Legalize it, dude!

I saw an article on the news yesterday about a Fraser institute study that marijuana smoking is not going away, and with the current police enforcement levels it is impossible to stop the producers. It concludes that maybe the government and industry, rather that gangs, drug dealers, and organized crime, should benefit from the spoils. ie: legalize it, dude!!

http://www.fraserinstitute.ca/admin/books/files/marijuana

This is a position I have been arguing for years. That pot sold by the joint alongside smokes or beer it would essentially put the drug dealers out of business. That legal pot would be a huge tax benefit (the paper estimates $2 billion a year) for the government. That with legal pot, police manpower could be put to better use, not trying to stop something that 23% of the population will admit to using at sometime in their life.

The major factor against the legalization of marijuana is the Americans. The USA has said that legal pot in Canada would have very strong negative effect on cross-border trade. That border patrols would go up and traffic would be very slow. Okay, fine. But we have heard this before! On terrorism, on BSE, on government farm subsidies, the Americans favorite way of intimidating us is the threat of reduced trade. The Bush administration want us to be like Mexico, a little yesman that responds to every threat and whim of the US government.

The Canada I believe in, stands tall, makes its own decisions, and deals as an equal with the Americans.

Unfortunately recent polls are showing that a lot of Canadians would rather have a little extra pocket money and a pat on the head of Uncle Sam than sovereignty. With the conservatives in power there is NO chance marijuana will be legalized because we wouldn't want to upset America. So it looks like my vision must wait and Canada will continue to waste millions fighting a drug no worse that alcohol, while gangs and orginized crime make billions selling it to the kids of those who vote to keep it illegal.

Kurt