I must admit,I really admire your passion in the legalisation topics.free the weed :-)

Zebedee, as much as I want to see this amazing plant legalized the reason it won’t be legalized is that there is absolutely no way it can be taxed.
This is the ugly little truth the powers that be don’t want to tell you. Not only does it give you a great buzz and is known for it’s ability to heal and for general health, it can also be used for energy, textile, building material….list is endless.
However the government can not tax it period. I mean do you pay tax while growing tomatoes in your garden? no you don’t because they are legal and free.
The only way the government could tax hemp is if it kept it illegal yet sold taxed spliffs and this is the only way.

The ” War on Drugs ” has been lost – worldwide . Marijuana is now legal in some states in USA- and many police officers in USA will say the so called war is lost . marijuana also is helpful for MS sufferers .
C4 UK did a documnetray some years back – and showed that deaths from Tobacco and Alcohol were 400 times deaths from hard drugs . But Tobacco and Alcohol bring in big taxes for govet .
Decriminalising would hit the criminals hard – the more illegal substances they have to trade the better for them .
Legalising them[ hard drugs ] may also affect CIA income .

Revenue could be generated through tax & levies put on the retail sale of cannabis, not everyone is going to grow their own and those who did would still want to buy other strains. Plus, there’d be a completely different landscape if cannabis was legalised, consumers would come out of their homes to spend their money in the new Coffee Shops & Vape Lounges that would be opened.

It was put brilliantly in the show the wire when it was said you can’t have a war on drugs. Why?? Because wars end.

I’m sure there have been people murdered over shipments of grass being discovered… Drug lords looking for their ” repayment”

It’s not all individuals growing die their own use…

” for” their own use..

Freudian spellcheck :)

I wasn’t referring to deaths associated with drug deals involving marihuana.

Drug driving?……..

It all inextricably linked though…

http://alcoholism.about.com/b/2003/11/02/marijuana-causes-many-deaths-reported-as-accidents.htm

Phone driving. Tired driving. Make-up driving. Shaving driving. Sex driving….

What if your tired, driving, putting on yer make up, ringing the office all the while having a pedal and crank… Jeez.. You’d need a joint just to relax after all that multi tasking!
;)

Brilliant. Five stars. This whole debate and some people’s reliance on tabloid information was putting me in a bad mood but you made it worth it. Cheers and now for an ould smoke and a few pints. I’ll be walking though.

Have one for me :)

Who is saying that alcohol is harmless Bauer? What’s that got to do with cannabis? Alcohol is legal so that’s not the issue here?

Spot on mr Murphy and there is no immediate road test for Gardai to detect drugs unlike alcohol ..

Good man the heathen you rebel. You must be right because it doesn’t adversely affect you. Easy to see that you have a small focused view. A lot if those with a wider view may disagree with your opinions

they don’t want you questioning these things. take a look round any A+E in the country, any town centre on New Years, St Patricks day etc and see the Alcohol induced chaos. I like a drink as much as the next man but i realise the immense damage it can do to lives so I try and keep some control on intake. Doesn’t always happen but i try. Not everyone has this mindset. You won’t smoke a few J’s and beat your partners or children, start rows with strangers, get so bad you have lost the ability to walk, talk and function like many people do up and down the country week after week. on THE EVIL WEED you might watch a stupid funny film, eat some kebabs and just chill, having a nice time. They know all these things and yet still it’s illegal. Nothing to do with the power of the Drinks and Tobacco industry at all! It’s just bad for you and that;s the end of it. They know what is better for you so just keep quiet plebs. Decriminalise and tax you idiots.

Ming Flanagan is supposed to be bringing a private members bill before the Oireachtas to fully legalise the drug for purchase. It’s supposed to happen in April of this year.

Ming :D joke of a man

He’s not really a great advertisement for the stuff is he?

Not really no, just putting it out there that it’s bring brought up soon enough :-)

Being*

Ming is hoping to legalize weed and get pints wiped out!

Think it’s been moved forward to July, he mentioned it in a recent talk that he did on cannabis prohibition in Cork University – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYnbwqJuPTU

Well im no fan of ming. But in general making it illegal had not worked. When you compare it to alcohol or tobacco its not as harmful so maybe one day we will be proactive about it.

Id be interested to know over the years what the Dutch attitude is to it now

That is impressive research Alan. : P

Hope you know I am kidding, I am all for legalization.

All of what u said is fair and reasonable alan. By the way I dont believe cannibas is a gateway drug to harder drugs.

And i am sure most of the posters here are responsible/sensible cannibas users.

But look at our history with alcohol. Yikes!!! I am not talking about the addictive nature of alcohol but the way we totally abuse it. Would the same happen with cannabis??? Maybe it wouldnt.

I am just explaining my concerns.

There is no argument to legalise. It is banned and should remain banned and anyone selling should be given life or put to death. Simple as.

Im no fan, but there is not a single study done that says its actually a gateway drug. Utter nonsense.

There is nothing in cannabis that makes people do other drugs. In Ireland, most people’s first experience is with alcohol. Using your logic, alcohol is a “gateway” drug.

