Pubdate: Thu, 10 Sep 2015
Source: Bracebridge Examiner (CN ON)
Copyright: 2015 The Bracebridge Examiner Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.muskokaregion.com/bracebridge-on/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2354

TAKE IT TO THE PEOPLE

The cost of prohibition is prohibitive. Abuse of drugs, whether they
be cigarettes, alcohol or marijuana, is a health issue in our country.

This is a matter of concern for all Muskokans, and in our (admittedly
unscientific) poll 62 per cent advocated for legalization of
marijuana. And when we asked community members their opinion they were
also for legalization.

Certainly there are social problems that go along with the abuse of
any drug, whether it's vodka or marijuana, but criminalizing the huge
number of Canadians who want to smoke some herb doesn't help solve
those problems. Making headway with drug abuse will only happen when
it's treated as a health issue, rather than a legal one.

And social policy aside, this is a financial issue. It's not just a
moral issue, it's a matter of dollars and cents.

As Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare tells us, it's a fairy tale to imagine
that we will have the same level of health-care services in the future
- - we all know we're going to a one-hospital model that no one seems
happy about.

The number of people requiring help from our food banks continues to
increase, our municipality struggles to make due with significantly
fewer funds from the province and the cost of policing has
skyrocketed, infrastructure is crumbling and the economy has tanked.
Something's got to give.

Here's a suggestion. Stop wasting billions of dollars trying to
enforce unenforceable and inconsistent laws, face the reality that
otherwise law-abiding taxpayers are going to smoke pot, and turn that
into a money-making industry for the province.

If the LCBO can bring $1.2 billion each and every year into the
province's coffers while it urges us to drink responsibly, why can't a
marijuana control board of Ontario encourage adults to do the same
with weed? And instead of wasting fortunes on law enforcement and
criminalizing 1.2 million Canadians, why don't we control the
substance and use the profits to strengthen our approach to health
issues?

This election may decide the matter but if it doesn't maybe it's time
to take this issue out of the hands of party politics and give it to
the people. A referendum is costly, but in the long run legalization
could save us billions while regulation of marijuana sales would take
money out of the hands of criminals and direct it into our economy.
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MAP posted-by: Matt