cannabisnews.com: Our Drug War is Rich in Silliness 





Our Drug War is Rich in Silliness 
Posted by CN Staff on May 31, 2003 at 10:09:00 PT
By Tom Bell, The Salina Journal 
Source: Salina Journal
Our Canadian neighbors want to base marijuana laws on common sense, but their proposals aren't winning any friends in Washington. Border trade between our countries may be at risk as a result.This week Canadian lawmakers introduced a measure that would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana, while increasing funds for education on the risks of drug use.
Those caught with 15 grams or less would be cited and fined but would not have a criminal record. That amount is equal to about half an ounce.The proposal has broad support, and is praised for directing precious law enforcement resources toward more dangerous crime.As reported this week by the Associated Press, two Parliament committees recommend easing marijuana laws, as does Prime Minister Jean Chretien. Ontario courts have declared federal possession laws invalid and Canada's Supreme Court is considering a constitutional challenge to possession laws.A majority of Canadians supports decriminalization, and this latest proposed change is welcomed by the Canadian Medical Association and Canadian Bar Association.That support is not reflected south of the border, where the U.S. government would rather spend more than $40 billion per year fighting a prohibition-style drug war that has little impact on usage.And consider this illustration of anti-marijuana paranoia in the Bush administration. John Walters, director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, warns that Canada's proposals will increase the flow of marijuana into the United States, and that U.S. border security may have to tighten as a result.Think about that for a moment: Walters is making veiled threats against the largest trading partnership in the world -- trade worth $1 billion per day -- because Canada might remove criminal penalties for those carrying half an ounce of marijuana.What nonsense.But that's the kind of thinking that dominates U.S. drug policy. While Canada moves toward common sense penalties for small amounts of marijuana, Washington continues down a hard-nosed, fruitless path that wastes billions of dollars every year.THE ISSUE: MarijuanaTHE ARGUMENT: Canada displays common senseSource: Salina Journal, The (KS)Author: Tom Bell, Editor & PublisherPublished: Saturday, May 31, 2003 Copyright: 2003 -- The Salina JournalContact: sjletters saljournal.comWebsite: http://www.saljournal.com/ Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmNo Laws Ban Possession of Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16321.shtmlMarijuana Possession Law 'Erased' http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16320.shtmlUS Says Canada Cares Too Much About Liberties http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16130.shtml 
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Comment #1 posted by billos on June 01, 2003 at 02:15:20 PT:
Walters
Walters has to justify his job. It would be interesting to watch his job go down the toilet after cannibis is finally off the federal "Hit List". Let's face it, cannibis users are easy pickings in Czar Walters' war. Should he and his hoodlums have to justify themselves by catching real drug users, well.. ..they just might have to work for a living again. Fortunately, Walters will be gone in a year and a half. Unfortunately, we won't see cannibis laws in the U.S. relaxed by then.
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