Do we take a leaf out of Canada’s book?
When Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump met face to face, it was something like an exboyfriend and his replacement meeting for the first time. You don’t know which way it’s going to go; are they going to end up ripping each other’s heads off, or fall into some sort of manly clinch and vow undying love?
But while the whole thing played out like a really bad pantomime, Canada, ever the quiet achiever on the world stage, slipped through a bill to legalise cannabis. In doing so, it has become the second country to take that step.
In Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s words: ‘‘It’s been too easy for our kids to get marijuana – and for criminals to reap the profits. Today, we change that.’’
We should be watching this with great interest.
It’s easy to oversimplify the cannabis debate, and it’s axiomatic to say it’s no longer the biggest, baddest drug in town any more. It never really was. But now that Canada has led the charge, wouldn’t this be the perfect time to shift our thinking?
Legalising cannabis will not result in a large chunk of Canada’s youth dropping out, and there won’t be stoned and listless crowds of people shuffling about like something out of the zombie apocalypse.
It’s not a free-for-all. It doesn’t suddenly mean a blind eye is turned to all of the same demons that haunt the alcohol industry, such as underage use and impaired driving. They will still be governed and enforced.
There’s a minimum age of 18 for consumption, in line with the current tobacco restrictions, and strict limits on how much you can carry and cultivate for personal use.
And, like consumption of any drug, legal or otherwise, it’s always a matter of personal choice. It’s not for everyone. Just because it’s freely available doesn’t mean people who have gone through their lives without so much as a single puff are going to smoke up a storm. And committed users won’t automatically disappear in a thick cloud of green smoke as they launch themselves into one almighty cannabis bender.
It isn’t necessarily going to help those grappling with addictive and compulsive behaviour, but it will remove the exhausting treadmill of gaining the drug illicitly and being endlessly recycled through the courts.
Cannabis use will grind on much as it has for years. Those who enjoy it will continue to do so, mostly behind closed doors, without having to cross any lines. Employers will still test for it, but the police can move on and wholly focus on the drugs that are really ripping society apart.
Canada is the second country to take this step; why can’t we be the third? Is there even a really compelling argument against legalising cannabis now? Whatever administrative cost it involves, surely the social benefit would outweigh that. Save the cost of enforcement, and create a stream of tax revenue. The door to medicinal cannabis can be pushed wide open. Maybe even channel some of those funds into the real fight.