By Wayne Phillips Source: Globe and Mail Hamilton, Ont. -- Given such a concentration of cannabis (O Cannabis -- editorial, June 29) in one city -- Vancouver -- it can be easily seen that all of British Columbia generates annual revenue exceeding the $36-billion in cash receipts generated last year by all of Canada's "legitimate" crops combined. And then there is the rest of Canada. It is estimated that federal agencies spend between $325-million and $500-million of taxpayer funds each year eradicationg cannabis -- more than 30,000 people are charged with simple possession annually. It is inconceivable that Ottawa would rather spend this amount of money than accrue revenue on a potential $36-billion-plus. Yet these direct monetary costs are only half of what we pay. There are also court and incarceration costs. And then there is all the good that could have been done if these vast resources had been available for other priorities. The prohibition of cannabis has demonstrated itself to be ineffective law that is neither a deterrent to youth nor to marijuana growers. If there isn't an expert in the country who would recommend that marijuana be the one that is banned based on individual and societal harm, then the prohibition of cannabis is a mistake. Source: Globe and Mail (Canada) Author: Wayne Phillips Saturday, Thursday, July 4, 2002 – Print Edition, Page A18 Copyright: 2002 The Globe and Mail Company Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca Website: http://www.globeandmail.ca/ Related Article & Web Site: Canadian Links http://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htm