Great to see some more content in Kiwi papers…
All drugs can be dangerous. But in the scale of harms, moderate cannabis use should not cause any notable health or social concerns. The fact is, the average use of cannabis is safer than alcohol, tobacco, jogging, riding a bike, water skiing, football etc. Why aren’t these activities banned?
The mental health issues have recently been cleared up and only those with a family history of mental health disorders are at risk of lasting psychosis. Cannabis does not cause schizophrenia at all but it mimics the symptoms until the effects of the cannabis wears off. And young people are at risk because of their developing brains. As for healthy adults though, there will probably never be any problems for them from moderate use.
Just to top it off, Keele university in the UK found that although cannabis use has risen 400 percent since the late 1980s, cases of mental health disorders have not increased in step but actually decreased slightly. With 180 million users worldwide, there would be a pandemic if cannabis caused the harm reported by the media. — T.W.
I’d like to know just how old these studies are, and who was responsible for such misinformation. California has LEGALISED the medical use of cannabis some 15 years ago. It would hardly have done that if it would have caused an epidemic of destruction, which has yet to have appeared. Tens of millions of regular cannabis users around the world have yet to manifest such “destructive effects”. Fascism, on the other hand, is a well-known socio-political disease which is directly related to cannabis prohibition. It is spread by such articles as this one. — James Bong
In respect of the various ‘harms’ cited by the editor the question one must ask is “and how does prohibition help?” a point he overlooks and is a key element of the Law Commission review of drug laws.
He may also find it instructive to read the respective reports by the House of Representatives Health Select Committees that highlight how scary facts cited from sub clinical studies guild the lily.
Cannabis, despite a few reports of harms, is one of the most studied plants in the world. About 8000 papers peer reviewed and published over the past year.
A meta analysis of these would support the contention that cannabis is about as dangerous as not washing your hands.
Blair Anderson
From: gisborneherald.co.nz
Hi, CL here again… well looks like theres a good amount of scientific support out there, and I really like it how so many people in the media these days are pro liberalisation.
Without these reporters and editors putting their reputations on the line, the truth would be hidden by the corrupt uneducated biased people in power who are supposed to REPRESENT our civil liberties.
Seems like the whole world is at the tipping point now where the truth shall reveal itself to the greater populace and we shall be set free. Be strong and think about how we fit into the biosphere and where cannabis/hemp fills the natural economic gap in the jigsaw puzzle of renewable energy and medicine.
the truth shall set you free. Gaia will show herself.
btw,…. no im not crazy.
p.s. hope everythings going ok with you Dakta, be strong, we owe you so much!
Awesome stuff, loved reading, well done to the Herald for informing the public correctly
Hell yes, this is a real revelation in the media.. I’m sure about 10 years ago there would’ve been a huge controversy over it and it wouldn’t have even got printed!
Thanks, Blair, for publishing a balanced opinion without falling into the brain washing trap. And thanks to the Herald for publishing it! Other papers should take a big sheet out of you!