cannabisnews.com: Alliance Hazy On Its Weed Stance





Alliance Hazy On Its Weed Stance
Posted by FoM on September 24, 2000 at 09:10:10 PT
By David Carrigg, Edmonton Sun
Source: Edmonton Sun
The Canadian Alliance's drug policy could go up in smoke as party MPs fight over whether marijuana should be decriminalized. Alliance justice critic Randy White, who represents the B.C. riding of Langley-Abbotsford, is drafting his party's drug policy and hopes it will recommend no jail time for those caught with less than 30 grams of pot. Vancouver-area MP Chuck Cadman said he'd support decriminalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana. 
But MP Peter Goldring, of Edmonton Centre East, firmly opposes the idea. "Marijuana is a mind-altering drug with extreme variations in potency," Goldring said. "People tripping on pot or drifting on a marijuana hangover are workplace and highway hazards. "Marijuana impairs in the same deadly way as alcohol but without the ease of roadside detection or the consistency of regulated strengths." Alliance Leader Stockwell Day, who has said he smoked pot in his youth, said he won't use his clout as Opposition leader to initiate a debate on drug legalization. "The Canadian Alliance position is clearly to allow for that legalization related to the alleviation of pain and for medicinal purposes only," Day said. He also said he would neither initiate nor support a proposal to legalize drugs such as heroin and cocaine as a way of cutting off profits and power from organized crime. Day acknowledged that prohibition of alcohol in the early 20th century didn't stop people from drinking and served only to greatly empower organized crime. "But when you think about what that would mean in terms of cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin - the effects of which are devastating - I just can't see a government being in a place to advocate or condone something so destructive," he said. Keith Martin, the only B.C. Alliance MP who is a medical doctor, said people who smoke pot should be fined, not jailed. Edmonton Strathcona MP Rahim Jaffer says the time has come to decriminalize marijuana. "Obviously, there is mixed feelings on this subject within my party, but personally, I would be in favour of the decriminalization of possession of small amounts of marijuana, and the possibility of moving towards legalization in the near future," Jaffer said. Former justice critic John Reynolds (West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast) said surveys of his constituents have found strong support for decriminalization of pot for personal use, and legalization for medicinal use. He said he'd support their wishes in a free vote. Reynolds was less supportive of legalization of heroin and other illicit drugs, but noted heroin is already used in some instances in palliative care. Goldring said any decriminalization of pot should be opposed. Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB)Author: David CarriggPublished: Sunday, September 24, 2000Copyright: 2000, Canoe Limited Partnership.Contact: sun.letters ccinet.ab.caAddress: #250, 4990-92 AvenueEdmonton, Alberta, T6B 3A1 CanadaFax: (780) 468-0139Website: http://www.canoe.ca/EdmontonSun/Forum: http://www.canoe.ca/Chat/home.htmlRelated Articles:Ontario Court Says Law Against MJ Unconstitutionalhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6576.shtmlReform MP Vows To Oppose UA If It Makes Pot Legalhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/4/thread4509.shtmlPot Possession Tickets a Half-Baked Idea: MPhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/2/thread2654.shtml
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Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on September 24, 2000 at 18:29:01 PT:
Pols: are they myopic at birth, or by choice?
It seems the the Canadian Alliance group is just as guilty of shortsightedness as US pols are. The tide is turning, the courts up there are rapidly beginning to see the light, even some of the *cops* up there are for decrim...and these bozos are *still* hemming and hawing about long discredited falsehoods as if they were Gospel.But what they - and our own pols - don't see is that they are alienating a very large group of the electorate. A large group of people who are somewhat affluent. (You can afford to purchase cannabis at hyperinflated prices, right? That's affluent enough; spending disposable income on such an expensive item certainly qualifies.) A large group of the elecetorate who are fed up with the lies, the obfuscation, the propaganda and the - call it what it is - *fascism*. The pols have ignored us simply because they knew many of us couldn't risk exposure, especially those dependant upon cannabis use for their very lives. Just look at Peter McWilliams. But more and more, other voices are being raised, and questioning the entire DrugWar in ways that can no longer be ignored. Dan Gardners' incredible work would have been unthinkable 5 years ago; even two years ago, editors would have spiked it out of fear of encurring the wrath of his unHoliness, the DrugCzar. But now look; the Ottawa Citizen has received more positive letters than negative ones concerning the articles. We are being heard. Even if only half of all cannabis users were to do just one thing, such as registering to vote as a member of a third party, it would rock the pols back on their heels as if they'd been given a roundhouse punch. If the members of that electorate chose to 'invest' a portion of the income they normally spent for illicit substances into political action, the boneheaded pols on both sides of the border would soon be changing their tunes. And history shows again and again, that the first pols who break from the herd, whether by conviction or cold appraisal of a popular trend, will be the victors in the long run.But it all starts with us. I've asked this before, and at the risk of seeming pedantic, I'll ask it again: When do you want...to be free?
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on September 24, 2000 at 18:14:55 PT
Thank You i_rule_ ! 
Thank You i_rule_ ! Here's the article from The Sunday Times. I don't understand why they don't have enough evidence to show that cannabis is the least dangerous of about all drugs with psychoactive properties legal and illegal.Peace, FoM!Cannabis May Make You a Safer Driverhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6717.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by i_rule_ on September 24, 2000 at 14:33:17 PT
Idiots? Maybe not.
See if you still agree when you read this post. Maybe idiots is a bit harsh.http://www.healthscout.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Af?id=102971&ap=52[additional reference links in article do not show as hyperlinks in textbelow, see original at url above for these additional links to aspects ofthis story]--dcwTake the High RoadMarijuana may make drivers safer, study claimsBritish researchers testing the harmful effects of marijuana delivered anembarrassing bit of news to their government recently. Toked-up studyparticipants went through four weeks of driving tests using drivingsimulators. Although the researchers found that the drug lowered reactiontime, they were surprised to find that it made the participants saferdrivers.Unlike most studies of cannabis -- the drug's medical name -- this onemanaged to find 15 regular users, because volunteers who've seldom or neverused the drug become much more intoxicated, which distorts study results.The drug's mellowing effects made drivers more cautious and less likely todrive dangerously, the London Sunday Times reports. The drop in reactiontime was significantly less dangerous than drinking or fatigue would haveproduced.Cannabis might even help drivers navigate better at night. Last year,scientists confirmed that the drug's active ingredients also play a role invision. (The body has natural "cannabinoid" receptors.) The discovery mayexplain numerous reports that smoking the drug increases visual sensitivity,says the Electronic Telegraph. Caribbean fishermen even claim it helps themsee in the dark. A report from the University of California at San Diego hasthe technical details.
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Comment #1 posted by Occassional Pot User on September 24, 2000 at 13:00:53 PT
Only idiots drive when stoned or drunk.
Only a true idiot would drive right after getting stoned or drunk. I always wait until I am _completely_ sober until I drive. People who dont do this are idiots. Legalize for responsible adults now!
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