Instead of reiterating the millions of good reasons why marijuana should be legalized (and taxed to everyone’s benefit) I figured I’d share today’s marijuana news stories with you. They’re some goodies!
For those of you reading this who are not Canadian (or are lazy Canadians who really ought to know more about their Countries politics) here’s a little background. Right now Canada has at it’s helm the most socially conservative government it has had in my lifetime.
This Government is headed by a man named Stephen Harper, our Prime Minister. Head Douche Bag. This is a man who is on record saying that he believes global warming is a socialist scheme designed to transfer riches from wealthy nations to poorer nations. And he’s shown his disdain by doing nothing to address global warming in all the years he has been in office.
This is a man that out of self interest shut down Canadian democracy to avoid having to turn over incriminating documents that would prove him to be guilty of war crimes. And he shut down parliament on New Years Eve, “when nobody would notice".
This is the same man that said he would never appoint senators to Canada’s upper chamber, yet he just appointed more than any previous Prime Minister. He voiced his disdain for this practice for many, many years so this is unbelievable hypocrisy.
This is the same man that told Canadians repeatedly that the economy was fine and it was a good time to buy stocks well into the recession while promising to never go into deficit. And then delivering the largest deficit in Canadian history as we spiraled into recession.
This is the man that promised he would never tax income trusts during an election and then promptly taxed them after; draining people of their savings.
And now Stephen Harper is going to challenge the BC Supreme court decision to allow Insite to operate indefinitely. Yep, here we go again. This will be the second time they appealed court decisions to allow Insite to remain open. This time they are taking it to the Supreme Court of Canada. I can only hope the court decides to not even hear the case but that would be unlikely.
Harper’s actions towards Insite have shown his true colors when it comes to drug policy solutions that work. Instead of following the science and evidence that supports Insite he chooses to ignore, accuse, insult, fight and pursue failed prohibitionist drug policies. All because he is opposed to anything that would weaken his tough on crime, tough on drugs platform.
Never would I have imagined that Canada’s Government would be so ideologically driven as to not care if its citizens faced death and disease due to its laws. Instead of embracing solutions that help addicts they want them to face the harms of drug use, as a deterent to drug use. Such stupidity. Clearly they have forgotten why we are waging their stupid drug war in the first place. To keep people from being harmed by drugs!
I don’t know about you but I am so fucking tired of Stephen Harper and his pathetic excuse for a Government. I think more and more Canadians are ready for an election so bring it on. We can’t afford to toy around with giving Harper a majority, imagine what he would do if he had complete control. So get out and vote next election people - it’s time for new Government in Canada.
Today marked a significant victory in the war against the war on drugs. Today the B.C. Court of Appeal decided that Vancouver’s safe intravenous drug injection site, known as Insite, has the legal right to operate because the addicts that use their services have the right to pursue medically necessary measures to treat themselves. This constitutional right to seek treatment for medical issues supersedes any law that the government may pass - and that includes drug laws.
Since opening in 2003 Insight has been offering a clean location with clean needles and trained medical staff to assist addicts so that they can use their drugs in a manner which is monitored and far safer than back alley injecting. Insight also reduces the harm that the non drug using community faces from discarded needles and public intoxication. And that’s just for starters. A number of studies have been conducted since Insight opened and here are the results:
Insite is North America’s only harm reduction site of this nature and it has proven to meet its goals. The war on drugs can’t make that claim, and it will never be able to. Given this court decision I expect to see safe injection sites in all major Canadian cities within 3 years. And that my friends is the beginning of the end for drug prohibition.
I believe Canadians will start to see that alternative policies that don’t involve jailing people and throwing away the key work better. No system is perfect for dealing with drug use but the fear mongering, misinformation, overzealous cop model of drug policy has utterly failed.
I am so thrilled by this decision. Ever since Stephen Harper’s Conservative douche bags came to power Insite has been under constant threat of being shut down simply because it flies in the face of modern Conservative ideology. Harper’s base is staunchly anti-drug and even though Conservatives are the minority of Canadians they hold the key to power for Harper so he’ll make sure they stay happy. And nothing would have made them happier than getting Insite shutdown, regardless of how much good it may have been doing for the Downtown Eastside.
I’m so glad this court decision ruined all of those Conservative’s day - it’s about time they got punished by God for being such cruel and misguided Christians. Certainly Jesus wouldn’t be trying to shut down a place like Insite that does so much good. So why is Harper and all his Harperlings trying to?
At least now we know for sure that they won’t succeed.
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