Cannabis and Law, UK

With immediate effect I call upon the UK Government to instruct police on how the law is applied:  where there is no victim, no legal action should be taken against any citizen.

I call upon the Government to repeal the laws against cannabis possession and cultivation for own use and to introduce a system of legal supply to adults, based upon the following:

Cannabis law is about people, not substances - it is people that are being criminalised and punished, irrespective of their reasons for possessing or cultivating cannabis.

Cannabis law prohibits the cultivation of cannabis even very low THC content (the main psychoactive compound), also called hemp and grown for use as a source of fibre, fuels, paper, oils and foods - as well as cannabis grown in private for health, religious, social of recreational needs.  This clearly illustrates that the ban on the cultivation of cannabis hemp is not due to a risk to health or safety.  Cannabis is wrongly classified and scheduled within the Misuse of Drugs Act.

The application of the law and arrest of citizens without victims is contrary to the higher laws of Human Rights that protect the individuals Right to a Private Life and the Right to choose and to practice their personal belief (alone or with others) provided that they pose no risk or do no harm to others or their Rights.

Furthermore, the illegal application of the Misuse of Drugs legislation on the user of any person for the possession of any substance is contrary to Human Rights law unless the person poses a risk to others or their Rights.

The absence of legislation banning the possession or use of harmful substances such as alcohol, tobacco, caffeine and even sugar (all more addictive and toxic than cannabis), highlights the hypocrisy and illogical nature of the la (The Law is an Ass).

Cannabis Laws and the threat of punishment causes more harm than good, leaving the supply in the hands of profiteers, discouraging problematic users from seeking help, exposing vulnerable people to cannabis of unknown strength or quality, risks exposure to more harmful substances, wastes police time, alienates people to the police, and depriving the people of any tax on profits..

Cannabis Campaigners' Guide 

The Fight for Rights and Freedom of Choice

 

Who is Al Zeeman?

 

CANNABIS CAMPAIGNERS GUIDE: INFORMATION AND WORLWIDE CANNABIS NEWS

Click Here for Free Access to Information and News on Cannabis

 

My Weed and I, Stoned Again! by Al Zeeman

 Paperback  and Kindle

 My Weed and I, Stoned Again! by Al Zeeman aka Alun Buffry

Al Zeeman first consumed cannabis in 1970 whilst at University, firstly in the form of “Coffee Bhangs” and hash cakes, then smoking mixed with tobacco or pure in pipes. After graduating, he travelled across Europe to India and back, stopping off in several places such as Kabul to sample the hasheesh.

Upon returning from India, he started following the teaching and practices of Prem Rawat, then known as “Guru Maharaji”, a fifteen year old from India.

A few years later, Al started smoking cannabis again and continued to so for almost 50 years, including his time in several UK prisons. He continued to follow Prem Rawat which he still does today.

But during the time since 1970, Al Zeeman travelled widely throughout Europe, also visiting Morocco, India, Nepal, Kashmir and Egypt, meeting many people and smoking hos weed (and theirs) and was so often "stoned again”.

The author also participated in “Legalise Cannabis Campaigns” for over thirty years, even standing for Parliament under the banner of the Legalise Cannabis Alliance (LCA) on the single issue, in 2001.

This is his account of his experiences, the places he saw and some of the friends he made.

This book, along with many amusing anecdotes, recalls his encounters and near misses with the forces of law in the UK. Also the book contains a wealth of information on the uses of cannabis / hemp, the types and sources, smoking utensils, some political opinions and a chronology of cannabis.

Zeeman pays tribute to the cannabis campaigners and enthusiasts that he met along the way, many of whom have now passed on, including Howard Marks, Chris Baldwin, Don Barnard, Winston Matthews, Mark and Lezley Gibson, Clara O’Donnell, Jack and Tina Girling, Lee Harris, Steve Pank, Jooep Oomen and “Granny” Pat Tabram.

At the end of the book, Zeeman gives his birth name, Alun Buffry, stating that he has never made any attempt to hide his identity.

Table of Contents:

NICOLAS CULPEPER, CANNABIS LAWS – PROHIBITION, COFFEE-BHANGS AND HASH CAKES, THE DEALER’S HAT, FIRST CHILLUM, A BRUSH OR TWO WITH THE LAW, FRANKFURT, MUNICH, BELGRADE, ISTANBUL, AFYON /AFYONKARAISHAR, THE FISHERMAN ON THE BEACH, HEADING EAST, AFGHANISTAN, KABUL, HELMUT, KHYBER PASS AND ONWARDS TO INDIA, INDIA: HARIDWAR AND THE GANGES, NORFOLK, THE WRECKING CREW, BUSTED, WICKLEWOOD, MR NICE, JACK AND LILY, STANLEY ATKINS, JOE HARDY-SHARP,POLISH CHRIS – CHRIS LAUSCH, MONTY, LESLEY JAMES, THE “BIG MONEY GANG”,CAMPAIGN TO LEGALISE CANNABIS INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION 1992, BANGED UP, HOWARD MARKS, MR NICE 1997,THE LEGALISE CANNABIS ALLIANCE (LCA) 1999, TRAVELLING HIGH, NOL VAN SHAIK’S SPANISH COMPLEX, CAMPAIGN GROUPS DURING AND AFTER THE LCA, METHODS OF CONSUMPTION, TYPES AND SOURCES OF CANNABIS, RECREATIONAL OR MEDICAL, CANNABIS ABROAD, HOLLAND AND THE NETHERLANDS, SPAIN, PORTUGAL, IRELAND, GERMANY, FRANCE, SWITZERLAND, GREECE, ITALY: SICILY, MOROCCO, INDIA, OTHER COUNTRIES, THE BAD STUFF, GROW YOUR OWN, CANNABIS PROTESTS, HEADSHOPS, SMOKEY BEARS PICNICS, RALLIES AND MARCHES, COFFEESHOPS, BYE BYE, A CHRONOLOGY OF CANNABIS.

 

By continuing to support cannabis prohibition laws, politicians and others are:

By continuing to support cannabis prohibition laws, politicians and others are::

unduly interfering with the Human Rights of a Private Life and choice and practice of belief, contrary to Human Rights laws

enabling criminal organisations and even terrorist groups to make huge tax-free profits from sales

creating unnecessary obstacles for people in need of good quality and clean cannabis

driving people that fear the consequences of growing cannabis in their homes into the hands of uncontrollable, often unscrupulous and dangerous and untaxed suppliers and criminal gangs

putting at risk the health and wellfare of victimless cannabis consumers

opening the gateway to hard drugs through dealers

putting children at risk - illegal dealers usually have no agree restrictions

punishing people that have done no harm to others

costing the public purse many millions of pounds annually through the cost of policing, court proceedings and prisons

unduly preventing and alienating those criminalised from taking certain jobs, renting accommodation, obtaining insurance and limiting travel.

enabling huge profits for shareholders such as the spouses of government ministers through businesses such as British Sugar, GW Pharmaceuticals - such as the husbands of Victoria Aitkins and Theresa May.

Putting at risk many people that have no alternative than prescription pharmaceutical drugs t=and that could be using cannabis.

Stifling research into the many benefits of cannabis such as its environmentally-friendly and safe utilisation as a source of fuels, plastics, solvents, paints, cloth and medicine

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CANNABIS AND THE MISUSE OF DRUGS ACT

Cannabis and the Misuse of Drugs Act

The inclusion of cannabis in the Misuse of Drugs Act raises several questions:

First consider cannabis itself.

