Da Kine Cafe and drug addiction today.

It seems to me that the Vancouver Police are unable to identify drug dealers. Their recent raid on Da Kine Cafe was orchestrated like an invasion on Bin Laden's hideout! AFTER the media had already alerted them. The streets were blocked off, black suited men scurried around, flashing lights, yellow tape, cops on radios. All those resources to handcuff a few girls. One needs to think a little about the retailing of pot: Is it a bad thing? If left to its own developement, you would eventually have recourse to what you're getting the same as a can of beans from the supermarket. They'd be able to track it back to source. It would be become quality controlled.
Think about the street dealers: You never know what you're getting. It is widely assumed that these organized criminals are sprinkling stronger stuff in with the pot. Highly addictive ingredients, the kind of things that result in young women ending up as hopeless prostitutes and young men wasted in the prime of life.
If the police need help in finding the real criminal dealers on our streets, I suggest we could point them out to them. I'm sure you know where some are right now, I do. You can't shop at Army and Navy on Hastings without passing a row of illegal aliens who have been SENT here to deal drugs. Richards and Pender has the required pair on each corner. The Lotus Hotel at Carroll St. has 4 standing outside to discourage it's legal business trade. Granville has them right in front of the Community Policing Office! The West End is getting more than their share. One would almost think the action against the Da Kine Cafe was in response to the criminal street dealers complaining about unfair competition. This kind of overblown event needs some slow and rational thinking about the state of affairs in our city. While researching a play I have written about drug addiction in the fifties, I find that all over North America, it has been the police who have discouraged any logical or creative thinking about how to deal with this scourge in society. I would suggest that again, they have overreacted.
(This article published in the Westender Newspaper)

http://dakine.t35.com/

http://www.marijuana-info.org/

Oct 6, 2004 - Da Kine Cafe closed today permanently. Carol Gwilt remains in custody for selling marijuana. It is said the street drug dealers selling marijuana, rock cocaine, crystal meth and heroin were very happy.
Vancouver

Oct 30, 2004 - Carol Gwilt has since been released.