Saturday 19 March 2016

Cannabis Justice and Rights Campaigning

What I would like to see:

OUR Human Rights to grow cannabis and possess cannabis in our Private Lives acknowledged: that is, legal home grown.

OUR Human Rights to choose and practice our personal belief or religion alone or with others to be acknowledged

To me that means:

an end to the prosecution / punishment of people growing or in possession of cannabis for their own use or social sharing

AND

Licensed commercial outlets for quality controlled cannabis for adults with tax on profits and consumer protection regulations and consumption allowed on the premises with the owners permission, similar to Dutch Coffeeshops - cannabis "off-licenses" also ; all with consumer protection and tax on profits

AND

Licensed non-profit private member club premises where cannabis consumers can gather in safety to buy and consume cannabis and socialise. These could be limited to members only and no advertising, with age restrictions (similar to Spanish Private Clubs)

AND

Legal and transparent profit-free collective growing clubs

AND

Natural cannabis and cannabis products to be available free through the doctor's prescription ND NHS

SOME PEOPLE may say that I am a dreamer, sure, that we will never get all that or not for decades at least, that it is asking too much at once ...

But am a CAMPAIGNER who prefers to campaign for what he feels is Right and Just, not based on public opinion or political correctness or even viability..

At 66, who knows how long I have left to see my dream come true.

I consider myself very fortunate not to be bound by the policies or opinions of others.

Sunday 6 March 2016

Cannabis: Medicalisation and Restriction of Rights.

It seems to me that recently more people are saying that they use cannabis solely or primarily as a medicine as if that should give them to right to do something that other people don't have the right to do: many live under the illusions that a "medical cannabis" campaign will lead to legalisation to grow our own cannabis.
 
Take a look at, for example, opium, a class A drug: medical opium = opiates has been available through doctors and pharmacies for many decades, yet the right to grow ones own poppies and make ones own opium, whether for medicine or not, is still ignored by the law.
 
Once the pharmaceutical giants jump on board the medical cannabis bandwagon, there will be plenty of extracts and other products from cannabis available if one can find a doctor willing to prescribe (many doctors in Holland, even, will not). But unlike Holland, we may not have coffeeshops.
 
Then there will be no "excuse", no mitigation, for people that grow.
 
BOTTLE is needed.
 
Groups and individuals need to put themselves aside for a time and all campaign for Justice and equal Rights for all - the right to a private life, to practice our beliefs (alone or with others), the right to property -- for everyone.
 
THEN and only then will those who consider their need to be primarily medicinal relief will be able to grow their own. cannabis.
 
THEN commercial outlets for all adults will follow, with quality control, consumer protection and tax of profits. 
 
THEN doctors will start to issue prescriptions.
 
Pharmaceutical medical cannabis is:
(a) already here (eg Sativex) and 
(b) inevitable.
 
Let the pharmaceutical companies campaign for their profits and by all means advertise medical needs, but don't call that legalisation.