Vote Joe Higgins Straight Talking Politician , He wants cannabis decriminalized

newtadis

i was looking for some one to vote that was against prohibition of cannabis

as cannabis has many medicinal uses always has always will ,

anyways i emailed a few other party's , not many seen the same views as me ,
i ended up looking at joe higgings as im in dublin


here was there email back to me today



Thanks for your email. Yes, the Socialist Party supports the decriminalization of cannabis. It is quite clear that prohibition doesn't work and has never worked. Our broad position on drugs is that drug use (and abuse) can only be resolved if the primary underlying reasons are resolved though the reasons why people use drugs obviously varies. Prohibition and criminalization clearly do not even attempt to resolve those issues.


Regards,
Stephen Rigney
Parliamentary Assistant

--
Office of Joe Higgins MEP
Socialist Party
150 Pearse Street
Dublin 2
00 353 1 6795030


this is why im voting for these there open minded ,

also it could create a new multi million euro industrie over night ,


what do u guys think ?????

this is a new video of Joe Higgins telling it like it is CLICK HERE


REALLY DO U WANT THE LIKES OF THIS GUY BACK

" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>

nesf

While I support drug decriminalisation, I wouldn't change my vote because of the issue.

sdanseo

Of all the reasons to vote, or not vote, for someone and you pick this? There are much more important issues.

Mind you I do agree that if taxed to the hilt legalising it would bring in cash, but I still think it should be outlawed. The monetary benefits outweigh the medical problems that could occur in the future and in a society that tends to end up paying for the healthcare of vast numbers of people in full, we shouldn't sink to that level. Quick cash at the expense of human health is all it would be.

Then there's always the fact that a vote for a smaller party like the socialists is completely wasted. They will not end up in government, they will not change national policy, and all the people who think they're great going and voting for SP, SF, GP are actually only taking votes from FG/Labour and leaving FF a few extra seats that they don't deserve.

Vote locally in the council elections, that's why they exist - in this election people must think nationally or frankly, we're screwed. The last thing we need is some 4-way rag coalition with FF clinging to power that collapses in a year.

newtadis

nesf wrote: »

While I support drug decriminalisation, I wouldn't change my vote because of the issue.

sorry but that does not make much sense why would you not change your vote to help people who are suffering with terminal illness & also end this prohibition & earn loads of cash for this country
also why make people who use cannabis criminals

the time to change it is now

newtadis

sdonn wrote: »

The monetary benefits outweigh the medical problems that could occur in the future and in a society that tends to end up paying for the healthcare of vast numbers of people in full, we shouldn't sink to that level. Quick cash at the expense of human health is all it would be.

thats not 100% true , please tell me the list of problems caused by cannabis and proven info .,


and then look at the benefits , then see what out weighs what

newtadis

you only have to look at rick simpson run from the cure ,

bradlente

sdonn wrote: »

Then there's always the fact that a vote for a smaller party like the socialists is completely wasted. They will not end up in government, they will not change national policy, and all the people who think they're great going and voting for SP, SF, GP are actually only taking votes from FG/Labour and leaving FF a few extra seats that they don't deserve.

Whats the point in any party running besides Fine Gael and Labour then?There was me thinking we had a choice.
Voting for any of the parties you mentioned aren't necessarily givng seats to FF if you still vote lower on the paper for FG and Labour are they?

nesf

newtadis wrote: »

sorry but that does not make much sense why would you not change your vote to help people who are suffering with terminal illness & also end this prohibition & earn loads of cash for this country
also why make people who use cannabis criminals

the time to change it is now

Eh, no, it means I prioritise changing our health service in general over one specific health issue.

paul71

newtadis wrote: »

sorry but that does not make much sense why would you not change your vote to help people who are suffering with terminal illness & also end this prohibition & earn loads of cash for this country
also why make people who use cannabis criminals

the time to change it is now

Why would I vote on a single unimportant issue, I am far more concerned with the fact that by voting for socialists like Higgins we will end up having to close all our hosipitals when he has spent all the states revenue and Taxed us out of existance. Where will our terminally ill patients be with no hospitals?

