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Police seize record grow-op

Canadian Press

Latest comment posted at 6:10 PM EST 23/09/08

Largest marijuana-growing operation in Canadian history found outside Pembroke; no arrests as yet ...Read the full article

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  1. Eva M from Canada writes: What a shame. Hope it doesnt affect me.
  2. Matt Toma from Vancouver, Canada writes: Meanwhile, the street price of marijuana stays unchanged, as supply isnt affected AT ALL, demand continues at a steady level, and the government continues to rake in hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues from the two most deadly (in terms of directly attributable fatalities) and expensive (in terms of health expenditures) legal and regulated drugs.

    Namely, alcohol and tobacco. Brilliant hypocrisy.
  3. Stephane Harpercrite from Thunder Bay, Canada writes: What a waste of police and taxpayer money!! Weed is WAAAAAAAY down the list of things to worry about in our society.
  4. puddin and pie from Canada writes: why is this 'product' is in such high demand?

    is reality too much without?
  5. Jack Jones from Clearwater, BC, Canada writes: Brillian use of taxpayer dollars and police resources.

    I feel so much safer and better about our country.

    What's next?

    Oh I know. Criminalize alcohol and tobacco. Then our country will be completely drug -free. Hooray!!
  6. Kim Morton from Canada writes: If our government truly wanted to do something usefull it would legalize pot and make hedge funds illegal. But that would make sense.
  7. Green Canada from Edmonton, Canada writes: I'm sure they did 'help recovery the plants'...a la Simpson's Eddie and Lou
  8. BART . from Canada writes: Great! Cops wasting our law enforcement tax dollars to bust pot farmers. In the war against weed the police are on the wrong side of the fence and this erodes their authority when it comes to truly dangerous drugs and legitimate laws. Those 40,000 plants could have been sold for millions in tax dollars that could be used to treat hard drug addicts, buy MRI machines, or buy better police equipment and pay for a few more officers. But hey, why not turn them into mulch.
  9. BART . from Canada writes: When was the last time that you had to sneak into a speakeasy or buy suspect hooch off the local bootlegger? When was the last time that the street in front of your house was a shooting alley for tommy gun equipped hoods protecting barrels of the liquid gold from Seagrams? Why aren't these things happening now?
  10. Metro Man from Toronto, Canada writes: Puff puff pass
  11. Nathan Cool from Vancouver, Canada writes: Another victory for Stockwell Day and the thought police!

    Let's raise a glass of Everclear to Jesus in celebration of our victory over common sense!
  12. Mr. Anderson from Toronto, HaveNOTario, Canada writes: This is a very sad day for me as I'm low on grass. No wonder why the cops always have the best dope.
  13. PROUDCANADIAN2008 B from toronto, Canada writes: Desperate Ontario farmers trying to make a living in this recession economy get oppressed for growing harmless pot.
    Let adults make their own decisions !!! Freedom is very absent from our democracy.
  14. Greg Out West from Canada writes: Where was the local NDP MP ?
  15. globefan Eh from Canada writes: Kim Morton your comment made way too much sense..

    " If our government truly wanted to do something usefull it would legalize pot and make hedge funds illegal. But that would make sense".
  16. D K from Canada writes: For those worried about supply (hahaha), check out autoflowering hybrids. 10 weeks, one pass, no light cycling, keep the money out of organized crime.
  17. D K from Canada writes: That said, I'm still too lazy. Support a local farming family ;)
  18. Kevin Desmoulin from Toronto, Canada writes: I still think of 22 minutes and the Barrie bust
    A place to a live, a place to grow, Ontari ari air i o
    lol
  19. Ace Frehley from Vancouver, Canada writes: Another grow up, courtesy the War on Drugs and its Conservative goons. Prohibition = profits for gangs.

    Keep increasing the penalties, Harpo. It just makes the trade more profitable. And the Hell's Angels will love ya ever more for it!

    MUAH!
  20. Nathan r from Canada writes: I knew it, Globe and mail attracts hippie readers. (see below)
  21. Joe Levesque from Lindsay, Canada writes: Mostly mould this summer anyway.
  22. Roman Spears from St. Catharines, Canada writes: So its true. The police do have the best stuff!
  23. M Irwin from New West, Canada writes:
    Legalize it and make a killing in tax revenues. No? But the gov't should prop up greedy investment banks with taxpayers dollars? Hmmm... what should be illegal in the previous two sentances?
  24. the vegan ninja from nirvana, Canada writes: I wish I had seen it. I wonder what kind grows best in our outdoor climate.
  25. stan bink from Tee Dot, Canada writes: What a waste of everything... time, money, police resources, effort, etc. What a totally useless exercise of law enforcement, we're all so much safer now. It's just disgusting.
  26. Remain Nameless from Canada writes:
    If they choose to burn the evidence, I hope they give us notice of when and where. I want to be downwind.
  27. Metro Man from Toronto, Canada writes: TO: PROUDCANADIAN2008 B from toronto, Canada writes: Desperate Ontario farmers trying to make a living in this recession economy get oppressed for growing harmless pot.

