My view on the present UK cannabis campaign and activities

This is my view on the present UK cannabis campaign and activities

Within the UK:

It seems that WTU is struggling to raise the funds to bring the legal action against the government that Phil Monk intended and is otherwise lacking direction - for that legal action hundreds of thousands of pounds will be needed and WTU has about ten grand, we are told. Also waiting to see the outcome of Outlaw's Judicial Review as he has the funds and a legal team. WTU has had problems with FB taking down their group - twice, and accusations of misappropriation of funds due to lack of transparency in accounting and then the volunteer accountant resigned due to the very same accusations they were meant to dispel. WTU has amassed evidence to support their case which is now available through Amazon in the book The Fight for Rights and Freedom of Choice, Phil Monk is not in the best of health either. Support had dropped off, there is a forum but it so far is not being used much.

SOF have been producing reports and considering a Judicial Review on the way in which driving impairment charges are based upon blood samples rather than driving ability - again funds are needed.

Personally I would like to see WTU and SOF combine as WTU is also so dependent on Phil's health and availability which is not so good, and rather than splitting the energy maybe that would make better focus.

As you say, not a lot of activity from UKCSC which was in any case largely based on picnics in parks which were put on hold due to Covid restrictions, and a long way from the transparent members-only collective growing of the original Spanish and Belgian Cannabis Social Clubs.

NORML UK does not seem to be active either.

The cannabis political party in the UK idea does not seem very popular since the days of LCA, despite CLEAR and CISTA. Personally I believe a political party did give campaigners a platform and attract press.

Also there seems to be very little effort put into "Letters to the Editor" which in my opinion can be one of the most cost effective means of campaigning and getting the message out there. But it takes consistent effort. And few groups seem capable of issuing regular Press Releases.

There is also the GYO campaign and the Human Rights campaign.

Again IMO the human Rights campaign which basically accuses the Government of Crime and regards the people in court as mostly victims of misuse of power and wrong application of law and covers private and religious / belief activities that pose no threat to the public or public health, would cover GYO for own use and social sharing.

In the UK there were several attempt to get court cases dropped, noticeably Lezley and Mark Gibson - their case was dropped on the understanding that they stopped growing and accessed their medicine through private prescription. Tony Bevington had similar conditions put on him to avoid prosecution.

In the UK the cancard incentive - a card that people that use cannabis for medicinal reasons and costs £30 and an annual fee can be presented to police and seems, as they report, to have had some success in avoiding prosecution and confiscation for cannabis being carried on the street in small amounts - they say they are trying to expand it to give some form of immunity to people growing their own for their own medicinal reasons. Cancard also has some opposition from other groups and campaigners that feel it is limited and avoids the real issues, also somebody seems to be makinga lot of money.

Meanwhile we are hearing a lot about CBD and even TV and magazines are full of advertising for it.

POLITICAL PRESSURE TOWARDS LEGALISATION

Labour would do well to adopt a policy of PR as well as calling for the end to prosecutions for personal use or growing. In Norwich 1997, Howard Marks gained about 620 votes and LCA in 2001 about the same when I stood, about 1.5%. In wards LCA gained up to 5%, even more elsewhere. The LCA had been founded, as you know, to bring the debate into the arena and give campaigners a voice, to influence the other party policies. As you know the last LCA candidate was in 2006. In 2005 general election the LCA vote had gone down to half that, about 0.8%. Politics had become more complicated by issues that people gave more priority to, such as ID and Iraq. Since then there were less than successful attempts at standing under the banner of CISTA.

Also give the estimated 4 million tokers, the million or so that have been criminalised or persecuted, the families, IF only that were a true political force.

To put pressure on the parties we should be telling them that IF they want our support and voted then they MUST stand for Justice and Rights in all issues and pledge to legalise, and see how far they go. The Green Party and Lib Dems both changed policies as result or political pressure, not because they had already recognised even some of the real issues that cannabis and hemp are connected to.

BUT what I saw on FB running up to the election was numerous people more or less saying they would vote Labour / Corbyn, to get rid of Tory / May, irrespective of the fact that Labour are pro-prohibition.

Don't get me wrong, they should have voted Labour if that is how they felt (as did I, after consulting the candidate to find our his views and getting a positive reply. Nobody know how any of us actually vote - but POLITICAL PRESSURE is before the election -

so to further to cause of ending cannabis prohibition, and all other issues we choose to fight for or against, do you agree that we should try to focus again on building an effective political force, with or without a new or existing party

I believe that if Labour had called for legalisation and put it in their manifesto, they would have won more seats, including Norwich North where the candidate Dr Chris Jones told me he supported legalisation but as far as I know did not say so in public or on his election literature.
 http://www.ccguide.org/lca/election_results.php 

Glasgow bureaucrats trying to stop freedom of speech in case it promotes cannabis!

