Legalise cannabis?

[Nicolo Barella]

 Just went back and looked through this thread, some of you have literally been arguing about this for 9 years! I hope they legalise it just so you can go to bed...

[Kopfkino]

1 hour ago, Nicolo Barella said:

There's literally no reason for weed not to be legal, because alcohol is legal. I would say alcohol is more damaging than weed in every way possible, and yet it is a cornerstone of our society. "Weed can be bad for you if you build a dependance on it" obviously it is bad if you build a dependance on it! Just like nicotine and alcohol and every other kind of drug that you can build a dependance on. 

 

Its a terrible argument because if alcohol wasn't so heavily interwoven into our lives and culture through hundreds of years of use it would be obviously be banned. Banning something that has always been legal isn't the same as legalising something that is banned. 

 

This thing that can have terrible effects on people is legal, because it has been a big part of our society for hundreds of years, isn't an argument for this thing that can have terrible effects on people being made legal now. 

[Stadt]

Fully support legislation but in my experience stoners are so tedious

[Rain King]

It smells fecking horrendous so for that reason keep it banned. 

 

On a serious note I couldn't care less although several people keep suggesting it for my godawful knees.

Edited 23 April 2020 by pds

[Dahnsouff]

25 minutes ago, Stadt said:

Fully support legislation but in my experience stoners are so tedious

Legalise cannabis, ban its users 

#freecannabis

[Fightforever]

I voted no when I first saw this but having tried it I would now change my mind. It helps relax and if alcohol isn't illegal then weed shouldn't be either. When it comes to decriminalizing has it worked well where it has happened?

Edited 23 April 2020 by Fightforever

[Fightforever]

If we were to re do the poll since this ones been here for a good decade it would probably 80/20 now.

[Carl the Llama]

Has anybody on here looked into using organic herbs/teas as an alternative to tobacco in their spliffs?  I've been experimenting a bit the last couple days with chamomile and mullein, I'm not a huge fan of how the latter burns or its aftertaste but the chamomile is absolutely gorgeous.  Smooth smoke and I swear it makes you sleep better (plus it's cheaper than baccy).  Currently settled on a chamomile/baccy/weed ratio of 1:1:2 for a good mix of burn and flavour, I can imagine it makes for a tasty vape mix too (without the baccy of course).

 

I have a few other bags of things on the way to try out (lavender, peppermint, bubblegum) but if anybody has recommendations I'm all ears.

[FerrisBueller]

19 minutes ago, Carl the Llama said:

Has anybody on here looked into using organic herbs/teas as an alternative to tobacco in their spliffs?  I've been experimenting a bit the last couple days with chamomile and mullein, I'm not a huge fan of how the latter burns or its aftertaste but the chamomile is absolutely gorgeous.  Smooth smoke and I swear it makes you sleep better (plus it's cheaper than baccy).  Currently settled on a chamomile/baccy/weed ratio of 1:1:2 for a good mix of burn and flavour, I can imagine it makes for a tasty vape mix too (without the baccy of course).

 

I have a few other bags of things on the way to try out (lavender, peppermint, bubblegum) but if anybody has recommendations I'm all ears.

I came across Raspberry leaf (I think) once or twice through pals, that wasn't too bad.

Annoyingly I'm so used to tobacco in it, it feels like it's missing something if I don't get that nicotine too.

[Innovindil]

42 minutes ago, Carl the Llama said:

Has anybody on here looked into using organic herbs/teas as an alternative to tobacco in their spliffs?  I've been experimenting a bit the last couple days with chamomile and mullein, I'm not a huge fan of how the latter burns or its aftertaste but the chamomile is absolutely gorgeous.  Smooth smoke and I swear it makes you sleep better (plus it's cheaper than baccy).  Currently settled on a chamomile/baccy/weed ratio of 1:1:2 for a good mix of burn and flavour, I can imagine it makes for a tasty vape mix too (without the baccy of course).

 

I have a few other bags of things on the way to try out (lavender, peppermint, bubblegum) but if anybody has recommendations I'm all ears.

Literally ditched the mixer and just bought a pipe. Best decision I ever made. No more messing about trying to roll. 

[Finnaldo]

2 minutes ago, Innovindil said:

Literally ditched the mixer and just bought a pipe. Best decision I ever made. No more messing about trying to roll. 

As in a tobacco pipe? My friend got one to smoke weed for a birthday years ago and he could barely get it to burn  

[Innovindil]

Just now, Finnaldo said:

As in a tobacco pipe? My friend got one to smoke weed for a birthday years ago and he could barely get it to burn  

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metal-Smoking-Portable-Magnet-Silver/dp/B07BQTRXP5/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=Pipe&qid=1590587637&sr=8-13

 

One of those. Dunno if I can link it but it's sold on amazon so I'll wait for a mod to moan and take it down if it breaks any rules. 

 

Magnetic so you just take it apart and throw it in the sink to wash. Easy. Also got one of those flamethrower thingies for toasting soufflés to light it. 

[Finnaldo]

Just now, Innovindil said:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metal-Smoking-Portable-Magnet-Silver/dp/B07BQTRXP5/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=Pipe&qid=1590587637&sr=8-13

 

One of those. Dunno if I can link it but it's sold on amazon so I'll wait for a mod to moan and take it down if it breaks any rules. 

 

Magnetic so you just take it apart and throw it in the sink to wash. Easy. Also got one of those flamethrower thingies for toasting soufflés to light it. 

Ahh nothing like my mate’s cheap wooden pipe then! I’ll have to show my smoking mates 

[Carl the Llama]

39 minutes ago, Innovindil said:

Literally ditched the mixer and just bought a pipe. Best decision I ever made. No more messing about trying to roll. 

I enjoy rolling, I'll make a little ceremony out of it and end up with a spliff to toke on gradually over an hour or so whereas the pipe experience is over too quickly and before you know it you're packing another bowl.

[fuchsntf]

I am sure it would be shrewd and cheaper,Saving millions  to legalise all drugs,start out with areas,like the Old Amsterdam red Light district..

Have detox clinics,Safe houses and Police it...With specials. see the prices and needs go down,Spit in the Eye of the devil,then you have no traffickers,pushers,

Or Drug gang wars,then go to war on unclean drug mixes,financed from within...

 

Britain is an Island,use that to your strengths,and up the Customs financially and with Frontline staff ,rescources inland & coastal. A Fleet of boats.

Hardened airport control,und Stronger Deportation rules,and search regulations for all UK citizens. Invest more Money in immediate Detection tests for Customs control,become more sophisticated than the criminal...

 

This was the idea of my then  Girlfriend nearly 40years ago,who First went in a detox clinic and care.Sie came from a Good solid Middle Class family,who Welcomed a W.class young Rebel into their family,with no airs or graces Intentions boundaries ,she had marvellous Mam & Dad. Carolynne was her name,

The last Time she succumbed,her Father called me,I was in Leeds. After all our Previous hard work,believing we had her over the worse, >5 months clean<

Showing no Suttle traits,moments of deceit which One can quickly Pick upon that she would fall back again  into the abyss. I found her with help from 2 Police buddies,and a Nurse- friend,who had cared for her previously.

She died in my arms before we could do anything,Her Mother & Father somehow knew or felt if she went & Fell again off the wagon,they would lose her.

 

Though distraught the parents with her Brother & sister,still found time for me,they appreciated I also tried my damnest to get and Keep her clean,even understanding I was Knowledgable and knew some of that mileu,and bad company. 

My friends detested any known peoples in this then seemingly new vice to our streets.

 

There were some Real Rough and ready hardened Petty or GBA ready  criminals.They too despised the then hardened drugs groups,enough Internal rumbles,

took place trying to defend some Silly ethic or etiquette.  I remember some hard Drug pushers,being Chased und beaten up and out of

many a Night club even Local pubs...( How times have Changed).  The sorry thing about this Carolynne,picked  her soft use from Uni,und went to the hard stuff,

Not from the streets,but weak toffee-nosed,respected M.class,even gentry society bumkins. ( her words,Not mine).

Her unconsolable parents,und Family split from some of their so called friends because of it....Carolynne had gone to a house-party,that started the end of her last

12 hours....

 

sorry but just a Short last Highlight und story of one beautiful girl,from many,who Couldnt realise their future,because of a Society civil war,thats been allowed to run out of all control....!!!

 

 

 

 

[ajthefox]

7 hours ago, Innovindil said:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metal-Smoking-Portable-Magnet-Silver/dp/B07BQTRXP5/ref=mp_s_a_1_13?dchild=1&keywords=Pipe&qid=1590587637&sr=8-13

 

One of those. Dunno if I can link it but it's sold on amazon so I'll wait for a mod to moan and take it down if it breaks any rules. 

 

Magnetic so you just take it apart and throw it in the sink to wash. Easy. Also got one of those flamethrower thingies for toasting soufflés to light it. 

 

6 hours ago, Carl the Llama said:

I enjoy rolling, I'll make a little ceremony out of it and end up with a spliff to toke on gradually over an hour or so whereas the pipe experience is over too quickly and before you know it you're packing another bowl.

 

I've got a small pipe similar to the one above. Handy and convenient but I do sometimes enjoy rolling and a spliff is definitely more enjoyable. 

 

It's also a lot easier when you run out and are scraping all of the pollen out of your grinder to make sure there's enough of the stuff to smoke.

[Carl the Llama]

3 minutes ago, ajthefox said:

 

 

I've got a small pipe similar to the one above. Handy and convenient but I do sometimes enjoy rolling and a spliff is definitely more enjoyable. 

 

It's also a lot easier when you run out and are scraping all of the pollen out of your grinder to make sure there's enough of the stuff to smoke.

Fair, not so much an issue for me (touch wood), if heaven forbid my supply does run dry there's usually a few months' worth of scrapings to tide me over until the re-up, tend to get a few nice keefy bifters out of it  

[ozleicester]

On 23/04/2020 at 22:26, Nicolo Barella said:

 Just went back and looked through this thread, some of you have literally been arguing about this for 9 years! I hope they legalise it just so you can go to bed...

Ha if only it was 9 years, had my first smoke in 1978.. and been fighting for legal ever since 😁

On 24/04/2020 at 02:45, pds said:

It smells fecking horrendous so for that reason keep it banned. 

 

On a serious note I couldn't care less although several people keep suggesting it for my godawful knees.

Your knees will love you for it, joint and muscle pain reduction is it's 2 ND best outcome.

[Buce]

Enlightened drug reforms are sweeping the US. Why is Britain so far behind?

 

In 1942, the American political scientist Quincy Wright published a lengthy book about how to organise the world beyond endless wars. A Study of War cemented Wright’s reputation as an influential liberal thinker of the early 20th century. But Wright would help bring about a new type of endless war in his time. He was one of the first major voices to call for what would later be known as the “war on drugs”. As early as 1924, Wright argued that the use of drugs “for purposes other than medicinal or scientific” is an “evil”. While working as an adviser to the state department, Wright advocated for the US to lead a global assault against drugs.

Almost a century later, the “war on drugs” may need a new leader. Amid the chaos surrounding last November’s US presidential contest, drug policy reform quietly took a quantum leap forward. Voters from across the political spectrum chose to legalise recreational cannabis, opening the door for places such as Arizona and New Jersey to recreate the lucrative cannabis industries already found in California, Colorado and other states.

 

Policies are also being introduced to try to bring an end to the system of mass incarceration, and to redress the racial and economic inequalities fuelled by the “war on drugs” that became an enduring touchstone of US federal policy after Richard Nixon declared drugs “public enemy number one” in 1971. But the most dramatic change came in Oregon, which legalised cannabis in 2014 and has now become the first US state to decriminalise all drugs, including cocaine, methamphetamines and heroin.

Crucially, decriminalising these drugs doesn’t create a legal industry for them (as it has done with cannabis). Instead, decriminalisation turns the possession of these drugs into something that isn’t permitted but won’t be punished by the criminal law, much like parking your car without a ticket. If you’re now found in possession of small amounts of cocaine or heroin, you will be required to pay a fine or meet with an addiction specialist – but you won’t be arrested.

The wave of drug policy reforms washing over the US seems likely to drag President Biden with it. Once an avid drug warrior, Biden is now claiming that he would like to see a change in legislation across the whole country, arguing that “no one should go to jail for a drug offence”. This is a stark contrast to Labour leader, Keir Starmer, who has reiterated that he wouldn’t support the drug policy reforms currently being implemented in many countries.

Starmer recently took the opportunity to remind the public that he took pride in prosecuting “many, many cases involving drugs and drug gangs” when he was director of public prosecutions. The most recent Ministry of Justice statistics show that drug offences are still one the most common reasons why people end up in prison in the UK, accounting for 27% of all prisoners currently being held on remand, the largest percentage for any offence.

And drug offences are repeatedly shown to be among the main drivers of racial disparities within Britain’s criminal justice system. Black and Asian drug offenders are far more likely to receive an immediate custodial sentence when convicted than white offenders. Some might be able to overlook such injustices if the system worked. But the criminalisation of drugs has not produced the “drug-free world” that some once dreamed of. By the United Nations’ own estimation, around 275 million people continue to use prohibited drugs each year.

Wright’s description of drug use as “evil” eventually found its way into the UN’s 1961 treaty on drugs, the international law that established our current system of drug prohibition (as the legal scholar Rick Lines has shown, the phrase “evil” notably doesn’t feature in UN treaties against genocide, slavery or apartheid). Sixty years later, this portrayal of drugs continues to loom large in the imagination of politicians like Starmer, who said he sees drugs as “sitting behind” an array of social ills, including knife crime and criminal gangs.

Portraying drugs as an evil force is an example of what the cultural theorist Mark Fisher described as the “new problem of evil”. Fisher argued that we create objects of evil to fill the gaps between ideology and reality. How can a supposedly liberal, equal society reconcile this vision of itself with the reality that it produces systemic injustices? Depicting drugs as the cause rather than the symptom of these issues allows politicians to paper over the internal contradictions within their own societies, pinning the blame on drugs rather than deeper structural problems.

Over the course of the 20th century, the supposedly “evil” nature of drugs has proved a useful tool for politicians to do just this. In the US, where most drug policy reforms have been passed by ballot initiatives (popular votes), it took the people to turn the country away from this narrative. Thanks to Britain’s more archaic parliamentary system and fatigue with popular referendums, drug law reforms will be harder to create from the bottom up.

Changing our drug laws is going to require political leadership. But in a country where power is as centralised as Britain, politicians have not considered it worthwhile to try to challenge the conventional narrative around drug policy. Despite polls showing that more people support the legalisation of cannabis in the UK than oppose it, it seems that politicians will cling on to the protection that the “evil” of drugs offers them for some time to come.

[Innovindil]

Not really had strong feelings about Starmer over anything since he's become Labour leader, weird times right now and time will tell if he'll be a decent opposition. That said, bitterly disappointed to see him take this stance on drugs. 

 

Backwards shite at a time when legalising it helps in so many ways. Courts backlogged with bullshit and prisons rammed full of nobodies. Police time still taken up by a £10 bag of weed. Just let me grow a plant and be merry ffs. 

[BenTheFox]

On 23/06/2018 at 09:49, lifted*fox said:

 

Outstanding example of why legalising and the quality control that will come with it will save even more lives. I took thousands of pills throughout my 20's during my raving years (literally tens of them every weekend) and all we had to go by was trusting the people that sold them to us. Trusting that they'd either tried them themselves or knew someone who had. 

 

In this country they won't even allow drug testing tables to be set up in clubs so that people who are going to do it anyway can give their pills a quick test to check they're not laced with dangerous 'filler'. MDMA itself is actually a very safe chemical. It's the dodgy filler that criminals use to make up the rest of the pill content that causes people to overheat and die. Also because of its illegality the education around ecstacy is lacking and there people think they need to drink more water than they do and end up drowning themselves. 

 

I believe the netherlands allows testing tables in clubs, setup by independent companies who will do a quick test on the pill. It's proven to reduce issues related to the drug. People who want to let loose and dance in clubs always have and will always continue to source and take drugs whether illegal or not. Just because something is legalised doesn't mean people are going to leg it down the pill shop and start munching biscuits. My mum isn't suddenly gonna start taking pills at the weekend. 

 

There is a war on drugs and it's not productive. Legalise, regulate, educate and save lives or carry on down the expensive and ineffective path of prohibition that makes people buy from dealers on the streets where the product is unknown and funds other criminal activity. 

 

It's a no-brainer, really...

This. It's crazy that instead of regulating these substances and educating people we have criminals running the industry. As you you alluded to, I'm not taking pills at work because it's illegal. I'm not taking pills at work for the same reason why I'm not getting drunk at work.

[Christoph]

Why is Britain behind? Because the corrupt politicians in our government have no reason to legalise it when half their mates are making money on it already selling it as medicinal weed. I read something daft somewhere where the UK is one of the largest exporters of medicinal canabis around the world. Mental. 

[Vacamion]

3 hours ago, Christoph said:

Why is Britain behind? Because the corrupt politicians in our government have no reason to legalise it when half their mates are making money on it already selling it as medicinal weed. I read something daft somewhere where the UK is one of the largest exporters of medicinal canabis around the world. Mental. 

 

 

Boris Johnson, Michael Gove, Jeremy Hunt, Andrea Leadsom, Rory Stewart and Dominic Raab all admitted to taking drugs prior to the last election.

 

I was going to say Matt Hancock probably  hasn't, because he's obviously an unpopular loner, but it turns out he has, too. 

 

It's OK for the hoi polloi to take it, but then happily and hypocritically preside over an administration that criminalises non cabinet ministers for following their example.

 

 

[peach0000]

I tend to favour individual freedom so I would support the legalisation of cannabis. However some people act like cannabis has no draw backs which is entirely false. As someone who used to be a heavy user and no people who still are I can safely say it can ruin lives. However I would never want to take away individual choice to use it if that's what someone desires (I would say the same about a few other drugs as well).

[Buce]

Mayor of London to examine benefits of cannabis legalisation

The mayor of London is to launch a review examining the feasibility of decriminalising cannabis as part of a new approach to tackling drug-related crime.

Should he be re-elected on 6 May, Sadiq Khan said he would set up an independent London drugs commission to examine the potential health, economic and criminal justice benefits of decriminalising the class-B drug.

 

Khan believes there is widespread public support for a more relaxed approach to decriminalisation, citing polls showing more than half of the UK – and nearly two-thirds of those in the capital – support legalising cannabis for adult recreational use.

Although he has ruled out the decriminalisation of class-A drugs such as heroin and cocaine, Khan is willing to consider supporting changes to the legal status of cannabis if that is what the commission concludes.

“It will be for the commission to look at the evidence in the round, but nothing is off the table in the context of what is best for public health and keeping Londoners safe,” said a source close to the mayor.

The announcement of the proposal to set up a London drugs commission is expected to be part of Khan’s mayoral election manifesto, published on Tuesday.

Khan will say fresh ideas are needed to counter the illegal drugs trade, which is damaging both Londoners’ health and their communities, as well as fuelling an increase in organised and violent crime. Too many young people are criminalised for use of of drugs, he believes.

The illegal drug trade in the UK is estimated to cost society £19bn per year, according to the mayor’s office. About 41,900 people across England and Wales were charged with drug-related offences last year. Legalising and regulating the sale of cannabis would raise at least £1bn in taxes for the Treasury, according to some estimates.

But formally adopting such a position could put him out of step with the Labour leader, who recently said he was opposed to decriminalisation. The current drugs laws were “roughly right”, Keir Starmer told Sky News, though he added that there was “always room for a grown-up debate about how we deal with these cases”.

The London drug commission, which would be comprised of independent experts from criminal justice, public health, politics, community relations and academia, would examine how countries around the world have tackled problems with drug use and addiction.

This is likely to include looking at evidence from Portugal, where possession and consumption of drugs have been decriminalised since 2001 as part of a wider approach to drugs, including improved treatment programmes and better prevention, education and social support services.

It is also likely to consider the experiences of Canada, Uruguay and several US states, where cannabis for recreational use has been legalised. Private use of cannabis is allowed in Spain, while Dutch coffee shops have long sold marijuana.

The commission would collate the latest evidence on the effectiveness of UK drug laws, police enforcement and addiction support services. It would report to the mayor with recommendations for City Hall, the government, the police, the criminal justice system, and NHS and treatment services.

Although Khan does not have the powers to introduce new laws, he believes that should the commission recommend decriminalisation of cannabis, a mayoral endorsement would give it a boost.

Khan, who has in the past called for “an evidence-based conversation” around cannabis, will say: “It’s time for fresh ideas about how to reduce the harms drugs and drug-related crimes cause to individuals, families and communities.

“The commission will make recommendations focusing on the most effective laws to tackle crime, protect Londoners’ health, and reduce the huge damage that illegal drugs, including cannabis, cause to our communities and society.”

In 2019 the cross-party Commons health committee called for the government to consult on the decriminalisation of drug possession for personal use. It said taking a health-based approach would benefit users and reduce harm and costs to the wider community.

The Survation survey cited by the mayor’s office, published in July 2019, found that 63% of London residents backed the legalisation and regulation of cannabis, while just 19% opposed the idea. Across the UK as a whole, 47% backed legalisation, with 30% against.