still."

The research associate said she would've liked to have been able to
ask more questions - such as how many Manitobans would be OK with
trying edible marijuana versus smoking it - "the folks who'd say 'I'll
try a pot cookie once' or 'I'll replace my nightly glass of wine with
a toke.'"

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's plan to introduce legislation this
spring to legalize cannabis is having an economic impact that's being
felt nationally.

"Already you're seeing investments in the production side of things,"
said Welch. "The distribution and retail side of things is still an
open question. You're already hearing stories about people buying up
stock on the growing side, with public offerings going through the
roof on the production side. ... We kind of know there's a broad
market but how deep is it? Would it replace beer? Nationally, the
market is about as big, money-wise, as the beer market is. Is that
true in Manitoba? And is it true in different age groups? We're still
trying to figure that out."

She wonders if legalization of marijuana will make it less attractive
to some of the 13 per cent of those Manitoba adults surveyed who said
they've used it, illegally, in the last year. "Is there something
about the underground cachet of it for current users that makes it
attractive for them? That's another question: will there be a 'It's
not cool any more - it's been McDonald's-ified' reaction?"

A retired Winnipeg police detective who's been pushing for marijuana
legalization wasn't surprised nearly 25 per cent of Manitoba adults
said they'd try pot. "A quarter is about what it's been for some time
now," said Bill VanderGraaf. "It's done nothing but positive good in
my life," he said Tuesday. "For people like me, it's been very
effective with the health issues in my life."

VanderGraaf retired in 2001 and six years later was arrested for
growing marijuana in the basement of his house. Police seized 21
plants. He later got a conditional discharge, successfully arguing in
court he was growing the plant for his own use and to help his ailing
father, who in his final year suffered from ALS, or Lou Gehrig's
disease. His son gave him marijuana cookies to ease his pain.
VanderGraaf said marijuana edibles have helped cancer patients with
their chemotherapy treatments. "It helps a lot of people with
illnesses," he said. "I feel a lot better since I've been smoking it
instead of (taking) prescription drugs."

He sees marijuana in many ways as better than alcohol. "I think people
need a choice," he said. "We're saturated in alcohol in this country.
People have been looking for a legal alternative to alcohol,"
VanderGraaf said. "It's such a big problem in our society," he said.
"It would be better if people stayed away from drugs and alcohol, but
people won't," he said.

"Everything in moderation is what I say."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Matt