Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Friday, January 30, 2015

Harper Government's 10-Week Anti-Drug Ad Blitz Cost $7 Million

OTTAWA - Newly released figures show the Conservative government spent more than $7 million on a 10-week, anti-drug advertising campaign that wrapped up at the end of last month.

That's more money than Health Canada spent advertising all its programs and services combined in the previous 2013-14 fiscal year.

A government response to a House of Commons order paper question by Liberal MP Scott Simms said the ad campaign to raise awareness of the harms of marijuana and prescription drug abuse among youth cost $7,026,822.

The campaign's target audience was parents, the government response said.

The taxpayer-funded TV and Internet ads by Health Canada ran parallel to a partisan radio ad campaign, paid for by the Conservative party, that attacked Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau over his promise to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana.

"Governments have been communicating the dangers of drugs for decades and will continue to support parents with the tools they need to ensure children live drug-free lives," Michael Bolkenius, a spokesman for Health Minister Rona Ambrose, said in an email Tuesday.

"By contrast, Justin Trudeau's Liberal plan to legalize marijuana will make smoking marijuana a normal, everyday activity for Canadians. We do not support making access to illegal drugs easier. Legalizing marijuana would make it easier for kids to buy and smoke."

Ralph Goodale, the Liberal deputy leader, said in an interview that the coincidental public and party ad campaigns call into question the government's motives.

But he said the ads themselves failed to relay the most important public message: That Canadian youth are the biggest pot consumers in the western world, according to the United Nations.

That is evidence the long-standing drug prohibition policy is a failure, said Goodale.

"There obviously need to be changes and the government has just spent $7 million propping up the status quo, which doesn't work," said Goodale.

The money spent on the government's anti-pot ads dwarfed the $5.2 million Health Canada spent advertising in the previous year on a host of issues, including food safety, immunization, adverse drug reactions and the health and safety of Canadians.

Documents released Tuesday show the health minister hosted two roundtables with drug policy stakeholders last year, one in January and one in April, in advance of the anti-drug campaign.

Despite the consultation, three national medical organizations ended up very publicly distancing themselves from the project.

The Canadian Medical Association, the College of Family Physicians of Canada and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada issued a release last August saying they would not endorse the government ads.

"The educational campaign has now become a political football on Canada's marijuana policy," said their joint statement.

"We did not, and do not, support or endorse any political messaging or political advertising on this issue."

Original Article
Source: huffingtonpost.ca/
Author: Bruce Cheadle

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