The front pages of the papers today carried stories about Bush declaring the war in Iraq done and stuff like SARS, but lost in the other news is the fact a senior American official, David Murray, special assistant in the Office of National Drug Control Policy has advised Canada that the plan to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana would have "unintended consequences" and that the United States "would have no choice but to respond."
It is funny how Americans are unwilling to look at their own efforts to control drug use even though statistics show that they are failing miserably with their tough approach. Murray brushed this off by stating that it's difficult to compare countries because they have different demographic make-ups and cultures that affect drug use.
In Holland, where drug use was decriminalized, marijuana use by youth has fallen in recent years and a recent study found that 16% of Dutch youth over 12 have used marijuana, compared to 33% in the United States.
Murray also brought out the old and tired gateway drug argument. The argument goes that most serious drug addicts have used marijuana, therefore marijuana leads to the use of harder drugs. The problem with that argument is that cause and effect has not been proven. Most drug addicts also drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes and drink coffee, are they gateway drugs?
Murray also stated that harsh criminal penalties are the only way to force drug addicts into treatment programs. He says that programs like Vancouver's plan to open an injection site for drug users removes all incentive for drug users to get into programs and went on to say that "addicts just aren't capable of getting themselves into treatment"
It really bothers me that the United States feels that they can meddle in other countries' internal affairs even to the point where they will invade if they dislike the policies enough. We must resist them at any cost.
Posted by Rob at May 2, 2003 10:50 AM