Cherry stands by his anti-drug message

 NAGANO, Japan (CP) -- Don Cherry says he has no regrets about his anti-drug tirade prompted by the case of Canadian snowboarder Ross Rebagliati.
 "I hear I have been taking some heat....," the CBC-TV commentator said in his column in the Vancouver Province newspaper in the wake of his debut Olympic Coach's Corner when he tackled the drugs issue.
 "I said Ross seems like an OK guy and I'm glad he got his gold back but let's not go overboard and make him a hero for smoking dope," Chery explained in his column.
 Cherry repeated his belief that marijuana leads to stronger drugs.
 "Check it out. Nobody starts out with heroin and coke. They start with pot and when they don't get the kicks any more, it's graduation time to the heady-duty stuff."
 The commentator said the issue sends a bad message to kids.
 "It's like saying: 'Hey, pot's not a bad thing, give it a try.'"
 And in a reference to a debate over NHL player taking Sudafed, he said "they make a big deal out of cold tablets but reefers are OK."
 Cherry concluded his column by sayiny there's no place for pot in his world, "which is hockey."
 "In hockey if a young player gets arrested for pot he might as well have a big 'D' branded on his forehead. It's just not permitted and if I can stop just one kid from trying drugs, it's worth the heat.
 "Besides, if you want to complain about me, get in line."