Legalizing illicit drugs won’t solve opioid crisis

The hare-brained idea from Toronto that the country should consider decriminalizing or legalizing illicit drugs because current policy has failed is not just “crazy,” it is insane.

It would be laughable if the issue weren’t so deadly serious.

It is a crazy thought without any merit — and it has no place in the discussion of the serious problem of opioid addiction that is destroying many young lives in the city and around the country.

First proposed by a Toronto overdose panel in the wake of the deadly fentanyl crisis, it was taken up by that city’s medical officer of health, Dr. Eileen De Villa, who said decriminalization of all illegal drugs could be the answer to the failure of the current approach to drugs. The key argument of the Toronto overdose action plan is that current policy has reduced neither the drugs, nor the supply.

Instead, the policy on illicit drugs has forced addicts to turn to criminal enterprises to satisfy their craving, which in turn, has stigmatized them, put them in the crosshairs of the law and made them fearful of seeking help. Consequently, they find themselves trapped in a never-ending cycle of addiction.

The point, then, is that because society has failed to come up with adequate measures to stop drug use, we should just throw the door wide open — legalize or decriminalize all drugs and presto, the problem would be solved.

We tend to think that experts know best when it comes to their field of study, but in this case, one can’t help wondering if they have thought through what a dangerous path they are leading us on.

To avoid any doubt, I checked both the Health Canada and RCMP websites to acquaint myself with which drugs are considered illegal in Canada, and what decriminalization or legalization might mean. The list includes cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, LSD, ecstasy, date rape drugs such as Rohypnol, methamphetamine, amphetamine, PCP and ketamine.

The Toronto report, touting the revolutionary drug policy of Portugal, tells us that the European country has decriminalized possession of all drugs for personal use. It is therefore reasonable to assume that when Ottawa and Toronto public health experts talk about decriminalizing all illegal drugs, they do mean the ones on the Canadian government’s list of illegal drugs.

So, faced with a serious opioid epidemic, the best solution our experts can come up with is the potential legalization of drugs such as cocaine, heroin, meth, bath salts and magic mushrooms.

Apparently if we are all free to shoot cocaine or heroin — pick your poison — there’ll be no need for people to be hiding in back alleys overdosing. And somehow, in this new world, drug use will come down. Portugal did it with great success, the experts say, cherrypicking statistics that reinforce their viewpoint, while ignoring the unpalatable.

As a country, we are on our way to legalizing marijuana, so hey, why not invite crack and other drugs to the party? I don’t know about you, but I’ve never heard a more outlandish idea. I don’t know why, at a time of such a major drug crisis, this is where we are going.

Decriminalize or legalize crack and that will reduce the opioid crisis and save lives? Really? And after that what’s next? Legalize crime?

Toronto can have its debate, but there’s no reason for Ottawa, and indeed the rest of the country, to go down this pit. Let’s make very clear that we have no time to waste on such distractions.

All levels of government must focus on real and practicable solutions to the opioid crisis.