Tuesday, August 16, 2011 -

    The Evidence For the Safety Of Cannabis Is Overwhelming

    You don’t need reams of statistics to defeat the arguments against cannabis.  All you need is to ask people to use their common sense.

    How many stories are there about “cannabis factories” every day?  How many times have you heard that there have been “record seizures”?  How many different coloured large size rolling papers are on sale in your local newsagent, or Sainsbury’s or Tesco?

    So imagine how much cannabis is being used throughout the length and breadth of this country?  In cities, towns, villages and your own street.

    Now remember that this just what is obvious.  This is just what you hear about.  Inevitably, most of it is hidden.  Most of it isn’t discovered.  For every “cannabis factory” you hear about, another 10 or 20 go undiscovered.

    Now how much cannabis do you think is being used in Britain?

    It’s astonishing isn’t it?  The latest evidence now indicates that something close to three tonnes of cannabis is consumed in Britain every day.  That’s three million grammes and an “all day smoker” will consume about three grammes a day.  So how many people does that mean are using cannabis every day, every week, or several times a month?

    You don’t have to do the calculations do you?  It’s obvious than cannabis use is massive, colossal, stretching throughout society and our country.

    So if cannabis causes psychosis or is dangerous or poisonous, where are the casualties?  I mean there would have to be a lot of them wouldn’t there?  When you think about how many people in the 1960s took to smoking pot, where are all the psychotic 60 and 70 year olds?  In fact, people are living longer and healthier lives.

    What’s more, the doctors of public health will tell you that the rate and prevalence of psychosis and schizophrenia has remained stable since records began.  There’s been no “spike” since cannabis took off in the sixties and if anything mental illness is declining.  Even harder facts, in 2009 there were about 750 hospital admissions related to cannabis.  There were more than 3000 for peanuts.

    So you don’t need a library of statistics.  Cannabis is really pretty safe.  It’s just common sense.

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    • http://www.facebook.com/cannajan Janice Wells

      It was good enough for Keele in 2005 and it still makes sense.
      It should be clear enough for anyone!

    • Sean Smith

      It will become legal eventually. In my life time anyways. Don’t think it will be cheap. The best thing would be that the common person on the bread line won’t need a highly payed job to afford a smoke unlike driving as the poor will have to walk eventually. The goverment will have to swallow there pride, that will take a few decades. I can’t wait.

    • Andeedee2000

      Poorly reasoned article. No evidence, just speculative hypothetical rhetoric, kind of…well, a bit stoned logic.

    • http://www.peter-reynolds.co.uk Peter Reynolds

      “Speculative hypothetical rhetoric”?

      Are you sure you don’t mean “Pretentious, meaningless criticism”?

      I can and do run the argument every day with prbably more evidence and statistics than you can even imagine but you’ve missed the point, haven’t you?  Common sense is actually much more useful.  Maybe you don’t have any?

    • Domino

      Go do the research. Alcohol causes aggression and gives people an impaired ability to perform tasks requiring fine motor skills (i.e driving), thus behind some of the biggest killers in society–> car accidents and violent deaths(try get a paranoid stoner to drive 140km/hour or start a fight). Alcohol=cancer, liver cirrosis and neuronal damage as its mechanism of action is that its a toxin. Cannibis agonizes the cannabinoid receptor. If you use a vapourizer for cannabis utilization the side effects =… oh wait.. there are none.. moron

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_JBOYM7U5CPER73JX57LWIMKHJU Jillian

      We have to face facts. Either we as a country have the ability to eliminate cannabis use or we as a country must provide a legal supply of the stuff through distributors we can trust – and who better to do this than our supermarkets who we already trust with alcohol and tobacco? Our supermarkets have proven that they’re reputable companies, they know how to card their customers, and they have the ability and the will to price these products at a level too low for illegal suppliers to match. Supermarkets are the ideal way to drive drug dealers off our streets and bankrupt the murderous and sadistic cartels. The status quo of massive, unrelenting demand combined with zero legal supply is simply NOT an option!

      We may not ever wish to purchase beer, wine and cannabis ourselves but we should *always* insist on them being legal for supermarkets to sell to adults.

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_JBOYM7U5CPER73JX57LWIMKHJU Jillian

      Your criticism makes no sense. The author clearly proved that there’s massive, unrelenting demand for cannabis in the UK and that there’s NOTHING we can do to end this demand. Exactly what did you read as “speculative” or “hypothetical”??

