cannabisnews.com: Dude, Where's The Sense in Our Pot Laws? Dude, Where's The Sense in Our Pot Laws? Posted by CN Staff on January 15, 2004 at 08:24:53 PT By Linda Williamson -- Toronto Sun Source: Toronto Sun Let's stop beating around the marijuana bush, shall we? We can start by acknowledging the many ironies inherent in this week's massive pot bust in Barrie - Canada's largest ever. First, the weed was grown in the very place where another (legal) intoxicant was once produced: a brewery. A brewery that had employed some 400 people, but which Molson apparently could not keep afloat, despite the ongoing popularity and demand for its product. Clearly, one man's failure is another's gold mine: replace hops with pot seeds, fill the beer vats with hydroponic soil and - presto! The failed brewery becomes a thriving new business, employing at least 50 people, who police say slept in dormitories and worked at the plant around the clock. When the brewery closed in 2000, Molson estimated it would save the company $30 million a year. When police raided its new incarnation, they seized an estimated $30 million worth of pot plants. Ironic? It becomes downright absurd when you consider how much time and effort police are putting into this investigation - at the very same time bureaucrats in Ottawa are working on new legislation to decriminalize pot possession. And while a host of other taxpayer-funded workers in Flin Flon are busy cultivating the feds' own marijuana supply for medical use - with mixed results so far. (Users complained the first crop from the Flin Flon cave had no kick; police in Barrie, meanwhile, said the growers had the know-how to make their product especially potent.) What's wrong with this picture? Heck, what's right with it? Understand, I'm not faulting the police for doing their job. This was, undoubtedly, a major organized crime operation, with estimated revenues of $100 million a year. (Talk about demand!) Police say it was likely just one link in a high-stakes international drug chain - in which Canadian pot is traded for heroin, cocaine, etc. As Toronto Police Chief Julian Fantino was quick to point out, Canada is becoming famous for "grow houses," which are popping up everywhere as word spreads about our lax laws. None of this can be giggled away. But the story certainly exposes the feds' pot policy as a joke. That's why I've always opposed the feds' "decriminalization" plan - it's half-baked. Oh, it sounds nice on the surface, since it means sick people and recreational pot users won't be saddled with criminal records if they're caught with a joint. But it does nothing to stop the gang-controlled drug trade and the violence that goes with it (see virtually any of the latest shootings in Toronto). All those law-abiding tokers still have to buy their weed from criminals - whose monopoly on pot goes hand in hand with all sorts of other illegal trade, from weapons to prostitution to heroin, crack, etc. And it doesn't do a thing for our relationship with the U.S., where Canada looks about as committed to the "war on drugs" as it did to the war in Iraq. That may make Canada "cool," but trust me: it won't be so cool when every one of us is viewed as a potential pot smuggler by U.S. Customs. So, why not full legalization? The government would take over, regulate and licence operations like the one in Barrie, and the pot supply could be carefully distributed and (the big incentive for any government) taxed. Well, I can think of several obvious problems: 1) The only political party even contemplating such a plan right now is Jack Layton's NDP ... let's not go there. 2) The government that gave us the gun registry can't be trusted to handle such a fundamental policy change. 3) It's doubtful legalization would simply make gangsters disappear from the pot trade. (They'd be in the business somehow, just as Tony Soprano is in "waste management.") 4) There should be no legal dispensation of pot without: a) a labelling system so consumers have an idea of the potency of what they're smoking; and b) a reliable roadside test for police to catch pot-impaired drivers. 5) Finally, it would make no sense to move on this without getting the U.S. at least partially on board first. All that said, however, anything's better than the status quo. I think most Canadians, including our cops, would rather see our government move beyond the old excuses and winks on this. Even a baby step toward legalization - a pilot project, perhaps? - would be an improvement. And I know of a big old building in Barrie that could be their headquarters, lab, training facility, you name it. Wouldn't that be ironic? Linda Williamson is the Toronto Sun senior associate editor. Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON)Author: Linda WilliamsonPublished: January 15, 2004Copyright: 2004 Canoe Limited PartnershipContact: editor sunpub.comWebsite: http://www.torontosun.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmGetting Rid of Unwanted Weedhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18132.shtmlPot Still Illegal, Top Court Ruleshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18044.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #7 posted by yippierevolutionary on January 15, 2004 at 15:09:54 PT Stupid people and Companies that want to rake in the bucks for the new crisis of stoned drivers. Did anyone notice last year around the same time that company came out with that saliva tester a lot of new organizations picked up on the story that "drugged drivers are a major threat"? [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by yippierevolutionary on January 15, 2004 at 15:07:32 PT billos I am dumb I didn't look at the author's name and just assumed it was a man. You articulated my point of even people who get it don't get it, she is pro-cannabis but still stuck in the prohibitionist worldview."There should be no legal dispensation of pot without: a) a labelling system so consumers have an idea of the potency of what they're smoking; and b) a reliable roadside test for police to catch pot-impaired drivers."This is more cannaphobia. A labelling system would be nice but certainly is not critical. Potency is not such a big deal since users self-titrate and OD is out of the question. This would be a valid point if she was talking about handing out injectable morphine. We have a reliable road test. It's the same test used for drunk drivers. If you can walk the yellow line, touch your nose, stand on one foot and all that you are coordinated enough to drive. Some arbitrary threshhold of THC metabolites in your blood is a solution for stupid people. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by WolfgangWylde on January 15, 2004 at 14:41:10 PT The U.S.... ...ain't ever gonna put so much a toe "on board". Canada will gave to go it alone (but not really, why the hell do all these articles ignore Europe?), or not at all. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by afterburner on January 15, 2004 at 13:39:35 PT: Richard Cowan on Canadian Supreme Court Decision Canadian Supreme Court Decision Leaves Cannabis Users With A Minor Victory But A Major Loss of Freedom for All Canadians. Posted by Richard Cowan on 2004-01-14 14:20:00 Source: There are consolation prizes for us in the dissenting opinions, and even a little in the majority. The problem for society as a whole is that if one can justify arresting people for using cannabis, one can justify arresting people for almost anything. Read Full Story... http://www.marijuananews.com/news.php3?sid=726 [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by billos on January 15, 2004 at 11:20:40 PT: My 2 cents...... my impression of this article, which was written by a woman, is that she is pro-cannabis. She's doing the story from a prohibitionist point of view and I sense a lot of sarcasm. I like the article. Anyone else have an opinion?? [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by yippierevolutionary on January 15, 2004 at 10:43:42 PT Even people who get it don't get it This guy is buying that police meme that all these grow ops are tied to biker gangs who trade pot for crack and white sex slaves. Most people who sell and grow cannabis are good natured folk and not criminals."But the story certainly exposes the feds' pot policy as a joke."I think this should be our exact strategy towards antis and there stupid propoganda, just laugh and laugh. We have to laugh at these paranoid crazies. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by E_Johnson on January 15, 2004 at 09:50:55 PT Sopranos are not real "3) It's doubtful legalization would simply make gangsters disappear from the pot trade. (They'd be in the business somehow, just as Tony Soprano is in "waste management.") "What does this have to do with anything?It's a TV. It's not real. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment