Smoke, mirrors in kerfuffle over legal cannabis

Only government could get rid of something and then announce it’ll now cost more to do less.

And you wonder why we relentlessly borrow so much money across this country?

It’s because when it’s not your own pocket you’re digging into, then suggestions of expediency and cost control remain vague murmurs on a passing breeze.

Take the ludicrous faffing-about going on since the feds followed through on an election promise — wonders never cease — and announced they’d legalize cannabis.

There are fine people who oppose this on moral and health grounds, but the history of fighting and losing this endless “war on drugs” gives credence to this directional change.

Anyhow, Justin Trudeau’s bunch ran on it and won so, fair enough, they possess a mandate for change.

Other than the shock of politicians doing as promised, the looming legalization should not surprise anyone — the public, police, health service, courts and all levels of government.

Now I say “looming”with tongue planted in cheek, because only in officialdom could two year’s notice be deemed speedy.

Yet to listen to these various public bodies, you’d think they’d awoken one Monday and were told to get this done by Tuesday.

The Grits won in October, 2015, and never wavered this was coming.

The bill landed with a thud back in April, while implementation takes place next July. How long do these people want?

Instead, we hear: “Oh what are we going to do, how will we police this, who will pay for this, that and the other? How much? How young? How often?”

Frightening people is the quickest route to the public trough.

This isn’t to suggest we should ignore such questions, but does it take two years to decide if someone 18 or 21 should be allowed to purchase pot — it was always going to be one of the other. Should it be sold in private stores or public, how much should the tax be, how much can you grow at home? OK, give ’em three months — that should be enough to figure this stuff out.

We’re ditching a law that’s branded otherwise reasonable citizens as criminals and yet hardly made smoking a joint some rare or bizarre act.

Yep, people have done it for a long time, causing cops, lawyers and prison guards extra work enforcing a law so many ignored.

In the real world, where people pay their own tab, you imagine ridding the books of such hard-to-implement legalities would save both time and money. Even if you didn’t back legalization, you might think: “Oh well, at least it’ll curb the violent, illegal drug trade, free up courts and cops, bring in some tax dollars from levies on legal dope and — yahoo — save me and mine when we do our yearly due diligence with Revenue Canada. Silly you. Save those yahoos for the Stampede. Premier Rachel Notley says she’s worried legalization will drive up policing and court bills the province cannot afford. She’s hardly alone. Watch the city come up with a bunch more bylaw Billies and Brendas to check every regulation they can dream up to implement.

Frightening people is the quickest route to the public trough. Heck, it once was the impending horror of Reefer Madness that necessitated tax dollars going down the drain.

That hand’s been played out long ago, so now it’s the looming onslaught of dozy drivers, toked up and roaring down a street near you. So we need more training to catch them, stop them and jail them. And that means more money.

So, given the bucketfuls that Calgarians are smoking of dope right now, and a fair few will then drive off somewhere, have we not already got cops trained to deal with it?

After all, it’s already an offence to get behind the wheel in such a state and yes, sure, we probably do need a better type of pot-fume breathalyzer, but Armageddon isn’t around the corner come July 1. It’ll be just another day in Canada.

Except it’ll cost you a little more.