      I don’t mind calling out an author if they’re wrong, but if you’re going to do this you *have* to clearly identify what they got wrong, and you didn’t do this. Want to try again?

    • Anonymous

      Jillian, whilst fundamentally I agree with you I don’t think it would be a good idea for the large supermarket chains to sell Cannabis. They have repeatedly demonstrated with Alcohol that although they sell it within the confines of the law (no underage sales etc.) they cut the price (loss-leaders) and use deals to draw in consumers to the store so they buy other products. They have done this so much to effectively ‘push’ it on consumers which has resulted in the rise of the ‘binge culture’. Supermarkets are not responsible purveyors of drugs (look at their resistance to banning Tobacco displays too) as the bottom line above all else drives what they do. They have shown that self-regulation doesn’t work but vehemently oppose any actual legislation/regulation.

      Availability of any drug should be very carefully considered with acceptability. Whilst we want Cannabis to be able to be purchased etc. without criminal retribution I don’t think that the supermarket model is the ‘responsible’ choice. Cannabis cafes such as in Holland, the not-for-profit Spanish Cannabis clubs or off-licence type sales seem a more responsible model to me – under a regulated regime they would not hinder availability to adults but would do without the huge advertising campaigns and below-cost sales that lead to a general tacit acceptance of irresponsible use (although of course Cannabis is harder to ‘misuse’ than Alcohol) whilst still eliminating the criminal element. Plus, it would enable Cannabis to be treated as a connoisseur product rather than a mass-produced-homogeneous-’blandity’..

    • Anonymous

      I would have agreed with you jillian, if I hadn’t have worked for all three of the major supermarkets in the past.The last thing we want to do is hand this wonderful plant over to a bunch of monstrous, immoral, money grabbing, multinational, small town shop killers!
      They treat their staff like crap, unless you’re an ass kissing, inhuman, megalomaniac, looking for a management position in order to inflict cruelty on people, some of whom may not be able to stand up for themselves.
      We should be allowed to either grow our own or use a reputable private outlet, run professionally and by ordinary people like you and me.Obviously there should be a certain amount of knowledge and other health and safety as you would any other type of business. 
      I’m even less keen on the likes of Phillip Morris or other tobacco companies take over, as they no doubt would want to.
      There could also be an NHS licensed medical supply for those who are unable or unwilling to grow their own.Spain is a good example, although not perfect.You can grow a few plants for your own use provided there is no dealing and no trouble.I think the same now applies in Italy and Belgium. The UK is so behind most of the rest of the world, it’s almost medieval! 

    • Anonymous

      You should run for prime minister.Your lack of ability to absorb facts objectively and apply them to common sense gives you the edge already!
      Every word you wrote was inaccurate.
      It was far from poorly reasoned,there was nothing but reason throughout.The evidence IS ALREADY overwhelming and there was not an iota of speculative hypothetical rhetoric to be had.
      As for stoned logic, do bare in mind that some of the most successful and influential people on this planet have used and still continue to use Cannabis.Not just musicians and artists, but business men, writers and quite a few of the presidents of the United States.(some of them should kept it up!)
      There’s a lot to be said for stoned logic.
      At the very least it opens the mind, not glues it shut!

    • Muhdauwal2008

      Kush kush, 1love.

    • Narkone

       
      Im with domino on that one alcohol = aggression, destruction of the body and many deaths. Cannabis = no side effects no deaths and no destruction of the body unless your smoking through a bong or joint which will collect tar this messes your lungs up a little bit but a lot less then tobacco does. Therefor smoking through a vaporizer has no side effects on your lungs. I also believe the small amount affected by psychosis/mental health issues are due to propaganda by the government. I believe that children are told to many bad things about cannabis at a young age. There is nothing stated wrong in this article so who ever disagrees has a very bias way of thought and probably brainwashed to this stupid way of thought so no need to listen LOL. 
       

    • OhioFreebyrd62

      I would think people could see that it’s common sense, people you know and love use it, and you don’t even know it. Where’s the danger, and the psychotic people that use it. Come on people, booze is way more dangerous, and Its LEGAL….wtf

    • OhioFreebyrd62

      Everyone of you have people that you know and love that use cannabis, and you don’t even know it. They are all around you everyday too, doctors use it, librarians use it, store clerks use it, your nephew uses it, it’s all over, and it doesn’t hurt anyone. LEGALIZE IT

    • http://www.facebook.com/antony.kingsland Antony Rob Kingsland

      Legalize it….simple as

    • Focusonpeace

      Much less harmful than tobacco