    Did you not read this article? The dudes were planting this in between corn stalks.....Corn and pot is not a recession economy - those are both boom crops - Corn to make your green car go fast, pot to make it seem like it's going even faster!
  28. Rolter Lorf from guelph, Canada writes: Kim Morton from Canada writes: If our government truly wanted to do something usefull it would legalize pot and make hedge funds illegal. But that would make sense.

    Im allllllllll for decriminalizing or legalization but wheeeeeere is this coming from hahah? lets get real here
  29. Happy Canadian from Canada writes: What a waste of time, effort. Don't they have more pressing crimes (oh.... I dunno... how's about our gun violence to start off with) to worry about?
  30. L B from Canada writes: half these comments do not make any sense,oh right I know why puff,puff ,
  31. ryan rankin from Canada writes: The world is much safer.
  32. ALASTAIR JAMES BERRY from Nanaimo BC, Canada writes: A few years back, out here in supernatural BC, we had a very curious episode. A Fishing Boat out of Victoria, the " Western Wind ", on return from catching TUNA off New Zealand, was stopped by the US COAST GUARD as it entered US waters off the Olympic Peninsula(Washington State) as it returned to Victoria, and was found to have two tons of Cocaine on board. Well as you can imagine the local media had a field day. $300,000,000 street value. Crew likely get life imprisonment. Canada, US Relations under strain. Armed guard as crew and cocaine taken to SEATTLE . THEN FOUR DAYS LATER CREW BACK IN VICTORIA......NO CHARGES.......because it was said the COCAINE HAD SIMPLY VANISHED!! Then there was a sequel even more intrigueing. The SKIPPER of the WESTERN WIND , a few years, later set sail from Atlantic Canada in a small coastal freighter, "THE BAKUR", took it all round the CARRIBEAN....... tailed by the Mounties and the DEA this time, for over six months. Well, it finally, went through the Panama Canal and up the coast stopping off in UCUELET(Vancouver Island) for fuel, AND THE MOUNTIES POUNCED!!! The MEDIA HAD A FIELD DAY AGAIN!! On board was 1000K of Mexican Marijuana worth almost nothing compared to the Island's "BC BUD". The Police were convinced there must be cocaine in SECRET COMPARTMENTS and the BAKUR was taken to the Navy Dockyard at Esquimalt and cut to pieces but no cocaine was found.............not one gram.......... Media interest faded as quickly as it rose and the final details were never broadcast as far as I can ascertain. How much money(and police manpower) was expended in these endeavours was never disclosed. I understand the Skipper is 'FREE".
  33. edward prior from Montreal, Canada writes: globefan Eh.. your observation regarding Kim Morton's comment is warranted, but dollar for dollar, the most cogent insight goes to puddin and pie. Exactly why is demand high? And then, when the govt has figured that out...then they should Go Figure
  34. Joe Black from Saskatoon, Canada writes: No different then when the Saskatchewan Provincial Police would go bust up my grandfather's neighbour's stills back in the twenties.

    Same crew, different time.
  35. Zach Fitzgerald from The Tdot, Canada writes: waste of time and taxpayer money. so this is what theyre doing with all the new cops huh. since alcohol is far far far worse than weed, why does the govt continue to waste time on this. could it be social control or perhaps income tax evasion? otherwise this war on drugs is simply pointless.
  36. Rick Jones from The Rock, Canada writes: ALASTAIR JAMES BERRY from Nanaimo BC: You're right! I remember all these stories as they unfolded but had forgotten them over time (how do you remember even the shp's names?).
    The Mexican weed was curious even to the cops at the time, because as you say, no one here would buy that bunky crap.
    The skipper IS free - last I heard he was in Metchosin, just outside Vic. And no charges were ever laid.
  37. Rick Jones from The Rock, Canada writes: ...oh - and by the way, IMHO, weed is illegal because of the awarding of Federal drug prosecution contracts. The party in power awards the contracts to party-affiliated law firms to prosecute in Federal court (drug laws are Federal crimes). Liberal or Conservative - it doesn't matter...

