Now, from the "I should have joined the FFA" files and Yahoo! News...

Sudiegirl's note: Ya know, I want to give a few more shoutouts that I've been neglectful of doing...whenever I note an article in here that I found on Yahoo! News, I am always appreciative of the reporter that went and caught the story in the first place. They're the ones that had to keep a straight face when interviewing folks, and I truly admire that quality in a journalist. Also, the pictures I find on the web to illustrate the theme of the post are also incredible, and your talents are MUCH appreciated.

Another link, BTW...Martian Anthropologist. He's a liberal, but I really think he has a fresher take on it, plus he leaves both the agreeiing and opposing opinions in his comments, so it's worthwhile to examine.

But that's not what you came here to examine, now is it? Be honest, now...and away we go!

Pot growers eye ways to cut costs?
Tue Aug 9, 1:13 PM ET

TORONTO (Reuters) - It may be the effects of a hot real estate market in Toronto, but illegal marijuana growers appear to be looking at low-cost northern Ontario land as a way to cut costs, Canadian police said on Monday. (Oh, as if there weren't enough tension between Canada and the US, now we want to grow illegal drugs there? This should be interesting...wonder what Red Green thinks about this? Will have to ask him...)

In the past two weeks, police have made two massive seizures in sparsely populated towns in northern Ontario a region more famous for mining, timber and paper mills. (OK, I'm not sure if the comma in this sentence was left out on purpose...I didn't want to alter the original text. I'm not quite sure what it means, at this rate...does it mean that the seizures have made the region more famous for mining, timber and paper mills since the police seizures have taken place? That's how I would read it...it makes sense, too...after all, you can't smoke joints if you don't have paper! You could use a pipe, but why make it easy?)

About 39,000 marijuana plants, with a street value of more than C$40 million ($33 million), were seized in Iroquois Falls and Matheson, Ontario, about 650 km (400 miles) north of Toronto. The operations were about the size of three or football fields, police said.(Whoa...that's a lot of doobie.)

Those arrested were from Toronto, reports said.

Police say the low cost of land is likely one reason grow ops may be moving away from the greater Toronto area, where nearly 5 million people live and real estate prices have been on a steady climb for years. (Makes sense...)

"We're seeing an influx of people from the GTA. (What's the GTA? Does that stand for "Grow, Toke, And Pass it Over? Nah...too many letters. How about "Good Toke Always"?) I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that you can buy land for pretty cheap here," Detective Sergeant Bill O'Shea of the Ontario Provincial Police drug enforcement unit said on Monday. (Gee, ya think?)

"We're talking about a multimillion-dollar business." (Whoa again...so much for pot being a "fad".)

Growers may also be looking for locations further from the intense attention of law enforcement in and around Toronto, which has seen a series of high-profile busts in suburban houses or warehouses.

Last year a virtual marijuana factory was discovered in an abandoned brewery just north of Toronto. The raid netted 30,000 marijuana plants from what police described as the biggest indoor grow op in Canada's history.
The Canadian government is trying to toughen penalties for growing or selling the drug, but is also considering decriminalizing possession of small amounts of pot. (Well, they could put an electric fence around the compound, right? Just ask the widow in TX about that one...I'm not a pot smoker, never have been, but I don't get why decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of pot is a big deal. I mean, intent to sell is one thing, but just enough to last you a little while {unless you're Cheech and Chong} doesn't seem that big a deal to me.)

This has drawn the ire of the U.S. government, which complains that Canada is too lax on drug use and has become a major source of the marijuana being smuggled into the United States. (I'm sorry...I am still having a hard time not laughing at the thought of Red Green and his nephew Harold tokin' up behind the Lodge on Racoon Lake or wherever they are. Then they'd get the munchies...and am I the only one surprised that we get more pot from Canada than I thought?)

Studies estimate that illegal marijuana growers produce a crop with a street value of more than C$10 billion annually. Much of that is said to come from British Columbia, the country's westernmost province, which makes the potent "B.C. Bud," with much of it destined for the United States. (Couldn't they name it something else, like "Manitoba Mary Jane" or "Toronto Gold"? Just wonderin'...)

Sudiegirl's final opinion?

Pass the dutchie on the left hand side, folks...and don't whiz on the electric fence if you put one up.

C-ya