LETTER

Guns, gangs, drugs & crime

 

Three interconnected news items: 1) The federal government’s report on the legalization of marijuana; 2) A reduction in the hurdles necessary to create new supervised injection sites across Canada; 3) A new Ottawa record for shootings (65) and a near-record for homicides (22) in 2016.

One of my societal equations is  guns + gangs = drugs + crime.  There is a subculture that  is making me very nervous.  You don't have to be involved to become a victim.

1) The task force on legalizing marijuana has not considered how to measure impairment (for operating vehicles), or the unit cost of pot (in relation to the cost of the street drug).  The US states where marijuana has been legalized may report lots of tax revenues but they hardly ever report on the social devastation that has befallen their populations. (Why not decriminalize instead of legalize?)  

2) Instead of millions of dollars for drug treatment centres to wean addicts off such life-threatening drugs as cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, and carfentanil, the government is prepared to spend those dollars on creating drug injection sites that do nothing but preserve the status quo. Death by drugs has escalated across the country. Many experts say this is the wrong direction, but the government is determined to take this route.

3) It's no coincidence that violent crime has gone up. The literature says that the average drug-user commits about 8 break-ins of cars and homes every day to feed his habit. (Women turn to prostitution.) Police departments are increasing the number of officers assigned to their Guns & Gangs Units every year.  
 
I believe these gang events are (mostly) about territory and drugs.  It's unfortunate even when gangsters are killed, but the real losers are the drug-users who are  addicted, and, of course, their innocent families.

Steve d'Eça
Aylmer