Thoughts from the void: The Legality of Cannabis

'Yes, 'n' how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free?' - Blowin in the wind by Bob Dylan

'New research from New Frontier Data finds that cannabis arrests account for 41.6% of all drug-related arrests, with 15.7 million Americans having been arrested for cannabis (either possession, sales, or manufacturing) from 1997-2016. Yet application of unequal justice finds that black or Hispanic suspects are arrested and convicted at rates more than 9x that of whites.'

- New Frontier Data

'Roughly two-thirds of Americans believe that the use of marijuana by adults should be legal and just under one in three respondents say that they live in close proximity to a state-licensed adult-use retailer, according to nationwide polling data compiled by CBS News.

Consistent with numerous other national polls, the survey identified majority support for legalizing “recreational marijuana use” among respondents of all political persuasions. Support was strongest among Democrats (73 percent) and weakest among Republicans (53 percent). Sixty-six percent of Independents endorsed adult-use legalization.'

- NORML

'Hemp industry members are cheering Idaho for becoming the last state in the U.S. to legalize industrial hemp, making the crop now legal to produce in every state in the union, more than two years after the 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp as a commodity crop.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed legislation Friday to legalize the production, transportation and sale of industrial hemp in the state, allowing hemp production to begin in 2022.'

When cannabis was criminalized in the US in 1937, the chain of devastating events that would unfold as a result of this act was unforeseen. The founding fathers of the modern US of A had promoted and encouraged the cultivation of hemp, the low THC variation of cannabis. Cannabis was a part of the American pharmacopeia, used to treat a variety of ailments for all age groups from the young to the old. In many parts of the world cannabis was being used for industrial, recreational, social, spiritual and medical purposes. But the seeds of cannabis discrimination were sown much earlier. The British, who discovered cannabis in India in the 16th-17th century, initially embraced it but soon took a preference for opium from neighboring China, and looked to not only control its production and trade, but also promoted its usage in its colonies, starting with cannabis regulation in Burma, (or today's Myanmar), spreading to India, and subsequently to British colonies in Trinidad, Egypt, Greece and itself. Britain sought to promote sales of western alcohol, opium, tobacco and western medicines in its colonies. Criminalization of cannabis use was done in the US and Canada through pressure from the alcohol lobby, re-emerging from prohibition in the 1930s, besides the tobacco lobby (many key politicians in the US, Britain and Canada had large tobacco plantations) and other emerging industries who viewed cannabis as a threat.

As a consequence of these cumulative actions driven by selfish economic motives, and the deep-rooted racism that existed against non-whites, indigenous communities and minorities everywhere, and the widespread propaganda unleashed, the US, through its economic clout, newly attained atomic military power, and threats of economic sanctions, managed to convince nations across the world, like its old friends Canada, Britain, Australia, France, Spain, Russia, others like new friends Germany, Italy, Israel and Japan, and finally the UN, that the plant must be criminalized. With this began a long drawn global war on cannabis worldwide, executed by drug enforcement and law enforcement agencies. To target and bring action against cannabis users, cultivators and sellers, was the easiest thing to do as these people were, most often, the poorest, the minorities and the indigenous communities who still lived traditional sustainable ways of life, and who formed the so called 'lower classes' of the modern world. The funding for the global war was provided by the powerful arms, opium, alcohol, tobacco, construction, timber, mining, pharmaceutical and petrochemical industries, who backed the politicians in creating policies to eliminate the cannabis plant and its communities, and clear the way for the global growth of their businesses. Law and drug enforcement agencies served as the armies in the war, needing to justify their existence and show results, in order to continue to get funding, and to provide protection to the elite classes of society, who projected themselves as law abiding citizens and the cannabis user as an insane, criminal or a low class person for her disinterest in the amassing of wealth through the plunder of the planet.

Some of the effects of the prohibition of cannabis that we see today are as follows: large percentages of prison populations consist of cannabis users, sellers and cultivators; large percentages of those imprisoned for cannabis are persons from racial minorities and economically challenged backgrounds; persons incarcerated for cannabis use are unable to return back to normal lives because of their criminal records; people spend years, often decades, in prison for cannabis related offenses; the illegal trade of cannabis worldwide fuels criminal and terrorist networks, who use this money to fund much more dangerous activities; the amount of law and drug enforcement resources used worldwide to tackle crime is disproportionately focused on cannabis proliferation; judicial courts are disproportionately focused on cannabis related crimes; individuals have taken to heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, pharmaceutical drugs, synthetic cannabinoids and novel psychotropic drugs to fuel their recreational needs; alcohol and tobacco kill millions every year; billions of cannabis plants with medicinal properties are destroyed every year; the dangerous synthetic drugs industry has grown massively worldwide; dangerous drugs now affect children and youth. who are sold cannabis by drug peddlers and then enticed to try out more potent and harmful costlier drugs that offer a much higher profit margin for the peddler; millions all over the world for whom cannabis could have been lifesaving medicine, including cancer patients and the elderly, die due to lack of access to the plant; a sustainable form of livelihood for millions is not possible legally; research into the plant's potential is not possible; cannabis based sustainable industrial products like fibers, textiles and building materials have been replaced by synthetic petrochemical based non-biodegradable materials; nutritious food, based on sustainable cannabis agriculture, has been replaced by unsustainable large scale paddy and sugarcane crops. These are just some of the effects of the criminalization of cannabis.

It has been long argued by supporters of cannabis prohibition that legalization will increase crime, driving fatalities and cannabis usage by youth. All these arguments have been refuted in places where cannabis has been legalized, as shown in studies. On the contrary, more and more studies implicate opioids, novel psychotropic substances, cocaine, methamphetamine, abuse of prescription drugs and alcohol as key drivers of aggressive crime and violence. Studies also show that impairment is the main cause of driving fatalities and impairment can be caused by a number of reasons including alcohol, prescription drugs and sedatives, health, age, poor driving skills, technological distractions and vehicle impairment not necessarily cannabis. The youth are much worse off with cannabis prohibition than they would be if it were legalized, as various studies show.

But powerful lobbies of pharmaceutical, petrochemical, alcohol and tobacco industries fund opposition to cannabis, and implement prohibition through the US federal government, the DEA (which keeps cannabis illegal as a schedule 1 banned substance), law enforcement agencies and the FDA within the US and, internationally, through the UN, and political leaders aligned to protect the interests of these industries. Countries that are the biggest opponents to legalization internationally include the US (ironically the federal US government remains strongly opposed saying cannabis has no medicinal value while nearly 47 US states have legalized in one form or the other), Germany (ironically Europe's biggest medical cannabis importer but also home to some of the world's biggest pharma companies), Russia, China and Japan. The petrochemical nations of the Middle East and the areas of their influence also continue to be among the strongest opponents of cannabis. The same applies to the countries that form the opium and heroin trade routes.

In terms of support for cannabis, various advocacy groups and individuals, like eminent musicians, scientists, actors, sports persons and politicians, continue to speak out against prohibition since the 1930s. They have built public awareness and, by and large, through grassroots movements with the people, steadily changed cannabis laws, state by state, in the US, as well as in countries like Canada, Luxembourg and Uruguay. Europe is seeing a huge change, in terms of medical use legalization, as well as pushing for recreational use legalization, as it sees the ineffectiveness on its own people of the pharmaceutical drugs that it helped to establish worldwide. Globally, countries like the Netherlands, Spain, Norway, France, Denmark, Switzerland, Israel, the Caribbean Nations, South Africa, Mexico, Thailand, Australia and New Zealand are showing indications of removing prohibition.

The UN met in December 2020 and voted successfully with a narrowly margin to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention Treaty. It however did not completely remove cannabis from international control, as it continues to exist in the least restrictive Schedule I, while THC remains more tightly controlled, in Schedule III I think. This, by itself, is a landmark moment in cannabis legalization, where the world recognizes that it is nowhere near as dangerous as it has been made out to be all these years. However, keeping cannabis in the Schedule 1, in the company of heroin and cocaine, means that it is still controlled and regulated, with absolutely no imprvement for the common man. The global cannabis laws, and the national cannabis laws of every nation, still need urgent complete reform as they continue to treat the plant as a dangerous drug, rather than the beneficial natural herb that it is.

The growing chorus around the world is that cannabis must be legalized and decriminalized. Changes are starting to happen. How long it will take to turn around decades of misinformation and false propaganda, and to dismantle the powerful, corrupt forces that still support prohibition needs to be seen. These forces have built their wealth and standing through the suppression of cannabis and its people, so they will continue to oppose it till their every end. Sadly, what they fail to realize is that global warming, climate change, global pollution and massive global extinction are now already upon us through the path that we have tread so far. It is all hands on deck from now on. Embracing, reviving, sustaining and supporting the plant is a very viable way out of this crisis for all. What happens next? The answers, my friends, are blowing in the wind.

The following set of articles that appeared in media and journals show that the legal cost of cannabis criminalization has been huge, both to the state and the individual. Words in italics are my thoughts and comments at the time of reading the respective article.

The Justice Department has published a proposed rule in the US Federal Register to reclassify marijuana from Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act.

Cannabis has been classified as a Schedule I controlled substance since the creation of the Controlled Substances Act some 54 years ago. By definition, Schedule I substances possess “a high potential for abuse,” “no currently accepted medical use in treatment,” and “lack accepted safety … under medical supervision.”

The proposed rule seeks to “transfer marijuana from Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act to Schedule III of the CSA, consistent with the view of the Department of Health and Human Services that marijuana has a currently accepted medical use as well as HHS’s views about marijuana’s abuse potential and level of physical or psychological dependence.”

He [NORML's Armentano] concluded, “While NORML ultimately favors descheduling rather than rescheduling, we understand that reclassification is associated both symbolic and tangible benefits to the cannabis community, both in the short-term and the long-term.”

According to a slip opinion issued by the Office of Legal Counsel, HHS’s recommendation to reclassify marijuana are not binding upon the US Drug Enforcement Administration. However, the agency “must continue to accord HHS’s scientific and medical determination significant deference” throughout the administrative process.

Historically, the agency has rejected every prior petition that sought to remove marijuana from Schedule I.

https://norml.org/blog/2024/05/21/justice-department-publishes-proposed-rule-to-reclassify-cannabis-begins-accepting-public-comments/

NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano said: “This recommendation validates the experiences of tens of millions of Americans, as well as tens of thousands of physicians, who have long recognized that cannabis possesses legitimate medical utility. But it still falls well short of the changes necessary to bring federal marijuana policy into the 21st century. Specifically, the proposed change fails to harmonize federal marijuana policy with the cannabis laws of most U.S. states, particularly the 24 states that have legalized its use and sale to adults.”

Armentano added: “Nevertheless, as a first step forward, this policy change dramatically shifts the political debate surrounding cannabis. Specifically, it delegitimizes many of the tropes historically exploited by opponents of marijuana policy reform. Claims that cannabis poses unique harms to health, or that it’s not useful for treating chronic pain and other ailments, have now been rejected by the very federal agencies that formerly perpetuated them. Going forward, these specious allegations should be absent from any serious conversations surrounding cannabis and how to best regulate its use.”

NORML has long argued that the cannabis plant should be removed from the Controlled Substances Act altogether, thereby providing state governments — rather than the federal government — the ability to regulate marijuana in the manner they see fit without violating federal law, and allowing the federal government to provide standards and guidelines for regulated cannabis markets.

https://norml.org/blog/2024/05/16/white-house-endorses-marijuana-rescheduling-plan-says-cannabis-placement-as-a-schedule-i-substance-just-doesnt-add-up/

The daily use of 5mg of oral THC is associated with increased survival times in palliative cancer patients, according to data published in the journal Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids.

German researchers evaluated the impact of THC dosing in a cohort of 9,419 advanced cancer patients enrolled in Specialized Palliative Outpatient Care (SAPC). SAPC offers team-based home care for patients with advanced and progressive diseases whose life expectancies are limited to days, weeks, or months.

Researchers reported that patients’ daily use of 4.7mg of THC was associated with significantly increased survival time, whereas lower doses were not.

The study’s authors concluded: “The data … show a significant impact of THC on survival in ambulatory palliative care patients [who] … use more than 4.7 mg/day. Median survival time was prolonged by 15 days – from survival time of 25 days without THC therapy to 40 days with a daily THC dose higher than 4.7 mg per day. This prolongation by more than two weeks can be considered substantial. In addition to mere survival, patients [treated] with THC become more mentally and physically active.… The increased activity and improved quality of life might enable the patients to renew social contact with relatives and friends and to settle essential affairs before dying.”

https://norml.org/news/2024/05/09/analysis-thc-dosing-associated-with-increased-survival-time-in-palliative-cancer-patients/

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has made a historic decision—agreeing with the top federal health agency and proposing to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the Justice Department confirmed on Tuesday.

The decision comes more than 50 years after cannabis was first listed as a strictly prohibited drug, on par with heroin and defined as a substance with no known medical value and a significant abuse potential.

Moving marijuana to Schedule III, as recommended by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), also carries major implications for state-legal cannabis businesses. If it’s ultimately implemented, it will mean that marijuana firms can officially take federal tax deductions that they’ve been barred from under an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E.

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/dea-agrees-to-reschedule-marijuana-under-federal-law-in-historic-move-following-biden-directed-health-agencys-recommendation/

An international team of investigators surveyed more than 1,000 German patients authorized to use medical cannabis. (Plant cannabis and cannabinoid treatments, such as dronabinol, were legalized by prescription use in Germany in 2017.) Survey respondents obtained lab-tested cannabis flower from regional pharmacies. Potency of the most frequently used chemovar was 22 percent.

The overwhelming majority of patients surveyed reported medical cannabis to be effective at treating their symptoms. Patients reported no significant differences between chemovars, most of which were dominant in THC and low in CBD content. The most commonly reported side effects were dry mouth, increased appetite, and somnolence.

“Patients self-reported very good efficacy and tolerability [to] medical cannabis,” the study’s authors concluded.

Pharmaceutical-grade cannabis flower in Europe, Israel, and elsewhere typically contain THC levels of 20 percent or greater.

The study’s findings push back against claims that cannabis strains higher in THC pose unique risks to health or that there is an absence of research supporting the efficacy of medical cannabis chemovars above 10 percent THC.

https://norml.org/news/2024/04/25/survey-patients-report-improvements-few-serious-side-effects-following-use-of-high-thc-flower/

https://norml.org/blog/2024/04/18/norml-op-ed-state-level-marijuana-legalization-has-been-a-stunning-success/

The FDA findings “reflect HHS’ evaluation of the scientific and medical evidence and its scheduling recommendation” to the Department of Justice, the health agency wrote in a statement on Friday, according to a report from CNN.

The FDA review determined that marijuana meets three criteria that support reclassification under Schedule III, noting that cannabis has a lower potential for abuse than other drugs in Schedule I and II, a medical use currently accepted in the United States and a low or moderate risk of physical dependence among people who use the drug. The National Institute on Drug Abuse agreed with the rescheduling recommendation.

The FDA review found that despite the “high prevalence of nonmedical use” of marijuana, the drug does not result in the significant negative outcomes of other controlled substances including cocaine, heroin and opioids.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ajherrington/2024/01/16/fda-review-finds-marijuana-eligible-for-less-strict-classification/

The U.S. government has released hundreds of pages of documents related to its ongoing review of marijuana’s status under federal law, officially confirming for the first time that health officials have recommended the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) place cannabis in Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

The 252 pages of documents from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) explain that cannabis “has a currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States” and has a “potential for abuse less than the drugs or other substances in Schedules I and II.”

Federal health officials said their review found that more than 30,000 healthcare professionals “across 43 U.S. jurisdictions are authorized to recommend the medical use of marijuana for more than six million registered patients for at least 15 medical conditions.”

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/feds-release-marijuana-documents-confirming-schedule-iii-recommendation-based-on-accepted-medical-use/

Despite some federal glimmers of hope for the cannabis industry, like the SAFER Banking Act and the possible reclassification of cannabis, the federal government seems comfortable, if not intentional, in its desire to limit or slow the growth of the cannabis industry. Perhaps it is the intent because those in federal law enforcement, the executive branch, and Congress simply cannot get comfortable with federally legalizing and regulating cannabis similarly to other drugs not subject to the CSA, like alcohol and tobacco.

But should they get more comfortable? After all, the "head in the sand approach" has only allowed the black market to thrive and is simply out of touch with the public support for legalization. Gallup News, "Grassroots Support for Legalizing Marijuana Hits Record 70%," Nov. 8, 2023. Almost half the states have legal adult-use cannabis laws (Ohio's recent legalization makes it 24). Perhaps it is time to allow the industry to grow as it naturally would, unfettered and unrestricted by conflicting federal laws.

https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/cannabis-remains-an-industry-interrupted-without-federal-change-2023-12-20/

President Joe Biden directed the administrative review into marijuana scheduling about a year ago, and HHS spent 11 months carrying out a scientific assessment that ultimately concluded that cannabis should be moved to Schedule III of the CSA. The ball is now fully in DEA’s court, as the health agency’s scientific findings are binding, but the law enforcement agency can still choose to disregard their recommendation.

The former DEA administrators and directors of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) said in the letter that DEA should do just that: ignore the scientific conclusions of HHS and refuse to proceed with a Schedule III reclassification.

They said that they are “gravely concerned” about the potential reform, arguing that “there has been no evidence that marijuana’s schedule should change” in the seven years since the federal government last considered a rescheduling petition.

“Schedule I drugs are those with no accepted medical use,” they wrote, adding that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “has not approved marijuana for medical use because no double-blind, published studies show safety and efficacy for raw marijuana.”

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/marijuana-rescheduling-would-supersize-the-industry-former-dea-heads-and-white-house-drug-czars-warn-biden-administration/

NORML declared in an email that "rescheduling is not enough," and in response to the letter, deputy director Paul Armentano said that "it will be very interesting to see how DEA responds to this recommendation, given the agency's historic opposition to any potential change in cannabis' categorization under federal law. Further, for decades, the agency has utilized its own five-factor criteria for assessing cannabis' placement in the CSA—criteria that as recently as 2016, the agency claimed that cannabis failed to meet. Since the agency has final say over any rescheduling decision, it is safe to say that this process still remains far from over."

Armentano argued that "the goal of any federal cannabis policy reform ought to be to address the existing, untenable chasm between federal marijuana policy and the cannabis laws of the majority of U.S. states," and rescheduling "fails to adequately address this conflict."

https://www.commondreams.org/news/biden-marijuana-rescheduling

'In 1965, Timothy Leary (who would go on to be an advocate for psychedelics) was arrested for possession of cannabis while crossing the border from Mexico into Texas. Leary argued that the Marihuana Tax Act required him to self-incriminate—registering for the act showed intent to possess marijuana, which would violate the fifth amendment. The US Supreme Court agreed with him in 1969 and struck down the Marihuana Tax Act.

However, with the loss of the Tax Act, President Richard Nixon passed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, setting up a framework for the federal regulation and criminalization of drugs. The Controlled Substances Act created five categories of drugs and classified cannabis under Schedule I—drugs considered dangerous with no medical use and a high potential for abuse, such as heroin and cocaine.

Nixon appointed former Pennsylvania Republican governor Raymond Shafer as the head of the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse—later called “The Shafer Commission”—to review all research and literature on cannabis to correctly classify it in the Controlled Substances Act.