    I'm sure the party-affiliated law firms then kick-back to the party as political donations.

    Think about how much money is handed-out in every municipality in Canada that has a courthouse, all on the premise that people are going to possess or traffic weed (smoking is legal) and get caught.

    Before you thnk I'm a conspiracy-theory wacko, I happen to have this on good authority: from a lawyer who's firm was awarded the contracts and he found himself prosecuting these cases...
  38. Bill Foonman from Jacksonville, United States writes: Give us all a break! The prosecutors who prosecute pot "crimes" smoke it - or did in college. The judges who jail the pot "criminals" smoke it - or did in college and the friggin' politicians who refuse to update dumb laws smoke it - or did in college. Even the President(s) of the U.S. smoked it - whether they inhaled or not.

    Total hypocrisy! Update the laws! Decriminalize pot and move on to more important things.

  39. Yves Farges from Vancouver, Canada writes: No arrest have been made? Owner of the property? Was the farm deserted? No stake-out? No phone records? The bank accounts associated to the cheques that paid the property taxes have not been checked out? The local police if indeed are local, should have a pretty good idea who they are looking for, and I hope the "No arrests" is police-speak for "arrests on the way" as opposed to "No clues". Motorcycle tracks around the farmhouse perhaps? :)
  40. aging oldtool from Canada writes: About the only positive I can see in this story is that despite police from across Ontario participating in this bust, not one person was tasered by a cop.

    When will senior police start to realize too many Canadians want cannibis because it is a far safer drug than tobacco or alcohol and that the social cost of one weeks booze consumned in Canada far outway a year's smoking by every toker in Canada.

    Would it be that police are trying to support the liquour industry so that the competition is always being harrassed?

    Thousands die annually thanks to booze yet no one hads ever died of marijuana.

    Ask yourself why the more deadly drug is legal and the harmless one will get you a jail cell.
  41. Laura Labelle from Ladysmith, Canada writes: If the cops started a 'Tour de Pot' to raise funds for implementing a private citizens bill declimalizing marjuana instead of the 'Tour de Rock' they have now raising funds for the #1 criminal organization we have in North America - The Cancer Society - I'd donate.

    In the meantime, seeing them all pumped up on their 'Island Run' with only the wives and familes of their own to cheer all 60 or 80 of them on - I can't help but wonder if we're running short of cops with all them 'biking for the cause'.

    It's always a 'record seize feel good' story. Guy could of had 50 plants - the cops weigh the plants wet and 'Bingo'
    'BIGGEST BUST IN CANADIAN HISTORY'.

    What no gatlin gun in his closet?
    What a waste of money for a 'war on weed'.
  42. W ho from Canada writes: Let's get Drunk and Criminalize Farmers!
  43. shizdan clause from burnaby, Canada writes: "puddin and pie from Canada writes: why is this 'product' is in such high demand?
    is reality too much without? "

    nope. its not enough.
  44. Jimmy K from Toronto, Canada writes: WASTE OF TIME!!!
    Legalize. Problem solved.
  45. Rollo T from Sunny spot, Belgium writes: Whereas the OPP are patting themselves on the back for buying a dedicated aircraft.
  46. Sam Salmon from Vancouver-by-the-Sea, Canada writes: FYI-It's not a 'Grow-Op' if it's outdoors-'Grow-OP' means an indoor lab of whatever size.

    So is it some small town cops trying to one-up the Big Boys in Barrie?

    And who counted all those plants anyway one at a time to come up with the 40,000 figure?

    There's some nonsense here and a bad smell.....
  47. Rollo T from Sunny spot, Belgium writes: There's some nonsense here and a bad smell.....
    -----------------------------

    Agree, marijuana grows wild all over Ontario and Quebec. It's entirely possible that cows don't mind marijuana leaves in and amongst their corn. If so it would be cheaper for the farmer to ignore the grass, harvest the entire crop and let the cows chew through it next winter.

    As a wild weed, marijuana is next to worthless for getting high. Probably you would get sick first, I could just thinking about it. Bleah. Tokers only buy cultivated buds (compressed flower tops) grown in hothouses. Or they import from the same countries that can grow excellent coffee, Hawaii and Jamacia, for example.
  48. zipi dachimp from Canada writes: why can't all you idiots obey the law?
  49. Russell Barth from Nepean, Canada writes: All this does is make the millions of pot plants the police didn't catch all that much more valuable. The 90-95% of growers who will never be caught can now feel assured that their crops are worth even more this year than last year. Police know perfectly well that tearing out big grows subsidizes rival growers, and they also know that even a huge bust like this will make little to no impact on the availability of weed to the general public. Police are wasting time, money, and fuel, and helping rival growers, which leads me to wonder just which side of the law they are really on.

