Green, Health, Government - O, Cannabis! Canada Legalized It

Canada's upper house approved the version of the The Cannabis Act passed yesterday by the House of Commons.  This clears the way to full legalization of recreational marijuana in a matter of weeks.

"It's been too easy for our kids to get marijuana - and for criminals to reap the profits," tweeted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who made legalization a central campaign issue in 2015.  "Today, we change that.  Our plan to legalize & regulate marijuana just passed the Senate.  #PromiseKept"

He's right.  The Marijuana black market creates conflicts all over the world, and criminal gangs often fight for control of the trade.  Cartels use the profits to carry out brutal violence, including murders, beheadings, kidnappings, and torture.  Canada's black market in reefer is worth approximately $7 Billion.  Legalization takes the money away from the gangs and potentially creates jobs growing and selling. 

"I'm feeling just great," said independent Sen. Tony Dean, who sponsored the bill in the Senate.  "We've just witnessed a historic vote for Canada.  The end of 90 years of prohibition.  Transformative social policy, I think.  A brave move on the part of the government."

But Canucks won't be able to fire up a blunt just yet.  After getting Royal assent, the government will take eight to twelve weeks to implement the new law.

Canada, the first G8 country to legalize Marijuana, will also be technically in violation of several international treaties that have totally failed to curb the global drug trade, such as the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961, the Convention on Psychotropic Drugs of 1971, and the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.  It could chafe the US, Russia, and China which take these treaties far more seriously than other countries.  Uruguay, the first country to legalize marijuana, simply refuses to recognize any violation of the weak agreements.