SIGNATURE SERIES
Valerie Pringle’s Test of Faith
Mondays, 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. ET, 60 mins.

Higher and higher?
- VisionTV’s Test of Faith debates legalizing drug use -

Jean Chretien says he’s never smoked dope in his life. But the former prime minister hasn’t ruled out the possibility of toking up one of these days.

“Perhaps I will try it when it will no longer be criminal,” he joked shortly before his retirement last fall. “I will have my money for my fine and a joint in the other hand.”

The chance may come soon enough. Canada’s new PM, Paul Martin, is expected to move ahead with draft legislation, unveiled last year by his predecessor, that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Is North American society moving toward a greater acceptance of casual drug use – and if so, is this a good thing? Should we maintain heavy sentences for drug users, or would the resources of our law enforcement agencies be best directed elsewhere?

That’s one of the topics up for discussion in March on the VisionTV signature series Valerie Pringle’s Test of Faith. Panelists will hash out this issue in the episode “Legalizing Drugs: Poor Decision Or A Dose of Reality?” which airs on Monday, March 29 at 10 p.m. ET.

Hosted by one of Canada’s most respected broadcast journalists, Valerie Pringle’s Test of Faith provides a forum for discussion about timely spiritual, moral and ethical issues. Each week, a guest expert takes the “hot seat” and engages a group of panelists in thoughtful and often impassioned debate.

The series is produced for VisionTV by Toronto-based DocuTainment Plus Productions Inc.

Program Topics, March 2004:

March 1 – “Capital Punishment: Does It Work?”
Although Canada abolished the death penalty in 1976, opinion polls show that a majority of citizens favour its reinstatement. Liberal opponents argue that the deterrent effect of executions is vastly overstated, and insist that the state has no right to play God. Does capital punishment have any place in civil society?

In the hot seat: New York Law School Professor Robert Blecker, an outspoken advocate of the death penalty and author of the 2003 book The Worst of the Worst: Who Deserves to Die.

Panelists: David Parkinson, co-director of the Canadian Coalition Against the Death Penalty; Krista Taves, ministerial leader of the Unitarian Fellowship of Northwest Toronto; and pollster Michael Adams, president of the Environics group of research and communications companies, and author of Fire and Ice: The United States, Canada and the Myth of Converging Values.

March 8 – “Is Religion Evil? An Unholy Mess”
The Crusades. The Inquisition. The Sept. 11 terror attacks. If religion is supposed to uplift the human spirit, why does it seem to be at the root of so much violence, conflict and oppression? Is faith really a source of good in the world – or does spiritual belief bring out the worst in human beings?

In the hot seat: Canadian science fiction author Robert J. Sawyer, whose Hugo Award-winning 2002 novel Hominids argues that “religion has been the single greatest negative force in human history, responsible for most suffering, intolerance, injustice and war.”

Panelists: Stephen Scharper, a professor with the Department for the Study of Religion at University of Toronto; Shahina Siddiqui, executive director of the Islamic Social Services Association of the United States and Canada; and journalist Michael Valpy, who reports on religion and ethics for The Globe and Mail.

March 15 – “Gluttony: Individual Burden or Societal Flaw?”
North Americans are fat and getting fatter all the time. In the U.S., a number of lawsuits have been filed against fast-food chains, alleging that they have misled customers about the health risks associated with their products. Are junk food marketers really to blame for the super-sizing of the population? Or should individuals be held responsible for their own eating habits?

In the hot seat: Andrew Stuttaford, contributing editor to National Review Online, who has lambasted recent efforts by the “calorie cops” to blame the likes of McDonald’s for the obesity epidemic. “If diners choose to eat none too wisely,” he writes, “the consequences should be their responsibility and theirs alone.”

Panelists: Kelly Brownell, director of the Yale Center for Eating and Weight Disorders; Briane Nasimok, a Canadian comedy writer, producer and performer; and Linda Tripp, Vice President, Advocacy and Government Relations for World Vision Canada.

March 22 – “Youth Crime: Time To Get Tough?”
(Note: 1 a.m. rebroadcast pre-empted by the drama presentation Rebecca)
Three teenage boys are charged in the stabbing death of a Toronto 12-year-old – the younger brother of one of them. Two Indo-Canadian teens in Vancouver face murder charges in the beating death of a Filipino youngster. Do shocking stories like these point to a dangerous upsurge in youth violence? If so, what should be done? Are tougher sentences the answer?

In the hot seat: Florida State Attorney Harry Shorstein, who has succeeded in reducing youth crime in Jacksonville through an innovative juvenile justice program that combines early intervention for at-risk youngsters with incarceration and rehabilitation.

Panelists: Rick Prashaw, communications director for Canada’s Church Council on Justice and Corrections; attorney Andras Schreck, who represented one of the young defendants tried for the 1999 slaying of Toronto teen Matti Baranovski; and Martha Mackinnon, executive director of Toronto-based Justice for Children and Youth, which provides legal representation for low-income youngsters.

March 29 – “Legalizing Drugs: Poor Decision Or A Dose of Reality?”
(Note: 1 a.m. rebroadcast pre-empted by the drama presentation Rebecca)
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has announced plans to press ahead with decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana, despite howls of protest from Washington. Is this an idea whose time has come? All the money and effort that our society has poured into the war on drugs seems to have done little to curb the consumption of narcotics. Does penalizing drug users have any real deterrent effect? Should we perhaps begin to take a serious look at the idea of across-the-board legalization?

In the hot seat: Jacob Sullum, senior editor at Reason magazine and author of the 2003 book Saying Yes: In Defense of Drug Use, which debunks the many myths that have driven anti-drug hysteria.

Panelists: Staff Sgt. Chuck Doucette, who heads the RCMP drug awareness program in Vancouver; Kevin Annett, a social activist and former United Church minister; and Helen Jones, co-founder of the Association of Parent Support Groups in Ontario.

VisionTV proudly celebrates 15 years as Canada’s multi-faith television network.