Cannabis itself is neither legal nor illegal. It is human activities that are prohibited, limited or licensed, not the substance itself. That is the possession, cultivation and supply, by certain people. Universities, pharmaceutical companies, research establishment and indeed some farmers are permitted under license to cultivate cannabis for specific reasons; police, forensic scientists, court officials and other authorities are permitted to possess in or pass it to others (supply) as part of their jobs.

Legislation was created by Parliament and can be changed by Parliament. Its application is a matter of policy and is often left to the discretion of the police which varies around the country. Prosecution is at the discretion of the Crown Prosecution Service and the Courts. The matter of “guilt”in the trial of supposed or alleged offender is a matter for magistrates, juries and judges

Cannabis is a natural plant, not a substance manufactured rf synthesized in a laboratory or even a kitchen, like most substances included in the Misuse of Drugs Act. It grows naturally, with or without help from humans (cultivation) – it will grow almost anywhere. It exists in nature and existed before human beings. It is not a narcotic, a stimulant (although it may increase drowsiness or stimulate, depending on the circumstances) or cause hallucinations (different to illusions) . It is non-lethal – that is there is no amount possible to consume that will cause death. It is far safer than most plants that grow in our parks and gardens or even in the wild.

Let is consider the term “misuse”. It is different from “muse” and “abuse”.

misuse

verb

1. use (something) in the wrong way or for the wrong purpose.

   "he was found guilty of misusing public funds"

   Similar:

   put to wrong use, misapply, misemploy,
   
   

Noun

1. the wrong or improper use of something.

   EG: "drugs of such potency that their misuse can have dire consequences"
   
   

So we may ask: what is the “purpose” of cannabis? With most manufactured substances and articles that would mean why was it made? With plants we must ask why did nature or God produce it and for what reason does man cultivate or possess it. Of course the first question is largely a matter of philosophy or beliefs. The second question is a matter for the person (or persons) cultivating, possessing and using the plant.

Cannabis has been around humans and used by humans for many thousands of years. It was once a common plant used by almost everyone, commonly called, in English, Hemp..

In the work Culpeper’s Complete Herbal of 1652, it was written:

HEMP

This is so well known to every good housewife in the country, that I shall not need to write any description of it.

Time. It is sown in the very end of March, or beginning of April, and is ripe in August or September.

Government and virtues. It is a plant of Saturn, and good for something else, you see, than to make halters only. The seed of Hemp consumes wind, and by too much use thereof disperses it so much that it dries up the natural seed for procreation; yet, being boiled in milk and taken, helps such as have a hot dry cough. The Dutch make an emulsion out of the seed, and give it with good success to those that have the jaundice, especially in the beginning of the disease, if there be no ague accompanying it, for it opens obstructions of the gall, and causes digestion of choler. The emulsion or decoction of the seed stays lasks and continual fluxes, eases the cholic, and allays the troublesome humours in the bowels, and stays bleeding at the mouth, nose, or other places, some of the leaves, being fried with the blood of them that bleed, and so given them to eat. It is held very good to kill the worms in men or beasts; and the juice dropped into the ears kills worms in them; and draws forth earwigs, or other living creatures gotten into them. The decoction of the root allays inflammations of the head, or any other parts: the herb itself, or the distilled water thereof doth the like. The decoction of the root eases the pains of the gout, the hard humours of knots in the joints, the pains and shrinking of the sinews, and the pains of the hips. The fresh juice mixed with a little oil and butter, is good for any place that hath been burnt with fire, being thereto applied.

Nowadays, around the world, cannabis is widely accepted to have many medicinal uses; that is cannabis with or without large THC: CBD ratios. Those medicinal uses include the amelioration of many aches and pains caused by mild or serious illnesses and injuries, reduction or cessation of muscular spasms and epileptic fits, reduction of intraocular pressures that cause glaucoma, easing breathing in asthma sufferers, aiding sleep and boosting appetite, counteracting the negative effects of chemotherapy and not least reduction of stress, one of the biggest causes of illness, absenteeism, violence and premature death. It is used to treat mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and psychosis (especially CBD extracts). Cannabis is also claimed, with mounting evidence, to cure cancers and tumours. Cannabis is widely used to boost inspiration and creativity by artists and musicians; to enable and improve socialisation. It is used simply for fun, recreation or to created good feelings and moods.

Cannabis is now cultivated by Pharmaceutical companies such as GW Pharmaceuticals who produce Sativex sprays supplied to sufferers of, for instance, Multiple Sclerosis: Sativex is a full cannabis extract in alcohol with an added peppermint flavour; in The Netherlands it is prescribed by doctors in herbal form, granulated and standardised and produced by Bedrocan. The supply of cannabis medicinal products on prescription was “legalised” in the UK just a couple of years ago. In fact, the UK is one of the largest exporters of cannabis for “medicinal purposes” cultivated by British Sugar Corporation (BSC). Incidentally, whilst the sick and healthy are daily raided by police and dragged through the courts, the spouses of MP’s such as Theresa May (ex-Prime Minister) and Victoria Atkins (Drugs Minister) are major investors in GW and BSC.

But the use of cannabis do not stop there. It includes its use as a sacrament in many religions and beliefs, their practices, rites and rituals, including Rastafarianism, Coptic Christianity, Hinduism and Jainism, Sufism, Buddhism and many new age religious movements.

Cannabis and Hemp (cannabis with low THC content) has many industrial uses as a source of fibre and fuel. It can be used to make fuel capable of running our homes, our cars and even our planes. It can be and is used in the production of paper, building materials such as bricks and shelving, furniture, plastics, canvas for sails and artist's paintings, clothing, oils for lubrication or for paints etc, The list is almost endless.

The seed fro m the cannabis plant is one of the most nutritious seeds on earth:

The Nutritional Contents of Cannabis Seeds and Their Health Benefits

There is no real nutritional difference between hemp seeds and cannabis seeds, even if the latter ends up growing into a plant that contains high amounts of THC.

This is because cannabinoids such as THC, the compound known for its psychoactive properties, do not exist in the seed. These compounds are only present in the stem, stalk, l eaves and flower of the plant itself.

The same applies to other cannabinoids such as the popular CBD, as well as flavonoids, terpenes, etc. This is why cannabis seeds on their own aren’t used for therapeutic purposes. But what they lack in that department, they make up for in nutritional contents and general health benefits.

The nutrition contained in a cannabis seed is quite frankly incredible. Starting with protein, cannabis seeds provide a complete source of the nutrient as they contain all nine essential amino acids. Since your body cannot produce these nine acids, it needs to obtain them from external sources. Very few plants are complete sources like cannabis seeds.

On the outer shell of a cannabis seed, you’ll find most of its firer contents. Around 35% of a cannabis seed is composed of essential fatty acids, including omega 3,6,9 and GLA.

As if that wasn’t enough, cannabis seeds also contain iron, copper, potassium, zinc, magnesium, folic acid, manganese, vitamin E and a number of B vitamins, including riboflavin, folate, thiamine and vitamin B6. Furthermore, cannabis seeds are highly digestible. You can eat them cooked, raw, shelled, unshelled… the sky’s the limit.

Taken from https://www.medsnews.com/health/nutritional-contents-of-cannabis-seeds/

This article could be expanded to many pages to show the many uses of cannabis. For further reference please see:

https://ccguide.org/uses.php
https://ccguide.org/seeduses.php
https://ccguide.org/industry.php
https://ccguide.org/forfuel.php

I think it is safe to conclude that CANNABIS HAS VERY MANY USES, both on an individual and industrial level.

So to return to the original issue: what is the “Misuse” of cannabis? How is it used for reasons other than for intentional beneficial use? What are the misuses? To get high? To feel good? To harm others?