Kasabian

No offence intended but decriminalisation of hash should be way down the list of priorities of a voter in this election.

sdanseo

newtadis wrote: »

sorry but that does not make much sense why would you not change your vote to help people who are suffering with terminal illness & also end this prohibition & earn loads of cash for this country
also why make people who use cannabis criminals

the time to change it is now

It's an addictive substance that is detremental to health especially if overused. And if Ireland's record on alcohol consumption is anything to go by, we do tend to over-indulge. Helping the few people that are terminally ill can be done by having it as a prescription medication rather than selling spliffs in boxes of 20.

It's safer to have it outlawed than to effectively endorse its use. If cigarettes had been outlawed at their inception, I doubt we would have half the halth problems from them that we do now (albeit at the expense of a black market).

Prohibition in the USA taught us that outlawing something once it becomes widely accepted just does not work, and thus it would be a totally irreversible decision too.

Kevo

newtadis wrote: »

sorry but that does not make much sense why would you not change your vote to help people who are suffering with terminal illness & also end this prohibition & earn loads of cash for this country
also why make people who use cannabis criminals

the time to change it is now

It does if there are more important issues or if you disagree with some of your assumptions.

newtadis

love the way you lot think ya know it all lol

bergkamp10

newtadis wrote: »

thats not 100% true , please tell me the list of problems caused by cannabis....... Well, newtadis, first off theres the munchies, (after having forgetting to buy them). Secondly, Changing the channel during the ad break, then remembering to change back 25minutes later. Thirdly, er, what were we talking about, sssfffpuh, ah, nice,

newtadis

benefits of cannabis Click Here

bergkamp10

Less likely to die of stress if one is super chilled out all the time. One should always own an excellent pair of shades so when one is nicely sedated and has ones head together, one's eyes dont betray one. One gets one?

Live4Ever

I would love to see marijuana legalized, however it isn't the most important issue raised during this election. Far from it in fact.

There are many pros involved with legalizing marijuana. People who have never used marijuana don't understand. It is the safest drug of all and probably the oldest.

1. Alcohol is much, much, much worse than marijuana yet the majority of this country get blitzed at weekends and see nothing wrong.
2. You cannot overdose on marijuana. Unlike heroin, cocaine, alcohol etc which has killed millions, marijuana has killed none.
3. It is not addictive. Users become dependant, not addicted. When regular users stop using the drug they don't go 'cold turkey' like drug addicts or alcoholics. I use it everyday. Very few months I give up for 3 - 4 weeks. No problem, I function normally and never crave it when I do or feel any different.
4. It's not jus a drug, it can be use for paper, clothes, rope etc.

bergkamp10

Hallelujah praise d'Lord

gizmo555

Live4Ever wrote: »

I would love to see marijuana legalized, however it isn't the most important issue raised during this election. Far from it in fact.

I would have thought any significant potential source of tax revenue would be of the utmost importance in this election, aside from the cost of employing Gardai and the full panoply of the justice system to fight a completely unwinnable "war on drugs".

Legalisation is going to happen, probably sooner rather than later. Last week an Economist/YouGov survey was published showing a massive majority of US citizens, including even a clear majority of over 65s, are in favour of legalisation.

Just as the US led the way in the criminalisation of cannabis, it looks very likely they will lead the way in legalising it. In 80 or 90 years time, our grandchildren will be watching their version of "Boardwalk Empire" and marvelling at the quaintness of it all.

bergkamp10

gizmo555 wrote: »

I would have thought any significant potential source of tax revenue would be of the utmost importance in this election, aside from the cost of employing Gardai and the full panoply of the justice system to fight a completely unwinnable "war on drugs".

Legalisation is going to happen, probably sooner rather than later. Last week an Economist/YouGov survey was published showing a massive majority of US citizens, including even a clear majority of over 65s, are in favour of legalisation.

