This morning in Ottawa, a government task force assigned to study legalizing and regulating the adult use of marijuana in Canada released their recommendations. The task force recommended that sales should be restricted to those over the age of 18 with a personal possession limit of 30 grams. Their recommended model of legalization would put heavy restrictions on most types of cannabis advertising and tax the product based on THC content. The task force suggested that both storefronts and delivery services would be allowed as well as the home cultivation of up to four plants. They also believe that all of Canada’s current laws regarding medical marijuana remain in place as they are currently with no change.
“The prohibitory regime exists does not work and has not met the basic principles of public health and safety that have to be at the core of this public policy,” stated Anne McLellan, former minister of justice and chair of the task force.
The group’s nine members had discussions with scientific experts across Canada and received the opinions of over 28,000 citizens via online consultations before making their recommendations. They also made visits to states in the US that have already legalized marijuana for adult consumption.
While the task force’s recommendations are non-binding, they announced during the press conference that the Canadian government will present legislation in the spring of 2017 modeled after this report. The implementation date of that legislation is still unclear.
With Canada blazing a new and smarter path forward on marijuana policy, the pressure will only continue to build on the United States government to reform our federal marijuana laws.
You can read the full report HERE.
This is great news. Now with former PM to Portugal who decriminalized all drugs in 2001 in charge as UN Secretary General Guterrez, there may be one single silver lining in Trump’s cabinet; UN ambassador Nickey Haley, Gov. of N. Carolina, has expressed positive statements in the past for medical marijuana. It may very well be that state and international legalization marches on all around this extinctin burst tantrum from the usual Drug War terrorists Trump is empowering. God willing there will be international and domestic condemnation of Trump’s horrific praise of Duterte’s indiscriminate killing of citizens without due process for mere conspiracy of drug possession.
That’s right. On the plus side of the ledger, there’s our recent string of victories, now more important than ever! Particularly, California, and Canada. (Yes, I know Canada is not a USA state. A Canadian blogger recently reminded USA liberals threatening to flee to Canada, that living in Canada is a privilege, not a US consolation prize! I’m feeling that right about now.)
These recent string of legalization victories, including Canada, and advances in other countries, demonstrate that the proverbial “genie” is “out of the bottle,” and presumably can’t be put back.
At the same time, epic battle lines are now being formed, as the Drug Warriors gird for battle: their last stand. For them, it’s now do, or die. Trump and Sessions represent their cue to organize and attack.
And so, it seems my worst fears about all this are coming true: It may well come down to a “cage match” between the “genie out of the bottle” and AG Sessions (unless we stop the nomination! Email your Senators! Now is the time!)
Who will win such a cage match? We will, of course. If we survive, we win. We will survive because they can’t stop us. Never could, never will. But it’s gonna be bloody. Our blood. Which is, of course, exactly what they want: not to eliminate us, but to bleed us. It’s called blood money.
The more we bring the fight to them now, up front, the less damage we will incur in the long run.
Imagine eight years or more of this fresh multi-ton load of shit. That’s why the marijuana legalization movement needs to join with other progressive causes in a united voter block against Trump and his regressive agenda. We must clean our own house of xenophobia, sexism and racism, and explicitly reject Trump and his KKK-loving, marijuana-hating white-supremacists.
Why is Canada always a step ahead of the U.S. when it comes to progress?
Marijuana is going to be flowing south at a larger number lol….
I suspect the Canadians are already considering legislation to stop illegal American immigration.
Perhaps Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau will take his cue from Trump. As Trump is building his wall on the southern border of USA to keep out Mexican rapists, Trudeau will be building HIS wall, on HIS southern border, to keep out refugee American Liberals and Progressives!! (Just kidding… I hope.)
That’s okay. I’m taking my stand in Colorado!
Canadians would love to take all the ‘Trump Refuges’!
Educated, progressive and willing to contribute to society.
Trump supporter’s only need to Google “people of Wall Mart”.
Canada is not the only country making bold moves this week:
http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/2016/12/colombian-president-juan-manuel-santos-uses-nobel-peace-prize-acceptance-speech-call-re
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos used his acceptance speech in Norway for the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering the peace accord between the Colombian government and FARC to highlight the need for “alternative” policies to the war on drugs. The Oeace accord itself involves legalization measures in order to integrate the FARC rebels who mostly relied on growing coca and marijuana plants.
Ending pesticide “blanket spraying” of the Andes are in the accord as well.
What really charms me about Colombia is they never let USAID, diplomats or foreign media spin their accomplishments for their own political purpose. Every time a US president tried to take credit for a decrease in violence from the drug war Colombia said “no, we did that and with great sacrifice.” It was in Cartagena in 2012 that Colombia hosted an international scrutiny of the failed drug war which worked despite the DEA’s attempt to overshadow and distract the Summit of the Americas by introducing the Secret Service to hotels with prostitutes. (The DEA just legislated CBD as a schedule 1 substance so they clearly ARE the worlds drug cartel).
Colombia doesn’t take no $#!+ from US drug policy. Colombian society is all too aware of the cost theyve paid and they wont let the media, a politically tailored European award or USAID twist the attention away from the truth by saying “Colombia ends the longest running war in the world as FARC disarms.” Because they know too well the “longest running war” is still in effect… and thats the drug war.