To me it us abundantly clear that the inclusion of cannabis as a scheduled classified substance of misuse in the Misuse of Drugs Act and the prohibition that goes along with that, its origins and application, are at best erroneous and smells of corruption, infringes upon Rights to a Private Life and the Choice and Practice of Belief (and other Articles), nationally and internationally, wrongly favouring big industry over the individual, unjustifiably flying in the face of evidence and fact, and 

CANNABIS SHOULD BE REMOVED FROM THE ACT WITHOUT DELAY.

 

Dreaming of Hemp

Last night I had a dream that I was on a bus explaining to some people all the uses of the cannabis plant, at first not naming it; the value as a fibre as a source of clothing, platic, paper, packaging, canvas, rope, as a fuel and lubricant and the seed as a source of nutrition, and as a medicine;

I explained how it was easy to grow and harvest almost anywhere without fertilisers or pesticides and that it was environemnetally friendly and biodegradable, even the burning of the fuels releasing only the CO" and H"O absobed during the growing.

I remember it went on a while. I said it wa a shame it needed an expsnsive license to grow and they were hard to get. 

Then, in the dream, I said it was a plant called cannabis. A couple of passengers commented like ha! yes that's why it's banned, because cannabis is addictive and leads to hard drugs and can cause lung problems and cancer and it's dangerous for kids.

"Ha!" I said, "you have fallen into my trap! Because it's also called hemp. Cannabis is just the botanical name. Cos cannabis usually has THC which gets people high and makes them feel good, and hemp, the same plant but a different varierty and usually grown taller, has avery very low amount of THC and you'd have to smoke a field full to get any effect. 

"So even if what you said about THC-cannabis was true, which it's not, hemp is not dangerous at all. So why do the same laws limit and stop people from growing hemp as they do for cannabis? Could it be anything to do with the profits big business makes by controlling our supply of fuels and plastics and pharmaceutical drugs?"

Then the bus stopped and we had to get off. Then I woke up.

UK Government needs Alchemists to make more profitable cannabis extract medicines.

The UK Government will not consider legalising cannabis but plan to invest more money into research for the production and supply of highly profitable pharmaceutical cannbinoids.

In plain language: we plan to make as much money as possible from sick people needing cannabinoids and the rest of you can go rot in prison or pay fines if we can get the police to deal with you. Cannabis has no medical value unless it is dissolved in alcohol (like Sativex) and sprayed up your bum.!

they want to make medicine from aplant with no medicinal value (according to UK drug schedules) by adding alcohol.  That sure is alchemy.

Arrest the cannabis medical growers??

How would you react if somebody came up to you in the street

shaking a collection tin and asking for a donation to help pay for the arrest and prosecution of sick and injured adults for growing a plant for their own beneficial use?

They would be armed with a list of ailments that it is claimed that cannabis helps - people to be targetted.

They would explain that there was no issue with them having harmed or put at risk other people.

There is no other (illegal to possess) drugs involved, and no supply to others.

They would be armed with the latest estimated costs of arrest and or courts, a breakdown of the total annual cost.

They would explain that since cannabis is against the law and police are becoming increasingly lenient or turning a blind eye to small growers as they have far more serious issues to deal with and are themselves underfunded, it is essential that people pay more money to finance more arrests and prosecutions above the billions in taxes.

They would explain that home grown cannabis used in those ways is a serious treat to the profits of the big phamaceutical companies that provide the present day prescription drugs that many growers are saying they have replaced with herbal cannabis.

Swaziland: Dagga can take us to First World

This article makes sense - consider the many uses of cannabis - medicinal and industrial as well as as a relatively safe relaxant compared with alcohol - consider the pollution that is being unnecessarily caused through the production of synthetic alternatives and the damage done by the side effects of so many prescribed medicines - consider the number of victimless cannabis users and small scale growers unnecessarily and unjustifiably punished and the costs of prohibition - and one is forced to ask why the prohibition.

Consider the massive profits made by and the strangle-hold held over people by the massive petrochemical and pharmaceutical companies that produce those alternatives - and we can see why.

It is time that those Governments of the world that are genuinely concerned with people above profits make the brave move of ending this cannabis prohibition.

http://www.times.co.sz/letters/88910-dagga-can-take-us-to-first-world.html

Swaziland: Dagga can take us to First World

Thula T Dlamini
Times of Swaziland

Sunday 30 Jun 2013



Sir,

Please publish my humble opinion on how Swaziland can achieve first world status.

THE LAW
COMETH FROM GOD

‘Choosing the Holy Bible over money’ is my basic understanding of King Somhlolo’s vision - choosing God through Jesus Christ.
This is also the Gospel of Jesus Christ. According to the Gospel of Matthew 6:24 & 33, “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mam’-mon.”


“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Swazis should, therefore, admit that if King Somhlolo’s vision is true, then they were given the Holy Bible as the Supreme Law and guide for living.
This covers all aspects of life; religion, politics, morality, ethics, governance, health, science, economics, social behaviour, etc.
If a Constitution is the Supreme Law of a country, then emaSwati were given that Law by God. It is the Holy Bible.


If we say the Holy Bible is lacking is some aspect necessary for living this life, then we would be in conflict with the same Bible that categorically states that we should not add or delete from it. We may not amend it as is done with men’s imperfect constitutions.
God is perfect therefore His Law is perfect. Man is imperfect, therefore his law is imperfect.
Trust in god - mvelinchanti.

THE PROMISED LAND

When God freed the children of Israel from bondage he promised them land. Everything comes from the land; food, clothing, wealth. Every thing necessary for our physical being comes from the land.
In Swaziland, 80 per cent of the land is owned by foreigners or are farms and only 20 per cent is Swazi Nation Land. Without land, emaSwati cannot be empowered to get to first World status.


To address this anomaly Swaziland should return the ‘stolen’ land to Swazis. This may be achieved through the systematic buying of the land or legislation if necessary.
The repossessed land should be distributed equitably through the ‘khonta’ system.

SWAZI GOLD IS GREEN

Marijuana, hemp, ganja, dagga, indofindofi, hash, insangu, umtfunti wetinkhunkhu, grass, weed or whatever name that cannabis goes by, is God’s creation.
To pass laws that seek to annihilate God’s creation is tantamount to condemning God. I believe that we may, however, regulate how it is used.
There are numerous varieties of apples, grass, beans, etc. This is the case with cannabis. The Kingdom of eSwatini is blessed with a very potent variety suitable for medicinal, industrial and recreational purposes.


It is in high demand…very, very high demand.
Currently, chemicals used to destroy cannabis pollute springs, streams, rivers and the environment.
Some people smoke ARVs, glue, petrol, benzene and get high; some go crazy.


Should these drugs be illegal? Some people shoot, hang from ropes or drink legal poisons to kill themselves.
The argument that marijuana drives some people crazy and therefore should be illegal does not hold water. The number of crazy people attributed to marijuana is just not true.


Of course, there is a movement trying to perpetuate the lies about cannabis. Swazis,wake up! This is your gold.
There are numerous beneficial uses of the cannabis plant. These include paper, textiles, oil, rope, canvas, building materials, food, medicine, paint, detergent, varnish, ink, and fuel.
Marijuana can provide superb relief for those who suffer from cancer, AIDS, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, chronic pain, arthritis, rheumatism, asthma, insomnia, and depression.


Cannabis is the standard fibre of the world. It has great tensile strength and durability.
It is used to produce more than 5 000 textile products, ranging from rope to fine laces, and the woody ‘hurds’ remaining after the fibre has been removed contain more than 77 per cent cellulose, which can be used to produce more than 25 000 products, ranging from dynamite to Cellophane.