Just as the US led the way in the criminalisation of cannabis, it looks very likely they will lead the way in legalising it. In 80 or 90 years time, our grandchildren will be watching their version of "Boardwalk Empire" and marvelling at the quaintness of it all.

thats very sad, no not your opinion, the fact that you are DEAD RIGHT is making me very sad.... pass me my utensils darling...

randomhuman

newtadis wrote: »

you only have to look at rick simpson run from the cure ,

I think we should legalise cannabis, but only if we can please, please ban this kind of bullscheisse at the same time. Cannabis can't be patented because it's a plant, and no patent means no money? What the frak is that dude smoking?

the groutch

there is of course the "gateway drug" theory, which is why it will probably never get legalised

newtadis

the groutch wrote: »

there is of course the "gateway drug" theory, which is why it will probably never get legalised

weres your proof thats its a gateway drug

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2538065.stm


thats proof its not a gateway drug

newtadis

http://www.drugscience.org.uk/
Independent Scientific Committee on Drugs


that is Professor david nutt he will explain all if anyone need scientific evidence on cannabis and all other drugs , committee members click here

we cant keep our heads in the sand forever .

cannabis is the most commonly used drug in ireland as said by mary harney her self ,


so why make every single person that smokes it ill or not a criminal

why not turn this into a cash cow educate & control it in a right manner

seriously whats the difference between a doctor proscribing cannabis that does not kill or anti depressants that are test trial drugs which people have died from

pclancy

Newtadis you're approaching this from a very simple minded point of view of that cannabis causes no harm at all to the human body. It does cause harm. It may not be noticable now or if you're lucky, in the future, but smoking anything will harm your body, your respiatory system was simply not designed to handle hot tar-filled smoke.

It had better be taxed a lot to pay for healthcare costs of the percentage of users that are going to contract lung, head or mouth cancers when they get older and for the psychological impact on the small percentage of the population that should never ever smoke it or they risk schizophrenia.

For medical purposes ie pain releif it should be sold in tablet form, if you're going to smoke it then you're going to damage your respiatory system and you are increasing your risks of getting cancer. If you accept that risk then fair enough but who's going to pay for your treatment if you get cancer...therefore the tax will have to reflect that.

Either way I don't think the majority of Irish people would want it legalised and certainly it doesnt have support in the medical community for the above reasons. Nobody argues against its merits for pain releift, hence you can get products such as Sativex.

I'm a potsmoker myself and wish that I could have my own plant growing in the garden without fear of jailtime. But I also work in healthcare and see the effects it has on some peoples bodies and have read the studies about its links to cancer. Therefore I seriously doubt it will ever actually be legal, just as one day tobacco will have to finally be banned alltogether as the cost of keeping all the dying smokers alive will be massive.

spiralism

Luke "Ming" Flanagan in my local constituency (Roscommon/South Leitrim) is pro legalisation AFAIK

Having said that, there are much more pressing issues right now in this country, though it could be a source of revenue theoretically. Couldn't ever see it happening though

newtadis

spiralism wrote: »

Luke "Ming" Flanagan in my local constituency (Roscommon/South Leitrim) is pro legalisation AFAIK

hes the mayor of Roscommon Council fair play to him

newtadis

bergkamp10

randomhuman wrote: »

I think we should legalise cannabis, but only if we can please, please ban this kind of bullscheisse at the same time. Cannabis can't be patented because it's a plant, and no patent means no money? What the frak is that dude smoking?

not taking issue with the dangers of cannabis from a carcinogenic stance, thats granted. Dangers of cannabis WHEN ABUSED can be measured against any substance when abused. Alcohol( cirrhosis). Caffeine(stroke). Paracetamol(very easy to overdose, all sorts of fallout there) the wonder drug ibuprofen(intestines of mush). Even the essence of life, WATER, will indeed do untold damage if abused. So everything is dangerous at some point. There is the option of ingesting cannabis, drinks, bakery, etc. Doesn't have to be smoked. On that point, isn't tobacco a plant? That hasn't prevented a million brands, patents, etc, benson and hedges, marlboro etc etc etc. So, The irish govts cut, from the price of a packet of fags, is about 80% (how much are they in eu, 2or3 euro ), irish govts levy on cigs is deliberately disproportionate to eu prices. Thats fine by me. Point is It would in theory be VERY easy to legalise cannabis, and then levy and regulate it. Cannabis can be brought above ground, instantly putting many minor dealers out of business, on many levels, the knock on could mean they cant sustain their operations if the huge illicit funding from hash has run out. There is also the issue of quality control which would be far greater assured if the product is state licensed and endorsed(and who here hasn't been stuck with sh1t hash). Not to mention the millions of garda man hours it would free up. Weighing up all the pros and all the cons (which of course there are, as with everything) measuring it all up, isn't it simply the lesser of two evils to legalise cannabis?