Shafer’s 1972 report debunked damaging myths about marijuana, found that the plant did not threaten society, and recommended decriminalizing the plant. Nixon ignored the report, and the plant stayed on Schedule I, where it remains today. '

https://www.leafly.com/learn/legalization/marijuana-illegal-history

'To date, not a single state that has implemented legalization has reversed course. That’s because these policies are working largely as politicians and voters intended — and because they are preferable to marijuana prohibition.

Ultimately, common sense regulation allowing for the legal, licensed commercial production and sale of cannabis best addresses adult consumers’ demand while keeping marijuana products largely out of the hands of young people.

By contrast, the continued criminalization of cannabis only compounds the public safety risks posed to young people and others by the unregulated marketplace.'

https://norml.org/blog/2023/03/24/norml-op-ed-in-the-era-of-legal-marijuana-the-kids-are-alright/

There are only two accursed beings on earth who are excluded from following this eternal call and from being, growing, living, and dying as an inborn and deeply ingrained self-will commands. Only man and the domesticated animals he has tamed are condemned to obey, not the law of life and growth, but other laws that are made by men and from time to time broken and changed by men. And the strangest part of it is that those few who have disregarded these arbitrary laws to follow their own natural law have come to be revered as heroes and liberators - though most of them were persecuted in their lifetime. The same mankind which praises obedience to its arbitrary laws as the supreme virtue of the living reserves its eternal pantheon for those who have defied those laws and preferred to die rather than betray their 'self-will'.

- Self-will, 1919, If The War Goes On, Herman Hesse

'The percentage of Americans who believe that “the use of marijuana should be legal,” remains at a record high, according to nationwide polling data reported today by Gallup.

Sixty-eight percent of respondents endorse legalization — the same level of support reported by Gallup last year. That ties the highest percentage of support ever reported in a national Gallup poll. “As was the case in 2020, solid majorities of U.S. adults in all major subgroups by gender, age, income and education support legalizing marijuana,” Gallup pollsters determined.'

https://norml.org/news/2021/11/04/gallup-poll-americans-support-for-marijuana-legalization-holds-at-record-high

'While CRS found that the president cannot in fact deschedule cannabis unilaterally with an executive order, “he might order executive agencies to consider either altering the scheduling of marijuana or changing their enforcement approach.” That includes having federal officials start a process to completely remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) without requiring any additional action from Congress.

Further, the president could also use his pardon powers to either individually, or on a mass scale, grant clemency to people facing charges over federal marijuana offenses, CRS concluded. That blanket amnesty could apply even to people who have committed, but have not yet been charged with, a federal cannabis crime.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/biden-administration-can-legalize-marijuana-without-waiting-for-lawmakers-congressional-researchers-say/

'Hemp is merely a type of plant in the Cannabaceae family. The difference between hemp and cannabis is purely legal in the US—hemp is defined as having less than 0.3% THC. '

https://www.leafly.com/learn/cannabis-glossary/hemp

'“States in the highest EVALI-quintile tended to either ban all marijuana use or have [medical cannabis] laws prohibiting home cultivation,” the researchers wrote. Most states with adult-use laws, meanwhile, “fell into the lower two quintiles for EVALI prevalence,” the study says.

The findings support what legalization advocates have long argued: that access to safe, legal cannabis is far preferable from a public health standpoint than sales on the illegal market, where products are unregulated and rarely tested for safety.

“Simply put,” the study says, “if the public can obtain products legally from reputable sources, there is less demand for illicit products.”'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/lung-injuries-tied-to-contaminated-vapes-were-less-common-in-states-with-legal-marijuana-and-homegrow-study-finds/

'In 1965, Timothy Leary (who would go on to be an advocate for psychedelics) was arrested for possession of cannabis while crossing the border from Mexico into Texas. Leary argued that the Marihuana Tax Act required him to self-incriminate—registering for the act showed intent to possess marijuana, which would violate the fifth amendment. The US Supreme Court agreed with him in 1969 and struck down the Marihuana Tax Act.

However, with the loss of the Tax Act, President Richard Nixon passed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, setting up a framework for the federal regulation and criminalization of drugs. The Controlled Substances Act created five categories of drugs and classified cannabis under Schedule I—drugs considered dangerous with no medical use and a high potential for abuse, such as heroin and cocaine.

Nixon appointed former Pennsylvania Republican governor Raymond Shafer as the head of the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse—later called “The Shafer Commission”—to review all research and literature on cannabis to correctly classify it in the Controlled Substances Act.

Shafer’s 1972 report debunked damaging myths about marijuana, found that the plant did not threaten society, and recommended decriminalizing the plant. Nixon ignored the report, and the plant stayed on Schedule I, where it remains today. '

https://www.leafly.com/learn/legalization/marijuana-illegal-history

'Results
The most robust predictors of support for the CLCB were use of and policy support for medicinal cannabis use, voting for a left-wing political party, having a positive moral view of cannabis use, living in a small town and having read the CLCB. Predictors of opposing the CLCB were voting for right-wing parties, considering “frequent” cannabis use to be a high health risk, and lifetime use of other drugs. Age, ethnicity, education, employment status, religiosity and lifetime cannabis use were not significant predictors after controlling for other variables.'

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955395921003479

'I see,' I said. "It's really not so surprising . But there's one thing I still don't understand. Tell me: why is the whole world making these enormous efforts? Putting up with such hardships, with all these laws, these thousands of bureaus and bureaucrats - what is all this meant to preserve and safeguard?'

The gentleman looked at me in amazement.

'What a question!' he cried, shaking his head. 'You know we're at war: the world is at war. That's what we are preserving, what we make laws and endure hardships for. The war! Without these enormous exertions and achievements our armies wouldn't be able to fight for a week. They'd starve - we can't allow that!'

'Yes,' I said slowly, 'you've got something there! The war, in other words, is a treasure that must be preserved at any cost. Yes, but - I know it's an odd question - why do you value the war so highly? Is it worth so much? Is war really a treasure?'

The official shrugged his shoulders and gave me a pitying look. He saw that I just didn't understand.

'My dear Herr Sinclair,' he said, 'you've lost contact with the world. Go out into the street, talk to people; then make a slight mental effort and ask yourself: What have we got left? What is the substance of our lives? Only one answer is possible: The war is all we have left! Pleasure and personal profit, social ambition, greed, love, cultural activity - all that has gone out of existence. If there is still any law, order, or thought in the world, we have the war to thank for it. - Now do you understand?'

- If The War Goes On Another Two Years, End of 1917, If The War Goes On, Herman Hesse

'Question Is the legalization of recreational cannabis in the US associated with changes in cannabis use outcomes and cannabis use disorder across racial and ethnic groups?

Findings In this cross-sectional study analyzing repeated yearly surveys of US adults conducted from 2008 to 2017, living in a state after enactment of recreational cannabis laws was associated with increases in the odds of cannabis use within the past year and past month among Hispanic and non-Hispanic White individuals (as well as individuals identifying as Native American, Pacific Islander, Asian, or more than 1 race) compared with the period before the passage of recreational use laws; there were no increases among non-Hispanic Black individuals.

Meaning Cannabis legalization is generally associated with increased use of cannabis and not associated with frequent use or use disorder among cannabis users, including among members of demographic subgroups most affected by criminalization.'

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2784528

'“As more states move toward the sensible policy of legalizing and regulating cannabis, we are seeing a decline in the arrest of non-violent marijuana consumers nationwide,” NORML Executive Director Erik Altieri told Marijuana Moment. “The fight for legalization is a fight for justice. While these numbers represent a historic decline in arrests, even one person being put into handcuffs for the simple possession of marijuana is too many.”

Despite the decline in cannabis busts, the new data shows that American law enforcement still carried out more arrests for marijuana alone last year than for murder, rape, robbery, burglary, fraud and embezzlement combined.'

'Cannabis companies need advice on intellectual property, employment, taxes, license and regulatory compliance, lending and financial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and a host of other specialty practice areas. That creates rich veins for lawyers to mine for billable opportunities.'

https://news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/cannabis-practices-sprout-as-big-law-firms-follow-the-money

A good way to get a country to legalize ganja would be for its immediate neighbour to legalize. There is usually such competition between neighbouring countries that the idea that one's immediate neighbour may stand to gain immensely from legalization could be a very good motivation for one's own country to legalize. Keeping up with the Joneses i mean the Mary Janes..Canada/USA, Australia/New Zealand, England/Germany, Israel/Iran, China/Japan, North Korea/South Korea...hey Pakistan, I think you guys should legalize because that would surely wake up India too...it's the perfect healthy competition and a win-win for all...gun competition is so uncool...not to mention fatal for the majority...

Updated Oct 30, 2022 2:32:29pm

'When we look at other disruptive industries in the U.S. throughout history, almost all legislative change came after private enterprise exerted pressure on the federal government to acknowledge and accommodate their interests.

From oil and gas to electric vehicles to cryptocurrencies to gambling, the interest of big business catalyzes change. We are seeing a similar pattern emerge in cannabis.

Federal legalization is important to the future of the industry and something many Americans are eager for.

But the independent political movements in Washington DC should be less of a signal of what is to come than the movements of big business.

Know where to focus your attention. Legalization is coming.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/wheels-of-capitalism-not-congress-are-driving-marijuana-legislation/

'The United States is committed to working together with the countries of the Western Hemisphere as neighbors and partners to meet our shared challenges of drug trafficking and use. My Administration will seek to expand cooperation with key partners, such as Mexico and Colombia, to shape a collective and comprehensive response and expand efforts to address the production and trafficking of dangerous synthetic drugs that are responsible for many of our overdose deaths, particularly fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and methamphetamine. In Mexico, we must continue to work together to intensify efforts to dismantle transnational criminal organizations and their networks, increase prosecutions of criminal leaders and facilitators, and strengthen efforts to seize illicit assets. In Bolivia, I encourage the government to take additional steps to safeguard the country’s licit coca markets from criminal exploitation and reduce illicit coca cultivation that continues to exceed legal limits under Bolivia’s domestic laws for medicinal and traditional use. In addition, the United States will look to expand cooperation with China, India, and other chemical source countries in order to disrupt the global flow of synthetic drugs and their precursor chemicals. '

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/09/15/a-memorandum-for-the-secretary-of-state-on-presidential-determination-on-major-drug-transit-or-major-illicit-drug-producing-countries-for-fiscal-year-2022/

'Worldwide, an estimated 268 million people consumed cannabis at least once during 2020. The estimated number of cannabis consumers per region is heavily dependent on the population size, demographic age ranges, and average rates of past-year cannabis use in the individual countries that compose each region. While Asia – the world’s most populous region – by default has the highest count of cannabis consumers (with an estimated 93.8 million), the continent nevertheless has comparatively lower cannabis usage rates than any other region, giving it both the largest number but lowest density of cannabis consumers globally.

Across the planet’s adult populations (i.e.,ages 15+), North America (with an estimated 49.6 million cannabis consumers) is home to the highest rates of cannabis use, with those in Canada and the United States (accommodated by liberal social policies) both supporting the advancement of legalization and establishment of robust regulated markets. The legalization of cannabis leads to higher reported rates of use, and acts as the single-most important factor in the growth of a national cannabis consumer base. Mexico recently became the latest country to fully legalize possession and use for adults, and others are likely to follow as more countries realize how reform legislation could help spur economic growth in their post-pandemic economies.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/grass-grows-greener-globally-as-total-cannabis-consumers-increase-worldwide/

'When it comes to the war on drugs, there’s no need for further research to prove that such criminalization has disproportionately impacted communities of color, a top federal drug official said in a new interview.

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Nora Volkow has on several recent occasions discussed the harms of the drug war and the need to take an alternative approach, in part by decriminalizing substance misuse and promoting treatment through a public health-focused model.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/top-federal-drug-official-says-we-dont-need-more-research-to-show-criminalizations-racist-impact/

'Justice Department lawyer Daniel Aguilar, who represented the federal government at the oral argument in June, insisted that the court should dismiss the case and allow the group to file their own DEA rescheduling petition.

Judges Paul Watford concurred with the latest ruling, but he did notably say in a concurring opinion that, “in an appropriate case, the Drug Enforcement Administration may well be obliged to initiate a reclassification proceeding for marijuana, given the strength of petitioners’ arguments that the agency has misinterpreted the controlling statute by concluding that marijuana ‘has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.'”'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/court-dismisses-dea-marijuana-rescheduling-case-but-judge-says-cannabis-reclassification-may-be-coming-anyway/

Along with the legalization of marijuana, its normalization also needs to happen in society. The plant has been suppressed for so long that its presence sometimes creates anxiety for the user who worries about social and legal discrimination. Its presence creates panic, fear, distrust and anger in the non-user due to the negativity that has been built around it. The consumption of the plant should become once again a natural part of social life. That would be normalization. With continuous exposure, increasing information and awareness normalization should happen eventually.

Updated Oct 11, 2022 1:10:08pm

'In recent years, we have seen synthetic opioids, such as illicitly manufactured fentanyl, drive many overdose deaths with cocaine- and methamphetamine-related deaths also increasing at alarming rates. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the overdose epidemic, as necessary pandemic restrictions made it harder for individuals with addiction to receive the treatment and support services they need. These factors contributed to the more than 93,000 drug overdose deaths in 2020. As a Nation, we need a strong response to America’s overdose epidemic and an investment in prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery services, as well as strategies to reduce the supply of illicit drugs. '

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/08/27/a-proclamation-on-overdose-awareness-week-2021/

'People like Charles have to keep hundreds of thousands of dollars of cash on them, along with buckets of change, so they can keep track of every single cent that goes in and out of the business.

“Imagine you have to do everything in your life in cash, and that’s it. You don’t have a debit card; you don’t have a checkbook; you can’t do anything online, just cash. A contractor comes in, an electrician, does $60,000 worth of work. You’ve got to have $60,000 worth of cash on you. It’s daunting, and you have to have systems on systems on systems,” says Charles.'

https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/the-dangers-of-running-a-multimillion-dollar-cash-business

'Volkow said on Drug Policy Alliance founder Ethan Nadelmann’s show that she was “expecting the use of marijuana among adolescents would go up” when states moved to legalize cannabis, but admitted that “overall, it hasn’t.” It was reform advocates like Nadelmann who were “right” about the impact of the policy change on youth, she said.

She also acknowledged that changes to cannabis laws are having a broader range of diverse impacts, saying that some “states that have legalized actually have better outcomes” while “the adverse effects of marijuana use are much worse in some states.”'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/top-federal-drug-official-admits-legalizers-were-right-about-teen-marijuana-use-and-touts-psychedelics-therapeutic-potential/

Even if all the nations of the world legalized cannabis for all purposes - medicinal, intoxicant, food and industrial purposes - TODAY, a feat not impossible as all it takes is for the UN to change global drug laws and every nation to follow suit by changing their individual national drug laws with the same alacrity that all showed in embracing the fake pandemic Covid, it would still take at least a decade for cannabis to become truly pervasive significantly reducing the footprint of the following industries: the synthetic pharmaceutical drug industry for medicine; the global synthetic recreational drug industry, alcohol and tobacco for intoxicant; unsustainable rice, wheat and cotton as agricultural crops on current scales; the chemical fertilizer industry through organic farming of climate resistant cannabis; the petrochemical based non-biodegradable plastics and synthetics industries as industrial sources of raw materials. Even then much of the damage may be irrepairable, such as the omnipresent microplastics, and the contamination of land, water and air by synthetic pharmaceuticals, chemical fertilizers, fossil fuels and petrochemicals. But there is a chance that we could at least slow this down or even stall it. However, these industries - petrochemicals, synthetic pharmaceuticals, chemical fertilizers, alcohol and tobacco are the biggest industries in the world today. The world's rich to whom these industries belong, and the governments that they own and fund, will do all they can to prevent this, including the use of the arms industry who fear a peaceful world of cannabis as a threat to their existence as much as the rich and the governments. This means that what could take a decade if all are fully committed will most likely take much more time. The two years lost to the fake pandemic Covid were accelerated steps in the opposite direction to that which we should have been taking. Do we have that much time to change course? Will nature and human insanity give us the time? Today, all global leaders are floundering helplessly and aimlessly, with what is being proposed as solutions to the catastrophic problem being nothing more than cosmetic makeovers, while they work to consolidate their own positions and the rich strive to get richer. At a time when all possible options must be considered, no, pursued with great urgency, even then it may not be enough, we find humanity moving with determination like zombies towards the sixth extinction...What is overwhelmingly evident is the human delusion that man is the master of nature and an insane stubbornness to pursue natural ways...

Oct 08, 2022 12:07:53pm

'They conclude: “In the lead up to legalization, professional associations … suggested that legalization posed a threat to public health, advocated for the legal age for cannabis use to be set at a minimum age of 21 or 25, or that Canada should not legalize at all because it would place youth at greater risk of harm. With such categorical fears now shown to be largely unfounded, this should provide the basis to move forward on more nuanced grounds. … [O]n the balance, cannabis legalization – especially when considering the severe adverse social impacts of criminalization, and especially for youth – continues to offer the potential to better protect and achieve consequential net benefits to public health and welfare of cannabis users and society at large.”'

https://norml.org/blog/2021/08/17/analysis-marijuana-legalization-opponents-fears-have-not-come-to-fruition-in-canada/

'Even as people buy weed from legal retailers across the country, police arrest people for marijuana possession in larger numbers than they do those charged with a violent crime.

Numbers from the FBI Uniform Crime Report show that in 2019, the latest year available, police across the country made 545,602 arrests for marijuana-related offenses. Of those, 92 percent - or 500,395 arrests - were for possession offenses only.

In contrast, a total of 495,871 were arrested for violent crimes. In a news release about the FBI data, NORML Executive Director Erik Altieri noted that a marijuana possession arrest is made every 58 seconds in the U.S.'

https://www.greenentrepreneur.com/article/380322

'To reschedule marijuana through the executive branch, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) or an outside party would have to file a petition, which would then be reviewed by the attorney general, who has usually delegated that responsibility to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The attorney general can also initiate the process on their own, requesting a scientific review directly to HHS. Under HHS, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would then assess the scientific, medical and public health implications before submitting that review to the Justice Department, which would then effectuate the appropriate reclassification under federal law.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/bernie-sanders-talks-marijuana-differences-with-biden-who-he-says-could-enact-reforms-but-chooses-not-to/

'There is something servile in the habit of seeking after a law which we may obey. We may study the laws of matter at and for our convenience, but a successful life knows no law. It is an unfortunate discovery certainly, that of a law which binds us where we did not know before that we were bound. Live free, child of the mist - and with respect to knowledge we are all children of the mist. The man who takes the liberty to live is superior to all the laws, by virtue of his relation to the lawmaker. "That is active duty," says the Vishnu Purana, "which is not for our bondage; that is knowledge which is for our liberation; all other duty is good only unto weariness; all other knowledge is only the cleverness of an artist." Walking, Henry D Thoreau, Selected Writings on Nature and Liberty.

'Raphael Mechoulam, one of the most esteemed cannabis researchers in history, calls cannabis a “neglected pharmacological treasure trove” in a 2005 paper. Neglected by researchers? Absolutely. But to some extent, by consumers like us, too.

