Pubdate: Mon, 13 Jan 2014
Source: Telegram, The (CN NF)
Copyright: 2014 The Telegram
Contact:  http://www.thetelegram.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/303
Author: Patrick Butler

MARIJUANA LEGISLATION'S COSTS OUTWEIGH ITS JUSTIFICATION

In the months since Rob Ford's political troubles became the most
over-reported story of the year, a Washington, D.C., sports talk radio
show called "The Sports Junkies" has become the source of some of the
Toronto mayor's most candid opinions on current events and politics.

After being stripped of most of his mayoral duties last November, Ford
began making regular appearances on the show.

While on the air last week, he voiced his views on the potential for
government revenue through decriminalizing marijuana.

"Why wouldn't they at least decriminalize it and make some money off
it?" he asked while on the show. Ever the newsmaker, Ford landed
himself in the papers yet again.

Any other politician might back away from the contentious subject of
decriminalization, especially after the tumultuous past few months
Ford has endured and especially if their political woes were the
direct result of illegal drug use.

But Ford isn't one to avoid controversy, and at this point, he
certainly can't cause himself too much further political damage by
bringing up anything drug-related while on the radio.

Ford is far from the first political leader to publicly address
marijuana as a political issue and, in truth, I'm not really sure what
he meant by his comments.

It isn't really obvious whether what Ford said about the possibility
for government revenue through decriminalization was actually related
to legalizing marijuana and taxing it.

Whatever he meant, Ford is adding to the canon of voices supporting
action on Canada's current marijuana laws, whether through
decriminalization or legalization. With his comments, he is
essentially maintaining an enduring discourse in Canadian politics
over the past few years on an issue that continues to garner a huge
amount of attention.

When Ford said the government could make money off of marijuana, he
wasn't lying.

Considering the extraordinary amount of revenue the federal government
makes from taxes on controlled substances, the prospect of legalizing,
regulating and taxing pot must be tempting, if solely from a revenue
standpoint.

But even were the government to merely decriminalize marijuana, it
would still be hugely cost-effective.

With court resources stretched thin, devoting already limited justice
and police resources to prosecuting people who smoke marijuana
recreationally or who grow small amounts of marijuana for personal use
- - hardly what you'd call hardened criminals - takes its toll on the
system, and to what end?

Law enforcement authorities appear to be of the same opinion, at least
with regards to saving resources. Last summer, the national police
chiefs association submitted a proposal to the federal government to
give police officers the power to ticket people caught with small
amounts of marijuana instead of charging them.

Under the current system, police officers must either charge those
caught with marijuana, giving them a permanent criminal record, or
choose to look the other way.

While the chiefs argue this isn't a push towards decriminalization or
legalization, it certainly shows the degree of punishment that
officers feel possession of marijuana deserves.

The current political reality is one where the cost of marijuana laws
seems to outweigh their justification. Existing legislation continues
to demonize marijuana while similarly harmful recreational substances
such as alcohol and cigarettes remain regulated and fully legal.

Economic incentives aside, marijuana laws are an ineffective and
expensive contradiction that is becoming too obvious to ignore.

Smoking pot certainly isn't harmless, but it is no less so than
alcohol or cigarettes, both of which have well established connections
with addiction and abuse and both of which are nevertheless regulated
and taxed for profit by the government.

Polls have shown that over two thirds of Canadians now favour
decriminalizing or legalizing pot, Rob Ford among them. Other
politicians have already tried capitalizing on numbers like that to
win approval.

It mightn't happen under the current government, but it's only a
matter of time before Canada's outdated marijuana laws get the boot.

Sooner or later, they'll go to pot.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D