Do You Think Cannabis should be Decriminalized in ireland

weedfreedomtinp

Do You Think Cannabis Should Be Decriminalized . In Ireland

YES OR NO
YOUR COMMENTS BELOW

MANY PEOPLE ARE SAYING THAT IT HAS NO HARM WHAT DO U THINK

Offy

Yes.
Think of the income in taxes it would generate and taking the criminal element out of it would be a godsend. Tax it to the hilt I say.

major bill

should be legalised imo!!! Dont think any person that suffers with artritus should be labelled a criminal for taking something that sooths their pain.

Alcohol kills more people and ruins more lives than cannabis.


Free the weed:pac:

Kev_ps3

This country is bad enough with the drink and fags not to have this on top. Our society is bad enough as it is:rolleyes:

lmimmfn

most things in moderation are fine, booze is much worse. Id be for legalizing it and taxing it to the hilt, save on all the money spent now busting the criminal aspect and would free up resources to concentrate on coke and heroin.

I doubt it would introduce any newcomers to it, most who want to try it currently will find a way to get it.

Overheal

Id say introducing it at the lowpoint of a recession - what could go wrong? Most people who would want it are already at home bored depressed and have cabinets stocked full of crisps. Let them eat cake. Cake with Peanut Butter on top. And Whipped cream. With a Pint of coke full of Crispy M&Ms.

ei.sdraob

weedfreedomtinp wrote: »

Do You Think Cannabis Should Be Decriminalized . In Ireland

YES OR NO
YOUR COMMENTS BELOW

MANY PEOPLE ARE SAYING THAT IT HAS NO HARM WHAT DO U THINK

if it makes people forget what the CAPS lock key looks like

no

RedPlanet

A resounding YES.
We could free-up prision and court spaces.
Take some of the edge off our knacker population (as they get stoned rather than piss drunk).
Probably give a nice boost to our music industry, our videogame industry(sales at least), boost our confectionary sales.
We could become a groovy holiday destination.

But obviously this will never happen as:
1) no political party is advocating this
2) People have been so long conditioned against cannabis that it would be impossible to remove their blinkers.
3) The Vinters Federation would be opposed (actually this should be bumped to the #1 reason)

humanji

I say yes, if only to stop the weekly "Should cannabis we made legal?" threads being made.

Other than that, I say no as I don't trust that Irish people in general can handle the notion of not doing something to excess. If people could be made to act responsibly then I can't see any problem with it though.

Nodin

Yep.

Dannyboy83

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/new-smuggling-racket-smashed-after-massive-tobacco-seizure-1940242.html

CUSTOMS officials have smashed a new smuggling racket after they seized tonnes of tobacco bound for an illegal cigarette factory operating here.

A series of checks by officers at Dublin Port uncovered a consignment of eight tonnes of tobacco leaf and all of the materials needed to manufacture up to 12 million cigarettes.

A senior customs officer last night said the smuggling attempt marked a new departure by criminals involved in the multi-million euro trade in illegal cigarettes.

If the attempt had been successful, it would have cost the Exchequer more than €4m in lost revenue.

The officers allowed a controlled delivery of the consignment and it was followed as it was taken from the port to a yard outside Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan.

The 40-foot container was then seized and taken back to the port for detailed forensic examination. The cigarette "factory" has not yet been located, but inquiries are continuing in the border region.

The haul had been packed on to pallets on the container and declared on the manifest as "paper". It arrived in the port on Monday from Holyhead and was later traced back to Brondby in Denmark.

Last night investigations were under way involving Customs and international agencies in a bid to find the origin of the loose tobacco.

The haul also included the filters, packaging and boxes required to make up 200-cigarette packs to be sold on the black market.

Suspicions were initially raised when the container was undergoing a routine profiling and officers then requested that the load be scanned. The scan prompted a physical search of the container and officers discovered the tobacco.

Senior investigators decided to allow the container to be picked up by a delivery company, whose staff were not aware of its real content, and kept watch as it was taken to the Carrickmacross address.