For decades, cannabis has been regarded primarily as a vessel for the almighty high-bringer that is THC. Even in legal markets with a wide variety of options, many people still reach for the strain with the highest THC content.'

https://www.leafly.com/news/cannabis-101/cannabis-entourage-effect-why-thc-and-cbd-only-medicines-arent-g

Gandhi brought into focus the untouchability that existed in society with regard to humans, calling the social outcasts Harijan or people of god...150 years ago society did the unthinkable and made a plant an untouchable...it was cast out of society and still remains so...the plant is called Shivapatre, Shivji ka buti and Siddi among other names...When will society remove this discrimination against the plant, a creation of nature that came into existence 28 million years ago when man was a primate living in the trees?

Oct 02, 2021 8:51:46pm

'Senators took issue with the 2018 Farm Bill’s 0.3 percent THC cap for lawful hemp products and directed USDA to work with the other federal agencies on a study of whether that threshold is scientifically supported:

“Hemp.—The Committee is concerned that the level of allowable THC content in hemp may be arbitrary and pose a burden on hemp producers that is not supported by scientific evidence. The Committee directs USDA to work with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Drug Enforcement Administration to study and report to Congress on whether there is scientific basis for the current limit of 3 percent THC in hemp and suggest alternative levels if necessary.”'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/senate-committee-urges-rethink-of-hemp-thc-limit-and-pushes-cbd-regulations/

'With hemp already federally legal, a primary policy issue is how marijuana and hemp—two varieties of the cannabis plant—would be distinguished under a federal regulatory regime. In this article, we lay out the CAOA’s key provisions governing hemp, related cannabis product regulation, and areas where legislators specifically seek industry feedback to inform the best policy approach.'

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/cannabis-administration-and-opportunity-4867282/

'“What we found over the weeks that we were sampling, the amounts of CBD and THC went up proportionately in all of these different cultivars for all of these different stresses,” Toth said.

By week four, at harvest time, they found that nearly every plant (except those treated with herbicide, which were nearly dead) produced the expected ratio of CBD to THC, with high levels of CBD corresponding to levels of THC above the 0.3% THC threshold.'

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2021/07/hemp-goes-hot-due-genetics-not-environmental-stress

'Although Nixon declared the war on drugs on June 17, 1971, the U.S. already had lots of practice imposing drug prohibitions that had racially skewed impacts. The arrival of Chinese migrants in the 1800s saw the rise of criminalizing opium that migrants brought with them. Cannabis went from being called “reefer” to “marijuana,” as a way to associate the plant with Mexican migrants arriving in the U.S. in the 1930s.

By the time Nixon sought reelection amid the anti-Vietnam War and Black power movements, criminalizing heroin was a way to target activists and hippies. One of Nixon’s domestic policy aides, John Ehrlichman, admitted as much about the war on drugs in a 22-year-old interview published by Harper’s Magazine in 2016.

Experts say Nixon’s successors, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton, leveraged drug war policies in the following decades to their own political advantage, cementing the drug war’s legacy. The explosion of the U.S. incarceration rate, the expansion of public and private prison systems and the militarization of local police forces are all outgrowths of the drug war.'

https://apnews.com/article/war-on-drugs-75e61c224de3a394235df80de7d70b70

'The enactment of state-level, adult-use marijuana legalization laws is not associated with increases in either drug treatment admissions, violent crime, or overdose deaths, according to a comprehensive analysis published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

A team of economists reviewed nationally representative data across all 50 states and the District of Columbia to “comprehensively explore the broader impacts of RMLs [recreational marijuana laws], providing some of the first evidence on how marijuana legalization is affecting illicit drug use, heavy alcohol use, arrests for drug and non-drug offenses, and objectively-measured adverse drug-related events including drug-related overdose deaths and admissions into substance abuse treatment services.”'

https://norml.org/news/2021/07/22/analysis-adult-use-legalization-laws-not-linked-to-increases-in-violent-crime-problematic-substance-abuse

The UN Single Convention Treaty of 1961, based on which all nations have gone ahead and banned the entire plant, says that all parts of the cannabis plant are legal, whereas the flowering tops and resin are illegal...now have you heard of anything stranger than this? What did the flowering tops do to deserve this kind of discrimination? The absurdness of this definition, which is the entire foundation of worldwide cannabis prohibition, essentially means that the plant becomes illegal once it becomes mature, like as if nature, by running its course, turns something legal into illegal just by letting it go through its life cycle...it is the equivalent of saying that a human is legal as a child, but becomes illegal once pubic hair sprouts, after which it must be terminated...what insane laws...

Sep 02, 2021 5:36:17pm

'Americans spent more than $12 billion on legal cannabis products in the first six months of 2021, according to data analyzed by Leafly and Whitney Economics.

That’s nearly as much as Americans spent on milk in all of 2020. According to the Dairy Farmers of America, consumers spent roughly $12.6 billion on milk last year.

Cannabis sales topped $18 billion in 2020. The six-month trend in 2021 puts the industry on pace to reach $25 billion to $26 billion in sales by the end of the year. That would represent a year-over-year revenue increase of roughly 35%.

That growth would continue the cannabis industry’s position as the nation’s fastest-growing industry. In 2020, sales revenue increased roughly 60% over 2019, driven by increased buying during the coronavirus pandemic. '

https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/americans-on-pace-to-spend-twice-as-much-on-weed-as-on-milk

'Recreational marijuana laws (RMLs), which legalize the possession of small quantities of marijuana for recreational use, have been adopted by 18 states and the District of Columbia. Opponents argue that RML-induced increases in marijuana consumption will serve as a “gateway” to harder drug use and crime. Using data covering the period 2000-2019 from a variety of national sources (the National Survey of Drug Use and Health, the Uniform Crime Reports, the National Vital Statistics System, and the Treatment Episode Data Set) this study is the first to comprehensively examine the effects of legalizing recreational marijuana on hard drug use, arrests, drug overdose deaths, suicides, and treatment admissions. Our analyses show that RMLs increase adult marijuana use and reduce drug-related arrests over an average post-legalization window of three to four years. There is little evidence to suggest that RML-induced increases in marijuana consumption encourage the use of harder substances or violent criminal activity. '

https://www.nber.org/papers/w29038

'Richard Pound, who served as the first president of WADA, spoke to Marijuana Moment about the origins of the cannabis ban and said that the U.S. was “really quite adamant that [cannabis] was on the list” of prohibited substances.

“The U.S. was a leader in saying—and this was the ONDCP saying this—’in our view, marijuana is the entry-level drug. If you can keep people from using marijuana, they don’t graduate to cocaine and heroin and some of the other the other chemical variations of these things.'”'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/how-u-s-bullying-in-the-1990s-led-to-the-olympics-marijuana-ban-behind-richardsons-suspension/

'I wish to speak a word for Nature, for absolute freedom and wildness, as contrasted with a freedom and culture merely civil - to regard man as an inhabitant, or a part and parcel of Nature, rather than a member of society. I wish to make an extreme statement, if so I may make an emphatic one, for there are enough champions of civilization: the minister and the school committee and every one of you will take care of that.' - Walking, Selected Writings on Nature and Liberty, Henry D Thoreau.

'In light of Kavanaugh’s Alson opinion, Thomas’ certiorari note and the Mexico Supreme Court ruling seem to offer an alluring alternate legalization track. What if federal legalization came not through Congress but via a US Supreme Court ruling that smashed prohibition once and for all?'

https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/mexico-clarence-thomas-marijuana-legalization-dont-bet-on-it

'With millions of black ex-felons unable to vote because of their marijuana possession convictions, the status quo is rightly called "the New Jim Crow."

Thankfully, in the last few years states are recognizing the built-in racism in this prohibition. They are working to ensure that communities of color, having paid the dearest price for our war on marijuana, are the first to see the benefits of the newly legalized market, and that portions of the tax revenue raised from new cannabis sales are reinvested in the communities most ravaged by our War on Drugs. We also need to clear the records of people with marijuana convictions, something the governors of Illinois and Washington have made a priority. '

https://edition.cnn.com/2021/06/30/opinions/its-time-to-legalize-marijuana-rick-steves/index.html

'Results

Participants had both positive and negative perceptions of the possible legalisation of marijuana cultivation and trading. On the positive side, participants indicated freedom from police, the opportunity to grow marijuana on a larger scale, capital acquisition for commercial marijuana cultivation and trading, and regulation of marijuana prices through unionisation as some of the benefits they would derive from the commercial legalisation of marijuana cultivation and trading. On the negative side, loss of their source of livelihood, fall in the price of marijuana and perceived increase in school drop-out rates were the concerns raised.'

https://substanceabusepolicy.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13011-021-00391-w

'European health and beauty product manufacturers can now safely use hemp-derived cannabigerol or CBG in their cosmetics and skin care lines with approval from a key market regulator for trade in the European Union.

The European Commission added CBG last month as a safe ingredient for skin conditioning to Cosing, its cosmetics ingredient database.

Hemp extractors and manufacturers tout the benefits of using hemp-derived CBG in skin care and cosmetics products, including anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antioxidant properties.'

https://hempindustrydaily.com/european-commission-adds-cbg-as-legal-ingredient-for-cosmetics-skin-care/

'They concluded: “In sum, the findings from the current study … provide further support of previous research questioning the causal claims of the MGH [marijuana gateway hypothesis]. While there is strong support for correlation and sequencing in marijuana and hard drug use, correlation and sequencing alone cannot provide sufficient evidence for causality. Factors other than marijuana use such as genetic predisposition, peer associations, or access to the illicit drug market could be the primary causes of hard drug use instead of marijuana use itself. As such, any public policy that prohibits the use of marijuana in an attempt to curb hard drug use is unlikely to succeed.”'

https://norml.org/news/2021/05/06/analysis-marijuana-use-data-fails-to-support-gateway-hypothesis

'The top five cities that are Google searching terms like “state cannabis legalization” (Birmingham, AL, Charleston, SC, Cheyenne, WY, Nashville, TN and Omaha, NE) are all places where cannabis is completely illegal, but that isn’t stopping Digital Third Coast’s cross-section of America from enjoying cannabis. According to their results, 60% of respondents reported as cannabis users. 92% of respondents supported legalization, with 45% claiming that leaving whether to consume cannabis as a “matter of freedom or personal choice” was their primary reason for that support. This was almost double those who listed “medical reasons and palliative care” as a primary motivation (25%).'

https://thefreshtoast.com/news/surprising-cities-where-people-are-googling-cannabis-queries/

'Last year was a big deal for cannabis.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, cannabis producers and retailers have experienced a huge boom in sales of over $ 20 billion in the United States alone.

The main reason for this is that despite widespread economic closure, cannabis was considered “essential” in most states where it is legal.

This meant that the pharmacy remained open, with most developed curbside pickups or even delivery options for buyers.

As a result, the cannabis business was booming, while other industries slowed until they crawled or stopped. It’s mid-year, but you can see if the strength of 2020 was a momentary change or a carry trend.'

https://californianewstimes.com/cannabis-industry-5-year-forecast-money-markets/413135/

'An in-depth look at water usage in the regulated cannabis cultivation market reveals how it compares to the illicit market and traditional agricultural sectors. On a per-pound basis, cannabis might be better compared to more valuable, scarce cash crops. Mid-range cannabis in the United States, costing approximately $1,500/lb., is comparable to the price a pound of saffron fetched in Delhi, India, last year ($1,496), or the same amount of Italian white truffles ($1,581). Notably, the substantial expense associated with saffron and truffles are in part derived from the labor-intensive collection process for the former, and the relative rarity and difficulty in procuring the latter.

Consequently, cannabis is not only one of the world’s most valuable cash crops, but the industry’s market value has potential to increase dramatically, with only incremental increases in production. Across the globe, nations which have legalized cannabis for either medical or adult use have found the plant to be an enticing source of additional revenue. At the same time, agricultural research and innovation should normalize cultivation practices and lead to greater resource efficiency.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/bureaucratic-restraints-constrain-cannabis-as-a-commodity/

'Because delta-8 THC is manufactured from hemp-derived CBD, not extracted directly from the hemp plant, it is a controlled substance under law, according to the DEA.

“From a chemist’s perspective, it is clear that the isomerization of CBD to delta-8 THC with a catalyst is a chemical process,” said Erik Paulson, lab manager at Infinite Chemical Analysis Labs, a cannabis testing laboratory with locations in California and Michigan. “Any product of a chemical reaction like this one is, by definition, a synthetic chemical.”'

https://hempindustrydaily.com/more-states-banning-delta-8-thc-as-regulators-clarify-its-legality-under-federal-law/

One of the root causes underlying the vast number of human made problems we see around us today, is the fact that the human mind has, in most people, completely lost its connection with nature. It has become unhinged, over smart, over confident, incapable of reasoning, inattentive, preferring deception over truth and material wealth above all else. Even rural areas, where one once found a large number of people with simple and wise ways, have increasingly become afflicted, mainly through the seeking of short cuts to the imaginary better life built on money. Maybe the isolated indigenous tribes in a few places retain their sanity, anchored in the only thing that can save it, nature. For the rest of us, no amount of vaccines or synthetic drugs will heal our mental illnesses. The medicine of the mind, nature's cannabis, offers one way to re-establish the connection between our minds and nature. For some, the dosage required may be very, very large and even that may not work...

May 10, 2021 5:36:51pm

'In any other industry, the harm of a product like this would be limited to an offense against good taste. But cannabis isn’t any other industry. The harm here goes far deeper. Tens of millions of Americans have had their freedom revoked and their lives ruined by nonsense criminalization and the War on Drugs. Those harms are reinforced by the stigma surrounding cannabis, and the stereotypes that still cling to healthy, happy, everyday consumers.

Canna Bumps isn’t just a marketing pitch gone awry. It’s actively facilitating the risk and harm that millions of Americans face every day.

So way to go, THC Living. Neat idea. Clever. Very not fucking funny.'

https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/neat-idea-canna-bumps-thanks-for-keeping-marijuana-illegal

'The laws of New York and New Mexico also contain two specific aspects. The first is to provide for the establishment of specific consumption areas, such as cafes; these areas allow consumption by people who are not permitted to consume in their rented accommodation (tenancy agreements usually prohibit drug use) and who cannot find space to legally consume in public. The second is to allow for delivery to consumers, perhaps reflecting the post-COVID retail world. New York State has also introduced taxation that is dependent on THC content and product type, permitting the state to regulate different types of product according to their effects on health.'

https://www.emcdda.europa.eu/news/2021/legalisation-cannabis-3-us-states-new-york-virginia-new-mexico_en

'This legislation would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Labor, and relevant state health agencies to enter a ten-year arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct, and update, a study on the effects of legalized state marijuana programs biennially. This study would evaluate the impacts and effects of state-legalized medicinal and non-medicinal marijuana programs on state economies, public health, criminal justice, and employment.

Currently, numerous published peer-reviewed studies have assessed the impact of state-regulated marijuana legalization on these issues, but despite the publication of these reports, a lack of consensus and acceptance of this data continue, particularly amongst members of Congress and the Department of Justice.'

https://norml.org/blog/2021/04/29/the-marijuana-data-collection-act-reintroduced/

'In 2020, nearly 70 percent of cannabis consumers who participated in the study reported obtaining cannabis from a legal source, up from 47 percent in 2019. (Because the survey included respondents ages 15 and older, some subjects would be unable to obtain cannabis from any legal sources – which require users to be at least 18 years of age.)

“One of the goals of legalization was the elimination (or substantial reduction) of the cannabis black (illegal) market and consequently keeping profits from criminals and organized crime,” the author wrote. “According to this study, there is some evidence that this may be working.”'

https://norml.org/news/2021/04/29/canada-far-fewer-consumers-accessing-illegally-sourced-cannabis-following-enactment-of-adult-use-legalization

Has the Mexican government met the April 30 deadline, extended twice already, set by the Mexican Supreme Court for recreational cannabis legalization? The government has been requesting extensions citing Covid and issues with the bill's content. Mexico supplies heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine to its big brother next door, the US. Mexico's rich and powerful drug cartels have friends both in Mexico's government as well as across the border among US politicians and US drug networks. Cannabis was once one of the drugs that Mexico supplied to the US, but with legalization in many US states, the flow of cannabis has now reversed into Mexico. Mexico legalizing cannabis will add pressure on the US federal government to legalize as well, considering then that both its immediate neighbors, Mexico and Canada, have legal cannabis. So, for Mexico's people, who have fought long and hard for the sacred herb, the forces against them are both within and outside their borders. The Mexican government will do all it can to delay legalization. All the government needs to do, as a simple mediate first step, is legalize home growing, release prisoners jailed for cannabis and expunge their records, while getting its commercial sales aspect right at a later time, like so many US states have done. That would be the case if the interests of the people were foremost, but then, name one government where this is the case?

Apr 30, 2021 4:56:58pm

'If states generally do not see the need to cap the potency of distilled spirits, it is hard to figure why cannabis, a far less hazardous product, requires such a safeguard. But the legal treatment of marijuana has long been anomalous, and evidently some of that irrationality lingers in the minds of politicians even when they are happy to legalize the industry and reap the resulting tax revenue.'

https://reason.com/2021/04/20/arbitrary-thc-limits-could-wipe-out-much-of-the-cannabis-industry/

'“It’s outrageous that Peter was held in Dubai for almost two months on charges pertaining to cannabis he had smoked legally in Las Vegas before traveling to Dubai,” Stirling said. “Peter was a responsible traveler. He made sure he left any pharmaceuticals at home, including aspirin, just to be sure he didn’t have any delays or issues at customs. Never did he imagine he could be arrested for cannabis smoked outside of the UAE.”'

https://www.8newsnow.com/i-team/i-team-las-vegas-man-detained-overseas-for-consuming-marijuana-before-trip-headed-back-to-us/

'The reporter pushed back, noting that moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule II under the Controlled Substances Act, as Biden is proposing, wouldn’t facilitate mass clemency given that being convicted for crimes related to drugs in that slightly lower category—which currently includes cocaine—also carries significant penalties.

“It addresses things moving forward, though, which is important and important to many advocates,” Psaki argued.

But advocates don’t really see it that way. For one, they support descheduling marijuana entirely. But when it comes to the relationship between scheduling and sentencing, moving cannabis to Schedule II would in no way fulfill Biden’s 2019 campaign pledge, when he said, “I think everyone—anyone who has a record—should be let out of jail, their records expunged, be completely zeroed out” for marijuana convictions.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/biden-press-secretary-misstates-marijuana-reschedulings-impact-for-federal-prisoners-who-want-clemency/

'In 2020 the cannabis industry was the fastest-growing industry in the U.S., despite the crippling economic effects of pandemic-related closures and quarantines. According to the Leafly 2021 Jobs Report, the cannabis industry added more than 77,000 jobs, marking a 32% increase from 2019. Astonishingly, cannabis workers now outnumber dentists, EMTs, and electrical engineers in the U.S., and cannabis sales are providing a valuable and consistent source of new tax revenue to struggling state and local economies.

Last spring, state and local governments across the nation deemed cannabis operators “essential” or “critical” businesses, authorizing them to remain open throughout the pandemic as long as they followed physical distancing and other public health guidelines. The “essential” designation was both a welcome lifeline for an industry frequently deprived of many of the benefits and resources enjoyed by other legal businesses, such as banking, insurance, and small business loans, and a milestone in the fight to destigmatize the industry.'

https://www.denverpost.com/2021/04/20/marijuana-businesses-essential-4-20-cannabis-colorado/

'A whopping 91 percent of Americans believe that marijuana prohibition should end and cannabis should be legal for either medical or recreational purposes, according to a new Pew Research Center poll released on Friday.

