globeandmail.com : Reefer is worth getting mad about
“Supporters of the legalization of cannabis would have us believe that it is a gentle, harmless substance that gives you little more than a sense of mellow euphoria.
Sellers of the world’s most popular illicit drug know better. Trawl through websites offering cannabis seeds for sale and you will find brand names such as Armageddon, AK-47 and White Widow. ‘This will put you in pieces, then reduce you to rubble — maybe quicksand if you go too far,’ one seller boasts. This is much closer to the truth.”
Antonio Maria Costa is a man who is so blind when it comes to drug policy that it leads me to wonder how he got to the position he’s in anyway. For those unfamiliar with Costa like I was before I read this repugnant article, he’s the UN’s Executive Director for the Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). A position held in high regard, I’m sure. However, someone of such integrity would surely cite some form of source for the research he’s apparently read prior to spouting his lips and letting the bullshit and bile spew out. He seems to be educated on the subject, just not well educated.
The article was printed this weekend in the Globe and Mail, one of Canada’s most respected sources of news. In their editorial section the following day, readers had the following to say:
Cracking down further on marijuana use, as Antonio Maria Costa suggests (Reefer Is Worth Getting Mad About — Aug. 5) is not the answer. Marijuana is already illegal, but that doesn’t stop people from using it, because most — even those who don’t use it — don’t think there is anything wrong with it. Our laws are out of step with the views of most of society.
Adam Smith, Calgary
Fortunately, Canadians have moved the level of debate on marijuana past the sophistry put forward by UN bureaucrat Antonia Maria Costa. His entire argument is farcical. Many Canadians have tried this “dangerous” drug at one time or another and the vast majority of them have found it to be pretty much innocuous. Most people just outgrow it. Those that don’t, don’t die from it and don’t kill for it.
Adam La Rusic, Vancouver
And finally, my personal favourite:
I have to agree with Antonio Maria Costa that cannabis is dangerous. I got a $75 fine for a small amount of it 26 years ago, and I’m still not allowed into the United States.
Evan Bedford, Red Deer
The war on drugs, as I (and the UN, although unintentionally) have previously stated, has resulted in countless millions of wasted dollars, more powerful and potent pot, higher quantities of said substance being produced and, of course, more people using it. If cannabis is truly the wild bull they paint it to be, then at this point it would seem most logical for the governments to abandon the current course of action. It would make a lot more sense for them to seize control, regulate it, tax it, and at least try to recoup their losses.
NORML Canada states that 57% of Canadians agree that marijuana should be decriminalized. And believe it or not, 53% of the population support taxation and regulation. I’m positive the number could be higher (no pun intended) if the other 47% were informed on the issue.
It’s a perfect example of “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”
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