Detectives are also trying to establish which of the smuggling gangs was behind the importation and whether it had any paramilitary links.

"We don't know the identity of the smugglers yet. But it was a very well planned operation and we had not come across a load of loose tobacco of this size in the past," one officer told the Irish Independent.

Massive

However, investigators believe the consignment is not linked to last month's massive seizure of €50m worth of illegal cigarettes at Greenore Port in Co Louth.

William Hanley, a spokesman for Retailers Against Smuggling, called for Irish laws to be brought into line with other countries, saying we would continue to have tobacco and cigarette smuggling until greater deterrents existed.

Calling for stricter laws and penalties, he warned that local jobs would be at risk unless action was taken shortly. "We're staring down the barrel of redundancies unless the Government wakes up and fast."

I think its time the government reformed excise duties & Legalising cannabis should be part of that reform

Otherwise the above is going to continue to occur.
We are beginning to resemble Russia in the 90s and thats not even a joke or throwaway remark.

Soldie

It's not the government's business to decide what we can and can't put into our own bodies so, yes, legalise not only Cannabis, but all drugs.

oeb

Yes, legalize it (And most other drugs).

Why would I legalize cannabis specifically?
1. It's less harmful (and addictive) than either alcohol or nicotine.
2. Tax revenue (From both local use and from from 'drug tourism'.
3. Increased safety. Firstly, it means that purity and additives can be strictly monitored and confirmed, it means anyone is safe and secure in the knowledge of exactly what they are buying. Secondly, it removes the criminal element. This makes buying drugs a safer process, it reduces escalation (IE if you have to buy cannabis in a local shop, the keeper is unlikely to spend half his time trying to sell you cocaine etc. This also has an overall benefit of reducing crime (And also taking down a major way of funding crime).
4. Reduced expenditure. Frees up court time, prison spaces garda time etc.

Why would I legalize ALL drugs?
For all of the above reasons, also I think that it would reduce addiction. For example, if it is in the best interest of the people who profit from harder drugs to ensure that we DON'T use them then it removes 'pushing' for lack of a better term. It also ensures that it is easier to identify the serious users and ensure that if they need help, then they can get it.

Please note though, I am in no way suggesting that anyone can open a shop and just start selling drugs. For drugs that I would like to see sold 'over the counter' (Cannabis, xtc, mdma) I would like to see a system similar to alcohol licensing. Licence is hard to get, but easy to lose. For 'harder' drugs I would be more inclined to suggest some form of specialist clinic/shop.

Bottle_of_Smoke

Decriminalising makes sense. Why are we paying judges to give people the probabtion act and donate €50 for being caught with €2-€400 worth of cannanbis.Also paying the cops to do a bunch of paperwork.

Portugal decriminalised all drugs, don't know how it saved them money on cannabis charges but it certainly cut HIV infection rates and heroin overdoses.

Zynks

Yes

Too many reasons why I think so. Better just keep it simple.

starbelgrade

Kev_ps3 wrote: »

This country is bad enough with the drink and fags not to have this on top. Our society is bad enough as it is:rolleyes:

Ireland also has a HUGE cannabis culture that already co-exists with the drink & fags culture. The fact is however, that the import & sale of cannabis in Ireland is controlled by criminal gangs & used to fund many other criminal activities. Decriminilasing weed, however, will not solve this problem, whereas legalising it would.

I see absolutely no rational argument for not doing so - it would create a revenue for the state through taxes, create (legal) employment (more taxes) and save the taxpayer the huge amount of wastage of time, resourses & money spent by the police & justice system "fighting" the drug war & prosecuting those who break the current laws.

There is also the issue of education - at present, there is no honest drug awareness education in Ireland - there is some, but it is minimal & generally un-informed. Most cannabis sold in this country is 5% cannabis & 95% whatever the dealers mix with it to create their "soap bars" - which includes anything from melted car tyres to dog sh*t. The weed is no better as it is often sprayed with glass particles to bulk out the weight & to make it appear as if the weed is crystalised. If you think smoking proper pot is dangerous to people's health, these practices are far much worse.