But alcohol doesn’t irreparably damage neurones, unlike cannabis.

Says this unsubstantiated study you mentioned earlier…

Alcohol does alot more damage in domestic, finacial and pshycological ways then cannibis does. You never hear about the guy who smoked weed and beat up or murderd someone do you?

http://journals.lww.com/co-psychiatry/Abstract/2007/07000/Prevalence_and_correlates_of_cannabis_use_in.14.aspx

Phuq I think you will find Brest milk is the gate way drug its a slippery slope after that!!!

Interesting theory. We do quite a bit of study of biopsychology and cognitive psychology in college. You equate the effects of. T.h.c. with addicitve substances which is utterly false, cannabis is not addictive. Secondly you believe that alchohol is somehow better than cannabis for the body or mind? False, in fact even In ireland cannabaoid products are available for ilnessess and prescribed by medical physicians. Now were I you I would neverer compare the two again, alchohol is and has always been demonstably dar worse for both body and mind. Also try reading up on it as oppose making unsubstantiated claims

I never said cannabis was more or less harmful that alcohol. I said that stating cannabis is a gateway drug is using flawed logic. Also, your article says that cannabis use is an indicator of use of other illicit drugs. Correlation does not mean causation.

Smiley – You are absolutely full of bull. The last time it was mentioned as a gateway drug was when Reefer Madness influenced idiots like yourself. That theory is as redundant as ‘the war on drugs’!

My replies are not aimed at you..they @ smiley (sitting other side of computer screen with huge clown boots on) correlate what you will from that.@(“,)

Similarly, I’m talking to Smiley, not you. So go correlate yourself! :)

Ummm, Heathen, what was Reefer Madness? Please stick to the topic. Abuse is the sign of a poor argument.

If you don’t know then get researching. It’s not unsubstantiated bull either.

Ok when smoked by an undeveloped person say a 16 year old, it can cause short term memory loss and gives a 5-10% increased chance of becoming schizophrenic. When smoked recreationally by a fully developed adult there is not one bad side effect!! Recreational is lets say 1-2 joints after work before bed.

Someone smoking joint after joint day in day out is obviously going to have problems! Having anything in huge quantities is never good for you.

And finally, the Netherlands have a far lower percentage of teenagers who smoke cannabis than most European countries, including Ireland. Why? Because it is legalised and sold in shops where it is strictly over 18′s!!!

Alcohol is generally the gateway drug then cannabis ect ect ask any person that has issues with drugs they’ll name cannabis as the start of their use. A drugs a drug which often has negative effects towards a users life, be it alcohol weed benzos or heroin. It always amazes me how weed smokers defend it so much with little regard to the effects it has on many others. Just the same as alcohol suits some and not others.

P. S stop been one sided makes you look like you have a problem ha.

I don’t use cannabis or any other illegal drug. And the whole point is that there is no such thing as a “gateway” element to any drug that compels you to try other drugs afterwards.

There is such a thing as a psychological addiction. Just ask the weed smokers to give it up for 6 months see how they get on.

The gate way argument is bull. Some people like to try stuff out weather thats a toke or a yoke or some sex act or a skydive.

Now that I look at it, I’d like to do all of the above at once. While typing a reply on the journal. I knew I shouldnt have had another coffee…

I smoked a joint well before I started drinking does that make cannabis a gate way to alcohol or are both readily available so making cannabis illegal just encourage people to meet illegal drug dealers who offer far more then cannabis. I know if my son or daughter manage to get served in a off licence or bar all they can get is alcohol!! Making it illegal is the gateway to a world that if it was sold responsibly kids would have less contact with!!

The thing about psychological addiction is that it can apply to anything, not just drugs. It stems from a fixation that a person attaches to an object or thing such as food, a type of drink, sex etc. So yes, cannabis can be psychologically addictive, but there are no chemical compounds contained in it that make it so.

I’m so high right meow!!

See this is typical of the “legalise weed” lobby. They spout “research” to suit their agenda and then when someone with an opposing opinion shows research that disagrees with their opinions it is dismissed or downplayed.. It’s not as simple as some people believe it is. There are legitimate concerns.

But it isn’t legalised mr McGowan. If you had bothered to research properly you’d see that it was tolerated and not legalised. You do realise that the Dutch are now tightening up on the use of cannabis don’t you? Similarly the Brits have reclassified it back to a more serious level having lowered it to a class c drug a few years back. Just because you’d like it to be legal doesn’t mean it should be.

Wrong phuq.

And the reason phuq? It’s because the drug leaves the system so slowly. That’s why it’s not physically addictive. I see the results of cannabis dependence on a regular basis and you are deluding yourself if you think that it is harmless.

Regular eating of oranges of prolonged periods will give you the shits and change your skin tone. Ban oranges.

Its quite obvious that up to your two eyeballs you are full of sh1t.

Cannabis and it’s products are much stronger than 40 years ago, mainly because it’s development and control has been in the hands of criminals for all that time. Legalisation and government control could regulate and dilute this increased strength.

Good point, but then stronger stuff might become illicit and so the problem remains. Just incidentally, can someone please tell me why coffee shops in Amsterdam were outlawed?

