Citizens in the southern part of the province of British Columbia have been
experiencing some upheaval in several communities.

Violent gangs, waging war with one another for supremacy over the illicit drug trade
have placed innocent bystanders in harm’s way, resulting in some deaths. Police have
stepped up efforts to arrest those involved in several gang style murders while trying
to get the upper hand on the drug trade itself. And, where one finds drugs, one finds

An article in the National Post newspaper reports: “A Chicago gun dealer has pleaded
guilty in the United States to smuggling more than 200 handguns into Canada, many
of which ended up in the hands of drug networks and street gangs.” Elsewhere in the
article, it states: “Half the guns used in gang shootings in B.C. were smuggled from
the United States. In Toronto, the figure is more than two-thirds.”¹

Diane Francis reports, “Estimates are that Canada’s crop of high grade marijuana
rivals forestry as an export to the United States and is worth US$6-billion a year.” She
further states that U.S. anti-drug military help in Colombia has prevented “mass
kidnappings, political and police assassinations and helped curb paramilitaries,” but
has not prevented the growing of cocaine, opium and marijuana.²

Vocal proponents of the legalizing of marijuana for personal use claim that as a “soft”
drug, it poses no harm to one’s health, it does not lead to the use of harder drugs, and
legalizing it would shut down gang violence, making our communities safer. However,
Rob Nicholson, Canada’s federal justice minister stated, “Marijuana is the currency”
used to bring harder drugs into Canada.³ The federal government licenses private
citizens to produce and use a particular grade called medical marijuana for treatment
of chronic pain and ailments such as Multiple Sclerosis. Sadly, this lightly controlled
freedom is being used by organized crime groups to hide grow-operations.

Various official sources on the subject state that marijuana use leads to a narrowing
of the small blood vessels in the brain, resulting in poor concentration, poor
memory, poor attention, and poor response time, as in verbal communication,
learning, and the operation of a motor vehicle. Indeed, there is provision in the
Criminal Code to lay a charge of impaired driving while under the influence of alcohol
or a drug.

Grace Fleming states, “Repeated marijuana use results in feelings of paranoia and
suspiciousness, the same as that of schizophrenia,” further claiming that “smokers
are 44 percent more likely to suffer from delusions, hallucinations, depression,
suicidal thoughts, and anxiety.”⁴ A marijuana user sacrifices control of his will and his
judgment, and it takes a whole month for the effects of the drug to completely leave
one’s body.

According to Karen P. Tandy, “Marijuana use will affect one’s immune system,
resulting in lung infections, work absenteeism and poor performance in school.” She
further states, “Smoking a marijuana cigarette deposits about three to five times more
tar into the lungs than one filtered tobacco cigarette.” And still, “Marijuana smoke
contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than tobacco smoke and
produces high levels of an enzyme that converts certain hydrocarbons into malignant
cells.”⁵ As a result, marijuana users will experience a higher rate of cancer of the
lung, head and neck.

It has been common knowledge for many years that marijuana contains more than
400 chemicals, and that one joint contains three to five times more tar than that of
one filtered tobacco cigarette. Usually, marijuana users consume alcohol and smoke
tobacco cigarettes as well, making risks to their health even more dangerous. Health
studies conducted on marijuana users have shown that males experience a low level of
testosterone, a decreased sperm count, and a decrease in sex drive, while women
experience irregular menstruation cycles and altered hormone levels, with a high risk
of infertility.

What of children born to women who used marijuana during their pregnancy? Conducted studies show that the mother’s breast milk contains more THC than her blood stream, causing deep concern that the infant’s motor development may be stunted. Tests also show that at age three, the child will experience sleep disturbances and poor visual problem solving.⁶ Conclusive studies show that marijuana users raise their risk of heart attack four to five times their usual risk within the first hour of smoking a joint, due to rapid increase in heart rate.

One heavy drug user told me, “Don’t let anyone try to convince you that smoking pot
does not lead to harder drugs, because I have seen it many times.” He also stated that
marijuana opens the mind to the dark spirit world.

In spite of all the research providing concrete evidence of the health dangers of
marijuana use, and the fact that marijuana smoke is at least double the danger than
that of regular tobacco smoke, special interest groups continue to petition legal
authorities and governments to legalize it for personal use. Where is the intelligence in