And let's not forget the complete stupidity of criminalising what essentially, is a plant.

Dannyboy83

There is also the issue of education - at present, there is no honest drug awareness education in Ireland - there is some, but it is minimal & generally un-informed. Most cannabis sold in this country is 5% cannabis & 95% whatever the dealers mix with it to create their "soap bars" - which includes anything from melted car tyres to dog sh*t. The weed is no better as it is often sprayed with glass particles to bulk out the weight & to make it appear as if the weed is crystalised. If you think smoking proper pot is dangerous to people's health, these practices are far much worse.

I don't smoke the stuff, I hate it to be honest (but hey I hate alcohol too).
I've nothing against other people using it if they want to.

The above is my biggest issue with the fact that it is illegal.
Its more of the same head in the sand approach that they take with everything.

In any countries where they've made steps to change drugs laws, like Switzerland with the drug reform, there have been less people have gotten sick, died and crime has fallen by impressive levels.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/library/tlcnr.cfm

The success of the Swiss program has led other countries such as Canada, Denmark, Germany and Australia to run their own trials.
Given that there is a growing heroin problem in Ireland, to the extent that guards seem either clueless or scared of tacking dealers & paramilitaries are threatening to shoot dealers, we need to try a new approach.

Funglegunk

Dannyboy83 wrote: »

In any countries where they've made steps to change drugs laws, like Switzerland with the drug reform, there have been less people have gotten sick, died and crime has fallen by impressive levels.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/library/tlcnr.cfm

The success of the Swiss program has led other countries such as Canada, Denmark, Germany and Australia to run their own trials.
Given that there is a growing heroin problem in Ireland, to the extent that guards seem either clueless or scared of tacking dealers & paramilitaries are threatening to shoot dealers, we need to try a new approach.

It was decriminalised in Portugal in 2001, and among the benefits of this policy are:

By freeing its citizens from the fear of prosecution and imprisonment for drug usage, Portugal has dramatically improved its ability to encourage drug addicts to avail themselves of treatment. The resources that were previously devoted to prosecuting and imprisoning drug addicts are now available to provide treatment programs to addicts. Those developments, along with Portugal’s shift to a harm-reduction approach, have dramatically improved drugrelated social ills, including drug-caused mortalities and drug-related disease transmission. Ideally, treatment programs would be strictly voluntary, but Portugal’s program is certainly preferable to criminalization.

gizmo555

Decriminalisation will come, it's just a matter of time. This is from this week's Economist, itself a long standing opponent of prohibition:

Take America, where 13 states let people smoke marijuana for medical reasons. Most set somewhat stricter terms than California—where insomnia, migraines and post-traumatic stress can all be reasons for a spliff, if you see the right doctor. “There’s never been a person born who couldn’t qualify,” says Keith Stroup, the founder of the National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, a lobby group that has been around since 1970. “In California, the system of medical use they have adopted is in fact a version of legalisation.”

Elsewhere in the United States, there are many signs of prohibition ebbing away. Some 14 states have decriminalised the possession of marijuana for personal use (medical or otherwise), though most keep the option of a $100 civil penalty. Three states—New Mexico, Rhode Island and Massachusetts—license non-profit corporations to grow medical marijuana. Most radically, some states are considering legalising the drug completely. California and Massachusetts are holding committee hearings on bills to legalise pot outright; Oregon is expected to introduce such a bill within the next couple of weeks.

One reason for the sudden popularity of cannabis is financial. Tom Ammiano, the California assemblyman who introduced the bill to legalise marijuana earlier this year, points out that were it taxed it could raise some $1.3 billion a year for state coffers, based on a $50 per ounce levy on sales. As an added benefit to the public purse, lots of police time and prison space would be freed up. California’s jails heave with 170,000 inmates, almost a fifth of them inside for drug-related crimes, albeit mostly worse than just possessing a spliff.