The survey comes shortly after three additional states—New York, Virginia and New Mexico—enacted adult-use legalization. It asked adults to pick between three options: marijuana should be legal for medical use only, it should be legal both recreationally and medically or it should continue to be illegal.

Sixty percent of respondents said that cannabis should be legal for both medical and adult use. Thirty-one percent said it should be legalized for therapeutic purposes only. And just eight percent of Americans said it should continue to be criminalized across the board.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/nine-in-ten-americans-support-legalizing-marijuana-for-recreational-or-medical-use-new-pew-poll-finds/

'This year is poised to prove itself an epochal year for cannabis in the United States. From last November’s elections to this month, no fewer than eight states — representing more than 40 million people — changed their cannabis laws to legalize it, either or both for medical or adult use. On the East Coast, the dominoes have fallen quickly, with New Jersey, New York, and Virginia, respectively, all passing adult-use measures within weeks of one another; in the West, meanwhile, both Arizona and New Mexico joined the ranks of fully legal markets.

The tide of legalization has been driven by dramatic shifts in popular attitudes about cannabis, waning public support for its prohibition, and accelerated marketing, normalization, and social acceptance of the plant and various products featuring it. Over the decade since 2010, the percentage of adults supporting legalization rose from 41% to 67%, making cannabis approval one of today’s fastest-changing public policy issues in America.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/at-4-20-for-21-new-consumer-archetypes-reveal-who-influences-the-market-and-how/

No human, I repeat, NO HUMAN, has the authority to ban the cannabis plant created by the supreme power of the universe.. Happy 4/20 to the lovers, friends and enemies of the divine herb...
This doesn't change, ever....

Updated Apr 21, 2021 12:03:59pm

'Marijuana use has been proposed to serve as a “gateway” that increases the likelihood that users will engage in subsequent use of harder and more harmful substances, known as the marijuana gateway hypothesis (MGH). The current study refines and extends the literature on the MGH by testing the hypothesis using rigorous quasi-experimental, propensity score-matching methodology in a nationally representative sample. Using three waves of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (1994–2002), eighteen propensity score-matching tests of the marijuana gateway hypothesis were conducted. Six of the eighteen tests were statistically significant; however, only three were substantively meaningful. These three tests found weak effects of frequent marijuana use on illicit drug use but they were also sensitive to hidden bias. Results from this study indicate that marijuana use is not a reliable gateway cause of illicit drug use. As such, prohibition policies are unlikely to reduce illicit drug use.'

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11292-021-09464-z

The problem is not with the natural opium plant or natural coca plant, plants used in traditional cultures for thousands of years, opium in Asia for recreation and as an analgesic, and coca in South America for recreation and as a stimulant. The problem is that governments have taken control of these natural plants away from traditional communities, and regulated their cultivation for supply to pharma manufacturers, legal and illegal. Pharma manufacturers have synthesized key compounds, concentrated them, vastly increased their potency, thus making them lethal, expensive and inaccessible, so as to reap vast profits. It is cocaine from the coca plant, and morphine, codeine, thebaine, oxycodone, heroin, fentanyl, etc from the opium plant. This weaponizing of a natural plant to get rich has wrecked havoc with global human health. Cannabis must be legalized, first and foremost. It is the most widely consumed, medicinal and safest of all natural recreational plants. The natural opium and coca plant must also be legalized. So too with the rare psilocybin and peyotl, found in very few places on earth. Natural palm toddy and natural tobacco are controlled by governments to benefit themselves, and the alcohol industry and tobacco industry. All viable natural recreational and medicinal options, currently illegal, must be made legal, to reach the most people, especially the poorest traditional communities world wide, to truly address human health...

Apr 14, 2021 12:32:47pm

'The importance of IP for cannabis companies is similar to that in pharmaceutical, tobacco, cosmetic and food and beverage firms, which “have been in this boat for a long time.”

Without identifying specific companies, Pelletier pointed out, “We have already seen patents play a significant role in high-profile mergers and acquisitions in the cannabis industry. We expect that trend to continue, and likely intensify.”'

https://mjbizdaily.com/intellectual-property-takes-on-growing-role-in-cannabis-industry-deals/

'Hemp also has the potential to help reduce carbon dioxide and combat global warming. International scientific studies have shown that hemp absorbs more carbon dioxide per hectare than any forest or commercial crop (one hectare of hemp can absorb between 15 and 22 tons of carbon dioxide), making it the ideal “carbon sink.” Indeed, once absorbed, the carbon dioxide is permanently bounded within the fiber, which is then used to manufacture other hemp-derived products, such as textiles, building materials, and auto parts.'

https://abovethelaw.com/2021/03/hemp-is-much-more-than-cbd/

'The apex of the pyramid illustration shows that there are only three mainland-state outliers and one U.S. territory where marijuana is “fully illegal” – that is, being verboten for use in any form.

These are Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska and American Samoa.

But those “entirely illegal” places have stirrings of movement to either third-degree, severely limited access (SLA) – or second-degree medical-use status.

As a general rule, second-degree medical marijuana states and territories permit patients, at a minimum, to possess and smoke medical marijuana, whereas SLAs (such as Texas, which has been in state court this week trying to ban smokable hemp) do not.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/where-in-america-is-marijuana-still-entirely-illegal/

'In sum, more than 120 million people live in a first-degree U.S. state, territory or the District of Columbia, and 117 million reside in places that are exclusively second-degree medical-use regimes. Another 89 million comprise the third-degree, severely limited-access states, for a total of more than 328 million people who live in a state or territory where marijuana is legal to some degree.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/the-three-degrees-of-marijuana-legalization-in-the-united-states/

Implementation of the 1961 Single Convention Treaty must focus on one entity - the synthetic pharmaceutical drug industry, legal and illegal, including small, medium and large players...All natural plants and their products in natural form must essentially be taken out of the scope of the 1961 Single Convention. This naturally means that drug laws of all nations must be modified accordingly as well...

Mar 08, 2021 4:20:44pm

'The vote by the Commission for Narcotic Drugs, which is based in Vienna and includes 53 member states, considered a series of recommendations from the World Health Organization on reclassifying cannabis and its derivatives. But attention centered on a key recommendation to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs — where it was listed alongside dangerous and highly addictive opioids like heroin.

Experts say that the vote will have no immediate impact on loosening international controls because governments will still have jurisdiction over how to classify cannabis. But many countries look to global conventions for guidance, and United Nations recognition is a symbolic win for advocates of drug policy change who say that international law is out of date.'

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/world/europe/cannabis-united-nations-drug-policy.html

'WHO recommendation to delete cannabis and cannabis resin from Schedule IV of the 1961 Convention: The Commission decided by 27 votes to 25 and with one abstention to follow this recommendation. Cannabis and cannabis resin will accordingly be deleted from Schedule IV of the 1961 Convention. They remain in Schedule I of the 1961 Convention and thus remain subject to all levels of control of the 1961 Convention.'

https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/commissions/CND/Mandate_Functions/current-scheduling-recommendations.html

'The change comes after the European Industrial Hemp Association pointed out that the European Court of Justice recently ruled that CBD should not be classified as a drug and can be freely traded.

The classification change was made by the EU’s Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (small- and medium-sized enterprises). Previously, only synthetic CBD was listed in the agency’s database.

Regulators list plant-derived CBD as a skin protectant and conditioner and note its function as an anti-oxidant.

“These are the types of news that make my day,” EIHA’s managing director, Lorenza Romanese, said in a statement.'

https://hempindustrydaily.com/eu-market-regulator-updates-cosmetics-guidelines-to-add-cbd-as-legal-ingredient/

'Four themes emerged during analyses: “sort of legal,” “mitigating harm through legalization,” “Increasing acceptance,” and “seeking safety when purchasing cannabis.” Despite their limited knowledge of cannabis regulation, the majority of the participants supported recreational cannabis legalization from a harm reduction perspective. Most participants did not believe that cannabis legalization had affected their use behavior. However, participants, especially cannabis users, perceived that recreational cannabis legalization created a context where cannabis use was legally, socially, and behaviorally “safer” than in an illegal context, even for those below the legal age of sale.'

https://harmreductionjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12954-020-00442-8

'Congress, presidents, and governmental agencies have had more than enough excuses over the years for not wanting to legalize marijuana in the United States. One of the most prominent being that the United Nations drug treaties strictly prohibits it, and going against the grain of worldly laws would be a serious no-no. However, now that the U.N. has backed off its staunch opposition to the cannabis plant, one has to wonder how lawmakers will justify maintaining pot prohibition in the future.

Marijuana is in this bizarre purgatorial state right now that rests on either time (a lot more) or the outcome of the upcoming special election. Democrats could gain control of the Senate (if they win the two seats in Georgia), giving the party the power to further marijuana reform over the next few years.'

https://www.laweekly.com/now-that-un-accepts-marijuana-what-excuse-does-congress-have-to-uphold-prohibition/

As I have stated repeatedly, all the national drug laws, and the Single Convention Treaty 1961 on which they are based, say that cannabis cannot be cultivated except for medical and scientific purposes. This means that every single human can grow cannabis at home for their personal use without any restrictions on the number of plants because growing cannabis without commercial or trade related activities in mind is growing cannabis for scientific and medical purposes. Watching the plant grow, and different varieties of it, is a part of horticultural scientific activity, increasing its diversity is scientific activity. Using the plant for one's personal needs is using cannabis for medical purposes. No drug law can punish a person for home growing as many cannabis plants as she likes as long as one does not enter into activities of a commercial nature with it. All the persons who have been arrested, imprisoned, punished and had legal action taken against them for this are victims of gross miscarriage of justice everywhere in the world. Article 28 CONTROL OF CANNABIS of the Single Convention Treaty 1961 specifically states that - "2. This Convention shall not apply to the cultivation of the cannabis plant exclusively for industrial purposes (fibre and seed) or horticultural purposes."

Mar 08, 2021 11:18:09am

'The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) on Wednesday accepted a World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation to remove cannabis and cannabis resin from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.

The historic vote in Vienna could have far-reaching implications for the global medical cannabis industry, ranging from regulatory oversight to scientific research into the plant and its use as a medicine.

The eagerly awaited approval of Recommendation 5.1 had a slim majority in favor with 27 votes for, one abstention and 25 votes against.

The CND – the main drug policymaking body within the United Nations – turned down all five remaining recommendations.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/united-nations-approves-who-recommendation-to-reschedule-cannabis-in-historic-vote/

'Highlights

• Legal recreational market share rose from 8% to 24% over the first 12 months
• Legal sales were limited by shortages of retailers and dry cannabis, but not oils
• Provincially, legal recreational shares in month 12 ranged from 13% to 70%
• Legal sales can succeed if given sufficient supplies, stores, and time'

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0955395920303662

'The legalization of marijuana still has its battles. The negative stigma associated with its use can be traced back as far as the 1930s. Fortunately, the fight is being won one state at a time.'

https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/20/09/17538552/the-history-of-cannabis-legislation-and-an-homage-to-its-pioneers

The definition of cannabis in the Single Convention Treaty 1961 reads as "b) 'Cannabis' means the flowering or fruiting tops of the cannabis plant (excluding the seeds and leaves when not accompanied by the tops) from which the resin has not been extracted, by whatever name they may be designated."

This means that till the plant flowers, the plant is legit, after that the flowers become illegal. How about that for discrimination against the flowers of a plant? How many people have been arrested, imprisoned and punished for growing the non-flowering part of the plant? Who thinks of and comes up with these stupid laws?

Mar 08, 2021 11:15:00am

'The European Union’s top court ruled that CBD derived from the entire industrial hemp plant is not a narcotic, paving the way for new business opportunities for low-THC marijuana producers to sell outside the highly regulated pharmaceutical channels in Europe.

The ruling, handed down Thursday by five judges at the EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg, included a landmark interpretation of the 1961 U.N. Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs that cited “the purpose and general spirit” of the treaty in excluding CBD from its jurisdiction.

The milestone ruling, which focuses on cannabidiol extracted from the entire plant, comes as the EU cannabis industry awaits the European Commission’s final decision on whether flower-derived CBD should be regulated as a narcotic.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/cbd-not-a-narcotic-eu-court-says/

'Results
We identified 12 eligible studies from the USA, UK, Netherlands, France, Denmark, Italy and New Zealand. For all herbal cannabis, THC concentrations increased by 0.29% each year (95% CI: 0.11, 0.47), P < 0.001 based on 66747 cannabis samples from eight studies, 1970–2017. For cannabis resin, THC concentrations increased by 0.57% each year (95% CI: 0.10, 1.03), P = 0.017 based on 17371 samples from eight studies, 1975–2017. There was no evidence for changes in CBD in herbal cannabis [-0.01% (95% CI: -0.02, 0.01), P = 0.280; 49434 samples from five studies, 1995–2017] or cannabis resin [0.03% (95% CI: -0.11, 0.18), P = 0.651; 11382 samples from six studies, 1992–2017]. Risk of bias was low apart from non-random sampling in most studies. There was evidence of moderate to substantial heterogeneity.

Conclusions
Concentrations of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in international cannabis markets increased from 1970 to 2017 while cannabidiol (CBD) remained stable. Increases in THC were greater in cannabis resin than herbal cannabis. Rising THC in herbal cannabis was attributable to an increased market share of high-THC sinsemilla relative to low-THC traditional herbal cannabis.'

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.15253

'Since the Reagan-era escalation of the war on drugs, severe criminal penalties for drug possession have fueled a huge growth in the prison population, with particularly devastating consequences for many Black communities, where both penalties and policing have been harsher than for Whites. Using the criminal justice system as the primary tool to curb the sale and use of illicit substances has had astronomical costs without the desired effects.'

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/its-beyond-time-to-end-the-war-on-drugs-voters-agree/2020/11/12/84588e06-245a-11eb-a688-5298ad5d580a_story.html

'A team of researchers affiliated with Harvard Medical School assessed the toxicological screens of 14 subjects who consumed hemp-derived CBD products daily over a four-week period. The CBD products were lab-tested and contained THC levels below federal standards (no more than 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis.)

At the end of the trial period, 50 percent of the subjects tested positive for the presence of the carboxy-THC metabolite on a urinary drug screen.

Authors concluded: “[T]hese findings have important public health implications. It is often assumed individuals using hemp-derived products will test negative for THC. Current results indicate this may not be true, especially if assays are more sensitive than advertised, underscoring the potential for adverse consequences, including loss of employment and legal or treatment ramifications, despite the legality of hemp-derived products.”'

https://norml.org/news/2020/11/12/clinical-trial-hemp-derived-products-containing-thc-levels-below-federal-standards-trigger-positive-drug-test-results

'“If the Democrats do a clean sweep, then descheduling with interstate trade is definitely within the realm of possibility,” said Randal Meyer, the executive director of the Global Alliance for Cannabis Commerce (GACC).

Descheduling is akin to the cannabis holy grail.

It would simultaneously:

- Legalize marijuana federally.
- End the 280E tax restrictions.
- Open banking access.
- Allow for interstate and international cannabis trade.

“Descheduling unlocks everything else, including banking, relief on 280E, everything,” said Steven Hawkins, the executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project. “It’s a rock that kills three birds.”'

https://mjbizdaily.com/marijuana-advocates-eye-federal-legalization-after-2020-election/

The UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs 1961 is the biggest farce when it comes to cannabis. Having said that cannabis is re-scheduled from Schedule IV which contains dangerous drugs like heroin, but still retained in Schedule I, supposedly the least restricted schedule, makes it appear that the parties have recognized the mistakes made regarding cannabis. However if you examine the list of drugs in Schedule I, what do you have - heroin, morphine, cocaine, fentanyl...ha ha ha...

And what defines the Schedules? Article 1 Definitions u) says - “Schedule I, Schedule II, Schedule III and Schedule IV mean the correspondingly numbered list of drugs or preparations annexed to this Convention, as amended from time to time in accordance with article 3." No definition for what a particular Schedule is and what criteria constitutes the Schedule other than an arbitrary list of items. Basically, a circular reference stating that the definition of something is arrived at by being in a list of things that the definition is supposed to define. The Convention is a smoke and mirrors game around pharmaceutical synthetic drugs with the natural cannabis, opium and coca plant thrown in by some highly muddled or selfish interests who do not recognize the difference between a natural plant that only nature can control and a synthetic man-made drug that needs to be controlled by man...

Mar 08, 2021 11:12:39am

Article 28 CONTROL OF CANNABIS

2. This Convention shall not apply to the cultivation of the cannabis plant exclusively for industrial purposes (fibre and seed) or horticultural purposes.

https://www.unodc.org/pdf/convention_1961_en.pdf

The rescheduling of cannabis by the UN last week from the most restrictive category to the least restrictive one requires an urgent rewrite of India's NDPS Act. The NDPS Act is based on the UN conventions and related international treaties. It must therefore reflect the same removal of cannabis from the most restrictive category to the least restrictive one. All offences, punishments and legal procedures related to cannabis must be redrawn accordingly. As a matter of fact, since cannabis is in the UN's least restricted category, it makes no sense to include it in the NDPS Act which should focus on the more restrictive ones for efficiency. This also presents an opportunity to redraw the NDPS and correct the deep rooted flaws in its structure. For one, actually mentioning the names of substances that are part of controlled substances lists in national drug laws is what one would call 'hard coding', a bad programming practice in software parlance. The NDPS must essentially list what the offences, legal procedures and punishments are for different categories of substances and not list the actual substances which are constantly moving in and out of UN controlled substances lists based on new findings. The NDPS must also ensure that its categorization is in line with the UN's of schedule IV being the most restrictive and schedule I being the least unlike the US's which is the reverse leading to confusion. Absurd laws such as death sentences for possession of THC or charas must immediately be corrected. Law and drug enforcement agencies as well as all sections of the judiciary must be immediately informed of these changes lest harms continue to be perpetrated against the innocent plant and its users.

Dec 08, 2020 9:19:18pm

'Since hemp and marijuana are indistinguishable without a chemical analysis, these cases represent a dramatic departure from traditional seized drug cases. Being able to determine whether the amount of THC in a sample is higher than 0.3% — the legal amount for hemp — brings with it a razor-thin margin of error. So the question becomes, how can we perform quantitative THC testing in the most efficient manner?

From day one of legalized industrial hemp production, we’ve relied on an outside vendor to do the testing. While this is time-consuming and expensive, the needs of the judicial system have exceeded our capabilities.

We now are close to implementing a test in our lab to determine if the THC concentration in a sample is above or below 1%. It is not the 0.3% legal threshold, but we feel that testing to this level is a reasonable first step toward distinguishing hemp and marijuana, as there is little to no market for illicit marijuana with less than 1% THC.'

https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/efficient-casework-policy-address-emerging-challenges-seized-drugs#about-author--0

10 actually...

1. Because cannabis is a medicine
2. We should stop wasting scarce resources
3. We should preserve freedom and increase justice
4. Prohibition has become a pretext for arresting decent, law-abiding people
5. Legalization creates jobs and raises tax revenue
6. Legalization increases product safety
7. Marijuana is less harmful than alcohol
8. Legalization has not led to increased road deaths
9. The gateway theory has been debunked. So has ‘amotivational syndrome’
10. Legalization has not increased teen use

https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/9-marijuana-legalization-arguments

The rescheduling of cannabis by the UN last week from the most restrictive category to the least restrictive one requires an urgent major shift in the national drug laws of every single nation that cites the international drug laws and treaties as the basis for its cannabis laws and policies. All persons convicted of possession of small quantities of cannabis, its consumption and cultivation, must be immediately freed. Those under trial for these offences must be acquitted. The law and drug enforcement agencies of all these nations must cease to enforce legal action against the persons who are involved in these activities and wasting precious planetary resources on it. The judiciary must stop entertaining cases related to these activities. Past criminal records of all persons convicted for the above offences must be expunged. Equally importantly, national drug laws of every single nation that uses the UN conventions as the framework for defining its drug laws must rewrite the same so that cannabis is not treated as a drug in the most restrictive category that it currently is in at the national level. Not a moment is to be wasted, for the longer the delay in doing this, the more the costs are going to pile up in terms of future corrective actions required, and the more the continuing harms to the plant and its users.