Cannabis is an easy crop to grow and will yield from three to six tonnes per acre on any land. It has a short growing season, so that it can be planted after other crops are in.
The long roots penetrate and break the soil to leave it in perfect condition for next year’s crop. The dense shock of leaves, eight to 12 feet above the ground, chokes out weeds. Two successive crops are enough to reclaim land that had been abandoned because of foreign invasive plants.


There are many countries where the use of marijuana is legal. These include the following: Cambodia, Canada, Equador, Italy, Mexico, Jamaica (though not fully), Portugal, Romania, Spain and 14 of the 50 states of America, among others.
For the record I wish to state categorically that I am not advocating for the recreational use of cannabis. Instead, I am calling for the exploitation of its beneficial use in industry.


Ironically by declaring the whole plant illegal actually promotes it as a drug for recreational purposes and to a limited extent for medicinal purposes. While the cannabis plant is illegal you cannot set up factories to exploit it for industrial purposes but you can easily smoke a joint. In the minds of most people, that is all it is good for.


It is my strong belief that if cannabis were to be legalised, the number of recreational users in Swaziland would actually drop.
These include people who smoke out of despair because they are not able to meet their financial obligations, people who drown the sorrows of unemployment etc.


The leading cash crops in Swaziland are devastating the environment and are not sustainable. These include sugar cane, forestry and cotton. Huge tracts of land have been wiped clean of their natural flora and fauna because of sugar cane and in spite of this only a handful of Swazis have benefitted meaningfully.


Cotton requires large quantities of pesticides and herbicides – 50 per cent of the world’s pesticides/herbicides are used on cotton.
However, hemp requires no pesticides, no herbicides, and only moderate amounts of fertiliser.
There are numerous advantages of cannabis over trees, cotton and sugar cane as a cash crop and for industrial purposes; just too many to be stated here.


There is a huge legal market available for Swazi gold. Cannabis can be cultivated by everybody; including the elderly and people living with disabilities.
1 Plant = ±E300
Do the maths. Every Swazi could be financially independent within two years.
= 0% Unemployment
= 0% Poverty
= First World

There is a strong movement, worldwide, for the legalisation of cannabis. Join the Movement for the Legalisation of Marijuana (MoLeMa). Let us take a leading role to be ahead of the pack.
Also, for the record, I neither smoke nor drink.
You have the power – use it.

Thula T Dlamini
MBEKELWENI

http://www.times.co.sz/letters/88910-dagga-can-take-us-to-first-world.html

Prohibition Policies Reveal Government Corruption and Ignorance

According to The Report of the FCDA, Europe, on Cannabis, it could be grown in huge quantities on waste land; the tops and heads available for medicinal and recreational use, the seed used as food and animal food, the seed oils used too, the hurd and textiles used for clothing, paper, canvas, even building bricks and chitboard, and plastics too - what is left used to make biofuels, safely, easily, locally and environmentally friendly. Anything left, thrown back into the land. The revenue from sales of bud would mean virtually free fuel!

The people would gain more independence from giant petrochemical and pharmaceutical companies, from drug dealers, suffer less pollution and save money.

Any Government that refuses to acknowldge that are liars.

Any Government that still claims that the harm caused by cannabis outweighs the benefits, are either fools or have a vested interest in prohibition, just like the alcohol-gangster-supporting prohibitionists in the USA that supporteed alcohol prohibition last century.

Stop the Death Sentence for Cannabis - Petition

It's almost unbelievable that some countries that are members of the UN still execute people for cannabis offences, often for amounts less than held by Dutch Coffeeshops, Spanish Cannabis Social Clubs or Californian Clinics.

Although the most well know of these countries that give out the death sentence for cannabis-only "offences" such as trafficking are Malaysia and China, altogether there are over a dozen more.   Malaysia kills dozens - nobody even has any idea how many are killed in China because they don't release the figures.

We're talking cannabis here - the plant that has so many uses and that was used without problem for centuries - certainly since the times of the ancient Chinese and Egyptians.

Today we are hearing more and more on the internet about the medicinal uses of cannabis (seemingly still ignored by press, Governments and Pharmaceutical drug companies.

Although cannabis is well-known to ease the symptoms of ailments and pains caused by Multiple Sclerosis, Injury, epilepsy, glaucoma and even everyday stress recent revelations of how using cannabis has been effective in treating tumours and cancers including skin cancers, autism and many other problems - and it seems that government may have known about this for over 30 years.

The possible use of cannabis as a cheap and safe fuel, as a source of fibre for making everything from rope to bricks, from canvasses to paints, from oils to foodstuff - makes us ask why the ban?

That the possession, cultivation and supply such a plant is prohibited - that such a source of fuel, medicine, food and fibre is denied - cannot surely be to stop people getting "high"?

And to lock people away for years for producing or distributing the crop cannot be justified - to execute them is a crime against everything decent in the world.

That is why I wanted to see a boycott or holidays and buying goods and services from these countries, letters to their embassies, and now a world-wide petition - to STOP THESE EXECUTIONS.

I am not saying that the death penalty for anything else is justifiable - just focusing on this issue

I encourage all to sign this petition and spread this message widely.  We can but try.

What if Cannabis Was "Legalised"?

Before even considering this, I feel it is essential to point out that it is not cannabis itself that is illegal – it is the possession, cultivation (production) and supply without a license, that is banned. The law is against the people that wish to use the plant to their benefit.

The lame Government excuse I've heard throughout 20 years of campaigning, for not changing the law, is that they believe use would go up – they then go on to tell us blatant lies that cannabis is a dangerous drug and causes this or that problem with people, whilst denying the medicinal and other advantages.

The Government speculates use and therefore harm will go up. I have heard many cannabis campaigners say that it won't, but there I disagree – use will go up – I HOPE SO – simply because the very vast majority of users benefit from the plant and many more will benefit if they can grow or buy cannabis legally. If the vast majority of new users benefit, in comparison the number of those that suffer damage associated with cannabis use will be small and they can seek help sooner without fear of being busted. Because quality will improve and the criminal element removed, all users will benefit from clean cannabis and we will see an end to that disgusting “grit weed” and “soap bar”, that itself causes damage.

My argument is that the overall benefit to society would far outweigh the risk of more harm.

So I'd like to dream for a while, what the world would be like if the law is changed to allow personal possession and cultivation – maybe licensed production and supply to adults.

There's an estimated 5 million cannabis smokers in the UK with at least that many again that have tried it. That means technically some 10 million people in Britain alone, almost 25% of the adult population, are criminalised – many “break the law” daily, out of necessity or choice – and most of them live in dread and stress for fear of that knock on the door, court case and criminal record. How many have respect for the law-makers when they daily live under fear of the law even though they are not actually doing any harm? Millions!

Perhaps strangely and surely hypocritically, our own Prime Minister, David Cameroon and many politicians, along with high-powered businessmen, sportsmen and women and other professionals, and a massive proportion of those involved with the entertainment industry, are included amongst those once-upon-a-time users. And considering most cannabis users share their smokes, technically they were all guilty of supply too.. Now and then they raise their voice against this law but I cannot say I have seen much help for the cannabis campaign, from them, ever.

So, of course, those so- called “medicinal” and “recreational” users (a vague distinction in many cases) would immediately benefit if the law is changed, as they will then be free to grow and possess cannabis without fear of arrest. And if adult supply centres such as cannabis shops or cannabis clubs / cafés are allowed, those that cannot grow their own will have a safe environment, away from crime and hard drugs, with consumer protection, quality control and cleanliness guaranteed. No more back street drug dealers.

The immediate knock on effect will be easing of the burden on the police and courts, the revenue taxation of profits presently being avoided by criminal suppliers and a saving of billions of pounds a year of taxpayers money presently used to fight and unjustifiable and unenforceable law.