Cork Boy

Very important to note also that a high majority of gardai would be in favour of legalisation.

hands up who has ever seen two stoners brawling outside the chipper/taxi rank??? Anyone? No? Thought not.

It would need to be stritly 18+ though as it's not suitable for developing brains.

Here's a list of powerful people/groups against it though:

1. The Church(s)
2. The VFI
3. Various parents associations
4. Some from the medical profession
5. Organised criminal gangs, provo's, etc
6. The pharmaceutical industry
7. Politicians
8. International pressure
9. The Irish Tourist Board (possible negative connotations for ireland's image abroad)

And perhaps to counter some groups in favour:

1. The Gardaí
2. Some from the medical profession
3. Cadbury's, Mr Tayto et al
4. The Tax Man (Move him up to #1).
5. The Irish Tourist Board (from a revenue standpoint)

Look, its only an academic thread anyway as its not going to happen any time soon.

The State of California legalised it but the DEA doesn't recognise state law (as opposed to federal law) so they continue to shut down dispenseraries.

If this gets resolved at federal level in favour of CA, it should pave the way for other states, domino effect, etc

Princess Zelda

Yes, I think it should, purely for the reason of the extra revenue it will bring in, both from people residing here, and from people travelling over to here. I know there is the arguement that it is a gateway drug to other drugs, but if the rebellous aspect is taken away from smoking cannabis, there would be less of an incentive for young people to start smoking it. Also, I have never seen a person high on cannabis start a fight

gizmo555

Cork Boy wrote: »

The State of California legalised it but the DEA doesn't recognise state law (as opposed to federal law) so they continue to shut down dispenseraries.

Not anymore. Pres. Obama has directed the feds to stop raiding them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFRWbOkYvao

Cork Boy

All the same i reckon it'll need a federal/supreme court ruling as to what happens when jurisdictions clash like this. Once the USA legalises, the rest of the world will follow.

I envisage western legalisation in less than 50 years (maybe decriminalisation a bit before, i.e., stepping stones)

Shulgin

YES

1. Government and society get money from taxes
2. Half the country uses cannabis anyway
3. Takes it out of the scummy dealers hands, People could grow their own and not be thrown in jail for it.
4. ^State saves money on sending cannabis users to Jail.
5. People have the right to do what they want as long as its not affecting other.
6. You can vapourise and eat cannabis too,so the whole "it causes cancer too" argument is invalid.


Will politicians listen? No, because all they are afraid of is losing power. its too big a risk for them too take.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn18099-david-nutt-governments-should-get-real-on-drugs.html

gizmo555

Cork Boy wrote: »

Once the USA legalises, the rest of the world will follow.

I agree. That's what it will take.

Cork Boy wrote: »

I envisage western legalisation in less than 50 years (maybe decriminalisation a bit before, i.e., stepping stones)

Think it'll be sooner than that. Three US states - California, Massachusetts and Oregon - are actively considering complete legalisation (as opposed to decriminalisation). If that happens it hard to see how the rest won't follow. How you could you have people going to jail in New York for something that's legal in Boston?

RedPlanet

Originally Posted by Cork Boy
Once the USA legalises, the rest of the world will follow.

Yeah, how pathetic.
By then the opportunity for us to show our leadership, ingenuity, creativity and uniqueness will be lost.
We could hardly attract cannabis tourism if it's already legal in most places.

Not only that but our own "cottage industry" growing and developing the stuff would be a little hamstrung by other countries getting their businesses up and running first.

Rb

Shulgin wrote: »

Will politicians listen? No, because all they are afraid of is losing power. its too big a risk for them too take.

This doesn't make any sense. Re-think it.

The biggest issue for me with decriminalisation or legalisation is the calibre of people from abroad that it would attract to the country. It would certainly help in terms of tax revenue (from the drug, the cigarettes etc) but I would question what the cost would be of cleaning up after it, the increased healthcare bill etc.