Dec 08, 2020 9:13:01pm

'Public opinion aside, there is also much to be said for standing on the shoulders of those who have gone before you.

In the late ’90s, when opinion was still strongly against legalization, western states paved the path for medical marijuana – and, more recently, recreational sales – but it was a slog in states such as California.

Previously, vague language in ballot initiatives and laws led to lengthy court battles. That, in turn, helped shape policy for more recent attempts.'

https://mjbizdaily.com/new-recreational-marijuana-markets-experiencing-quicker-starts-to-sales/

'Results We screened 4860 titles and 221 full-texts and included 114 articles. Most (n=104, 91.2%) were from the USA, evaluated cannabis reform (n=109, 95.6%) and focussed on legal regulation (n=96, 84.2%). 224 study outcome measures were categorised into 32 metrics, most commonly prevalence (39.5% of studies), frequency (14.0%) or perceived harmfulness (10.5%) of use of the decriminalised or regulated drug; or use of tobacco, alcohol or other drugs (12.3%). Across all substance use metrics, legal reform was most often not associated with changes in use.

Conclusions Studies evaluating drug decriminalisation and legal regulation are concentrated in the USA and on cannabis legalisation. Despite the range of outcomes potentially impacted by drug law reform, extant research is narrowly focussed, with a particular emphasis on the prevalence of use. Metrics in drug law reform evaluations require improved alignment with relevant health and social outcomes.'

https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/10/9/e035148

' - In 2019 the U.S. legal cannabis industry generated an estimated $13.2 billion in sales across all medical and adult-use state markets.
- In 2020, despite socioeconomic disruptions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, total legal cannabis sales are projected beyond $19 billion.
- Projecting a compound average growth rate (CAGR) of 18% over the next five years, by 2025 total annual U.S. legal sales should exceed $35 billion.
- Between 2020-2025, the total combined U.S. market opportunity for legal cannabis sales is estimated at $172 billion.
- Projecting that 18% CAGR, annual medical cannabis sales are estimated to nearly triple from $5.8 billion in 2019 to $16 billion in 2025.
- Meantime, annual legal adult-use sales are projected to grow at a 17% CAGR, from $7.4 billion in 2019 to $19 billion in 2025.
- Conversely, illicit market sales will slow due to legal markets: New Frontier Data estimates that 17% of all 2019 U.S. cannabis sales were legal; in 2025 more than one-third (34%) of total annual demand will be met through legal markets.
- Legal cannabis industry expansion is fueled both by new markets as more states adopt legalization, and from sustained demand growth as consumers transition from illicit to legal markets.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/growth-of-the-u-s-legal-cannabis-industry/

'The history of how 0.3% became the THC limit for hemp goes back to Canada and various countries across Europe, who first adopted that standard for hemp farmers in the 1990s. When farmers in the US began to lobby for the right to farm hemp, they followed suit.

“We thought ‘well, we’ve got to go with what the standard is in Canada and Europe because it was going to be harder to make an argument that you needed a different standard,’” said Eric Steenstra, President and Co-Founder of US hemp advocacy group Vote Hemp. “It just sort of became a de facto standard, even though it wasn’t really based on any kind of science.” '

https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/hemp-testing-hot-must-be-destroyed

Last week was extraordinary even in the stimulating world of cannabis. Three historic things happened, which few would have expected at the beginning of 2020, while the world lived out its pandemic fantasy.

- The UN removed cannabis from the most restrictive Schedule IV with no recognized medical value. It however still remains in its least restrictive Schedule I which means it is still controlled but it can be more easily researched and used as medicine.
- The US House of Representatives voted through the MORE act to remove cannabis from the list of controlled substances clearing the way for federal legalization. This however needs to pass the Senate and the President. The MORE act essentially means that the US federal government recognizes a state's cannabis legalization laws and will not interfere with it. All cannabis related past records will be expunged and prisoners released. If passed, the US can no longer put international pressure on the UN to keep cannabis scheduled when it recognizes legalization within its own states
- The EU Commission ruled that cannabidiol (CBD) is not narcotic within the meaning of the United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 in so far as it does not have psychotropic effect.

The world is taking important steps to release the plant and its users from unjust laws. More however needs to be done urgently to fully legalize it world wide and stop the terrible harms of cannabis prohibition.

Dec 08, 2020 9:08:34pm

'If the illicit market is about 2.5 times the state-legal market, as the GrowCola/New Frontier data suggests, America is missing out on hundreds of thousands of legal jobs and billions of dollars in tax revenue.

Today’s $14 to $23 billion legal cannabis market supports 243,700 full-time American jobs. Doing the math, a fully captured illicit market would add more than 600,000 full-time jobs to the national economy.

At a relatively conservative 10% tax rate, capturing $60 billion in sales would yield $6 billion in cannabis tax revenue every single year. That’s as much as New Hampshire’s entire annual state budget.'

https://www.leafly.com/news/industry/americans-will-spend-60-billion-on-illicit-marijuana-this-year-report-says

'A new analysis of cannabis research funding in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom has found that $1.56 billion was directed to the topic between 2000 and 2018—with about half of the money spent on understanding the potential harms of the recreational drug. Just over $1 billion came from the biggest funder, the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), which doled out far more money to research cannabis misuse and its negative effects than on using cannabis and cannabis-derived chemicals as a therapeutic drug'

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/08/cannabis-research-database-shows-how-us-funding-focuses-harms-drug

' - Despite a dramatic nationwide increase in the use and acceptance of cannabis, both federal and state policies have been slow to address long-standing inequities in cannabis regulation.
- Despite 26 million regular cannabis consumers in the U.S. (and 70% of adults reporting cannabis use as morally acceptable), prohibition enforcement continues apace, with over 600,000 annual arrests for cannabis-related offenses.
- Nationally, Blacks are nearly 4x more likely to be arrested as suspects than are Whites.
- Even as total arrests fall drastically in states legalizing adult use (e.g., more than 90% in Colorado) disparities in cannabis-related arrests persist.
- Post-legalization, challenges remain in ensuring equitable participation in the industry.
- Critical lack of access to bank loans means that Black households (which average a net worth 10x lower than that of respective White households) are far less likely to fund business opportunities in the industry.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/weeding-out-injustice/

'Results
Bisexual men had higher medical (6.4% versus 4.1%; aROR=1.93[1.29–2.88]) and non-medical stimulant use 6.6% versus 2.4%; aROR=2.23[1.44–3.44]) than heterosexual men. Bisexual women had higher non-medical stimulant use (6.8% versus 1.6%; aROR=1.54[1.23–2.93] than heterosexual women. Female (aROR=0.70[0.62–0.78]) and male (aROR=0.74[0.66–0.82]) heterosexuals in MML states had lower odds of medical stimulant use than in non-MML states. Bisexual men in MML states had lower odds of medical (aROR=0.36[0.21–0.61]) and non-medical stimulant use (aROR=0.48[0.29–0.81]) than bisexual men in non-MML states. Similar patterns emerged for bisexual women's non-medical use (aROR=0.57[0.40–0.81]).

Conclusion
Prescription stimulant use was higher in non-MML states for most LGB subgroups. MMLs may differentially impact stimulant use, primarily for bisexual men and women. States enacting MMLs should consider potential impacts on drugs other than marijuana, especially among LGB populations.'

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0955395920302012?dgcid=author

The Allahabad High Court quashed a FIR against an inter-faith couple, saying that the right to live with an individual of one's choice is intrinsic to the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 of the constitution. This right to live with a consenting adult individual of one's choice is also, besides inter-faith couples, applicable to couples of the same-sex as well. Extending it further, it also applies to consensual human-animal relationships and human-plant relationships. Mind you, right to live is not right to sex, unless both individuals consent to it. This right to life and personal liberty, therefore, applies to a human's relationship with the cannabis plant. If I plant some cannabis seeds and the plant decides to sprout and grow with me, then it has chosen its right to life and personal freedom. Any law stating that it is illegal to grow a cannabis plant at home for personal reasons is a law against the right to life and personal liberty of the person growing the cannabis plant and, equally importantly, to the right to life and personal liberty of the cannabis plant itself.

Nov 25, 2020 1:01:20pm

'Demand for marijuana illegally trafficked from Mexico will continue to decline as the legalization movement spreads, a new report from Congress’s research arm states.

With a growing number of U.S. states—as well as Canada—allowing people to legally purchase cannabis in a regulated market, they’re less inclined to seek out the product through illicit channels, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said.'

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/congressional-researchers-admit-legalizing-marijuana-hurts-mexican-drug-cartel-profits/

'Data show that, after cannabis, the drug for which the most people are brought into contact with the criminal justice system is the drug that dominates the market in a particular region. In Asia in particular, ATS are the major drug group for which people are brought into contact with the criminal justice system, most likely as a result of the wide use and trafficking of methamphetamine in the region. For both males and females, offences related to ATS are predominant among those brought into contact with the criminal justice system for possession for personal use. In the case of trafficking, the data show different patterns for men and women. Among those brought into contact with the criminal justice system for drug trafficking in Asia, for those who are men, ATS, opioids and cannabis account for similar proportions of cases (each drug group accounts for about a third of cases), while for women, ATS account for 60 per cent of cases, followed by opioids (which account for a third). Cocaine-related offences are particularly prevalent in the Americas, reflecting the extent of cocaine supply and trafficking in the region. Among those brought into contact with the criminal justice system for drug trafficking in the Americas, cocaine accounts for about 40 per cent, with similar proportions of men and women.'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'Among the four main drug types – ATS, cannabis, cocaine and opioids – for which data were reported, cannabis accounted for more than half of those brought into contact with the criminal justice system over the five-year period (reflecting the large global market for the drug), followed by ATS (19 per cent), cocaine (11 per cent) and opioids (7 per cent).'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'Analysed through the lens of the Sustainable Development Goals, the comparison of villages affected and not affected by illicit opium cultivation suggests that different development factors drive farmers to engage in illicit cultivation. For example, in 2017, in Afghanistan, the development gap was particularly acute with regard to the Sustainable Development Goals related to security and access to health and education services, while in Myanmar (Shan State) it was mostly associated with the Sustainable Development Goals related to infrastructure and natural resources. In the same year, in Colombia, a comparison among 6,000 households, located in 12 departments of the country, showed that households cultivating coca had less access to public services such as electricity and drinking water than households not cultivating coca. The development gap and inequality of opportunities differ not only between countries but also between specific locations within a country; for example, in 2017, in North Shan State in Myanmar, they were largely related to water, sanitation and energy, while in South Shan State, to deteriorating natural resources. Therefore, generalizations about the drivers of illicit cultivation and the specific gaps and inequalities of opportunities that alternative development may be aimed at reducing could be deceptive.'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'The extent of the area under illicit crop cultivation does not in itself reflect the sustainability of development efforts and is not a sufficient indicator for assessing the success of alternative development interventions. Experience has shown that shortterm reductions in illicit crop cultivation can be quickly reversed, or cultivation can be displaced to other locations, if interventions have not addressed the root causes of illicit crop cultivation and provided sustainable solutions'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'Regarding the origin of development funds made available for the purposes of drug control, DAC statistics suggest that, over the period 2002–2017, most such funds were provided by the United States, followed by the European Union (including its member States) and Japan. Although the share provided by the United States continues to be the largest worldwide, the shares provided by both the European Union (and its member States) and Japan increased over the period 2010–2017, as compared with the period 2002–2009.'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'Affordability is addressed, among other ways, by ensuring funding for the purchase of opioid medications as well as developing and improving health insurance and reimbursement schemes that guarantee access to pain medication. In 2018, 50 countries reported to INCB that steps had been taken towards improving their health insurance systems and setting affordable prices for essential medicines, including opioids. However, limited resources can impair even a well-intended Government from procurement or preclude it from providing or subsidizing controlled medicines for pain management. Other issues that may affect the affordability of pain medications include licensing, taxation, poor or inefficient distribution systems, lack of reimbursement and lack of availability of inexpensive formulations. Even in the case of Governments that are strongly committed to addressing challenges and barriers to access, financial resources may not be available to make systemic changes. Moreover, because of the high cost of pain medications, in many high-income countries and in most low- and middle-income countries, where a large number of people are not covered by either health insurance or a national health-care system, many people can encounter difficulties in accessing the pain medications that they need'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'Countries report that import and export control measures or restrictions are among the main impediments to ensuring the availability of controlled substances. To address this, INCB has introduced a number of online and electronic systems to streamline and simplify import and export processes within countries. One improvement over the years has been the gradual establishment of electronic tools for processing import and export authorizations, with competent national authorities in 50 countries reporting the use of such tools in 2018. In addition, with a view to facilitating the production of reliable estimates of the quantities of controlled substances needed nationally, guidelines for estimating the national requirements of controlled substances have also been made available in recent years. Nevertheless, many countries, for a myriad of reasons, continue to report to INCB that they are unable to properly estimate or to monitor consumption of controlled substances and continue to inadequately or insufficiently estimate opioid requirements'

- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020,

https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_6.pdf

'A highly regarded British think tank focused on reforming drug laws thinks Canada’s legalization and regulation of cannabis has gone well.

Transform has been monitoring Canadian reform efforts for some time, and advised the Canadian government and some provinces on how to develop regulations prior to legalization. Its positive views of Canada’s initiatives is a significant contribution in assessing our journey away from criminalization of simple possession and use of recreational drugs.'

https://theconversation.com/the-verdict-canadas-legalization-of-cannabis-is-a-success-141968

'Any anti-narcotic legislation is considered a good thing by the public. For this reason the field of narcotic legislation has become a testing ground for a type of law new to this country but familiar in police states. In the states of Louisiana and Kentucky it is a crime punishable by imprisonment (La., two to five years; Ky., one year) to be an addict. This is police-state legislation penalizing a condition or state of being. In the Louisiana law, no time or place is specified, nor is the term "addict" defined.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The data tracks arrests, not individuals, so there’s no mechanism for winnowing out repeat offenders. Nor does it include arrests for the sale or production of marijuana. But the numbers still illustrate how marijuana enforcement continues to make up a big part of many police agencies’ caseloads.

The findings reflect, in part, a few simple realities: The federal government incentivizes aggressive drug enforcement via funding for drug task forces and generous forfeiture rules that allow agencies to keep cash and other valuables they find in the course of a drug bust. And because marijuana is bulky and pungent relative to other drugs, it’s often easy for police to root out.'
https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2019/04/15/where-war-weed-still-rages/

'Thus, through the circumstances of their lives, and the nature of our own wants, all these have been our allies in keeping the balance of nature tilted in our favor. Yet we have turned our artillery against our friends. The terrible danger is that we have grossly underestimated their value in keeping at bay a dark tide of enemies that, without their help, can overrun us.

The prospect of a general and permanent lowering of environmental resistance becomes grimly and increasingly real with each passing year as the number, variety, and destructiveness of insecticides grows. With the passing of time we may expect progressively more serious outbreaks of insects, both disease-carrying and crop-destroying species, in excess of anything we have ever known.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'Hong Kong police, it's said, fear local youth might discover the pleasures of grass, and what is currently a minor problem might mushroom. They quickly grabbed the "killer drug" image of cannabis and tied it to Lee as an anti-drug message. Lee's image, of course, suffered for it.' - The Legend of Bruce Lee by Alex Ben Block, 1974

So we contaminate our environment, food and water with dangerous man-made chemicals in the pursuit of quick money. These chemicals cause cancers in our bodies. To treat these cancers we make dangerous synthetic drugs, in the pursuit of quick money, that not only fail to treat the cancers, but also result in a collapse of most other body systems. This leads to a weakening and collapse of humans on increasingly larger scales as time goes by. But we do nothing to stop the contamination and weakening of our bodies that evolved over hundreds of millions of years and the contamination of our environment, food and water. Instead we continue searching for more powerful man made chemicals, to make more money faster, in the name of medicine for our environment, bodies and minds believing that we are masters of nature or, if not that, smarter than nature, whom we can fool like our gullible fellow men...but nature is not looking to make more money faster..she only deals in life and death...

'The abolition of governments will merely rid us of an unnecessary organization for the commission of violence and for its justification.

'But there will then be no laws, no property, no courts of justice, no police, no popular education', say people who intentionally confuse the use of violence by governments with various social activities.

The abolition of the organization of government formed to do violence does not at all involve the abolition of what is reasonable and good, and therefore not based on violence, in laws or law courts, or in property, or in police regulations, or in financial arrangements, or in popular education. On the contrary, the absence of the brutal power of government which is needed only for its own support, will facilitate a more just and reasonable social organization, needing no violence. Courts of justice, and public affairs, and popular education, will all exist to the extent to which they are really needed by the people, but in a form which will not involve the evils contained in the present form of government. Only that will be destroyed which was evil and hindered the free expression of the people's will.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The idea after which each community is aiming to make and mend its law, is the will of the wise man. The wise man it cannot find in nature, and it makes awkward but earnest efforts to secure his government by contrivance; as by causing the entire people to give their voices on every measure; or by a double choice to get the representation of the whole; or by a selection of the best citizens; or to secure the advantages of efficiency and internal peace by confiding the government to one, who may himself elect his agents. All forms of government symbolize an immortal government, common to all dynasties and independent of numbers, perfect where two men exist, perfect where there is only one man.' - Politics, Emerson The Basic Writings of America's Sage

Collection and conservation of germplasm of indigenous populations of Central and South Asian landraces in their centers of diversity is urgently needed. The germplasm base outside their centers of diversity has become genetically contaminated by widespread crossbreeding. In the context of climate change and unpredictable future needs, in situ conservation of agrobiodiversity is much preferable for crop plants and their wild relatives, but given the precarious continued existence of unaltered aboriginal wild populations of Cannabis in Asia, preservation in seed banks is an immediate priority. Hopefully the unambiguous names provided may help prevent extinction of these taxa.'
https://phytokeys.pensoft.net/article/46700

'According to the agency's filing in the Federal Register, it "intends to promulgate regulations" to evaluate several dozen applications before it from private entities that wish to cultivate cannabis for FDA-approved research. However, this is not the first time the agency has made such a promise. In 2016, the DEA similarly announced the adoption of new rules to expand to supply of research-grade cannabis, but failed to take any further action.'
https://norml.org/news/2019/08/29/dea-promises-progress-on-federal-cultivation-applications-but-provides-no-timetable-for-action

'"Unregulated illicit market cannabis products, like products in an unregulated marketplace, are of variable quality and may put some consumers at risk," Armentano said. "These incidents linked to the use of unregulated, illicit market vapor cartridges reinforce the need for greater market regulation, standardization, and oversight — principles which NORML has consistently called for in the cannabis space. Consumers must also be aware that not all products are created equal; quality control testing is critical and only exists in the legally regulated marketplace."'
https://norml.org/news/2019/08/29/hospitalizations-linked-to-use-of-unregulated-vapor-cartridges

'Passage of the 2018 Farm Bill sparked both sharp nationwide increases in licensing and explosive sales growth for 2019.
The issuance of U.S. hemp-cultivation licenses saw a year-over-year, nationwide increase of 364% (from 3,546 in 2018 to 16,462 in 2019).
Small family farms’ entry to the space drove licensing booms in some states, while other states saw the arrival of Big Agriculture interests in their markets.
In 2019, Tennessee led the trend with 3,200 new licenses, marking more than a 13x increase over its 226 in 2018. Conversely, Montana’s comparatively low 277 licenses in 2019 represent nearly 40,000 acres, averaging a Big Ag-style footprint of more than 144 acres apiece.
Traditional hemp states Colorado, Kentucky, and Oregon continue to lead in cultivation as the nation overall shows a projected 225,000 acres harvested in 2019, more than a 180% increase beyond 78,176 in 2018.'

https://newfrontierdata.com/marijuana-insights/increases-in-state-issued-hemp-licenses/

'If only free men would not rely on what has no power and is never free, that is, external force, but would trust in what is always powerful and free, that is, the truth and its expression!

