The government has tabled legislation that would decriminalize minor possession. The artlice has another insteresting tidbit thrown in:
Cultivating and trafficking marijuana are major businesses in Canada, run by biker gangs and Asian organized crime. Marijuana is estimated to be the third largest agricultural crop in both Ontario and British Columbia.
You’d think if all these people are growing it and smoking it, you may as well legalize it. That would be a heck of a lot of tax dollars that you’d pull in from farmers and people buying. Besides, alcohol and tobacco are legal. Given the choice between dealing with someone who’s high and someone who’s drunk, i’d much rather be with the high person. You might here something somewhat intelligent come out of their mouths, they won’t be stumbling around (maybe they’ll be a little bit slower) and you wont have to deal with them vomiting or getting alcohol poisoning. At least decriminalization/legalization will bring some tourists in, SARS doesn’t seem to be doing much for it. Maybe all of the American’s planning on visiting places like Kingston, or Montreal are worried that they might end up at one of the two Toronto hospitals that cases are linked to.