Wednesday, July 18, 2007

High-time for Decriminalization

The inadequacies of Canada’s Drug Policy are once again in the media as a recent Toronto Judge has ruled that charges cannot be laid on a minor, possession of marijuana offence due to the former Liberal government’s medicinal marijuana policy. This is a serious issue for many Canadians, given that more Canadians than any other nationality in the developed world use marijuana, roughly 16% as compared to just over 3% for the rest of the world.

What’s the deal with marijuana? Although it shares the same illegal status as drugs like heroine and cocaine, can it really be compared to these other substances?

A recent British study reported in the Lancet magazine in March of 2007, has shown that marijuana is noticeably less destructive than other legal substances. In the study, there were three indicators used to determine the harm associated with any drug: the physical harm to the user, the drug's potential for addiction, and the impact on society of drug use. Maraijuana scored the 11th spot on their list, while both alcohol and cigarettes were listed in the top ten (with alcohol at #5).

If our laws are based on protecting the individual and society, shouldn’t alcohol and cigarettes be made illegal along with marijuana? If you support this study’s results, than it follows that the only reason that marijuana continues to be illegal is because it continues to be less socially acceptable than other legal substances.

This begs the question: Does our legal system exist to protect our society and individuals from harm, or does it exist to enforce social norms and conventions? If our Drug Policy is any indication, the latter is clearly a strong reference point.

So how harmful is the herb? While few people would argue that weed is a ‘healthy’ pastime, a study reported by CNN in 2005 shows that workers distracted by phone calls, e-mails and text messages actually suffer a greater loss of IQ than a person smoking marijuana. If this is the case, and marijuana used in moderation is not physically or mentally harmful, than where is the argument that it should remain illegal?

Although I am not an avid or frequent user of marijuana, I fail to see how the existing policy benefits our larger society, and doesn’t hinder the lives of roughly 16% of Canadians. Canada’s drug policy is at best arbitrary and there is little scientific evidence to continue supporting the status quo. At the very least, a review of Canada’s Drug Policy is severely needed, coupled by a serious look at the implications for the decriminalization of marijuana. Any future decision must be based on the mounting scientific and legal evidence that marijuana should be decriminalized and made a controlled substance in Canada.

(http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2007/07/09/canada-cannabis.html)
(http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2007/07/13/pot-toronto.html?ref=rss)
(http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/04/22/text.iq/)

1 comment:

Missjodieb said...

I couldn't agree more!!! The fact that marijuana is illegal, despite the fact that tons of awesome Canadians smoke it, and that it causes almost 0 harm, and that it is a natural plant, really perplexes me and makes me kinda h8 the gov't. The last thing society needs is stupid laws for the wrong reasons.

Let's change public policy in the future buddy :)