If only men would boldly and clearly express the truth already manifest to them (of the brotherhood of all nations and the crime of exclusive devotion to one's own) that defunct, false, public opinion on which rests the power of governments and all the evil they produce, would slough off by itself like a dead skin and reveal that new, living, public opinion which now only awaits the shedding of the old husk that has confined it, in order to announce its demands clearly and powerfully and establish new forms of existence in conformity with the conscience of mankind.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

So governments, the pharmaceutical industry and the medical industry cut off the supply of natural intoxicants like cannabis, opium, coca and palm toddy. They create refined and much more potent extracts from these natural materials. They control the supply and stock of these chemical drugs. They use the doctor-pharmacist route to administer these drugs to the public legally and the peddler-narcotics agent-rehabilitation center route to administer these drugs illegally. The individual is not allowed to grow or procure these intoxicants from nature. He must rely on the system to get his intoxicant and pay the maximum price for it. To realize more and more profits the system creates more and more potent chemical intoxicants moving further and further away from natural territory into synthetic chemically constructed territory. As the toxicity and addictive power of these drugs increase, the public gets addicted to an even greater extent and pays even more for any available intoxicant. Profits rise and fuel the growth of the system tremendously. The individual pays for the system, pays for the synthetic drug, pays for the treatment which is further synthetic drugs and eventually pays with his life for the synthetic intoxicant. Legalize all natural drugs - opium, coca, cannabis and toddy to name a few. Most importantly, legalize cannabis, the universal drug of the world...

'As such, hemp and hemp-derived CBD preparations that have 0.3% THC or less are not controlled substances, the DEA confirmed. “DEA registration is not required to grow or research” them.

The confirmation will be good news to the CBD industry, which has exploded recently. But any manufacturers making health claims about the CBD-containing products will still receive scrutiny from the Food and Drug Administration. Additionally, individual state laws and restrictions may apply.'
https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/08/dea-may-finally-let-others-grow-cannabis-for-research/

'It will afford no security from the new ideas, that the old nations, the laws of centuries, the property and institutions of a hundred cities, are built on other foundations. The demon of reform has a secret door into the heart of every lawmaker, of every inhabitant of every city. The fact that a new thought and hope have dawned in your breast, should apprize you that in the same hour a new light broke in upon a thousand private hearts. That secret which you should fain keep - as soon as you go abroad, lo! there is one standing on the doorstep to tell you the same.' - Man the Reformer, Emerson, The Basic Writings of America's Sage

'Overall, this study finds that the adoption and diffusion of [Medical Marijuana Laws]MMLs is mainly determined by the opinions of citizens rather than the political ideology of elected officials or the government’s fiscal health conditions.'
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01442872.2019.1656805

'Safe in Mexico, I watched the anti-junk campaign. I read about child addicts and Senators demanding the death penalty for dope peddlers. It didn't sound right to me. Who wants kids fr customers? They never have enough money and they always spill under questioning. Parents find out the kid is on junk and go to the law. I figured that either Stateside peddlers have gone simple-minded or the whole child-addict set-up is a propaganda routine to stir up anti-junk sentiment and pass some new laws.
Refugee hipsters trickled into Mexico. "Six months for needle marks under the vag-addict law in California." "Eight years for a dropper in Washington." "Two to ten for selling in New York."' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'“If its less than .3 percent, it’s considered hemp and the byproducts of that hemp are legal nationally,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Richard Salter. '
https://www.ketv.com/article/exclusive-omaha-division-of-the-drug-enforcement-administration-says-it-is-not-prosecuting-cbd-hemp-sellers-or-dealers/28875681

'But yet in these apparently unimportant actions - in our indicating to the extent of our powers the unreasonableness of what we clearly see to be irrational and refraining from taking part in it - lies our great and irresistible power: the power which constitutes that unconquerable force which makes up real genuine public opinion - that opinion which with its own advance moves all humanity. Governments know this. They tremble before that force and strive in every possible way to counteract and overcome it.

They know that strength lies not in force but in the action of the mind and in the clear expression. And they fear that expression of independent thought more than an army. So they establish censorship, bribe newspapers, and seize control of the Churches and schools. But the spiritual force which moves the world eludes them. It is not in a book or a newspaper: it cannot be trapped but is always free, for it lies in the depth's of man's consciousness. This most powerful, elusive, and free force shows itself in a man's soul when he is alone and reflects on the phenomena of the world and then involuntarily expresses his thoughts to his wife, his brother, his friend, and to all whom he accounts it a sin to conceal what he considers to be the truth. No milliards of rubles, or millions of troops, or any institutions, or wars, or revolutions, can or will produce what a free man can produce by the simple expression of what he considers right, independently of what exists and what is impressed upon him.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'“We have already made provisions for them to have access to land as well so that 60 acres of land being made available in Barbados to the Rastafarian community is the first step towards ensuring that they will not be left out of this.”
https://www.caribbeannationalweekly.com/caribbean-breaking-news-featured/barbados-government-promises-rastafarians-60-acres-of-land-to-grow-marijuana/

'According to MLive.com, 308 of the 792 cities and townships that passed Proposal 1 in November have prohibited recreational marijuana businesses.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/local-recreational-marijuana-bans-in-michigan-could-hurt-legal-sales/

'Fifty years ago, cannabis was known as the drug most emblematic of counterculture. Today, many people promote it as a fount of treatments for almost any ailment imaginable. This immense about-turn is reflected in changes in legal regimes: medicinal use of cannabis is now permitted in many countries, and some also allow the drug to be used recreationally. The times, they have a-changed.'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02523-6

'Now that the Narcotics Bureau had taken it upon itself to incarcerate every addict in the U.S., they needed more agents to do the work. Not only more agents, but a different type agent. Like during prohibition, when bums and hoodlums flooded the Internal Revenue Department, now addict-agents join the department for free junk and immunity. It is difficult to fake addiction. An addict knows an addict. The addict-agents manage to conceal their addiction, or perhaps, they are tolerated because they get results. An agent who has to connect or go sick will bring a special zeal to his work.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Cannabidiol (CBD) is an illegal drug with no redeeming value. It is also a useful prescription medicine for epilepsy, with considerable potential for treating numerous other conditions. And it is a natural dietary supplement or ‘nutraceutical’ with countless evangelists in the health and wellness community. Although contradictory, all three statements are true from different perspectives, and clinical researchers are frustrated.'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02524-5

'That humanity at large will ever be able to dispense with Artificial Paradises seems very unlikely. Most men and women lead lives at the worst so painful, at the best so monotonous, poor and limited that the urge to escape, the longing to transcend themselves if only for a few minutes, is and has always been one of the principal appetites of the soul. Art and religion, canivals and saturnalia, dancing and listening to oratory - all these haves served, in H.G. Wells' phrase, as Doors in the Wall. And for private, for everyday use there have always been chemical intoxicants. All the vegetable sedatives and narcotics, all the euphorics that grow on trees, the hallucinogens that ripen in berries or can be squeezed from roots - all, without exception have been known and systematically used by human beings from time immemorial. And to these natural modifiers of consciousness modern science has added its quota of synthetics - chloral, for example, and benzedrine, the bromides and the barbiturates.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

'No feats of heroism are needed to bring about the greatest and most important changes in the life of humanity; neither the arming of millions of men, nor the construction of new railways and machines, nor the organization of exhibitions or trade unions, nor revolutions, nor barricades, nor dynamite outrages, nor the perfection of aerial navigation, and so forth. All that is necessary is a change of public opinion.

And for that change no effort of thought is demanded, no refutation of any existing thing, and no planning of anything new and extraordinary. All that is necessary is to cease acquiescing in the public opinion of the past, now false and already defunct and only artificially induced by governments. It is only necessary for each individual to say what he really thinks and feels or at least refrain from saying what he does not think.

If only men - even a few - would do that, the out-worn public opinion would at once and of itself fall away and a new, real, and vital opinion would manifest itself. And with this change of public opinion all that inner fabric of men's lives which oppresses and torments them would change of its own accord. One is ashamed to say how little is needed to deliver all men from the calamities which now oppress them. It is only necessary to give up lying! Only let men reject the lie which is imposed upon them; only let them stop saying what they neither think nor feel, and at once such a change of the whole structure of our life will be accomplished as the revolutionaries would not achieve in centuries even if all the power were in their hands.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'There is little industry-wide consensus on cultivation best practice. Some outdoor growers might divert streams to water crops, whereas others pursue dry farming, which uses no irrigation. Indoors, growers sometimes choose cooler, light-emitting diode (LED) lights to substantially decrease water use. Meanwhile, others simply expand small, energy-intense facilities into larger operations. “There is a wide range of energy efficiency,” Smith says. “Outdoor crops planted from seeds might have a zero footprint, while old-style indoor cultivation can be 500 times more energy intensive.”'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02526-3

'For years, the popular image of cannabis growers has been scruffy hippies getting high on their own supply in a disorganized underground economy, rather than shiny white industrial agriculture facilities. Even larger-scale operations involved minimal quality control or lacked formal record keeping.

But as legal medical — and increasingly, recreational — cannabis becomes more widespread, the cannabis industry is becoming more professional. By adopting the methods and rigour of plant science and analytical chemistry, it is ensuring that it can produce safe, consistent and high-quality products for a fast-growing and lucrative market.'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02527-2

'“These data reveal a predominant use of prefilled THC cartridges sold through informal and unregulated markets, although the origin of these products further back in the production and distribution chain is unknown,” the report states.

The report goes on to say that it’s unclear if the cause of the illness is THC or “a substance associated with prefilled THC cartridges, such as a cutting agent or adulterant.”'
https://mjbizdaily.com/cdc-reports-majority-of-patients-sickened-in-vape-epidemic-used-marijuana-vaporizer-devices-many-from-illicit-market

'Most of these modifiers of consciousness cannot now be taken except under doctor's orders, or else illegally and at considerable risk. For unrestricted use the West has permitted only alcohol and tobacco. All the other chemical Doors in the Wall are labelled Dope, and their unauthorized takers are Fiends.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

'For many adults, researchers say, moderate use is probably fine. “I compare it to alcohol,” says Earl Miller, a cognitive neuroscientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Picower Institute for Learning and Memory in Cambridge. “Too much or the wrong situation can be bad, but in other situations it can be beneficial. I think we’re going to find the same thing with cannabis.”'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02530-7

'What about Roy?" I asked.
"Didn't you hear about him? He went wrong and hanged himself in the Tombs." It seemed the law had Roy on three counts, two larceny, one narcotics. They promised to drop all charges if Roy would set up Eddie Crump, an old-time pusher. Eddie only served people he knew well, and he knew Roy. The law double-crossed Roy after they got Eddie. They dropped the narcotics charge, but not the two larceny charges. So Roy was slated to follow Eddie up to Riker's Island, where Eddie was doing pen indefinite, which is maximum in City Prison. Three years, five months, and six days. Roy hanged himself in the Tombs, where he was awaiting transfer to Riker's.
Roy had always taken an intolerant and puritanical view of pigeons. "I don't see how a pigeon can live with himself," he said to me once.'
- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'A few things that do not work well should be phased out, including the excessively detailed labelling of cannabis products, a cap on the THC percentage that is permitted in such products and overzealous drug-awareness campaigns and messaging. These measures have had the opposite of their intended effects. The priority should be to facilitate research, which will help to inform education and policy agendas as the cannabis industry takes root.

Incremental progress is being made in pursuing policies that support crucial medical research that might unearth discoveries that could benefit millions of people and protect public health, in both the United States and abroad. Here’s to a dab of optimism about what the future could hold.'
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02531-6

'The power of the governments rests on public opinion and possessing power they can always support the sort of public opinion they require by their whole organization, officials, law courts, schools, the Church, and even the Press. Public opinion produces power , power produces public opinion; and it seems as if there were no escape from this position.

And that would really be the case if public opinion were something fixed and unchanging and if governments could always produce the public opinion they desired.

But fortunately that is not so. In the first place, public opinion is not something constant, unchanging and stagnant, but on the contrary is something continually changing and moving with the movement of mankind. And secondly, public opinion not only cannot be produced at will by governments, but is what produces governments and gives or deprives them of power.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

Happy Ganja Day to the lovers, friends and supporters of the divine herb. As we celebrate this day, let us not forget the millions who are imprisoned or face criminal action because of their association with the herb and its current worldwide illegal status. Let us not forget the millions who continue to suffer from physical and mental conditions and their lack of access to the medicinal properties of the plant. Let us not forget the millions who are addicted to heroin, methamphetamine, prescription drugs, alcohol, tobacco, novel psychoactive substances, synthetic cannabinoids and other dangerous substances without access to the natural, recreational herb. Let us hope that the opponents of the herb find reason and understanding in the coming days. Let us also look forward to the fast approaching inevitable day when the herb is finally free once again and available to every living being worldwide as it was always meant to be.

'After discussing the data limitations of the study, the authors concluded that “it indeed seems to be the case that legalizing the recreational use of marijuana results in fewer marijuana related arrests and court cases” and that while law enforcement sources voiced various concerns, several “indicated that methamphetamine and heroin were much larger problems for their agencies than was marijuana.”

The team “saw no evidence that marijuana legalization had an impact on indicators in border states,” adding that they “found no indications of increases in arrests related to transportation/trafficking offenses.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/study-funded-by-feds-debunks-myths-about-marijuana-legalizations-alleged-harms/

'The study, published in the journal Justice Quarterly and funded by the federal National Institute of Justice, found that violent and property crimes rates were not affected in a statistically significant way in the years after Colorado and Washington State became the first in the nation to legalize marijuana for adult use.

“Our results suggest that marijuana legalization and sales have had minimal to no effect on major crimes in Colorado or Washington,” the paper concluded. “We observed no statistically significant long-term effects of recreational cannabis laws or the initiation of retail sales on violent or property crime rates in these states.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/marijuana-legalization-doesnt-cause-increased-crime-federally-funded-study-finds/

'It would seem that junk is the only habit-forming drug. Cats cannot be addicted to morphine, as they react to an injection of morphine with acute delirium. Cats have a relatively small quantity of histamine in the blood stream. It would seem that histamine is the defense against morphine, and that cats, lacking this defense, cannot tolerate morphine. Perhaps the mechanism of withdrawal is this: Histamine is produced by the body as a defense against morphine during the period of addiction. When the drug is withdrawn, the body continues to produce histamine.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'A searing, on-the-ground look at President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly campaign against suspected drug dealers and users in the Philippines, “On the President’s Orders” is told with unprecedented access to the police themselves. It offers a gripping, visually stunning window into the war on drugs — those carrying it out, and those most impacted by it.'
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/on-the-presidents-orders/

'Why does the spider mite appear to thrive on insecticides? Besides the obvious fact that it is relatively insensitive to them, there seems to be two other reasons. In nature it is kept in check by various predators such as ladybugs, a gall midge, predaceous mites and several pirate bugs, all of them extremely senstitive to insecticides. The third reason has to do with population pressure within the spider mite colonies. An undisturbed colony of mites is a densely settled community, huddled under a protective webbing for concealment from its enemies. When sprayed, the colonies disperse as the mites, irritated though not killed by the chemicals, scatter out in search of places where they will not be disturbed. In so doing they find a far greater abundance of space and food than was available in the former colonies. Their enemies are now dead so there is no need for the mites to spend their energy in secreting protective webbing. Instead, they pour all their energies into producing more mites. It is not uncommon for their egg production to be increased threefold - all through the beneficient effect of insecticides.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'That means a gram of cannabis purchased in the illicit market was 45% cheaper on average than marijuana bought in the regulated market.

It shows Canada’s illicit market is staying competitive with the regulated market on price.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/price-gap-grows-in-canada-between-legal-illicit-cannabis/

'For a very long time past the power of the governments over the peoples has not rested on force, as it did in the days when one people conquered another and held it in subjection by force of arms, or when the rulers had legions of janissaries, oprichniki, and armed guards amid an unarmed people. For a long time past the power of the government rested on what is called public opinion.

There is a public opinion that patriotism is a great moral sentiment, and that people should consider their own nation and State as the best in the world; and this results in a public opinion that it is right and proper to acknowledge the authority of the government and to submit to it, that it is right and proper to serve in the army and submit to its discipline, that it is right and proper to give one's earnings to the government in the form of taxes, that it is right and proper to accept the decisions of the courts, and that it is right and proper to accept as divine truth whatever the emissaries of the government deliver to us.

