Stephen Harper’s promise to toughen the justice system drew cheers from the Canadian Professional Police Association. "If you do a serious crime, you're going to do serious time," Harper said in a big voice.

   The Tory crackdown will include mandatory sentencing for drug, gun, and violent crimes, and an end to early parole for deadly offenders. There will be more cops on the streets, and delivery on a Harper promise to build more jails to contain all of the offenders caught in the new net. Tory logic has repeal of the gun registry as another phase of this war on crime.

   Cheers from police aside, we should wonder why Harper wants to be a police officer rather than a politician. It is rather strange to open parliament by speaking to a crowd of police first. MPs and the rest of public policy seem marginalized on Harper’s agenda.

   The PM creates an image of Canada being under siege by terrorists and criminals. He talks of bolstering our military mission in Afghanistan, and fighting gangs at home.

   What goes unnoticed is that his law and order agenda may create more criminals. Terrorists and gangs may get publicity but the bigger danger in Toronto is still in being struck by cars or cancer.

   Now that the Tories have dropped the idea of decriminalizing marijuana police are already laying fresh possession charges. With more police on the streets, especially in high crime neighbourhoods, more young people will gain criminal records for minor offenses. Because of bonding laws they will find themselves excluded from most mainstream jobs. Unfortunately the law works that way. The better route would be decriminalization of pot and changes to the law so that only criminal records for violent crime, theft, and other job related crimes will block employment.

   Those excluded by minor offenses will drift to gangs and street life. They’ll gain more charges and eventually populate Harper’s new jails. Call it Harper’s Jail Grow-op scheme if you will. The next Tory policy will be prisons for profit, like in the US. The Tories will push them as a way to build affordable prisons and save tax dollars.

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