They were outlawed for about 5mins till they realised how much revenue they’d lose.

What? When? Why?

They weren’t.

Sorry, my error: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/benelux/130110/netherlands-amsterdam-cannabis-law-coffee-shops-marijuana

It’s not about cannabis really but the need to get rid of the stags and hens that are wrecking the place. Can’t blame them either.

You’re wasting your time here smiley. These stories are populated by overbearing potheads that have an agenda to further their own cause which is to legalise their drug of choice despite the consequences to the wider public. Most contributors to the journal that don’t agree with the pro cannabis brigade don’t bother to comment on stories such as this due to the ill informed pushy and aggressive disagreement they receive from the pro pot lobby. They are great at producing studies and stats and comparisons that agree with their opinions but watch how they dismiss and dilute any scientific study that disagrees with their opinion. Oh and there are also a good few conspiracy theorists lurking here that think there are govt agendas that want to keep weed outlawed for strange reasons. To sum it up smiley. These stories ain’t the place for reasoned logical discussion…

Oh so it’s not what they actually said its what you think they mean… Right

On what grounds deirdre?

Moronic comparison. The only reason tobacco’s legal is because governments make a lot of money from them. Cash is king; they don’t get a fiddler’s fcuk about health. Do you not find it ridiculous that a product that is linked directly to cancer and causes 7000+ deaths on our little island alone per year is legal while a plant that has never been scientifically linked to the death of one person is illegal?

Decriminalise all drugs. Only way to go. Examples around the world will be multiplying on how it works and many countries will be following the likes of Portugal. Hope we’re not left behind in the dark ages.

@deirdre. Im sorry. What??

Its not like i have never tried cannabis. I have quite a few times. And i loved it. My brother in law is a grower!

I can understand the advantages of legalizing it. And i dont blame people for disagreeing with me.

But dont u think our relationship with alcohol proves we are not responsible enough to handle another legalized drug.

My mind could be changed by the way.

History first, it was legalised, back in the 1930 because they wealthy families who run this world had just bought, pharmaceuticals, billions worth of forest and oil. Hemp a product off the weed plant, can be used for paper making clothes, heating houses, running/building cars, building houses and another few thousand uses. They would have suffered losses if they went into competition with this product. They got dirty got gov to draw up legislation to make weed illegal ( changed it to the Mexican name so people didn’t associate the drug with their massive non pollution cheap hemp industry. Used their media influences to scare people, used racism in their adds, showed white women jumping into bed with black men, women jumping out of windows and the like. We all know the drug doesn’t work like the so did they. It was all about money. You can take that example and apply it to things today the influence these families who own lots of everything, natural resources, banks, corporation, their still calling the shots and influencing our lives with media propaganda.

I smoked weed in my late teens and 20s had no effect on me. I had friends who went out drinking every weekend when I would sit in and have a smoke with a few girls, we would smoke only on the weekend and maybe if we had a day off during the week. I never got addicted it has no effect on me. Actually my friends going out were coming home with bruises and some went a bit hmmm after the few drink and there would be a lot of strange men. They would spend a fortune and were never able to save money, I have a nice bundle of savings from that time. I stopped when ever I wanted. I might still have the odd smoke but very rarely. I see nothing wrong with it I hurt no one. I laughed, ate a lot of food, watch a lot of movie, but mostly laughed a lot.
The argument is it is addictive, alcohol is a lot more addictive and damaging to people’s health.
I think in these tough time everyone should smoke a joint once every two weeks have a laugh and close your mind off to everything for a few hours.
My parents having a tough time financially I have told them smoke one have a laugh with each other and just forget about banks etc for one night.

Not a thing wrong with it legalise it, regulate it.

My opinion on gateway drug is that these kids are buying from drug dealers who are going to offer them other harder drugs some say No others don’t. Legalise will eliminate that problem.

Your the problem with society, the word, fickle doesn’t even cut it for people like you.

Well written and well said Adelle :-)

Hey Deirdre, I understand why you would perceive cannabis legalisation as a negative, especially when you factor in the damaging effects that alcohol has on both the consumer & society as a whole, but when you take into account that alcohol is the “only legal” mind altering substance available for people to consume, it’s not surprising to find that we have so many problems with it. Ending cannabis prohibition would give us a much safer alternative drug to consume legally, one which is far less addictive, which you cannot die from overdosing on and which doesn’t kill your brain cells. It also doesn’t cause people to get violent or increase the chances of sexual assaults or domestic violence.

If our government were really concerned about the wellbeing of our society, ending cannabis prohibition would be at the top of their agenda, but unfortunately I think they’re probably more concerned about keeping their friends in the Vintners Association happy.

Julian was that comment for me if it was please explain further if not never mind.

Cannabis Freedom. Fair enough. I was against legalising it. But i think there has been a great discussion here to convince me i have been misinformed.

No harm to take it out of drug dealers hands thereby reducing the risk of them tempting people with harder drugs.

Ya i am convinced.

Deirdre weed is easier to get then smokes and they don’t ask for ID!!