Cannabis as a legal alternative to people that over-indulge in alcohol; cannabis available medicinally to replace so many pharmaceutical drugs with risks of side-effects (and drugs to counteract those side-effects) – the feel-good factor!

Take the case of students and young people.  When we reach the age of 18 we are allowed to buy and consume alcohol on licensed premises - despite the fact that it causes so much grief, violence, illness, absenteeism, accidents and premature death - but of course huge profits are made and revenue gained.  At that age most of us want somewhere to go to meet people, and there is little alternative to drinking.  That leads to drinking competitions and binges, and my experience is that there is plenty of that, at least when I was that age.  I certainly over-consumed more than once, and fortunately, I survived.  The problem with alcohol is that it warps one's judgement, and not only did I ignore warnings that i was getting too drunk, if they were ever given, but once when having been asked to look after the car keys so my mate did not drive whilst drunk, I almost got into a fight when he demanded them back - and he too was very drunk.  One only has to visit an inner city at night to see the fights that do happen, fuelled by booze.  But show me a Dutch Coffeeshop where people end up fighting!  Had there been Coffeeshops when I was 18, I think I would have been visiting them and meeting the sort of people I really wanted to meet, not fellow drunks.

Incidentally I have met a few people that have successfully used cannabis to overcome their addiction to booze.  For most people booze and weed do not mix well.

But the breweries, distilleries and off-licenses are not the only people that fear that more people using cannabis would detrimentally effect their profits.  We also face opposition from drug companies and suppliers - both legal and illegal.

Those drug suppliers that offer oft-inferior quality and contaminated cannabis along with hard drugs, whether on the streets, from houses or in clubs, do not relish the thought that their cannabis customers may have somewhere to buy legally - what will they do if they can't get the trade?  hence the vast majority refuse to support efforts to change the law.

Then there's those drug companies that produce pills and potions to "heal" us, or at least ease the symptoms - although of course their drugs often cause bad side-effects so we need more drugs to counteract those effects.  I have met people taking literally dozens of pills daily, at quite a cost to the NHS - and at least some of them, when resorting to a more efficacious substance called cannabis, are able to stop taking many of the pills at all.  Multiple Sclerosis sufferers amongst them.

How strange that GW Pharmaceuticals are able to produce "Sativex", a solution of cannabis in alcohol with a hint of peppermint, to treat MS and pain.  GW say that sativex is Sativex is a whole plant medicinal cannabis extract containing TetranabinexTM (tetrahydrocannabinol or THC) and NabidiolexTM (cannabidiol or CBD) as its principal components. The medicine is administered by means of a spray into the mouth.   Yet the UK Government deny the medicinal value of cannabis presumably trying to convey that if dissolved in alcohol (THC is not soluble in water) it suddenly gains value!

So natural cannabis is apparently value-less as a medicine, but available as a medicine if dissolved in alcohol and made into a spray. What nonsense!

That would be bad enough - sufferers of MS being prosecuted for growing the same plant at home that GW grows in warehouses - if limited to MS.

But the list of health problems that are eased by cannabis goes far beyond that.  Here are some examples of where natural cannabis can help: treating cancers and tumours, relieving side effects such as nausea caused by cancer chemotherapy, pain, glaucoma, migraine, epilepsy, rheumatic pains, depression and mood disorders, bipolar, asthma, insomnia, loss of appetite, tinnitus - it can help with anti-microbial effects, dystonias, Adult Attention Deficit Disorder, Chron's Disease, diabetic gastroparesis, psuedotumour cerebri, phantom limb pain, post traumatic stress disorder - and of course stress itself.

Let me also emphasis that for those that choose not to smoke (cannabis is far safer and more effective when NOT mixed with tobacco), cannabis can be consumed using vaporisers, or added to food or drinks (just dissolve in hot oil or butter - or even alcohol as does GW - to extract the essentials, and test dose gradually).  So, although there is no actual evidence that smoking pure cannabis cooly causes lung problems, those that are concerned have alternatives

Cannabis users and non-users alike will benefit both through their physical and financial well-being.. It all seems so obvious to me.

But it doesn't stop there.

It doesn't stop there because cannabis is much more than a drug, if indeed it is strictly a drug at all (not being toxic, addictive, hallucinogenic, stimulant or narcotic).

Cannabis is a PLANT – a quite remarkable plant, and every part of it has a potential use – thousands of products can be made (and disposed of) in environmentally-friendly ways replacing many chemical products we depend on in our lives – from foodstuff to packaging, fuel to plastics, from paper to clothes, and much more. See http://www.ccguide.org/manyuses.php

Cannabis aka Hemp is one of the most versatile plants on the planet. It has been used since prehistoric times. It has been used throughout history until the first quarter of the twentieth century. It’s production was then mostly prohibited. This was at the same time that large American pharmaceutical and petrochemical companies were ready to replace hemp with synthetics ranging from diesel to nylon, plastic to drugs. This has produced huge profits for these companies at the cost of the environment and of personal freedom.

Hemp has been grown for its fibre, for its seeds and for the tops, heads, flowers and leaves.

The fibrous parts of the hemp plant are the stringy threads which come from the stalk and the woody part of the stalk itself, which is called the hurd.

The fibres can be used to produce paper, sails, rope, clothes, shoes, nets, building materials like bricks and chipboard, packing material, animal and human bedding, furniture and even lace. It can also be used to produce blocks or charcoal for burning.

The seeds can be used as a human and animal food (it is more nutritious than Soya) and for oil. The oil can be used as a salad dressing, as fuel for lamps and engines (the original Model T Ford was designed to run on hemp fuel). It can also be used to make lubricants, paint, sealant, varnish, lotions, ointments, lacquer and soap.

The tops and heads, along with some leafy material, can be used as a sacrament, a medicine and as a recreational substance.

Many experts blame the rise in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere primarily on the use of fossil fuels. Biofuels, over time, would actually help restore the level of CO^2 to a safer level. Acid rain is caused by sulphur being released into the atmosphere by industry. Fossil fuels contain sulphur and are a major source of this problem. Biofuels do not release sulphur into the atmosphere. Chemicals are causing the ozone layer to disappear. Hemp cannot solve this but it can withstand the increased radiation better than pine trees, soya beans and other plants.

_Excerpted from 'Energy Farming in America', by Lynn Osborne_.

“Biomass conversion to fuel has been proven economically feasible, first in laboratory tests and by continuous operation of pilot plants in field tests since 1973. When the energy crop is growing it takes [carbon dioxide] from the air, so when it is burned the CO2 is released, creating a balanced system.

“Biomass is the term used to describe all biologically produced matter. “

“Hemp is the number one biomass producer on planet earth: 10 tons per acre in approximately four months. It is a woody plant containing 77% cellulose. Wood produces 60% cellulose. “

_From 'The Report of The FCDA Europe' by Kenn and Joanna d'Oudney, Fourth Edition, ISBN 0 9524421 1 6._
See http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/1902848071/webbooks05

"The Cannabis Biomass Energy Equation (CBEE) demonstrates for the first time on record that fuel-energy sourced from the renewable, pollution-free resource of flora in the form of Cannabis Sativa, achieves uniquely economical replacement of fuels, and has always been so. There has not been this century, a single ecologically-pertinent fact, theory or postulation embodying practicable potentials as beneficial to the planet and the well-being of its people as those of the CBEE, given practical application in the CBRPF [Cannabis Biomass Resource and Pyrolysis Functions]; this formulation resolves Mankind's most crucial predicament in macro-Economics and Ecology to have arisen since the incipience of The Industrial revolution."

see also Hemp and the Marijuana Conspiracy: Emperor Wears No Clothes

Hemp and other biofuels can safely, cleanly and completely replace both - no more oil spills, oil fires, radiation leaks or nuclear meltdowns. The hidden costs of these industries - subsidies, military costs of protecting oil fields, clean-up costs and health costs borne by society - are not paid for at the pump, they are added onto tax, insurance and health care bills, and oil wars, such as the Gulf War in 1991. We, the people, still pay all the costs, they are merely hidden from us. When these hidden costs are taken into account, biofuels are much more economical.