Bottle_of_Smoke

sdonn wrote: »

Then there's always the fact that a vote for a smaller party like the socialists is completely wasted. They will not end up in government, they will not change national policy, and all the people who think they're great going and voting for SP, SF, GP are actually only taking votes from FG/Labour and leaving FF a few extra seats that they don't deserve.

There's no such thing as a wasted vote. As an individual it is just so highly unlikely your vote will change the overall outcome.

The closest in recent times was the Fermanagh/South Tyrone constituency in the 2010 UK general election. Sinn Fein won by four votes. Now that was hugely unusual yet it was still 4 votes more than one individual vote making a difference.

So you should vote for the person you want to win. It registers the fact they got a vote from someone.

You don't get a prize if the person you vote for winning so there's no point in deciding your vote along those lines.

ISAW

nesf wrote: »

While I support drug decriminalisation, I wouldn't change my vote because of the issue.

But a lot of young people might. they don't view mainstream poliical parties as particularly different. they identify with radicals.

bergkamp10

sdonn wrote: »

Of all the reasons to vote, or not vote, for someone and you pick this? There are much more important issues.

Mind you I do agree that if taxed to the hilt legalising it would bring in cash, but I still think it should be outlawed. The monetary benefits outweigh the medical problems that could occur in the future and in a society that tends to end up paying for the healthcare of vast numbers of people in full, we shouldn't sink to that level. Quick cash at the expense of human health is all it would be.

Then there's always the fact that a vote for a smaller party like the socialists is completely wasted. They will not end up in government, they will not change national policy, and all the people who think they're great going and voting for SP, SF, GP are actually only taking votes from FG/Labour and leaving FF a few extra seats that they don't deserve.

Vote locally in the council elections, that's why they exist - in this election people must think nationally or frankly, we're screwed. The last thing we need is some 4-way rag coalition with FF clinging to power that collapses in a year.

seems to me that the original poster starting this thread clearly recognises that there are a million election related issues, and has used this thread to raise one specific one, so, similarly, if i wanted to raise the issue of using tax payers money to fly butt monkeys into outer space, i have the right to start a butt monkey SPECIFIC thread, if popular opinion concludes that i have a point which is in any way valid. To which people with an opinion on that specific thread should agree or disagree. Like with this thread for instance. Its one thread out of thousands. Its one single topic. Its valid. And while were on this thread, isn't the health service already clogged up with over abuse of every substance known to man. There are pros and cons to everything. Heres two oversimplified condensed examples if i may: eg1 PRO:cannabis for, lets say, multiple sclerosis sufferers. documented evidence of the greater musculature control, which leads to greater confidence, better quality of life, yadda yadda yadda, enjoyed by the patient when ingesting (not necessarily smoking) cannabis. CON: On the flip side, over indulgence leads to depression paranoia etc. Eg2 PRO: i bloody love a good coffee, good strong arabic or peruvian. Proper extra strong gourmet mind, none of that instant tosh. Nice yes? CON: using caffeine in high doses may induce stroke. So, in my humble opinion i suggest One can argue pros and cons to almost anything wouldn't you say? Nothing can be stated in such black and white terms. To re iterate my previous post, when everything is stacked up i believe in a progressive society, judicially and financially, the good would outweigh the bad when legalising cannabis.

Ash.J.Williams

After this weekend i would like to add canabis to the list of homemade remedies that can ease nervey tooth aches....

johnnyskeleton

Kasabian wrote: »

No offence intended but decriminalisation of hash should be way down the list of priorities of a voter in this election.