What mexico did was pretty ideal, I believe Portugal did something similar also.

Dannyboy83

Rb wrote: »

This doesn't make any sense. Re-think it.

The biggest issue for me with decriminalisation or legalisation is the calibre of people from abroad that it would attract to the country. It would certainly help in terms of tax revenue (from the drug, the cigarettes etc) but I would question what the cost would be of cleaning up after it, the increased healthcare bill etc.

What mexico did was pretty ideal, I believe Portugal did something similar also.

I have to agree, this was probably one of the biggest turn offs about Amsterdam for me when I was there, all the scummy guys trying to hustle you all the time. Charlie, charlie.

You could decriminalise it all over Ireland, and then build a big feckin fence around some empty place like Mayo and legalize it there. The business would be dead handy for Knock airport.
Then build a new town there, something like the resort that yer man wants to build in Tipperary with the casino and race track.
http://www.tipperarystar.ie/news/E460mTipperary-Venue-Unveiled.5773405.jp

Amsterdam on the Atlantic;).

Shulgin

Rb wrote: »

This doesn't make any sense. Re-think it.

What I meant was that politicians are afraid to be anything other than hard-line on drugs. They have to, to stay elected. More older people (probably antidrug) vote than young.

Look what happened in england when David Nutt told mentioned a few facts about drugs Alan Johnson and co didn`t like.

Rb

Shulgin wrote: »

What I meant was that politicians are afraid to be anything other than hard-line on drugs. They have to, to stay elected. More older people (probably antidrug) vote than young.

Look what happened in england when David Nutt told mentioned a few facts about drugs Alan Johnson and co didn`t like.

Ah, I read it as though you were claiming politicians were afraid of losing power as a result of drugs legalisation/decriminalisation.

Regarding Nutt, very unfortunate indeed, although luckily I don't think that Government have much longer left.

nesf

Cork Boy wrote: »

hands up who has ever seen two stoners brawling outside the chipper/taxi rank??? Anyone? No? Thought not.

I have. It was a very very amusing sight.

One thing for sure, there was very little chance of either actually doing any damage to the other person.

weedfreedomtinp

We need more marching to get our point across to our government ,

we should at least as a country be allowed to put this to vote ,

sign a online petition to legalize cannabis

http://www.petitiononline.com/0110/petition.html

our ideas from
http://www.legalisecannabis.ie

DeVore

An online petition is a good idea, because you will never get the stoners up from their couches....

I think it should be legalised as we effectively have it already with all the headshops selling smoke but I think thats the better of two evils. Ganja isnt without its side effects and that shouldnt be over looked either.

DeV.

yoshytoshy

What exactly makes weed illegal at the moment , for the man on the street ?
Do gardai actually pro-actively go around looking for people with some smoke ?

Can't see legalising it making any big difference here ,it would still be sold black market ,probably even easier than it is now.

ChocolateSauce

Yep, along with all the others.

oncevotedff

Sure. Decriminalise all drugs.

Taxing them to the hilt will just maintain the market for illegal drugs, just as there is a market for illegal cigarettes and drink.

Then I think that legal drug users should be registered so that when they lose their jobs and ruin their health they would be barred from being a burden on the state.

dlofnep

I would be in favour of legalising it. It takes the money out of the pocket of drug dealers, would contribute a great amount of tax to the economy and has proved to be minimal in terms of harm.

I would however be scared that if the likes of hash was legal, that drug dealers would push harder drugs in order to make their money as they would no longer be able to sell it.

Bottle_of_Smoke

dlofnep wrote: »

I would be in favour of legalising it. It takes the money out of the pocket of drug dealers, would contribute a great amount of tax to the economy and has proved to be minimal in terms of harm.

I would however be scared that if the likes of hash was legal, that drug dealers would push harder drugs in order to make their money as they would no longer be able to sell it.