As a foodstuff, hemp seed is one of the most complete sources of vegetable nutrition known to man. It is a source of high quality protein containing all of the essential amino acids in nutritionally significant amounts. Hemp seed oil is a rich source of Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) - important for optimum health in the body. In the last hundred years we have learnt that Minerals & Vitamins are essential for our health - it is now considered that EFA's constitute the final part of the health triumvirate. Luckily hemp has significant amounts of all three. Not only that, but the nutrition in hemp comes in the most optimum ratio and also most easily digested

See http://www.thehempshop.co.uk/cat-1.htm

Being so easy to produce almost anywhere in the world, hemp seed offers a powerful part-solution to world hunger: people could grow their own plants even in poor soil, produce their own medicines, fibres, oils, fuels and seed for food – THAT would save countless lives – if indeed that is what the world powers seek. I wonder if it is?

See http://www.ratical.org/renewables/hempseed2.html

So the potential result of the removal of cannabis possession, cultivation ans supply – the “freeing-up” of cultivation of hemp for industrial uses, will be a happier, cleaners society.

So the only question we need to ask is: why do successive Governments just say NO?

I sincerely wish I knew the real answer to that question.  I can only surmise that they have secret reasons, probably financial and concerns over loss of power through loss of votes.

Interestingly, a couple of years back to Legalise Cannabis Alliance (now called "Cannabis Law Reform", a political party but with different structure and policies) issues a postcard to be sent to Labour telling them that if they raised cannabis back to a class B drug, we would not vote for them - they went ahead, then they lost the election.  So 5 million tokers had their say - unfortunately the result was the present coalition that is no better.

Beyond speculation, looking at the reasons that the Government give for not changing the law on cannabis, they cite international treaty and their fear that it would mean increased availability, increased use and increased harm - although they have no evidence to back that up.

A document called "Cannabis: Challenging the Criminal Justice System" produced by Don Barnard and Alun Buffry and sent to the Labour Government, along with hundreds of MP's, initiated the following response from Caroline Flynn MP, then in the Home Office:

"The public discussion document ... represents a carefully considered examination of what I believe you would accept is a complex, multi-faceted issue.

"I accept that you have fairly reflected the main requirements of the UN Conventions, which govern these matters internationally and which largely underpin the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. These provisions provide signatories to the Conventions with a fair degree of flexibility. The United Kingdom Government exercises that flexibility responsibly at every level, having regard both to the terms of the Conventions and to the impact of our legislative actions at home as well as on the international community.

"Central to our thinking is the importance of protecting the health and welfare of the British public. We have taken the view that prohibition is the most appropriate means of doing this. The Government has no intention of either decriminalising or legalising cannabis (or any other currently controlled drug) for recreational purposes.

"Our view is that cannabis is a controlled drug for good reasons. In recommending the reclassification of cannabis, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, which, as you know, advises the Home Secretary on such matters, asked for it to be clearly understood that cannabis is unquestionably harmful. It has a number of acute and chronic health effects and can induce dependence. It clearly makes sense therefore for it to remain a controlled drug whose unauthorised production (including cultivation), supply and possession are and will remain illegal.

"To decriminalise or legalise the possession of cannabis for personal consumption would send the wrong message to the majority of young people who do not take drugs on a regular basis, if at all, with the potential risk of increased drug use and abuse. Our target is to reduce the use of all illegal drugs - including cannabis - substantially and the consequent drain upon the health services that would result from increased consumption due to more ready access to increased supply. While our drugs laws cannot be expected to eliminate drug misuse, there is no doubt that they do help to limit use and deter experimentation.

"The Government is aware of the arguments for legalising cannabis in a regulated way and has concluded that the disadvantages would outweigh the benefits. A substantial increase in consumption of cannabis (largely by smoking) could have significant implications for public health. Also, unilateral action on the Government's part would undoubtedly encourage unwanted drug tourism to this country in the event that there were no similar move to legalise internationally. At a time when we are doing much to try to reduce the use of tobacco and alcohol due to ever greater concerns about their safety, it would be perverse to take the huge gamble with public health that would be involved in legalising cannabis."

see http://www.ccguide.org/lca/challengeintro.php

Considering the misery, poverty, illness, crime and pollution caused by cannabis prohibition, not only do they need to be asked – they need to be indicted for Crimes Against Humanity

BRING IT ON!

Alun Buffry
http://www.ccguide.org/index.php
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cannabis-Campaigners-Guide/129690343744825?v=wall
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alun-Buffry/155747954437295?v=wall
http://www.ccguide.org/lca/challengeintro.php
http://www.ccguide.org/manyuses.php

as published in latest addition of ISMOKE Magazine Issue 6 http://www.ismokemag.co.uk/issue-6/

Is This Why They Bust Cannabis Growers

Every day we read in our papers that another cannabis growing operation has been closed down - not just the large professional and profiteering growers but also those run by people in dire medical need of the relief from much of their pain and suffering.

Cannabis the plant is now well known and widely accepted as having medicinal and pain-easing properties, used effectively and safely by many tens of thousands of sufferers of a wide-range of ailments from Multiple Sclerosis to Epilepsy, pain to loss of appetite or sleeplessness, depression and even cancers.

In fact it has been used for hundreds of years and was listed by Culpeper in his"Complete Herbal and English Physician" in 1826 where he wrote 

"It is so common a plant, and so well known by almost every inhabitant of this kingdom, that a description of it would be altogether superfluous."

That was until 1971, when the UK, as lacky to the UN Single Drugs Convention of 1961, banned the sale of the medicine (then available as a tincture", claiming that cannabis had no medicinal value and was being misuses as a "recreational drug".

Since then the Government has fought tooth and nail to stop people from gaining medical benefits and pain relief from the plant they can easily and cheaply grow at home - despite literally thousands of testimonials and acceptance in countries such as the USA,  Canada, The Netherlands, Italy, Germany,and Israel.

Then, a few years ago, along comes a Pharmaceutical giant to produce extracts and test them - now they produce "Sativex", an alcohol and peppermint spray containing exactly the same beneficial chemicals (THC and CBD) found in the plant itself - and of course charging extortionate fees and making huge profits for their shareholders - at public expense.

It seems to me that the UK taxpayer loses out all round for they must pay both the NHS bill for the prescription medicine and the cost of seeking out and prosecuting the growers.

So one is forced to ask - is the potential profits for the same people that sell us highly priced and dangerous fuels to heat our homes and run our cars, the toxic chemicals dumped as side-products of the environmentally-damaging plastics and other synthetics the reason for the prohibition of the possession or cultivation of the plant  - described by one of the world's foremost experts on cannabis, Professor Lester Grinspoon of Harvard University, as "remarkably safe".

It may not be coincidental that the cannabis plant, also know as hemp, can also enable production of safe and cheap alternative fuels, plastics and even foodstuff.

see How cannabis was criminalised.

ERADICATING A PLANT: A UNITED NATIONS PROJECT

Maybe the People of Britain and of other countries do not fully realise the price they are paying in tax and other sorts for the on-going but failing attempts at enforcing drug prohibition, most of which is aimed at cannabis.  It runs into BILLIONS of pounds annually, even in these times of so-called financial crisis.

Illegal drugs cost the country £16bn a year, says charity Transform :

(7 April 2009)

Transform said measures to tackle prohibition were a waste of money and called for all drugs to be legalised, claiming it would save more than £10 billion a year.