The beauty of democracy is that voters get to choose their own priorities.

bergkamp10

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

After this weekend i would like to add canabis to the list of homemade remedies that can ease nervey tooth aches....

absolutely. Take a bow, Ash J. Go on! I have soo been there, impacted wisdom tooth with an exposed nerve some fifteen years ago. Even my mam was happy with me skinning up as opposed to the alternative where i had been screaming and having paracetamol washed down with nips of brandy for the pain, once i discussed my theory that it may help. Which it did. Twelve hours of throbbing stopped instantly. You are, in all fairness, bang on with that one

JP Liz V1

I always thought Higgins seemed stoned

bergkamp10

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

I always thought Higgins seemed stoned

yup. Still though, one man against the storm. Joe Higgins, theres a personification of rage against the machine if ever there was one. Did massive work trying in vain to stop bin charges on a national scale. Did massive work successfully to stop corrupt property management companies also nationally not just locally. Keep banging the drum joe.

ghostdancer

legalising, and de-criminalising, are not the same thing.


personally, i believe:

decriminalising up to certain amounts for personal use would be a great idea. arrests for small amounts are a waste of Gardai's time, the court's time, and having people getting in trouble over enough for a couple of joints is nonsense.

decriminalising altogether (ie. dealers can't get arrested), not so much.

legalising cannabis, no (although we could probably do with the tourism money it would bring in, americans and british would be flocking here)

ghostdancer

ghostdancer wrote: »

decriminalising up to certain amounts for personal use would be a great idea. arrests for small amounts are a waste of Gardai's time, the court's time, and having people getting in trouble over enough for a couple of joints is nonsense.

decriminalising altogether (ie. dealers can't get arrested), not so much.

legalising cannabis, no (although we could probably do with the tourism money it would bring in, americans and british would be flocking here)

Is this not what they do in the Dam? Cannabis isn't legal there, but a blind eye is turned on the coffee shops

ronkmonster

pclancy wrote: »

Newtadis you're approaching this from a very simple minded point of view of that cannabis causes no harm at all to the human body. It does cause harm. It may not be noticable now or if you're lucky, in the future, but smoking anything will harm your body, your respiatory system was simply not designed to handle hot tar-filled smoke.

It had better be taxed a lot to pay for healthcare costs of the percentage of users that are going to contract lung, head or mouth cancers when they get older and for the psychological impact on the small percentage of the population that should never ever smoke it or they risk schizophrenia.

For medical purposes ie pain releif it should be sold in tablet form, if you're going to smoke it then you're going to damage your respiatory system and you are increasing your risks of getting cancer. If you accept that risk then fair enough but who's going to pay for your treatment if you get cancer...therefore the tax will have to reflect that.

Either way I don't think the majority of Irish people would want it legalised and certainly it doesnt have support in the medical community for the above reasons. Nobody argues against its merits for pain releift, hence you can get products such as Sativex.

I'm a potsmoker myself and wish that I could have my own plant growing in the garden without fear of jailtime. But I also work in healthcare and see the effects it has on some peoples bodies and have read the studies about its links to cancer. Therefore I seriously doubt it will ever actually be legal, just as one day tobacco will have to finally be banned alltogether as the cost of keeping all the dying smokers alive will be massive.

What about eating it instead (mixed in with something)? Does that cause problems?

bergkamp10

ronkmonster wrote: »

What about eating it instead (mixed in with something)? Does that cause problems?

only in the same way as over indulging in anything, anything at all causes problems

randomhuman

bergkamp10 wrote: »

randomhuman wrote:

I think we should legalise cannabis, but only if we can please, please ban this kind of bullscheisse at the same time. Cannabis can't be patented because it's a plant, and no patent means no money? What the frak is that dude smoking?

not taking issue with the dangers of cannabis from a carcinogenic stance, thats granted. Dangers of cannabis WHEN ABUSED can be measured against any substance when abused. Alcohol( cirrhosis). Caffeine(stroke). Paracetamol(very easy to overdose, all sorts of fallout there) the wonder drug ibuprofen(intestines of mush). Even the essence of life, WATER, will indeed do untold damage if abused. So everything is dangerous at some point. There is the option of ingesting cannabis, drinks, bakery, etc. Doesn't have to be smoked. On that point, isn't tobacco a plant? That hasn't prevented a million brands, patents, etc, benson and hedges, marlboro etc etc etc. So, The irish govts cut, from the price of a packet of fags, is about 80% (how much are they in eu, 2or3 euro ), irish govts levy on cigs is deliberately disproportionate to eu prices. Thats fine by me. Point is It would in theory be VERY easy to legalise cannabis, and then levy and regulate it. Cannabis can be brought above ground, instantly putting many minor dealers out of business, on many levels, the knock on could mean they cant sustain their operations if the huge illicit funding from hash has run out. There is also the issue of quality control which would be far greater assured if the product is state licensed and endorsed(and who here hasn't been stuck with sh1t hash). Not to mention the millions of garda man hours it would free up. Weighing up all the pros and all the cons (which of course there are, as with everything) measuring it all up, isn't it simply the lesser of two evils to legalise cannabis?