And once such a public opinion exists, a mighty power is established, controlling in our days milliards of money, an organized mechanism of administration, the postal service, telegraphy, telephones, disciplined armies, the law courts, the police, a submissive clergy, schools, and even newspapers; and this power maintains among the people the public opinion needed for its own maintenance.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'It has also been submitted that while enacting the NDPS Act, the government failed to consider the medicinal benefits of the drug, including its effect as an analgesic, its role in fighting cancer, reducing nausea, and increasing appetite in HIV patients.'
https://swarajyamag.com/insta/delhi-high-court-seeks-centres-take-on-use-of-cannabis-after-a-petition-challenges-ndps-act

Officially sponsored myth 1 -'"All drugs are more or less similar and all are habit forming." This myth lumps cocaine, marijuana and junk together. Marijuana is not at all habit forming and its action is almost the direct opposite from junk action. There is no habit to cocaine. You can develop a tremendous craving for cocaine, but you won't be sick if you can't get it. When you have a junk habit, on the other hand, you live in a state of chronic poisoning for which junk itself is the specific antidote. If you don't get the antidote at eight-hour intervals, and enough of it, you develop symptoms of allergic poisoning: yawning, sneezing, watering of the eyes and nose, cramps, vomiting and diarrhea, hot and cold flushes, loss of appetite, insomnia, restlessness and weakness, in some cases circulatory collapse and death from alergic shock....When I say "habit-forming drug" I mean a drug that alters the endocrinal balance of the body in such a way that the body requires that drug in order to function. So far as I know, junk is the only habit forming drug according to this definition.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'While the numbers of planted acres and participants in the U.S. industrial hemp industry increased rapidly under the pilot programs, and hemp can now be grown legally in nearly every State, the long-term trends for U.S. industrial hemp are uncertain. The long-term economic viability of indus-trial hemp in the United States will be affected by:•competition from conventional field crops and marijuana (in States where it is legal) for acreage, •well-established foreign competitors for hemp product markets, •the ability to decrease production and pricing uncertainty through transparency and risk management, and,• continued market development'
https://www.ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/95930/eib-217.pdf

'Federal agriculture officials will delay the requirement that all THC testing on hemp crops must be performed at laboratories registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

And food and drug regulators say it’s a “fool’s errand” to get people to stop taking over-the-counter CBD'
https://hempindustrydaily.com/usda-drops-dea-testing-requirement-while-fda-acknowledges-demand-for-cbd/

'The advocates of peace by means of arbitration reason thus: two animals cannot divide their prey except by fighting: children act thus also, and so do barbarians and the barbarous nations, but rational men settle their disagreements by discussion, persuasion, and by referring the decision of the question to disinterested and reasonable people, and the nations of our day ought to act so. These arguments seem quite correct. The peoples of our time have reached a period of enlightenment and have no enmity towards one another and would settle their differences in a peaceful manner. But the argument is correct only in so far as it applies to the people alone, and only if the people are not under the sway of their governments. People in subjection to government is already an indication of the utmost irrationality. '

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Since 2011, interceptions of cannabis along U.S. borders have fallen 89%, reflecting the convergence of changing social, economic, and legal developments.
The southern border continues to account for almost all the interceptions (99%), though it has also seen the steepest decline (90%) of them since 2011.
The decrease in southern interceptions is likely attributable to a range of factors: falling demand for illicit cannabis in states with legal medical and adult use programs, less appeal for traditionally lower-quality cannabis from Mexico or other southern countries than for domestically cultivated products, and increased border enforcement efforts raising the risk of interdiction.
Conversely, interceptions at the norther border increased 113% between 2018 and 2019, reflecting Canada’s nationwide adult-use legalization in 2018 and the appeal of its reputed high-quality cannabis.
The data suggest that legalization is having a major disruptive effect on international cannabis smuggling operations aimed at the U.S., and underscores American consumer preference for regulated cannabis products where available and competitively priced'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/cannabis-border-interceptions-decreasing/

'During a presentation Thursday for the International Narcotics Control Board’s (INCB) 2019 annual report, President Cornelis P. de Joncheere discussed the developments taking place with regard to cannabis and synthetic drugs.

“We have some fundamental issues around the conventions that state parties will need to start looking at,” he said, adding, “We have to recognize that the conventions were drawn up 50 and 60 years ago.”

Joncheere said 2021 is “an appropriate time to look at whether those are still fit for purpose, or whether we need new alternative instruments and approaches to deal with these problems.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/in-major-shift-un-drug-chief-questions-whether-control-treaties-involving-cannabis-are-out-of-date/

Officially sponsored myth 7 - '"There is a clear line between addict and peddler. The authorities pity the addict and are out only to get the peddler."
I have never seen an addict who did not sell, or a street peddler who did not use. There is no line at all. The authorities make no distinction, and the penalty for selling and possession are about the same.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The current vogue for poisons has failed utterly to take into account these most fundamental considerations. As crude a weapon as the cave man's club, the chemical barrage has been hurled against the fabric of life - a fabric on the one hand delicate and destructible, on the other miraculously tough and resilient, and capable of striking back in unexpected ways. These extraordinary capacities have been ignored by the practitioners of chemical control who have brought to their task no 'high-minded orientation', no humility before the vast forces with which they tamper.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

The cannabis death count..
https://twitter.com/JohnFetterman/status/1253277973635117056

'A majority of Americans say that adult-use marijuana legalization has been a success in those states that have implemented it, according to nationwide polling compiled by YouGov.com.

Fifty-five percent of respondents said that statewide laws allowing recreational marijuana use have been either fully or mostly successful. Nineteen percent of respondents said that the laws have been largely unsuccessful. Twenty-six percent voiced no opinion. '
https://norml.org/news/2020/04/23/poll-majority-of-americans-say-adult-use-legalization-policies-have-been-a-success

'The working people are too much taken up with the task of earning a living for themselves and their families to be able to interest themselves in the political questions that figure as the chief motives of patriotism. The question of Russia's influence in the East, the unification of Germany, the return of France's lost provinces, of the cession of this or that part of one State to another, and so on, does not interest them - not only because they hardly ever know the conditions under which these questions arise, but because the interests of their life are quite apart from national and political interests.

To a man of the people it is always a matter of complete indifference where a frontier is drawn, to whom Constantinople may belong, whether Saxony or Brunswick shall, or shall not, be a member of the German Union, whether Australia or Matabeleland shall belong to England - or even to what government he has to pay his taxes and into which army he must send his sons. The important thing for him is to know how much tax he will have to pay, whether the army service will be a long one, whether he will have to pay for the land over many years, and whether he will get much for his work - all questions quite apart from national and political interests. That is why - despite the intensive efforts made by governments to instill a patriotism into people that is not innate in them, and to suppress the ideas of socialism that are developing in them - socialism is penetrating more and more into the masses of the people, while patriotism, with which they are so carefully inoculated by the government, not only fails to spread, but is disappearing more and more and is only maintained by the upper classes to whom it is profitable.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'When it comes to withdrawal, Armentano said research has found symptoms to be mild and short-lived.

“Like with most matters specific to cannabis,” he said, the new findings “need to be placed in appropriate context.”

He compared cannabis withdrawal to withdrawal symptoms when someone stops using tobacco or alcohol.

“The profound physical withdrawal effects associated with tobacco are so severe that many subjects who strongly desire to quit end up reinitiating their use. In the case of alcohol, the abrupt ceasing of use in heavy users can be so severe that it can lead to death,” Armentano said.

“Simply withdrawing from caffeine can lead to a number of adverse side effects, like rebound headaches,” he added. “But we do not arrest 600,000 Americans annually for their use of caffeine.”'
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/marijuana-withdrawal-symptoms-are-real-for-regular-users

The urban legend of 420..
https://thedcapage.blog/2020/04/21/california-dreamin-or-the-tale-of-420/

Officially sponsored myth 8 - '"Peddlers try to get high school children on junk, or marijuana. A recent magazine article depicts peddlers slipping laudanum into the Coca-Cola of teenagers."
This is utterly ridiculous. No peddler wants kids for customers. They never have enough money, they talk too much and they cannot stand up under police questioning. The best customers are the old-timers. They know all the angles and generally have some source of revenue.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The hemp industry scored a victory on Tuesday after the Senate passed a coronavirus relief bill that, for the first time, will allow farmers to access a certain federal loan program amid the pandemic.

Farmers have historically been left out of disaster relief legislation through the federal Small Business Administration (SBA) because they’re eligible for separate programs under the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). But those programs are designated for natural disasters, and so industry advocates have been pushing Congress to allow farmers to be eligible for SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/hemp-industry-secures-federal-coronavirus-relief-for-farmers-in-senate-passed-bill/

'Ours is the age, among other things, of the automobile and of rocketing population. Alcohol is incompatible with safety on the roads, and its production, like that of tobacco, condemns to virtual sterility many millions of acres of the most fertile soil. The problems raised by alcohol and tobacco cannot, it goes without saying, be solved by prohibition. The universal and ever-present urge to self-transcendence is not to be abolished by slamming the currenty popular Doors in the Wall. The only reasonable policy is to open other, better doors in the hope of inducing men and women to exchange their old bad habits for new and less harmful ones. Some of these other, better doors will be social and technological in nature, others religious or psychological, others dietetic, educational, athletic. But the need for frequent chemical vacations from intolerable selfhood and repulsive surroundings will undoubtedly remain.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

So we contaminate our environment, food and water with dangerous man-made chemicals in the pursuit of quick money. These chemicals cause cancers in our bodies. To treat these cancers we make dangerous synthetic drugs, in the pursuit of quick money, that not only fail to treat the cancers, but also result in a collapse of most other body systems. This leads to a weakening and collapse of humans on increasingly larger scales as time goes by. But we do nothing to stop the contamination and weakening of our bodies that evolved over hundreds of millions of years and the contamination of our environment, food and water. Instead we continue searching for more powerful man made chemicals, to make more money faster, in the name of medicine for our environment, bodies and minds believing that we are masters of nature or, if not that, smarter than nature, whom we can fool like our gullible fellow men...but nature is not looking to make more money faster..she only deals in life and death...

People who love alcohol should start and increase the brewing of beers, making of wines and distilling of spirits at home. They should work to bring back natural alcohols like palm toddy back into the mainstream. Industrial alcohol is harmful to public health due to its potency, toxicity and lower sustainability as compared to the small scale stuff. Money from big alcohol is mainly going into suppressing small scale industries, funding governments that are becoming increasingly repressive and blocking the efforts of reviving green and safer intoxicants like cannabis, the intoxicant of the poor. Industrial alcohol is fueling violence, crime, addiction and death in large numbers. Yes, it does have its place in society but that need not be at the cost of all other natural intoxicants. In fact the consumers of natural intoxicants should be the majority, especially the poorer folk, with industrial alcohol forming the minority consumers, especially the elite and those who can afford it. The ideal balance of alcohol should be small scale or home made alcohol to industrial alcohol in the ratio of somewhere like 70:30 in society. Then it will be truly sustainable, healthy and medicinal for society.

'In 2013, the Government of Uruguay approved legislation (Law No. 19.172) regulating the cultivation, production, dispensing and use of cannabis for different purposes, including non-medical use. In accordance with the legislation, Uruguayan citizens or foreigners with permanent residence aged 18 and older can obtain cannabis for non-medical purposes by registering with the national Institute for the Regulation and Control of Cannabis and by choosing one of three options: (a) purchase in authorized pharmacies; (b) membership of a club; or (c) domestic cultivation. The quantity of cannabis permitted per person, obtained through any of the three mechanisms, cannot exceed 480 g per year. Initially, the Government of Uruguay set THC content at 2 per cent and CBD content at 6–7 per cent. In 2017, the Government introduced two new varieties, with a maximum THC content of 9 per cent and CBD content of no less than 3 per cent.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The sight of these two men, so different from one another - the well-fed elegant Frenchman, in a top-hat and a long overcoat that was then very fashionable, radiant with freshness and self-confidence, with his white hand, unused to work, energetically showing how the Germans must be squeezed; and the shaggy figure of Prokofy, shriveled up by constant labour, always tired but always at work despite his enormous rupture, with fingers swollen by toil, with wisps of hay in his hair, with slack home-made breeches and down-trodden bark shoes, striding along with an enormous fork of hay on his shoulder, with that step, not lazy but economical in movement, with which a working man always moves - the strong contrast presented by those two men made much clear to me then, and now, after the Toulon-Paris festivities, vividly occurs. One of them personified all those who, fed by the people's toil, afterwards use those same people for cannon-fodder, while the other personified that very cannon-fodder which feeds and protects the others who afterwards so dispose of it.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Out of the nearly 9,000 respondents, 5 per cent reported ever using cannabis and had used opioids in the past year, among whom 43 per cent had used opioids daily and 23 per cent had used cannabis in the past 30 days. Although the results are based on a small number of respondents, of the 450 who reported ever using cannabis and past-year opioid use, 41 per cent reported a decrease or cessation of opioid use as a result of cannabis use, 46 per cent reported no change in opioid use and 8 per cent reported an increase in opioid use' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

Officially sponsored myth 10 - '"There is a connection between addiction and crime. Marijuana, especially, is supposed to cause people to commit crimes."
There is no direct connection between crime and drug intoxication that I have ever seen or heard of. The people who talk about drugs causing crime never seem to follow through and take into account the vast number of crimes committed by drunks. Alcohol is a crime-producing drug that outclasses all others. Of course, a lot of junkies steal to keep up their habit. It isn't easy to get up $10-15 per day, which is what the addict has to pay out for a day's supply of junk in the US.'

- Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'A study on the impact of cannabis legalization on alcohol sales in Colorado, Oregon and Washington, the three states with the longest history of legal nonmedical use of cannabis, showed that there was no evidence that legalization had had any impact on the sale of spirits or on total alcohol sales, which are generally considered a good proxy for alcohol consumption in the United States. The study showed that the per capita sale of spirits had increased by 3.6 per cent in Oregon, 5.4 per cent in Washington and 7.6 per cent in Colorado in 2018, after the measures allowing the non-medical use of cannabis were implemented in those states. Consistent with national trends, per capita sales of beer had declined by 3.6 per cent in Colorado, 2.3 per cent in Washington and 3.6 per cent in Oregon. The sale of wine increased by 0.7 per cent in Oregon, declined by 3.1 per cent in Washington and increased by 3.2 per cent in Colorado. Overall, per capita sales of alcoholic beverages were fairly stable, as they increased by 1.7 per cent in Colorado, declined by 0.2 per cent in Washington and declined by 0.5 per cent in Oregon' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The 'control of nature' is a phrase conceived in arrogance, born of the Neanderthal age of biology and philosophy, when it was supposed that nature exists for the convenience of man. The concepts and practices of applied entomology for the most part date from that Stone Age of science. It is our alarming misfortune that so primitive a science has armed itself with the most modern and terrible weapons, and that in turning them against the insects it has also turned them against the earth.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'More than half of the studies, however, have shown that cannabis and alcohol are substitutes, meaning that the increased use of one substance reduces the use of the other. Other researchers have also suggested that cannabis, especially cannabis for medical use, may serve as a substitute for alcohol, tobacco and other drugs, including prescription drugs.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In Washington, driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol is considered the number one contributing factor in fatal crashes and is involved in nearly half of all traffic fatalities. However, in that state, reporting on such cases does not differentiate between cannabis and other drugs. The number of reported cases of driving under the influence of drugs has increased by more than 60 per cent in Washington since 2014. Although not so recent, data on drivers involved in fatal crashes who tested positive for alcohol or drugs in Washington during the period 2008–2016 show that 44 per cent tested positive for two or more substances. Of those substances, the most common one was alcohol, followed by THC, while alcohol and THC formed the most common polydrug combination involved in fatal crashes during that period.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

Cannabis meets all these criteria plus it it naturally growing worldwide and has been used for tens of thousands of years...no need for a new drug, we just need to bring it back..reefer madness had clouded even Huxley's mind at the time that this was written...

'What is needed is a new drug which will relieve and console our suffering species without doing more harm in the long run than it does good in the short. Such a drug must be potent in minute doses and synthesizable. If it does not possess these qualities, its production, like that of wine, beer, spirits and tobacco will interfere with the raising of indispensible food and fibres. It must be less toxic than opium or cocaine, less likely to produce undesirable social consequences than alcohol or the barbiturates, less inimical to the heart and lungs than the tars and nicotine of cigarettes. And, on the positive side, it should produce changes in consciousness more interesting, more intrinsically valuable than mere sedation or dreaminess, delusions of impotence or release from inhibition.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

'Starting in 2014, data on traffic fatalities in Colorado showed a marked increase in the number of traffic deaths in which the driver tested positive for cannabis use. Over the period 2009–2013, there were 53 traffic deaths on average per year in which the driver tested positive for cannabis, a figure that increased to an average of 110 such deaths in the period 2014–2018, and the proportion of fatalities with drivers testing positive for cannabis doubled over the period 2009–2018. However, toxicology analysis has shown that car crashes in which the driver was found to be under the influence of cannabis frequently involved other drugs, in particular alcohol' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'A contentious issue between people who are for and against the legalization of cannabis remains whether it has had an impact on driving under the influence of cannabis and caused fatal car crashes. The evidence remains inconclusive, as within the United States there have been no differences in cannabis- or alcohol-related traffic fatalities between states that have and have not legalized the non-medical use of cannabis. As different research contributions have also shown, it is difficult to quantify the effects of cannabis on road accidents, as cannabis is often used in combination with alcohol, which increases the challenge of determining the influence of cannabis itself on road traffic accidents. Moreover, studies on THC levels and degrees of impairment have found that the level of THC in the blood and the degree of impairment do not appear to be closely related; peak impairment does not occur when THC concentration in the blood is at or near peak levels.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In each of these situations one turns away to ponder the question: Who has made the decision that sets in motion these chains of poisonings, this ever-widening wave of death that spreads out, like ripples when a pebble is dropped into a still pond? Who has placed in one pan of the scales the leaves that might have been eaten by the beetles and in the other the pitiful heaps of many-hued feathers, the lifeless remains of the birds that fell before the unselective bludgeon of insecticidal poisons? Who has decided - who has the right to decide - for the countless legions of people who were not consulted that the supreme value is a world without insects, even though it be also a sterile world ungraced by the curving wing of a bird in flight? The decision is that of the authoritarian temporarily entrusted with power; he has made it during a period of inattention by millions to whom beauty and the ordered world of nature still have a meaning that is deep and imperative.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'In Washington state, the past-month use of cannabis among high-school students of different grades has generally remained stable, although it increases by grade, with the highest past-month prevalence found among twelfth grade students, as in Colorado. The perception of risk relating to cannabis use among high-school students has also declined since the nonmedical use of cannabis was legalized, with nearly three quarters of twelfth grade students seeing no or low risk in trying cannabis a few times and less than half perceiving no or low risk in the regular use of cannabis in 2018. Similarly, some 38 per cent of twelfth grade students considered that it was fairly easy to get cannabis.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'While the daily or near-daily use of cannabis among high-school students in Colorado has declined, the prevalence of occasional users, that is, those who report having used cannabis one or two times in the past month, has increased since legalization. Nevertheless, 4.7 per cent of high-school students reported using cannabis daily or nearly daily (20 or more times in the past 30 days) in 2017. Moreover, although the share of high-school students smoking cannabis declined from 92 per cent in 2015 to 84 per cent in 2017, there was an increase in the share of those who reported using edibles with high THC content (from 28 per cent in 2015 to 36 per cent in 2017) or “dabbing” cannabis extracts and concentrates (from 28 per cent in 2015 to 34 per cent in 2017) in the past month.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

Huxley misses a point or two here..no drug will be universally perfect for all. There will always be a minority (better that than a majority) for whom any drug will be incompatible given different mental and physical constitutions. Also his obsession and faith in the Western system of synthesizing something that can be had in measured doses like pills or alcohol is unnecessary for natural intoxicants where margins are much larger and safer..cannabis is the ideal...peyote and psilocybin too where it is available but not to the extent of cannabis...nature has done the work already, no need for pharmacologists and neurologists to re-invent the wheel...