Then of course there is the cost of environmental damage caused by the making and use of damaging synthetic alternatives to the many products that could safely and more cheaply be made from hemp.

Plus the additional cost to the health service due to the presence of adulterants or contaminants in cannabis bought on the street.

So one should ask then:  why this huge expense, why target cannabis, who profits out of prohibition.?

Maybe those that profit from prohibition are easier to identify than the reason for prohibition itself - or maybe the profit reveals the motivation.  ( see side 1 and side 2)

The profiteers of prohibition include not only illegal dealsers and gangs, but also those massive multi-national petrochemical and pharmaceutical companies that hold us to ransom at inflated prices for our fuel, our medicine and our well-being; and of course the many employees of the Criminal Justice Industry

For some years now the United Nations has by international agreement set out to eradicate not only to put a halt to the so-called “drug” use of cannabis, but also to actually eradicate the hemp plant from the planet – apart of course from their own uses.

This, of course, is nothing entirely new. Ever since the “industrial revolution” there has been an elite of profiteering megalomaniacs who want to run the world, and to do that they had to create a world where the people became totally dependent on the products of industry, not agriculture.

The US Civil war was a war between the industrial and the agricultural. Huge numbers were working as slaves and when the slaves were freed they began to seek work for a pittance in the factories being set up in the victorious North. The war on hemp is down to the same greed and power struggle that was behind so many wars.

Now consider what measures you would want to take if that was part of your aim:

You would want to prevent the production of seeds / clones.

You would want to attack the farmers, limit cultivation.

You would want to prevent sale

You would want to limit production

You would need to mis-educate the public in order to get away with such a scheme.

The so-called “mind-altering” properties of cannabis could certainly be one way to scare the people into believing that the plant was dangerous and that it had to be banned, despite it’s many beneficial uses.

So is any surprise that we have witnessed such bias and deceit about the plant that even our own Government is confused as to just how dangerous it is in comparison to other substances, whilst authorising extreme force against those who choose to cultivate it.

In the last few years, we have watched the following developments around the world:

In the UK, medical cannabis supply operations like THC4MS and medical users prosecuted.

Increased number of raids on Cannabis “Factories” (strange that they call them factories yet they contain plants, whereas many chemical factories are often called chemical plants!”

The Police are arresting cannabis growers whilst doing nothing to stop the real gangster-profiteers contaminating cannabis with grit, glass and who-knows-what – all the Government has done is warn doctors and clinics, not the users themselves.

Closure of Dutch Coffeeshops - talk of restricting sale to Dutch Nationals.

Strict contracts and laws on eviction of tenants or mortgage holders who are caught growing cannabis, even with confiscation of property.

Dutch seed producers attacked

Swiss seed companies attacked

Over 300 Hemp shops in Switzerland closed down.

Swiss hemp activist and farmer André Fürst and others arrested and imprisoned. When masked men attacked the hemp farming community, police closed down the community!

In Southern Australia, they are banning books and magazines with articles about growing cannabis, and making it a requirement that owners of hydroponics equipment explain their uses. They will be watching and closing down hydroponics shops.

In Malaysia, magazines like Weed World, High Times and Cannabis Culture are banned.

In Nepal, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and elsewhere, attacks continue on cannabis farmers, often destroying their livelihoods.

In China, Malaysia, Indonesia and several Arab states, they still execute people for cannabis possession. In many countries sentences in excess of ten years in prison are given out frequently, where there is no crime other than the cannabis crime committed.

Meanwhile, what have we really done in the face of this resolution by the UK and these attacks on otherwise law-abiding people and farmers?

The vast majority of those who use cannabis have sat by and done nothing. In the UK alone there is said to be somewhere between 1.5 and 4 million regular cannabis users- and as many as 1 in 3 adults have tried it. It’s probable that the majority of the House of Commons have at one time tried it.

There have been petitions - there have been marches in London with over 30,000 people turning up in the 1990's and less than 100 to static protests organised by ProtestLondon in the recent years. Membership and support for every campaign group or campaign tactics has, in short, been pathetic.

For sure, most people who now ignore the law would continue to ignore the law, grow, even sell, and use at their own risk of being busted. I know that those of us that choose to fight prohibition do so because of what we feel about prohibition despite all those tokers who don’t.

In the future, I believe, the situation regarding cannabis will worsen both here and abroad. Why do I think that? – Well,  back to my opening statement – because “the United Nations has by international agreement set out to eradicate” cannabis - Governments are spending many BILLIONS of pounds trying to enforce prohibition, eradicate the plant and boost the profits of the Pharmaceutical companies.

We will see continued attacks on growers, and them growshops, magazines and medical users who go public. And if we’re not lucky enough to be growing our own and getting away with it, we will have to choose between contaminated cannabis like grit weed or nothing.

Since campaigning for 15 years, I have seen that many of our enemies are not just the profiteers of prohibition which includes industrialists and drug dealers, as well as those employed in busting us, but many are able growers and users who seem either disinterested or too worried about their stash or crop to actively campaign for a change in law.

We need to wake people up, especially the tokers – that quite simply it’s not good enough to sit back and rely on a few dozen people to campaign for legalisation. 

It is time that the questions are shouted from the rooftops - why do you arrest people that have done no harm - why do you spend so much public money propping up the failed policy of cannabis prohibition?

In short - why do you want to eradicate such a useful and beneficial plant (Cannabis / hemp) - a plant that can be used to make cheap, effective and safe medicines, fuels, plastics, foodstuff and so many other products (literally thousands of them)?

What is the Government's true motivation for spending our money in this way?  Is is to boost the profits of those huge companies that are said to pull their strings?  For sure, anyone examining the cause and effects of cannabis prohibition will soon realise that it is not in the public interest.

Cannabis Awareness

Until the early nineties, people knew cannabis as a 'drug' of relaxation or recreation. However, people are realising that cannabis is more, much more, than just a way to get 'stoned' at the weekend. Some people even recognise that cannabis is not at all like drugs- many more perceive it as a medicine.

Once one discovers just what cannabis is, what it can be used for, and the history of cannabis, one can only wonder why we were not told all this in school. One would wonder why it was, in fact, almost hidden away from us. If one was lucky enough to come across Jack Herer's masterpiece 'The Emperor Wears no Clothes' one may have been surprised to read his claim that cannabis can save the planet - in fact he offered an 10,000 dollars reward to anyone who can disprove him!

It is thanks to people like Herer, that many of us are now aware of the facts In fact cannabis is a relaxant, a food, a medicine, a resource for fibre for paper, furniture, sails, rope, canvas and even bricks.

Cannabis seed is a highly nutritious food, a source of oil for use as a fuel (Henry Ford built his first Model T to run on hempseed oil), a lubricant, and an ingredient in paints, varnish, lacquers, sealant and even plastics.

Cannabis is said to be the most efficacious plant on earth.

Cannabis is also used in religious rituals by Rastafarians, Copts, Buddhists, Hindus and Jains.

For many people the cannabis plant is a part of daily life.

Cannabisis easily obtained (although not always very pure) in almost every village, town or city in Britain.

One may wonder what the down side of cannabis is. Why is it illegal, with tens of thousands prosecuted annually in the UK, if it is so useful? Is it harmful or dangerous? Does it lead to hard drugs? Is it addictive? Can one overdose? To justify the prohibition of cannabis surely there must be at least one 'yes' to these questions. But, there isn't.