    Russell Barth
    Federally Licensed Medical Marijuana User
    Patients Against Ignorance and Discrimination on Cannabis
    (PAIDOC)www.paidoc.org
  50. L. van Dyk from Canada writes: Those big grow-ops are not "friendly neighbourhood suppliers."
    They ship the pot south of the border and trade it for cocaine.
    Lots of guns and lots of money involved.
    People, not just cops, get killed over the large profits.
  51. morten qwigly from Canada writes: Legalize cannabis, and throw away the whiskey
  52. garlick toast from Canada writes: Meanwhile, Big Pharma just keeps on keepin' on.
  53. The Central Screwtinizer from Ottawawa, Canada writes: Damn, in a healthier vein, you don't even have to smoke pot...imagine all of the 'pot brownies' that could have been made...munchy-munchy! Get a life out there...gets one through the long-dark-cold winter, watch movies, get the munchies, laugh more, get the munchies, laugh again, another movie, crack a bottle of wine, play some tunes, laugh more, another log on the fire...what a bunch of weenies!
  54. Tom Morrison from Calgary, Canada writes: L. van Dyk from Canada writes: Those big grow-ops are not "friendly neighbourhood suppliers."
    They ship the pot south of the border and trade it for cocaine.
    Lots of guns and lots of money involved.
    People, not just cops, get killed over the large profits.
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------

    And as our largest trading partner, the Americans would inflict as much economic pain as possible on Canada if we dared to legalize pot. They are the elephant, we are the mouse in this relationship. If the CDN gov. wants any help from the Americans wrt ilegal firearms that are the bulk of the crime guns here, then they need to play the game here with pot.
  55. garlick toast from Canada writes: Canada's drug laws = reefer madness.
  56. Alfredo Stroessner the III from Canada writes: Tom Morrison from Calgary, Canada writes:

    And as our largest trading partner, the Americans would inflict as much economic pain as possible on Canada if we dared to legalize pot. They are the elephant, we are the mouse in this relationship. If the CDN gov. wants any help from the Americans wrt ilegal firearms that are the bulk of the crime guns here, then they need to play the game here with pot.

    Exactly Tom, good post!

    Why would we want to legalize weed anyway? If it were legal, it wouldn't be fun getting hugh anymore.
  57. Tom Morrison from Calgary, Canada writes: aging oldtool from Canada writes: ...

    Thousands die annually thanks to booze yet no one hads ever died of marijuana.

    Ask yourself why the more deadly drug is legal and the harmless one will get you a jail cell.

    ---------------------------------------

    While I have no problem with people's recreational use of pot, to say it is completely harmless is naive in the extreme. That said, it is probably less harmful than alcohol, and most definitely less harmful than tobacco. The same can be said for firearms when used by a competent and peaceful person.

    Cheers
  58. Jimmy K from Toronto, Canada writes: Why is everyone so worried about what the big bad Americans would do? Those be empty threats.
    The State of California has marijuana laws that are more lax than here. It's practically defacto decriminalized, whereas we still have cops wasting their time going after some farm with crappy weed.

    How about we get cops to deal with the problem of gangs and violence, and forget about a bunch of stoners wasting their lives toking up? If that's what makes them happy, the more power to them. LEGALIZE!!!!!
  59. c rob from Halifax, Canada writes: I have seen drunken brawls from alcohol, but only hungry, smiling faces on those who have imbibed of the forbidden weed. Funny that eh?
  60. Jake The Snake from Canada writes: What's funny is there was probably twice the amount that was reported when they first kicked down the door. ;)

    For years I have always made the point that free flow of goods across the border was always the issue when it came to legalization. Unfortunately the stars are not aligned. Maybe the next time we find ourself being governed by non-conservatives and the Americans have a democratic government. Until then we'll keep ruining the lives of thousands of citizens over a relatively benign drug because some company wants to continue selling widgets to Americans. What a shame.
  61. edward prior from montreal, Canada writes: Another 'photo op' occasion. Another demonstration of how one is doing one's job. Another case of 'see what we can do if only we had more resources/money/people/technology'.

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