Perhaps possible, but I don't think hash is actually pushed on any great level. To be honest not sure any drug is these days. Certainly there was heroin being given to kids in the schoolground decades ago but could they get away with that now?

arthie no no

yes, far more positives than negitive.

dlofnep

Bottle_of_Smoke wrote: »

Perhaps possible, but I don't think hash is actually pushed on any great level. To be honest not sure any drug is these days. Certainly there was heroin being given to kids in the schoolground decades ago but could they get away with that now?

Heroin is running rampant, and is most certainly being pushed. Hash was never pushed persay, but it certainly was influenced. When I grew up, alot of the local dealers would try get the younger lads to buy, and let them hang out with them to smoke a few joints with them.. Younger lads would obviously think that they were cool hanging out with the older crowd.

Mahatma coat

Yeah, but the theory would be that if the younger kids were hagin around in a Pot smokin Coffee shop instead of a Dealers Den the chances of them being encouraged onto harer drugs diminishes readily, als most of the Income that these guys generate is from Hash not Heroin, with coke and Pills fillin the balance sheets.

Remove the Hash and The Pills and you have seriously dented the operational budgets of these dealers, then just sit back as the wipe each other out in a short but bloody gangwar and let the cops arrest whoever is standing.

The State would have to power to pricefix, and would also have the capacity to import the products through legal chanels at a fraction of the cost of smuggling

philologos

I support keeping it illegal, we have enough problems with alcohol already let alone any other substance. I'd personally be for any police measure particularly ones that take the issue more seriously than it's already being taken.

Cork Boy

oncevotedff wrote: »

Sure. Decriminalise all drugs.

Taxing them to the hilt will just maintain the market for illegal drugs, just as there is a market for illegal cigarettes and drink.

Then I think that legal drug users should be registered so that when they lose their jobs and ruin their health they would be barred from being a burden on the state.

Well then lets remove treatment entitlements for everyone who consumes...

1. Alochol - a legal drug that does untold damage to irish society (apologies, untold damage done by irresponsible consumption of alcohol).

2. Tobacco - do i really need to explain?

3. Coffee - Chronic drinkers (3+ cups per day) will have awful heart problems.

4. Sugar - ADD (aka, spoilt little ****e hopped up on sugar), teeth problems, gum disease, obesity, diabetes.

There's probably loads more legal drugs i've left out here btw.

magma69

Jakkass wrote: »

I support keeping it illegal, we have enough problems with alcohol already let alone any other substance. I'd personally be for any police measure particularly ones that take the issue more seriously than it's already being taken.

I can't believe you even think that "sure we're bad enough as it is" holds up as an argument. How is keeping it illegal going to help? If anybody wants to smoke cannabis they just go and get it. It is almost as readily available as going to a shop and buying it. It's not like there are a massive amount of people who want to smoke it but cannot get it anywhere. I agree with you that we have a massive problem with alcohol but I don't see how keeping this illegal will help that in any way. In fact, if anything, it will help our out of control abuse of alcohol as legalisation may lead to cannabis being peoples drug of choice. Cannabis has been proven to be a far less dangerous drug on the user and society as a whole.

Nick_oliveri

Jakkass wrote: »

I support keeping it illegal, we have enough problems with alcohol already let alone any other substance. I'd personally be for any police measure particularly ones that take the issue more seriously than it's already being taken.

What exactly, in the context of cannabis legalisation, are the problems you would expect? Trails of thought like this are exactly why society (or Ireland) wont progress. And by that, I mean re-evaluating laws and statutes in all categories that either shouldn't exist, need to be changed or need to be enforced for the good of the many and not the few.

For example, I think it should be illegal to cause distress to an animal and for politicians to promise stuff and not come through on said promises. And they should show progress on such promises within a certain time frame or **** off. That's progress right there. This "if it isn't visibly broken don't fix it" attitude is holding us all back.

And to be honest, I think politics and "democracy" are a joke and need to be completely overhauled. This matter is one obvious example. You would think that the world being completley fecked over in terms of economy would stir such a "change". Change me hole.