Glasgow bureaucrats trying to stop freedom of speech in case it promotes cannabis!

I guess the council would not object if it was a pro-tobacco campaign and people were smoking that plant openly, despite the fact that tobacco is untold more dangerous than cannabis and kills hundreds of thousands a year - so it must be down to law - bad law - which is what the protest is about, the very hypocrisy - that and information that could be given out that cannabis plant provides massive (and even life-saving) benefit to hundreds of thousands of people in the UK - shame on you ALL that supports the punishment of victimless people for possession or cultivation of a plant in their own homes and for their own use.

The arguments for repeal of change in law or how it is presently applied is essentially supported by several political parties standing candidates in the forthcoming elections in Scotland - CISTA (Cannabis If Safer Than Alcohol), the Scottish Green Party and the LIb Dems and, I think, the SNP - so is the council going to try to stop them broadcasting their calls for legal change too - are they going to stop them proclaiming the benefits of cannabis and the hypocrisy of the law?

It seems to me that since no offence has been committed until the time somebody lights a joint and then it is the duty of the police to react, this ban must be purely political in nature and not based upon law at all.

The laughable thing is the fact that cannabis is smoked in the park almost daily and police do nothing.  The sad thing will be the cost of policing the event as it will undoubtedly go ahead anyway - protests tend to ignore nonsense like this from politicians and civil servants.

http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/news/george-square-cannabis-celebration-blocked-by-council-202457n.122194187
Edinburgh Times, April 6 2015

George Square cannabis 'celebration' blocked by council

PLANS to stage a "cannabis celebration" in Glasgow's George Square have been blocked by the council.

The annual '420 event' sees campaigners come together in a public place on April 20 to call for the legalisation of the Class B drug.
Last year Glasgow Cannabis Social Club held a gathering of 150 people at Glasgow Green despite the council denying the group permission.
Five people were reported to the procurator fiscal for flouting the law by lighting up in full view of police. The maximum penalty for possession of cannabis is five years' imprisonment.
Organisers of this year's event have set up a page on Facebook and more than 3000 have already agreed to descend on George Square.
Among the speakers will be a former Strathclyde police officer who campaigns for the legalisation of drugs.
However, The Evening Times has learned that Glasgow Cannabis Social Club has not been given the green light to use George Square.
A spokesman for Glasgow City Council said: "They applied for permission and we refused. We told the applicant we were refusing permission because the event appeared to encourage the use of cannabis and it was felt that this would not be appropriate."
If the event goes ahead a range of drug paraphernalia, such as pipes, bongs and rolling papers, will be available to buy in George Square.
Speakers are expected to promote the so-called health benefits of the plant as well as encouraging people to "grow their own".
Among those taking to the stage will be retired Glasgow police officer Jim Duffy, a former chairman of the Scottish Police Federation, who now speaks for pressure group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP).
However, the planned event has been criticised by Scottish Conservative chief whip John Lamont who said: "Festivals openly promoting and championing illegal behaviour cannot be tolerated, particularly in one of Glasgow's focal points.
"Last year, people were openly smoking cannabis on Glasgow Green, and it seemed the police were powerless to do anything about it.
"That cannot be allowed to happen this time round."
A spokesman for Police Scotland said: "We are aware of the potential for events and gatherings related to cannabis on April 20. If events are to take place they will be policed appropriately."
Glasgow Cannabis Social Club declined to comment.

Cannabis and the UK Elections - The Green Party

The Green Party have done nothing to help legalise cannabis possession, cultivation and trade, over the last twenty years, now the election is coming and somebody thinks that they can appeal to the cannabis campaign for votes, I personally need more than a policy that they have mostly kept quiet.

They sat back and watched the trials of THC4MS, Biz Ivol, Colin Davies, Chris Baldwin, Pinky, Winston Matthews, Grannie Pat, Neil Morgan and SO MANY more innocents that were punished for usinga plant to their personal benefit.

All we saw was a poorly attended debate on drugs.

I want a PLEDGE.

This is what I am waiting to hear publicly announced by the Green Party before I consider giving my vote, not simply a third party telling me that you have a cannabis policy that you are afraid to mention for fear of losing votes, but something like this:

"When it comes to the question is it JUST to arrest and punish people for possession or cultivation of cannabis for their own use in their own homes if they have done no harm - the answer is NO. The Green Party will do everything in our power to put that right."