Reefer Madness

The logistical problems of running a high traffic "coffee shop" in Holland:

Mayor Jan Lonink of the southwestern town of Terneuzen says the Dutch policy of tolerating the sale of cannabis in so-called coffee shops is a failure.

"You can only tolerate something when it is small or temporary. But this is so big, so systematic and so long lasting. We lose our credibility as a society".

He made his remarks in connection with recent developments at Checkpoint, a mega coffee shop visited by an average 2,900 visitors a day, many of them from neighbouring Belgium and France. Last week, police seized 160 kilogrammes of marijuana in raids on the coffee shop and 13 storage locations. At present, Dutch rules allow coffee shops to have 500 grams of marijuana on the premises.

Mr Lonink says that with nearly 5,000 customers a day at the weekend, Checkpoint must have a stock of nearly 25 kilogrammes, "which is only possible if the coffee shop has ties with organised crime". Mr Lonink supports the existence of coffee shops but argues that the current policy ignores the reality of drug tourism in border regions. He argues for experiments with regulated marijuana cultivation under government supervision to eliminate the role played by organised crime.

"But the cabinet is only interested in avoiding diplomatic incidents".

Contrary to widespread belief, marijuana is not legal in The Netherlands. Possession in small amounts is still a misdemeanor and possession of large amounts is prosecuted as a crime. The existence of coffee shops results from an understanding of non-enforcement, not legality.

Insanely, while the sale of marijuana is tolerated, there is no program to grow it legally. This means that coffee shops have to procure it from organized crime networks; it's the only way to maintain a steady supply.

I understand that there are problems with international law in having a state-sponsored grow operation, but the current system is nuts. It's not much better in Canada. The United States spends millions and millions of dollars a year on drug law enforcement and has among the highest rates of drug use in the industrialized world.

I wonder if we'll ever get over our outdated and ineffective attitude towards drugs. Regulated production and sale, as with tobacco and alcohol, is really the only way to get on top of the problem and keep the profits out of the pockets of criminals. I think.