Sand

Legalise it, plus whatever other drugs people want really. Tax it to offset to generate badly needed revenue, save Garda time, money and effort spent trying to protect people who are way too smart to get into trouble anyway.

Theres loads of benefits, but not much chance of it happening. Would startle the horses.

philologos

Despite the ramblings of the pro-cannabis lobby, it does incur serious risk in terms of mental health illnesses.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4305783.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4052963.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/29/cannabis-schizophrenia-classification
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/evidence99/marijuana/Health_1.html

This one also shows cannabis related crime:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-471106/Smoking-just-cannabis-joint-raises-danger-mental-illness-40.html

Dangers and possible uses of cannabis:
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/pdf_extract/294/6565/141

Cannabis damages reasoning ability:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2002/aug/18/drugs.drugsandalcohol

To claim that this is all mere mythology is absolute nonsense.

IMO cracking down on this is Garda time well spent to stop the taxpayer having to spend millions of euro in hospital costs. Keeping illegal means that the Gardaí can minimise the effect of substances on the population. Less people coming into contact with cannabis, means less people getting mental illnesses, and less people getting ill through other means via cannabis such as a weakened immune system. Alcohol's already costing us enough. We need a harder policy on drugs, not a lighter one.

weedfreedomtinp

thanks for all comments keep up the good work legalize cannabis ireland ,, lets get some more marching done this new year 2010

zootroid

Jakkass wrote: »

Despite the ramblings of the pro-cannabis lobby, it does incur serious risk in terms of mental health illnesses.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4305783.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4052963.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/29/cannabis-schizophrenia-classification
http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/evidence99/marijuana/Health_1.html

This one also shows cannabis related crime:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-471106/Smoking-just-cannabis-joint-raises-danger-mental-illness-40.html

Dangers and possible uses of cannabis:
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/pdf_extract/294/6565/141

Cannabis damages reasoning ability:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2002/aug/18/drugs.drugsandalcohol

To claim that this is all mere mythology is absolute nonsense.

IMO cracking down on this is Garda time well spent to stop the taxpayer having to spend millions of euro in hospital costs. Keeping illegal means that the Gardaí can minimise the effect of substances on the population. Less people coming into contact with cannabis, means less people getting mental illnesses, and less people getting ill through other means via cannabis such as a weakened immune system. Alcohol's already costing us enough. We need a harder policy on drugs, not a lighter one.

I hardly think you can count the daily mail as a reputable source. And is it the responsibility of the state to go to this extreme of looking out for people's health? If that is the case, how come there are numerous other areas that don't get the same attention, eg alcohol related illnesses, illnesses related to obesity? People should be able to live how they want, so long as it does not harm others.

I think it should certainly decriminalized, which would free up resources for serious crimes. I would also like to have it legalized, but given that it's illegal in just about every other country, I would have reservations about this as it might harm our image and have an adverse effect on our tourism industry.

starbelgrade

Jakkass wrote: »

Despite the ramblings of the pro-cannabis lobby, it does incur serious risk in terms of mental health illnesses.

In a very small minority of users, continued substance abuse can cause anxiety, depression & paranoia. Compared to other causes of mental illness however, it's relatively small.

The amount of money spent on policing & legally tackling the "drug war" pales in significance to the amount spent on tackling mental health issues caused by cannabis use.

On top of that, it's money down the pan, as it does relatively little to stop the availabilty of cannabis is Ireland. A bit of weed is as easy to get as a few cans in the off licence, and easier to get than a few cans after 10pm.

One of the main health problems that we face with cannabis usage in Ireland, is that the quality of the stuff sold is very bad. The dealers mix good quality hash with everything from melted car tyres to glue & most of the grass is sprayed with glass particles which are inhaled by the users. Most of the time, cannabis users are getting "high" on toxins & not THC, the active ingredient of weed.

The same problem applies to all other illegal drugs sold in Ireland. It's not always what they are that cause the problems, but what's mixed in with them that really causes the damage.

philologos

zootroid: Deal with the rest of the sources then