Pubdate: Fri, 24 Oct 2014
Source: Calgary Herald (CN AB)
Copyright: 2014 Postmedia Network
Contact:  http://www.calgaryherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/66
Author: Susan Martinuk

ONLY A DOPE WOULD OPPOSE ANTI-MARIJUANA MESSAGE

Chances are high that you have seen Health Canada's commercial, which
is part of a marketing campaign to warn parents and young people of
the dangers associated with the use of marijuana by teens.

The key message is that today's marijuana is much stronger than the
stuff that was smoked 30 years ago, and it can have a particularly
harmful impact on the still developing brains of teenagers. Obviously,
that can translate into a lifelong problem.

It's fairly light on scientific information, but it does encourage
parents to get the facts from www.canada.ca/drugprevention and talk to
their teens. The medical information is strongly supported by science
- - just try Google, talk to a doctor or go to a teenage psychiatric
ward to witness drug-induced psychosis that has destroyed young lives.

Critics who claim the message is unscientific, because it doesn't
mention studies to support its claims, should be forced to create a
30- second commercial littered with scientific references that both
parents and teens would want to watch.

In short, the message is: Drugs are particularly dangerous when used
by teens. Get the facts. Talk to your kids about drugs.

It's difficult to imagine that such advice could be construed as
"offensive" or "extreme." But NDP health critic Libby Davies says it
is. Mind you, she thinks our tax dollars are well spent by providing
highly paid staff to hand over crack pipes to Vancouver's drug addicts
and watch over their shoulders as they inject heroin. Since she
strives to keep addicts wandering about in pharmaceutical oblivion,
it's fairly obvious that she would be obligated to criticize any anti-
drug messaging.

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Health just issued a report
on the health risks and harms of marijuana. It should be noted that
the NDP members of the committee ( including Davies) disagreed with
the report because it didn't examine the benefits and the medical use
of marijuana. Attempting to conflate the medical use and street use of
marijuana is a common method used to confuse the debate and keep
people uncertain about the dangers of the drug. The two are very
separate issues and today's column has nothing to do with the medical
use of marijuana.

This anti-drug message may be offensive to the NDP, but the Liberals
go one step further - claiming it's a subliminal political message
that promotes Conservative party policies. Somehow "marijuana is
harmful" becomes "I ' heart' Stephen" when the commercial is viewed by
a Liberal.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, whose first public policy stance was to
say he would legalize marijuana, spoke out against the development of
these ads several months ago by relating them to current drug laws,
rather than commenting on their educational value to teens and parents.

Trudeau has admitted that he has smoked marijuana in his home - even
when an MP. But because he supports its legalization, he now thinks he
can claim that any anti-drug message from Ottawa is a shot at his sole
policy plank. It doesn't matter if it is a commercial to help teens
make good choices; in his mind, it is anti-Trudeau and that is the
message he wants the media to send.

How arrogant for him to try to convince Canadians that any anti-drug
messages are political pokes at him and his policies. How selfish of
him to attempt to shut down or limit anti-drug messaging from Health
Canada because of how it might reflect on him.

If Health Canada's anti-drug messages are now political, it's because
Trudeau and Davies have politicized them without any regard for the
safety of Canada's teenagers and families.

Got a kid with drug problems? Why not call them?
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MAP posted-by: Richard