Marc and Jodie Emery are in trouble with the law again. Toronto police arrested them recently at Pearson International Airport on their way to Spain. Ten years ago I would have said, “Tough luck, you broke the law.” The so-called Prince of Pot made a name for himself defying the law and thumbing his nose at authorities in his single-minded attempt to make marijuana acceptable, and legal.
His arrogance cost him four years in U.S. prisons, but he did his time and returned to Canada determined to continue his crusade along with his wife Jodie.
Times have changed though, and one could argue Mr. Emery has been at the forefront of that change. A majority of Canadians support legalization. We have a prime minister who publicly admitted sharing a joint. He won a majority government on the promise of legalizing marijuana.
It’s taking a long time to make that happen, and technically it’s still illegal to possess or sell marijuana for non-medical purposes, but look around. In some places there are almost as many pot shops as there are Starbucks.
Most of those shops pay their municipality for a business licence and, despite the product still not being legal, the owners clearly feel they have a wink, wink, nudge, nudge approval of local authorities.
For a long time I’ve favoured legalization for a number of reasons. Prohibition hasn’t worked. The cash cow that could come from the taxes the feds would collect can pay for a lot of election promises. Despite real legal dangers, millions of Canadians have chosen to use marijuana, often instead of alcohol.
The cost of enforcement has been a complete waste. Hundreds of millions of dollars have been wasted on police, and the courts. Thousands of otherwise law-abiding citizens have wound up with criminal records and spent time in jail.
I don’t think marijuana is benign. There are health risks, and the concern over driving while stoned is real. None of that goes away by making it illegal.
Does it really make sense enforcing a law that is scheduled to be ended? What would make sense to me would be for the government to clear the way for legally approved companies to sell regulated and approved products to those current storefronts that must be getting much of their product from underground and illegal producers.
Back to where this began. Why Marc and Jody Emery? Have police taken it upon themselves to harass this couple because of their high profile? Are Marc and Jodie Emery doing anything those hundreds of others of weed store operators aren’t doing?
Justin Trudeau gave millions of Canadians hope they’d no longer have to break the law in order to engage in what they consider to be at least as harmless an activity as smoking cigarettes or indulging in a glass of cabernet at dinner.
I believe far more Canadians voted for Mr. Trudeau’s marijuana promise than for electoral reform or daily mail delivery. In my mind this is a promise he must keep, and enforcement should be on hold.
