Pubdate: Fri, 05 Sep 2008
Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)
Copyright: 2008 The Ottawa Citizen
Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/letters.html
Website: http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326
Author: Russell Barth

FEAR FOR SAFETY

Re: Harper best pick for PM, most say, Sept. 3.

If Stephen Harper's Conservatives get a majority, I sincerely fear 
for the life of my epileptic wife. Even a minority Conservative 
government could seriously affect her health, as she uses medical 
marijuana, for which she has a licence from Health Canada.

In the past six years, her health has improved dramatically through 
the use of this herb, and her seizures have dropped in both numbers 
and ferocity.

The Harper Conservatives railed against this program when they sat in 
opposition, and cut medical marijuana research funding when they got 
into power. Since then, they have decried the proven merits of 
safe-injection sites and harm reduction in general, and have 
reaffirmed their commitment to a U.S.-style war on drugs, even though 
all evidence suggests that this policy actually increases the 
problems it purports to fight, while subsidizing gangsters at home 
and terrorism abroad. They promise to jail more people for drug 
offences, even offering mandatory minimum prison sentences for 
growing a single marijuana plant!

If they do get a majority, they will undoubtedly shut down the whole 
Health Canada medical marijuana program, tossing thousands of sick 
and dying Canadians back to the street dealers, who sell contaminated 
and hyper-priced product. Or maybe, since they have all of our home 
addresses on file, the Mounties will likely begin arresting sick 
people in droves the day after the program is shut down.

If you think I am being alarmist, just ask any Tory MP or candidate 
what they plan to do with the lives of sick and dying people who need 
cannabis to survive.

Russell Barth,

Ottawa
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom