Cannabis haul! This is a Joke, Wake Up Smell the Beans

[truthisfree]

In fact now that i look at them, every single one of TruthIsFree's articles are from the same source alternet, and every one of them tries to spin the Cannabis issue in a pro-legalisation way! And some of them that quote studies give no links to websites dealing with those studies, you just have to take their word for it!

Yes they are all from Alternet, I am going to go through all the sites I usually use regularly and post all the relevant links that I think are written clearly and as scientifically as possible. Alternet was under A, I have no intention of doing this in one day, far from it, I intend to add links over a period of weeks and links to the argument against as well.

Don't knock it on the basis of an hours work, anyone can do that, why not find some articles to back up the legalisation side.

[zebedee bong]

If a person decides to grow a few cannabis plants in his own back garden, what is the reasoning for making that person a criminal for so doing ? If no one else is involved, how then does this imperil the state to the extent that it insists on banning the activity which is a well nigh hopeless exercise. Unless of course, soviet style whistleblowing were put in place to leak everything to the police.

Now there's a thought and while they are at it, they might train the self same police to keep a sharp lookout for greedy bankers and developers who are negligent and reckless to an unimaginable extent in placing the whole economy at risk of collapse, creating massive unemployment, losing peoples lifesavings willy nilly, as they pursue their hedonistic lifestyles with scoundrel behaviour.

Y'see that's not a crime. All that money lending stuff and losing peoples savings and being negligent, that's not a crime. I guess our legislators did not consider it serious enough to legislate but by god, we will not let that smoke sodden hippy half way up yon mountain do his thing even unto himself without decent legislation to hold him in check. And if he doesn't stop seeding the patch in his garden, we will jail him at a cost in excess of €1,000 per week, that'll teach him. He will search in vain for greedy gullet bankers on his landing tho'. Oh no, that's not on any time soon. But just you wait, Henry Higgins, just you wait...../

Sometimes, this reminds me of the law on prostitution which was created by a gang of male legislators. And just who was it, that they left out of the equation when defining offenders ?
Answers on a postcard, please, and the prize is a visit and guided tour of the all new state of the art prison out in North County Dublin which will be the envy of......oh Dear God, I don't like the way this is developing.

Hold it, hold it.....what's this I hear about the money being withdrawn, what....not even the foundations dug.....but but shure wasn't it all sorted ?

Ah...the RTE news.....and there's that nice Mr Reynolds again fresh from rifling Garda files, and now telling us that the Gardai have smashed another narcotics supply line. Although they are not in competition, merely complimentary public enemies, the tag sheet at the moment must be at least: Potheads > 100.....Bankers > Nil.

Honestly, I'm having flashbacks just thinking about the daftness of it all.

Hello abacus, while reading through this thread I came across a link which led me to....(google this)....Marijuana The first 12000 years. it's a truly great read and I found the last 100 years to be very helpful in explaining the cruel world in which we live. cheers.

[femmefatale]

No femme. That is not the case.

Some people have problems sleeping or socialising before they take any substance. I personally have always had problems sleeping, even since a child. I just sleep badly and that is it. I sleep better when I am stoned. When I was a teenager I was chronically sleep deprived. Cannabis has allowed me to feel refreshed in the morning after a good night's sleep.

And even those people who developed a problem with either of the above disorders AFTER they started taking drugs, there is no guarantee and in some cases, no chance that they can solve those problems by giving them up.

Your argument is spurious. Simply because something is a problem and not a medical condition doesn't give you the right to deny sufferers their preferred medication.

I also feel the need to say that there is nothing fundamentally wrong with using a substance recreationally just to get high. Is there something wrong getting drunk, getting a buzz off rollercoasters or extreme sports? No there's not. It's natural. Similarly, there is nothing fundamentally wrong with getting stone just coz you like it.

Sarah, I very much respect you and your opinions. I do think there is a difference between giving societal approval to the use of drugs for medicinal/curative purposes and allowing all manner of recreational, and potentially harmful, drugs to be openly bought and sold. You have a definite condition, i.e. insomnia. I am in no position to tell you how to lead you life. I would have thought there were other remedies out their to help with this. I would be concerned about anyone coming to rely on any powerful substance to remedy a real condition from which they suffer, unless of course they did this with medical approval/supervision.

I don't think it's fair to compare drug use to riding on a rollercoaster or doing extreme sports. The comparison with alcohol is more justified. Just because we as a society have an unhealthy attitude to, and over-consume, one powerful, potentially addictive and damaging substance, isn't a good argument for decriminalizing another one.

[JCSkinner]

So you don't drink then, Femme?
Presumably you oppose the Catholic Church's promotion of wine too?
Your argument is only consistent if you are in favour of prohibition of alcohol, given that it's a much more dangerous substance than cannabis, as proven by the medical experts who wrote in The Lancet.

[femmefatale]

So you don't drink then, Femme?
Presumably you oppose the Catholic Church's promotion of wine too?
Your argument is only consistent if you are in favour of prohibition of alcohol, given that it's a much more dangerous substance than cannabis, as proven by the medical experts who wrote in The Lancet.

I don't drink. It was, I felt, a very destructive force in the community in which I grew up, and the drinking culture there wasn't one I wanted to be a part of. Having said that, I don't think there is anything wrong with alcohol per se. The way it's consumed in Ireland is an abuse of something potentially positive and pleasant. I wouldn't be favour of an outright ban, but I would support restrictions of various sorts. I would like to change the drinking culture in the country. If consumed sensibly and respectfully, it need not be unhealthy and damaging. I don't think the same can be said for cannabis.

[merle haggard]

Today on the news I hear 500,000 worth of herbal cannabis caught.

Also 2 million worth of resin was found in a van.

One of the guys under 25 years of age who was taking part in the import of these goods is an accountant in a reputable estate agents in Dublin. This just shows the calibur of some of the people willing to risk themselves and affiliate themselves with the wrong people to get this product into the country. I feel for this accountant.

The days of cannabis illegality are numbered. It is my mission to plough down any toolbag who thinks it should still be illlegal. I will plough through and cut you in half.

Screw this country and screw the ideals of the 'old gard'. It is time we developed as a nation and moved on from this pro-hibition.

Think of the amount of money involved here. Just remember this money has gone into the hands of some criminal gang already in some other country. This several million has already been paid to the bad guys and now our own Irish citizens who are productive members of society are going to jail. Think about it for a second. This capture is nothing. NOTHING comapred to what is coming into this country every week. All this money is going offshore and into criminals hands to bring this stuff in.

We need to legalise weed and we need to do it NOW.

It will be my life mission to get it legalised for the health of our young people and to keep money in the country. HUNDREDS of millions are leaving this country for cannabis imports alone and HUNDREDS of millions of tax payer money is being spent trying to stop it.

MILLIONS of taxpayers money is then used to put these productive members of society into jail. I create jobs, I smoke weed, yet I am a phucking criminal also. WAKE UP ---- Leave the backwater ideals behind and lets move on.

Weed is good, the war on drugs is FUTILE and very EXPENSIVE and allowing a product for the gangs / criminals to sell and fund their operations.

GODDAMMIT people cop to phuck on and legalise WEED.

you sound so angry one would swear your down a few quid , or have developed a psychosis from your marijuana habit . That stuff is full of chemicals dont be trying to tell us its harmless .

One of the guys under 25 years of age who was taking part in the import of these goods is an accountant in a reputable estate agents in Dublin.

is that a reputable estate agency thats been selling over priced houses and apartments for teh last ten years like all the rest of them ? and your giving out about the state of the country ?

[truthisfree]

I don't drink. It was, I felt, a very destructive force in the community in which I grew up, and the drinking culture there wasn't one I wanted to be a part of. Having said that, I don't think there is anything wrong with alcohol per se. The way it's consumed in Ireland is an abuse of something potentially positive and pleasant. I wouldn't be favour of an outright ban, but I would support restrictions of various sorts. I would like to change the drinking culture in the country. If consumed sensibly and respectfully, it need not be unhealthy and damaging. I don't think the same can be said for cannabis.

Fair enough, but if the scientific evidence for cannabis indicated it to be a lot less damage than alcohol, would you be in favour of legalising it, ie under licensing laws, quality control i.e. no chemicals naturally and some posters have suggested only to over 21's.

[JCSkinner]

The medical and scientific evidence is long in on this.
Cannabis, not to mention LSD, Qat, Ecstasy and a number of other currently prohibited substances are much safer societally and to the individual than alcohol.

[sarahj]

Sarah, I very much respect you and your opinions. I do think there is a difference between giving societal approval to the use of drugs for medicinal/curative purposes and allowing all manner of recreational, and potentially harmful, drugs to be openly bought and sold. You have a definite condition, i.e. insomnia. I am in no position to tell you how to lead you life. I would have thought there were other remedies out their to help with this. I would be concerned about anyone coming to rely on any powerful substance to remedy a real condition from which they suffer, unless of course they did this with medical approval/supervision.

I don't think it's fair to compare drug use to riding on a rollercoaster or doing extreme sports. The comparison with alcohol is more justified. Just because we as a society have an unhealthy attitude to, and over-consume, one powerful, potentially addictive and damaging substance, isn't a good argument for decriminalizing another one.

I also respect you and your opinions femme! I must disagree however. Cannabis IS already being openly bought, sold and smoked. People buy it, sell it and smoke it on the street every single day in Ireland. In a completely unregulated fashiion.

On the topic of my insomnia, I also use herbal teas, exercise and meditation to combat it, but I tend to steer clear of sleeping pills. I personally prefer a natural remedy and cannabis, in my opinion, has the least potential for addiction and the most pleasant side effects out of the lot. The only problem is its legal status and getting my hands on some!

There have been no decent studies, that I know of, on cannabis taken orally instead of smoked over a short or long period of time (perhaps someone can correct me). The only negative side effects that there may be is that of smoking cannabis (though the evidence is hardly concrete and some studies actually dispute this, none of them can be thought of as truly reliable in my book). Eaten cannabis has never been tested.

I DO think drug use is comparable to extreme sports especially, Extreme sports are dangerous (though not fatally so usually, thus even MORE dangerous than cannabis use which has never been proven to have killed someone afaik) and people choose to do them anyone. It's not anyone's place to criminalise them and one couldn't anyway, it would be impossible. The best you can do is to try to get people to partake in a safe, responsible fashion. It is the exact same case as drug use.

Alcohol is also a fair comparison, but alcohol has killed millions of people worldwide, between proven related cancers, liver problems, mental problems and violence and suicide. Far far more than any cases which could potentially be contributed to cannabis. And yet it is still legal. Why? Because it is the social problems that cause people to drink TOO MUCH that we should addres, not ban the substance. That wouldn't make sense!

[femmefatale]

Fair enough, but if the scientific evidence for cannabis indicated it to be a lot less damage than alcohol, would you be in favour of legalising it, ie under licensing laws, quality control i.e. no chemicals naturally and some posters have suggested only to over 21's.

Me personally? No. I just don't think there's anything especially good or positive to be achieved from doing this. I see cannabis and other drug use as an abuse of the body/mind.