Pubdate: Sat, 07 Sep 2002
Source: Toronto Sun (CN ON)
Copyright: 2002, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  http://www.fyitoronto.com/torsun.shtml
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/457
Author: Chuck Beyer
Note: Parenthetical remark by the Sun editor, headline by newshawk

LOOKING AFTER THEIR OWN

WHEN YOU hear the Canadian Police Association calling the Senate committee 
report on marijuana legalization "a back-to-school gift for drug pushers," 
beware - they are primarily looking after their own.

According to the federal auditor general's report last year, the federal 
government alone spent $500 million on prohibition. Also, according to 
Statistics Canada there are 56,020 police officers in Canada. Let's assume 
that $100 million goes to lawyers and courts and the rest goes to the 
police. That leaves about $8,000 a year for each officer. Assuming an 
average wage of $50,000, this means 16% of each police officer's paycheque 
derives from drug prohibition - and that is mostly marijuana.

Without prohibition we could do without 20% of those police officers and we 
could hire more doctors, nurses and teachers.

Chuck Beyer, Victoria, B.C.

(Police - except the RCMP - aren't paid by the feds. And we'd keep them on 
the job, working on serious crime)
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jo-D