Why marijuana prohibition failed, and how legalization can succeed
Globe editorial
The Globe and Mail (Canada)
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Why is Canada legalizing marijuana, and why does the move – if done right – make sense? It's all about harm reduction. Smoking marijuana has real health risks, particularly for young people. But the long-standing ban on the sale of pot isn't addressing them. The drug is widely available and widely used; according to the OECD, Canada has the developed world's highest rate of youth pot use. Prohibition's only real accomplishment is as an unintended industrial strategy, fostering a multibillion-dollar black market. The federal government is ending the criminal ban on pot, but almost everything that happens after that is up to the provinces.
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