Pubdate: Sun, 03 May 2009
Source: Penticton Herald (CN BC)
Copyright: 2009 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.pentictonherald.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/664
Author: Scott Trudeau
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?420 (Cannabis - Popular)

MARCHERS WANT TO SEE LAWS ON MARIJUANA GO UP IN SMOKE

Protesters marched along Penticton's Main Street Saturday afternoon, 
demanding the federal government relax laws on marijuana use.

One or two could be seen lighting up, sending the smell of cannabis 
wafting through the air as about 30 placard-bearers made their way to 
MP Stockwell Day's office. There, they lined both sides of the road 
as motorists passed by, some honking their horns in support.

Amanda Stewart, who got the protest rolling, said many people in the 
Okanagan want the government to pass more-liberal laws with respect 
to marijuana.

"I don't pretend to have a solution, but the way we're going now 
isn't working," she said.

Decriminalizing what she calls "a herb" would reduce policing, 
judiciary and prison costs, which are all borne by Canadian 
taxpayers, she said. It would also cut down on hardships, such as 
families breaking up, along with the strain on social services that 
can result from people being convicted for using or possessing marijuana.

Those relying on marijuana for medicinal purposes often end up 
suffering because they have difficulty acquiring it on a regular 
basis under current laws.

The theory that marijuana is a "gateway drug" leading people to 
harder drugs and to a life of crime fuelled by their addiction 
doesn't wash with Stewart.

"Most of those studies don't look at alcohol, tobacco or prescription 
drugs," she said. "They're ignoring that they are the drugs that 
people try before (marijuana)."

Stewart noted that while people with addictive personalities must 
distance themselves from these types of substances, she knows no one 
who has succumbed to addiction and experienced the downward spiral 
that is the primary argument in the gateway theory.

Making marijuana legal would also remove it from the hands of drug 
dealers and organized crime syndicates in the "black market economy," she said.

Stewart and her co-marchers are planning to collect signatures asking 
for a change in marijuana legislation and then send them to Prime 
Minister Stephen Harper for his consideration, although she isn't 
optimistic change will occur under his Conservative government.

"I think our best chance to change laws is to vote in candidates who 
put this in their platform," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom