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Pot Decision A Good Step
Pubdate: Thu, 17 Jan 2008
Source: Nanaimo News Bulletin (CN BC)
Copyright: 2008, BC Newspaper Group
Contact: http://www.nanaimobulletin.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/948
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada)
POT DECISION A GOOD STEP
Good for Judge Barry Strayer.
Most have probably not heard of the man, but he's the Ontario federal
court judge whose recent ruling allows the sick among us to more
easily obtain marijuana for medicinal purposes.
No matter your stance on the issue of pot, the facts are it helps
many deal with symptoms of diseases and live decidedly more normal
lives temporarily free of chronic pain.
About 2,000 Canadians carry prescriptions allowing them to legally
purchase the intoxicating weed.
Many more sick people simply go to their neighbourhood dealer, which
effectively makes criminals of them.
Some fear Strayer's ruling could open the door to full
decriminalization - a situation a small majority of Canadians support.
Maybe. And maybe that's not so bad.
Those against marijuana rightly say illegal marijuana grow ops
finance organized crime.
No argument here. Booze did the same thing during prohibition.
During prohibition, untold amounts of dollars and resources were used
to combat bootleggers and their customers.
All that manpower and all that cash to fight something the majority
said it wanted. Sound familiar?
Think of the millions of dollars we'd save if pot was decriminalized,
not to mention the resources it would free up to allow cops to get
hard drugs and toughened criminals off the street.
That's not to say all illegal drugs should be in the same category.
No one could responsibly argue crack cocaine or crystal meth do
anything other than create addicts and career criminals.
But marijuana alleviates pain and about the worst thing that happens
to recreational smokers is the munchies.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom