My thoughts... (Should cannabis be legalised?)

Member Name: miriamb

Product:	Should cannabis be legalised?
Date:	14/08/02 (245 review reads)
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Well, this is an item I never thought I'd write in. See, this is what dooyoo does to you, you end up with an opinion on everything and anything! To start, and probably to alienate anyone who's sufficiently interested in this topic to even be reading this, I don't use cannabis or any other illegal drug and I don't drink (please note the use of the present tense there, I am not saying 'I have never...'). Saying that, I'm not with the anti-legalisation lobby either. I'm just me, and having read several recent opinions on this subject, this is my mine.

I read an article the other day stating that the UK is increasingly becoming a nation of binge-drinkers. Last night, when I popped up to shop, I came across two separate groups of lads, none of whom could have been older than 20, who were completely plastered. One was urinating in the street, all were being loud and offensive, and one of the groups had succeeded in shattering a litter bin, so bits of plastic and rubbish were all over the road. I've had a fair few friends who have poisoned themselves with alcohol, so the whites of their eyes had gone yellow and they'd been very poorly for three, four days because their bodies were so polluted. And then the hangovers, memory loss, possible addiction...

What scares me is that this is a drug that is unequivocally condoned. A drug that has the potential for being so incredibly anti-social is shared by probably the same people that attack cannabis use so vociferously. But alcohol is socially acceptable in a way that cannabis is not, which just makes me laugh.

Cannabis is not a physically addictive drug. It may lead to temporary memory loss. It may give you a fuggy head in the morning. If you smoke too much, sure, you might turn white and vomit. But as far as I'm aware no-one's ever died from cannabis poisoning, nor have they been confined to their bed for days due to over-indulgence,
nor do users of cannabis behave in the same utterly anti-social way as described above when under the influence. I'm infinitely more wary of someone who's been drinking than someone who's been smoking; the drunk will probably be more angry, more volatile, more offensive. The person intoxicated on cannabis is invariably calmer, more considerate, less prone to starting arguments, and I have yet to hear of a 'stoned brawl'.

If Britain is becoming a nation of binge-drinkers, I would absolutely and without exception prefer that those youths had used cannabis rather than alcohol. Sure, prolonged use can cause lung cancer, but seeing as alcohol can lead to similar liver problems, this is a swings and roundabouts part of the debate. Neither are perfect, and I would never suggest that cannabis has no health problems attached to its use, but I strongly believe that cannabis is preferable to alcohol. In an ideal world there wouldn't be the need or desire to use either, but I think that maybe that particular option is a long way off right now.

Pre-empting the point that widespread use of cannabis would mean that everyone ambles around in a stoned stupor and that nothing would get done, this is just preposterous. If this were a reasonable argument, the same would now be true of people who drink. People drink, or smoke cannabis, when they have leisure time. People don't (generally) turn up to work drunk, and similarly they wouldn't if cannabis was legal and widely available. It's an unrealistic shock tactic, and sorry but I don't buy it. Smoking a spliff of an evening is equivalent to drinking a bottle of wine with your evening meal. The legalisation of alcohol doesn't lead to a nation of alcoholics, basically. And I don't for one second believe that the legalisation of cannabis would lead to a nation of pot-heads.

As for cannabis cafés, well having bars and pubs and off licenses open all
day every day doesn't mean that people are perpetually drunk. I cannot accept the argument that having licensed cafés and retailers would suddenly cause people to be permanently stoned.

I suppose that the key, in any scenario, is moderation. Heavy and inappropriate use of either cannabis or alcohol can be detrimental. But surely the importance of moderation is a better message to be giving to our kids than alcohol = good, cannabis = bad. Because I really don't see that that is helpful to anyone. I want to live in a place where I don't tense up if I see a group of drunken idiots walking towards me. I don't want to see the shattered glass bus shelter panels all over the pavement, and have the worry that a small child is going to stumble on it. I don't like having to step over pools of vomit if I go into town on a Sunday morning. So, if people want to binge on something, I would much rather it was cannabis!

Then you've got the 'thin end of the wedge' debate. Does it really lead to other, harder things? Sure, most users of hard drugs probably used cannabis first, but the majority of cannabis users don't 'progress' to crack cocaine or heroin. I would suggest that the first intoxicant used by most users of drugs was in fact alcohol, so does alcohol lead to harder things? And depending on how far you want to take this argument back in terms of implied cause and effect, as a wise person once said: The vast majority of hard drug users have eaten bread - so it could be argued that bread causes heroin addiction. Slice of toast, anyone? I have yet to see or hear of any convincing evidence that supports a causal link between cannabis and harder drugs.

If anything, keeping cannabis on the same side of the legal line as harder drugs is conducive to progression. If someone smoked cannabis, they would see for themselves that it wasn't anti-social, addictive, or harmful. The conclusion cou
ld therefore easily be reached that if cannabis is safe yet illegal, then maybe so is heroin, or cocaine, which as we know are a completely different kettle of fish. I think this is a factor that really needs to be addressed, and never mind the different classes of drugs, basically, they're illegal and that's the primary thing that people remember.

Economically, keeping cannabis illegal doesn't make sense. Think of the income that legalisation and appropriate taxation could create. Think of the police time and prison expense that could be freed up, not to mention the burden on the NHS caused by cannabis-related lung cancer, which could at least in part be recouped. Think of the resources that could instead go into reducing the use and distribution of hard drugs. So many cost-savings and so many potential benefits. It just seems to me that by not legalising it, we are in fact playing into the hands of drug cartels, who, as I understand it, usually have their fingers in a number of illegal pies and can be very nasty and dangerous people. I don't think anybody wants to see these people profiting from the distribution and sale of a largely innocuous product that governmental budgets (and therefore society as a whole) could instead be benefiting from. But by keeping it on the blackmarket, we're necessarily filling the already well-padded bank accounts of these gangsters. It just doesn't make sense to me!

I guess a counter-argument could be that the drug dealers would move onto the supply of harder drugs if cannabis were legalised. Whilst this appears to be a valid point, I would point out that hard drugs have a higher mark-up and are therefore more lucrative at present. If the market were there for widespread consumption of heroin and cocaine (on the same level as cannabis at present), then use would be higher. If drug dealers were able to 'push' drugs in the way that the argument suggests, the number of use
rs would already be high. I very much doubt that the persuasion skills of drug dealers would leap overnight if cannabis were legalised. I would guess that cartels would prefer more lucrative drugs to be the intoxicant of choice regardless, so if it's not happening now, why would it then?

As far as medicinal use goes, I understand that various medical bodies have now concluded that cannabis should be permitted to be used for a number of illnesses and conditions, most notably, MS. If this is the conclusion of the experts, then what right have we to oppose a way of reducing suffering for victims of such a debilitating and humiliating condition? I personally think it's inhumane not to support pain-relieving drugs, full stop. How on earth can it be justifiable not to legalise purely on the basis of anecdotal evidence and personal prejudice? I'm quite happy to accept the opinion of those who know best, thank you. It seems to me to be arrogant not to...

I am grammar school educated. I went to a good university. Yet I find it hard to think of one of my contemporaries who doesn't use cannabis. I have friends who are lawyers, teachers, accountants, managers, city analysts, who all smoke cannabis. These are intelligent people with good careers, who don't break the law in any other way. None would have a heavy smoking session during the week as much as they wouldn't get blind drunk. But with things the way they are, they could all be classed as criminal. It's daft.

Incidentally, I don't drink or take drugs solely because I prefer to keep my senses intact. It's not a moral judgement, it's a purely personal one, and I'm fully aware that I'm in the minority. However I have no argument with anyone who does choose to indulge, as long as they don't harm or offend anyone. So, if you've stuck with me this far, please don't think I'm taking a universal moral stance against con
sumers of either drink or drugs, really I'm not! Live and let live, and all that...

It just seems to me that the argument against legalisation is very shaky, and the argument for is overwhelming. It's hypocritical that the same people who argue against legalisation will no doubt have a glass of champagne or several at a wedding, or a whisky on the rocks after work, or maybe even hit the bottle after a difficult week. Stamping out cannabis is about as likely as stamping out alcohol, it won't work. Given the potential benefits of legalising cannabis, if only by making it the preferred binge substance, personally, I can only support it.

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