Over the last hundred or so years, there have been many government-sponsored investigations and reports into cannabis and its effects on health when eaten or smoked. These include the Indian Hemp Commission, the US Shafer Report, the US Costa Rican studies, Jamaican Studies, Coptic studies, the LaGuardia Study, the UK Wootton Report and the Report of the DEA-appointed Judge Young. All failed to find any danger in the use of cannabis; they state that it is non-addictive; it does not lead to use of narcotics; it is a beneficial medicine; there is no detrimental effects on memory, motor coordination, judgment or reaction times; it does not impair either mental performance or physical ability; it does not a-motivate; it does not create a particular lifestyle In the words of The Lancet "The smoking of cannabis, even long term, is not damaging to health."

So why is cannabis illegal? Why was it made illegal and when? Most people, even if aware of the many beneficial uses of cannabis, would merely conclude that it was because the powers decided that they did not want the people 'stoned'. Well, that is hardly likely to be the truth, since cannabis had been widely used for centuries throughout the world, even in Europe, and it had caused no problems. Also, as alcohol and tobacco, both highly addictive and toxic drugs, are legal, it is clear that cannabis was not made illegal even under a mis-guided belief that prohibition would protect health.. Maybe we should look at what else was happening in the world about the time of the prohibition of cannabis

Cannabis was made illegal almost worldwide after the Geneva Opiates Conference of 1925 classified it as a narcotic (wrongly- cannabis never had any narcotic properties). Could there be some ulterior motive? Is this conspiracy theory or is it paranoia? Let the reader decide.

Strangely enough, there had been some important 'breakthroughs' during the decades before 1925, including the synthesis of man-made fabrics such as nylon and rayon, the increase in the use of diesel and petrol-driven engines, and tranquilizers and pain-killing drugs. The multi-national billionaire power- hungry directors of the huge companies which could profit, even at the expense of life itself, were not slow to realise that their expensive synthetics could never compete in a world market where the needs of man were so neatly met by the many uses of the humble cannabis Hemp plant. Hemp had been widely used for paper, cloth, medicine and fuel, for centuries, and cannabis could be grown easily almost anywhere. People would never simply accept the prohibition of such a useful resource ... unless, of course, it could somehow be shown to be dangerous. And that was precisely what the employees of those world-polluting companies proceeded to attempt to do. They created myths and fears, encouraging Egypt and Turkey to insist upon including cannabis as a narcotic (hence drug), alongside heroin and opiates. These countries falsely claimed that some of their people suffered from 'chronic hashism', but there has never been such a condition. Cannabis was prohibited in the UK in 1928 as a direct result of the Geneva Conference at which Britain had abstained.

In the USA, powerful political servants such as Anslinger used the lie that cannabis was dangerous to brainwash the population into accepting the loss of their most valuable resource as a necessity to protect the young from the 'evils' of marijuana intoxication. Marijuana was a name for the leaves and tops of the cannabis plant. Claims of 'reefer madness' were advertised throughout America. Parents were warned of a 'drug far more frightening than Frankenstein's Monster.' Black people and Mexicans, were singled out and arrested. Anslinger even spoke publicly against 'Ginger-haired niggers.' The hatred campaign quickly spread to include Jazz musicians; and clubs. Meanwhile Henry Ford, in an attempt to remain independent of the petroleum companies, illegally grew hemp for three years. Anslinger was sacked by John Kennedy a year before Kennedy was assassinated; by the way the words 'assassinate' and 'hashish' have the same origin.

The prohibition laws had little social effect, though, in Britain, where very few people were smoking it during the first half of this century. Prohibition began to have its disastrous effect on British society mainly after 1960, when it became much more easily obtainable and used; people here began to enjoy it too; they became 'criminals' in law, subject to arrest and prosecution for their crimes with no victims. Many popular figures such as Keith Richard and Mick Jagger, were among those arrested. However, the use of cannabis continued to grow, as did the plant itself.

The spreading of lies and fear was so successful that large sections of communities turned against anyone known to use cannabis, courts and prisons filled, cannabis prices rose, as did the crime rate and the number of hard drug addicts. Cannabis was no longer a roadside or garden plant, it was called an “illegal drug” controlled solely by 'criminal' organisations. The propaganda campaign was so successful that even the political and commercial successors have believed the lies. And the powerful multinational petro-chemical and pharmaceutical companies, as well ad drug dealers, criminal gangs and terrorists that make huge profits due to prohibition, remain firmly behind the ban

Of course it is not cannabis itself that is illegal – or even its use. It is the possession, production *cultivation) and supply that is unlawful – the law is aimed at people, not plants.

What has prohibition done? It has alienated and criminalised millions of people; caused thousands to be thrown into prison; mixed the supply of cannabis, with no control of quality, in with that of hard drugs, the tax-free profits financing large criminal and terrorist organisations; it has removed a highly beneficial medicine (both preventative and curative) from pharmacists' shelves - thus causing unnecessary suffering from illnesses such as MS, Glaucoma, AIDS, cancer, arthritis and rheumatics, spinal injury, depression, insomnia, loss of appetite, cramps, epilepsy; menstrual and labour pains and asthma; it has restricted religious practices; it has encouraged the production of environmentally polluting synthetic alternatives; it has helped perpetuate the Greenhouse Effect and helped destroy the Ozone Layer. All that with huge costs of policing these unworkable, unjust and ineffective laws. Prohibition, which has never worked when applied to an economically valuable resource ( as opposed to crimes of violence, theft etc), has never worked. In short, the prohibition of cannabis is nothing less than an inhumane, profit-motivated, social evil.

The reason why cannabis was made illegal has been largely forgotten. Cannabis is now grown again for its fibre, and advocated medicinally. Now it is the lies that we have to destroy, and the money motivation of illegal suppliers, which we have to battle, to free this benign herb again.

Some campaigning groups have been struggling for years to make people aware of the injustice or prohibition, the impracticalities and expense of enforcing the cannabis laws, and of the harmless and beneficial nature of cannabis itself. We even find we have to tackle the subtle programming with which we have ourselves been fed by prohibitionists. An example of this was a discussion on whether or not cannabis could cause hallucinations. I remember reading once, in a comic probably, that Nepalese temple Ball Hashish was hallucinogenic. But upon realising exactly what an hallucination is, I realised that nobody I knew had ever hallucinated on cannabis alone; furthermore, I learned that cannabis, chemically, cannot possibly produce hallucinations; it's effect is always one of relaxation (not always repose). How much more difficult to open the eyes of those who have never even tried cannabis themselves, who live in fear of the 'drug menace' and do not see the difference between illegal cannabis users and addicts of drugs?

Cannabis awareness is growing rapidly. Every person must be presented with the truth. The politicians won't tell them, but we will.

It is high time that the Government took notice of the official reports and empirical evidence available about cannabis, noted the safety record, listened to the voices of its people and its experts, and acted to rid us of this repressive law.

Few would now claim that cannabis use does more harm than the arrests and prosecutions for cannabis under the UK Misuse of Drugs Act.

It is time all people reacted, not just the cannabis smokers. This cannabis prohibition is destroying the planet, and that includes all of us and all of our children and grandchildren. Legalisation of cannabis (possession, cultivation and consumer-protected supply) would immediately go a long way to solving many social problems and ease drug and alcohol addiction; it would enable the legal supply of a natural plant remedy for many ailments; it would enable the production, on local levels, of natural fibres for clothes, rope, canvas; it would supply us with hurd usable as building materials and furniture; it would enable the production of virtually cost-free energy on a local level, it would enable the production of highly nutritious seed which could be used to literally feed the world; it would help reverse the Greenhouse Effect, cutting down on pollution.

Please, good people everywhere, WAKE UP. Force the politicians to put right one of the gravest errors of modern times - the prohibition of cannabis. Now is the time to ac - so write to your MP now at the House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA.

http://www.ccguide.org/