It is good that a coalition of eight mayors is asking for the decriminalization of marijuana.
While there are those who oppose this move on the grounds that pot is a gateway drug to more dangerous drugs, here is my opinion as to why they are both right, and wrong.
If pot were a gateway drug then a large percentage of those over 50 would be either dead from overdose, criminally supporting a habit or just totally wasted each day from their addictions. That is my argument against the “gateway” concept.
On the other hand, with pot as an illegal substance, the only way to obtain it is through the criminal element, the pusher. The pusher, like any good salesperson/entrepreneur, will try to up-sell you to a more addictive and higher profit product, because the pusher’s only interest is making money.
That, then, is my view supporting the idea that, yes, pot is a gateway drug, but only if it is illegal.
I hope the mayor’s initiative will spread to other mayors, MLAs, premiers and MPs throughout the country, bringing an end to the madness.
Gary Huntbatch