I think maybe you meant to quote somebody else, because what you said here doesn't have any connection to what I said.

Or maybe you misunderstood what I said? I think cannabis should be legalised, I was criticising the video, which was full of ****e.

randomhuman

johnnyskeleton wrote: »

The beauty of democracy is that voters get to choose their own priorities.

This. I'm sick of hearing people telling others what issues they can and can't vote based on. Legalisation or decriminalisation of cannabis isn't an issue that I'd base my vote on (not that I can, in my constituency), but I wouldn't dare tell somebody else that it's not important enough for them to base their vote on. I'd imagine that for somebody who partakes every day, the fact that the law sees them as a criminal is an urgent and overriding issue.

bergkamp10

randomhuman wrote: »

I think maybe you meant to quote somebody else, because what you said here doesn't have any connection to what I said.

Or maybe you misunderstood what I said? I think cannabis should be legalised, I was criticising the video, which was full of ****e.

das ist cool mein buddy. Passen meine jointe. Schnell schnell !

newtadis

i have around 15 people so far willing to back joe higgins ,

newtadis

ive just found this new video have a look if you want a good watch

http://www.joehiggins.eu/2011/02/video-joe-higgins-mep-speaking-at-united-left-alliance-launch-in-dun-laoghaire/

bergkamp10

Jesus, newtadis, you had 'em all kicking off nicely, hasn't been a pip in here for HOURS..... did you convert them all wit ur vid, and they're all off semi-baked and giggling their nuts off?? )

newtadis

bergkamp10 wrote: »

Jesus, newtadis, you had 'em all kicking off nicely, hasn't been a pip in here for HOURS..... did you convert them all wit ur vid, and they're all off semi-baked and giggling their nuts off?? )

lol i agree 100% .
im off to Amsterdam tomorrow so i wont be on for 3 or 4 days ,

i think il spend my money there instead lol

elefant

It's actually 'tolerated' in all of the Netherlands, not just Amsterdam, which seems to be a common belief. I've read the Netherlands makes over half a billion in tax revenue every year from coffee shops.

newtadis

elefant wrote: »

It's actually 'tolerated' in all of the Netherlands, not just Amsterdam, which seems to be a common belief. I've read the Netherlands makes over half a billion in tax revenue every year from coffee shops.

thats correct were going to einhoven first ,

works out cheaper again

plus we wont be treated like criminals for doing what we love to do

Dave2011

newtadis wrote: »

i was looking for some one to vote that was against prohibition of cannabis

as cannabis has many medicinal uses always has always will ,

anyways i emailed a few other party's , not many seen the same views as me ,
i ended up looking at joe higgings as im in dublin


here was there email back to me today



Thanks for your email. Yes, the Socialist Party supports the decriminalization of cannabis. It is quite clear that prohibition doesn't work and has never worked. Our broad position on drugs is that drug use (and abuse) can only be resolved if the primary underlying reasons are resolved though the reasons why people use drugs obviously varies. Prohibition and criminalization clearly do not even attempt to resolve those issues.


Regards,
Stephen Rigney
Parliamentary Assistant

--
Office of Joe Higgins MEP
Socialist Party
150 Pearse Street
Dublin 2
00 353 1 6795030


this is why im voting for these there open minded ,

also it could create a new multi million euro industrie over night ,


what do u guys think ?????

this is a new video of Joe Higgins telling it like it is CLICK HERE


REALLY DO U WANT THE LIKES OF THIS GUY BACK

Cigarettes are worse than cannabis in my opinion, they cause far more deaths than a bit of weed ever will! They should have registered suppliers that pay a license fee for selling cannabis with full health and safety inspections of the facilities and the product and the government can get tax revenue from excise duty on cannabis bags!! One way to get out of recession and keep the next government popular forever!! Crazy idea!!:)