Alberta law to protect children from grow-ops

In Alberta they just passed a bill that will protect drug-endangered children. It will give police the authority to apprehend children that are believed to be in danger because of their exposure to grow ops and drug trafficking. This legislation was passed in response to three Calgary children that were found to be living in a home with a grow op. I love this quote:

"It gives us another tool in our belt to penalize people," said Staff Sgt. Monty Sparrow of the Calgary police drug unit.

Link

Just when I was thinking that this was about saving the children I find out that this is all about punishing people for smoking the wrong plants. My bad!

But the officer does make a good point. This law will definitely punish the children.

Police say the basement of the home had been converted into a 157-plant grow op. It was producing toxic fumes, which were being vented through the closet of the upstairs master bedroom into the attic.

A crib where the youngest slept was less than a metre from the closet, said Sparrow. Several chemicals were also found in the home.

The discovery, he added, is a "perfect example" of why the new legislation is necessary.

Sparrow said the biggest concern is for kids in homes where pot is being grown, where cocaine is being cooked to make crack or where marijuana oil is being produced.

Children exposed to toxins from these processes are found to suffer from medical problems such as chronic respiratory illnesses, neurological damage and cancer.

Some good old reefer madness thrown in for good measure. We better protect the children from the dangerous grow ops. Let's pass another band aid law to protect the children rather than address the cause of the grow ops.

Let's ignore the fact that growing marijuana is an extremely profitable enterprise due to its' illegality. Let's forget that poverty is at the heart of drug trafficking. Rather than look at the causes of grow ops and drug trafficking let's pass another band-aid law.

The worst part of this article:

Forsyth modelled the new legislation after several similar laws in the United States

YIKES!