'Although obviously superior to cocaine, opium, alcohol and tobacco, mescalin is not yet the ideal drug. Along with the happily transfigured majority of mescalin takers there is a minority that finds in the drug only hell or purgatory. Moreover, for a drug that is to be used, like alcohol, for general consumption, its effects last for an inconveniently long time. But chemistry and physiology are capable nowadays of practically anything. If the psychologists and sociologists will define the ideal, the neurologists and pharmacologists can be relied upon to discover the means whereby that ideal can be realized or at least (for this kind of ideal can never, in the very nature of things, be fully realized) more nearly approached than in the wine-bibbing past, the whisky-drinking, marijuana- smoking and barbiturate-swallowing present.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

'One concern about legalizing the non-medical use of cannabis for adults (21 years and older) is that its use could also increase access to cannabis and its use among adolescents. Based on national data, cannabis use among high-school students remained stable overall, whereas the risk perception of the occasional use of cannabis declined in the United States over the period 2012–2018. In Colorado, although there has been a decline in daily or near-daily use of cannabis among high-school students, they are now consuming and exposed to cannabis products with far higher THC content than was available or used earlier. In 2017, about 20 per cent of high-school students in Colorado reported non-medical use of cannabis in the past month; that rate is comparable to the national average among high-school students.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Colorado and Washington were the first two states in the United States to legalize the production of cannabis for non-medical use, in 2012. However, prior to legalization, those states and others, such as California, had various regimes in place that permitted or tolerated the production and sale of cannabis for medical use, which allowed people with a range of conditions that were not well-defined to gain access to cannabis. The states of Colorado and Washington, for which more long-term trend data are available, are interesting case studies for examining the public health and public safety outcomes that have emerged in the years since the production of cannabis for non-medical use was legalized.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In addition to Vermont, Illinois is another state in which measures allowing the non-medical use of cannabis were passed through the state legislature rather than through voters’ initiatives, as was the case in the other states that have legalized the nonmedical use of cannabis. In May 2019, the Illinois General Assembly passed the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act, which was signed by the state Governor in June. The sale of cannabis for non-medical use began on 1 January 2020. Under the law, adults aged 21 and older are allowed to purchase and possess up to 30 g of cannabis flower, edibles with a maximum of 500 mg of THC, or 5 g of cannabis concentrates. Non-residents of Illinois will be allowed to purchase half of those amounts. As in some other states, individual cities, villages and municipalities have the option to decide whether to allow the non-medical use of cannabis in their jurisdictions by passing ordinances. Nonetheless, local governments may neither prohibit home cultivation of cannabis nor “unreasonably prohibit” its non-medical use.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In the United States, a total of 33 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, had approved or had in place a comprehensive programme for medical cannabis by the end of 2019. As at December 2019, 11 state-level jurisdictions in the United States, plus the District of Columbia, allowed the nonmedical use of cannabis, and most also allowed commercial production by for-profit industry. It is worth noting that all the states that have legalized the non-medical use of cannabis previously had measures in place permitting the medical use of cannabis.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Although the Cannabis Act introduced a variety of classes of cannabis licences, including for smaller producers, the federal Government requires that a potential supplier have a production facility in place, meaning that the supplier will have already made a substantial investment prior to applying for a licence. Some have speculated that this has contributed to deterring small entrepreneurs from applying for licences and may have favoured the emergence of a market dominated or even monopolized by a relatively small number of large, multi-billion-dollar businesses. There have also been reports of the alcohol, tobacco and finance industries investing in companies involved in nonmedical cannabis production. For instance, according to media sources, in October 2017 Constellation Brands, a major international producer of wine, beer and spirits, invested $4 billion to acquire a 9.9 per cent stake in Canopy Growth, the leading Canadian producer, to develop cannabis-based beverages. By the end of December 2019, Constellation owned a 35 per cent stake in Canopy. In December 2018, the tobacco company Altria made a $1.8 million investment in Cronos Group, a cannabis production company, giving Altria a 45 per cent interest in Cronos. Earlier in the year, Molson Coors Brewing, another multinational alcohol company, signed a joint venture with Quebec-based HEXO to develop and market cannabis-infused beverages. Market analysts have predicted that the alcohol industry will also invest in companies that plan to produce beverages that combine cannabis and beer and, in particular, they predicted that by the end of 2019 two of the largest cannabis companies in the world would be owned by two of the largest alcohol and tobacco companies' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The sale of non-medical cannabis through legal sources represents only a portion of the cannabis market, as it appears that a substantial proportion of users still rely on illegal sources to obtain cannabis (42 per cent in 2019). Moreover, cannabis prices on the illegal market have remained considerably lower (and have been declining) compared with the prices on the legal market. In the second quarter of 2019, based on 236 submissions, the average price per gram of cannabis on the legal market was Can$10.65, compared with Can$5.93 per gram on the illegal market.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In most provinces, the retail licensing regime is similar to that regulating the sale of liquor, and cannabis is sold through licensed retailers (private sector), provincial retail stores (public sector) and online. Many provinces have adopted a hybrid model that allows either public or private physical retail outlets together with online retail controlled by regulatory authorities, or a combination of all three. With the exception of the Nunavut territory, all the provinces and territories allow retail sales of cannabis products online. British Columbia and Yukon are the only province and territory that allow all three modes, while Alberta, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and Saskatchewan have allowed private bricks-and-mortar retail stores.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

Ganja in the Indian sub-continent...

'The urge to transcend self-conscious selfhood is, as I have said, a principal appetite of the soul. When, for whatever reason, men and women fail to transcend themselves by means of worhip, good works and spiritual exercises, they are apt to resort to religion's chemical surrogates - alcohol and 'goof-pills' in the modern West, alcohol and opium in the East, hashish in the Mohameddan world, alcohol and marijuana in Central America, alcohol and coca in the Andes, alcohol and the barbiturates in the more up-to-date regions of South America.' - The Doors of Perception, Aldous Huxley, 1954.

'According to the new cannabis regulations, the federal Government of Canada is responsible for setting the requirements for those who grow and produce cannabis, including the types of cannabis products available for sale. For example, the regulations were amended in October 2019 to allow the production and sale of edible cannabis, cannabis extracts and topicals, and the sale of those products began gradually from December 2019. The provincial and territorial governments, for their part, are Responsible for developing, implementing, maintaining and enforcing systems to oversee the distribution and sale of cannabis.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In 2019, young people aged 15–24 were more likely than those in older age groups to obtain cannabis from illegal sources, whereas a larger share of older cannabis users relied solely on legal sources; 41 per cent of cannabis users aged 65 or older reported using only legal sources to obtain cannabis, compared with roughly one quarter of the other age groups.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The transition from the illegal market to legal sources of cannabis has been a gradual one. The proportion of cannabis users sourcing their products from the legal market increased from around 25 per cent in the second and third quarters of 2018 to about 50 per cent one year later, and in 2019 nearly 30 per cent relied solely on the legal market for their cannabis (compared with 10 per cent in 2018). Many users relied on multiple sources to obtain their cannabis, with about 40 per cent of cannabis users still getting their product from illegal sources.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'A previous analysis of 103 darknet markets selling drugs over the period 2010–2017 revealed that those markets were, on average, active for just over eight months, and their average lifespan does not appear to have increased in recent years. In fact, as at May 2019, most of the previously important darknet markets had disappeared. Out of more than 110 darknet markets for drugs identified during the period 2010–2019, just 10 remained fully operational. Most of the darknet markets selling drugs that were operational in 2019 had been launched only in 2018.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In Hong Kong however, where there is almost no marijuana use, the drug conjures up images of harder drugs, much as "grass" used to be considered the "devil weed" in the United States before its usage spread in the late 1960s. Police in Hong Kong, even now, tend to pay more attention to hash or grass, it seems, than heroin or opium, simply because the substances are less familiar and have come to be associated with the dreaded "hippie tourist Europeans" (anyone in Hong Kong who is not Chinese, and who has white skin, is called a European, just as all Japanese and Chinese are lumped together in America with Vietnamese and others as Orientals).' - The Legend of Bruce Lee by Alex Ben Block, 1974

'The main characteristic and comparative advantage of darknet markets is their perceived anonymity, in particular the physical anonymity of those who do business on such markets. Purchasing drugs on those markets does not necessarily require physical contact, which reduces the inhibitions of some customers who might otherwise be reticent to interact personally with drug dealers. In addition, the customer does not have to go to dangerous places to buy drugs. Darknet trafficking also overcomes the challenge of sellers and buyers having to be in the same location; thus, organizations that traffic drugs over the darknet do not need to have the critical mass of customers necessary to sustain a local market.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'This system, however - deliberately poisoning our food, then policing the result - is too reminiscent of Lewis Carroll's White Knight who thought of 'a plan to dye one's whiskers green, and always use so large a fan that they could not be seen.' The ultimate answer is to use less toxic chemicals so that the public hazard from their misuse is greatly reduced.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

Fundamental to programming is the avoidance of hard coding values that are likely to change, that need translation and that need to be used in different functions based on varying conditions. This is to avoid duplication, ambiguity and re-programming. These values are kept in configuration files that are accessed and amended as needed. This is even more true for medicines that need to be controlled based on nature of harm and use. The idea of globally agreed lists of medicines with harmful substances requiring tight control is good provided laws regarding these are universal, fair and consistent at regional, country or state levels. A key operational issue is that even these global lists are not updated fast enough considering the latest scientific knowledge and that new harmful synthetic substances are rapidly churned out of pharmacy labs. Worse, natural cannabis, peyote, psilcybin, etc. proven over thousands of years to be much more safer in their natural form than the recently created synthetic drugs, continue to remain in these global lists, significantly hampering their objective and efficiency, diverting precious resources and greatly damaging global public health. The Indian NDPS Act is like one of the worst examples of programming with a list of substances hard coded into it and a bunch of rules copy pasted around it, existing over and above the IPC. 20kgs of hashish or 500g of THC will get you the death sentence. Fentanyls, the leading cause of global drug overdose deaths, synthetic cannabinoids and synthetic cathinones, etc. are not even on the list...
Jul 21, 2020, 4:09 PM

'“Politicians are always lagging behind public opinion. They always wait for a parade and then run to get in front of it,” Erik Altieri said.

Altieri said to obtain federal legalization a true, multi-racial, class, and generation coalition is needed. NORML has built strong alliances with the ACLU and NAACP, among others. They also have some unexpected allies like AARP, which advocates for seniors since clinical cannabis benefits them greatly.

“We have the American people at our back, and we’ll finally see prohibition crumble and be a relic of history,” Erik Altieri predicted.'
https://headynj.com/erik-altieri-leading-norml-to-cannabis-legalization-victories/

'The process is part of an experiment in the Netherlands to legalize for the first time – though it’s limited in scope and time – the production of marijuana destined to be sold in coffee shops.

Only applicants that demonstrate the capability to cultivate at a large scale – a minimum of 6,500 kilograms (14,330 pounds) per year – will be considered.

But the government’s newly released FAQ specifies that the winners won’t necessarily have to grow that amount.

Up to 10 growers will be selected to supply roughly 80 coffee shops in 10 municipalities during a period of at least four years.

The government estimates a minimum production of 65,000 kilograms per year will be needed, considering that each of the 80 coffee shops has an average turnover of about 1 kilogram per day – 20% of which is hashish.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/netherlands-clarifies-process-for-applications-to-grow-legal-adult-use-cannabis/

'“The evidence described in the present systematic review indicates that CBD is a promising adjunct therapy for the treatment of cocaine dependence due to its effect on cocaine consumption, brain reward, anxiety, related contextual memories, neuroadaptations and hepatic protection as well as its anticonvulsant effect and safety,” the study authors concluded.

“The clinical administration of CBD leads to a reduction in the self-administration of cocaine and, consequently, the amount of the drug consumed. Moreover, the reward induced by cocaine is blunted by CBD treatment.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/cbd-is-a-promising-therapy-in-treating-cocaine-misuse-meta-study-finds/

'Clinical pathologist Dr. R R Lycette of Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong testified Lee's death could not have been caused by cannabis poisoning, but was more likely due to hypersensitivity to one of the elements of Equagesic. Dr. Lycette, who performed the autopsy on Lee, explained hypersensitivity is an adverse reaction of a body to a foreign substance. "The substance which Lee could have been hypersensitive to might have been contained in Equagesic - a tablet he took - but I can't definitely say which compound in the tablet Lee was hypersensitive to," said the doctor.' - The Legend of Bruce Lee by Alex Ben Block, 1974

'Drug overdose deaths involving selected drug categories are identified by specific multiple cause-of-death codes. Drug categories presented include: heroin (T40.1); natural opioid analgesics, including morphine and codeine, and semisynthetic opioids, including drugs such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone, and oxymorphone (T40.2); methadone, a synthetic opioid (T40.3); synthetic opioid analgesics other than methadone, including drugs such as fentanyl and tramadol (T40.4); cocaine (T40.5); and psychostimulants with abuse potential, which includes methamphetamine (T43.6). Opioid overdose deaths are identified by the presence of any of the following MCOD codes: opium (T40.0); heroin (T40.1); natural opioid analgesics (T40.2); methadone (T40.3); synthetic opioid analgesics other than methadone (T40.4); or other and unspecified narcotics (T40.6).'
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm

'The victim is always and ever the deceived, foolish, working folk - those who with blistered hands have built all those ships, fortresses, arsenals, barracks, cannon, harbours, steamers, and moles, and all these palaces, halls, platforms, and triumphal arches; who have set up and printed all these newspapers and pamphlets, and have procured and brought all these pheasants and ortolans, oysters, and wines that are consumed by the men who are fed, brought up, and kept by them, and who are deceiving them and preparing the most fearful calamities for them. It is always the same kindly, foolish folk, who stand open-mouthed like children, showing their healthy white teeth, naively delighted by dressed-up admirals and presidents with flags waving above them, and by fireworks and bands of music; and for whom, before they have time to look around, there will be neither admirals nor presidents nor flags nor bands, but only a desolate battlefield, cold, hunger, and anguish - before them murderous enemies and behind them relentless officers preventing their escape - blood, wounds, suffering, putrefying corpses, and a senseless unnecessary death.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The major features of cellular organization, including, for instance, mitosis, must be much older than 500 million years old - more nearly 1000 million,' wrote Geroge Gaylord Simpson and his colleagues Pittendrigh and Tiffany in their broadly encompassing book entitled Life. 'In this sense the world of life, which is surely fragile and complex, is incredibly durable through time - more durable than mountains. This durability is wholly dependent on the almost incredible accuracy with which the inherited information is copied from generation to generation.'

But in all the thousand million years envisioned by these authors no threat has struck so directly and so forcefully at that 'incredible accuracy' as the mid-20th century threat of man-made radiation and man-made and man-disseminated chemicals. Sir Macfarlane Burnet, a distinguished Australian physician and a Nobel Prize winner, considers it 'one of the most significant medical features' of our time that, 'as a by-product of more and more powerful therapeutic procedures and the production of chemical substances outside of biological experiences, the normal protective barriers that kept mutagenic agents from the internal organs have been more and more frequently penetrated.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'With revenue of $10.6 billion-$13 billion in 2019, sales of legal adult-use and medical marijuana in the United States topped spending on sleep aids, hard seltzer and toothpaste combined.

Total marijuana sales now exceed the National Basketball Association’s annual U.S. revenue and, by 2024, could surpass Americans’ annual spending on craft beer.

The data – published in the 2020 edition of the Marijuana Business Factbook – underscores the fact that the U.S. cannabis industry is already a major economic force, even though it has yet to reach its full potential.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/chart-retail-cannabis-sales-surpass-nba-revenue-approach-prescription-pain-meds/

'Results
Cannabis use was consistently two to three times higher among those with high anxiety compared to those with some or no anxiety and was higher in states with RML [Recreational Marijuana Legalization] compared to MML [Medical Marijuana Legalization] or no MML/RML. Cannabis use has increased over time among those with and without anxiety overall, in MML states, and in states without MML/RML; with a faster increase in cannabis use among those with high anxiety compared to lower anxiety in states with MML.

Conclusions
Cannabis use is increasing among American adults overall, yet is disproportionately common among Americans with anxiety especially among those residing in states where cannabis has been legalized.'
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376871620303288

'The purpose of this systematic review was to explore available peer-reviewed evidence related to the use of cannabis as a potential alternative to opioids in the treatment of chronic pain. The Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice model was used to review 32 peer-reviewed articles published between 2008 and 2018. Findings suggest cannabis as a promising alternative to opioids and supports the medical use of cannabis as a safer first-line pharmacological treatment for chronic pain compared to opioids. The use of cannabis as a safer alternative to opioids can promote social change directly and indirectly across a variety of social and economic dimensions due to increased access to medication at reduced cost, elimination of opioid-related death due to overdose, diminished individual and social harms related to cannabis. A medical alternative to opioids may also lead to a reduction of the inequitable incarceration of cannabis users across demographic categories of ethnicity and race.'
https://search.proquest.com/openview/a69d6774a45ea04c630c10a84ea2cc8e/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y

'“It’s a lot safer than alcohol. It’s safer than narcotics. It ought to be used more widely and we can’t even study it that easily because of the way it’s regulated,” he said. “You know what, I called the DEA—they said, ‘we don’t want this to be illegal. Your government ought to change that. But we got to enforce the law.’ I call the FDA that regulates the drugs, they say, ‘we think it ought to be used, but until the DEA says it’s allowed, we can’t let people prescribe it everywhere.”

While Oz didn’t disclose specifics about his conversations, such as who he spoke to or when the phone calls happened, it is the case that federal marijuana reform outside of Congress falls largely within the jurisdictions of both agencies. And DEA has denied multiple rescheduling requests, justifying the inaction by stating that FDA has determined that cannabis doesn’t have proven medical value and carries a risk of abuse.'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/dr-oz-claims-dea-and-fda-blame-each-other-for-keeping-marijuana-illegal/

'Divide up what you possess with others, do not gather riches, do not exalt yourself, do not steal, do not cause suffering, do not kill anyone, do not do to another what you would not have done to yourself, was said not only nineteen hundred years ago but five thousand years ago. And there can be no doubt of the truth of this law, and but for hypocrisy it would be impossible for men - even if they themselves did not conform to it - to fail to recognize at least its necessity, and that he who does not do these things is doing wrong.

But you say that there is a public welfare for the sake of which these rules may and should be infringed: for the public good it is permissible to kill, torture, and rob. You say, as Caiaphas did, that it is better for one man to perish than the whole nation, and you sign the death sentence of a first, a second, and a third man, load your rifles against this man who is to perish for the public welfare, put him in prison, and take his possessions. You say that you do these cruel things because as a member of society and of the State you feel that it is your duty to serve them: as a landowner, judge, emperor, or military man to conform to their laws. But besides belonging to a certain State and having duties arising from that position, you belong also to eternity and to God and have duties arising from that.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'A bizarre happening in the United States during the prohibition era around 1930 was an omen of things to come. It was caused not by an insecticide but by a substance belonging chemically to the same group as the organic phosphate insecticides. During the period some medicinal substances were being pressed into service as substitutes for liquor, being exempted from the prohibition law. One of these was Jamaica ginger. But the United States Pharmacopeia product was expensive, and bootleggers conceived the idea of making a substitute Jamaica ginger. They succeeded so well that their spurious product responded to the appropriate chemical tests and decieved the government chemists. To give their false ginger the necessary tang they had introduced a chemical known as triorthocresyl phosphate. This chemical, like parathion and its relatives, destroys the protective enzyme cholinesterase. As a consequence of drinking the bootleggers' product some 15,000 people developed a permanently crippling type of paralysis of the leg muscles, a condition called 'ginger paralysis'. The paralysis was accompanied by destruction of the nerve sheaths and by degeneration of the cells of the anterior horns of the spinal cord.' - Silent Spring, Rachel Carson, 1962

'Racial disparities in legal prosecutions and through inequity in wealth serve as barriers to many Black and Brown entrepreneurs.
Between 2010-2018, despite comparable usage rates Black people were 3.64 times more likely than White people to be arrested for marijuana possession. (ACLU)
In 2015, more than 643,000 people were arrested for cannabis violations; 89% were charged only with possession (Cage-Free Cannabis).
Over the past decade, 15.7 million people have been arrested for marijuana offenses.
In some states, cannabis arrests preclude participation in the legal industry.
In 2016, the average wealth of White families was more than $700,000 higher than that of Black or Hispanic families. (Urban Institute).
In 2017, 81% of business owners/founders in the cannabis industry were White; approximately 4% were Black, and fewer than 6% were Hispanic/Latino. (MJBiz Daily)'

https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/how-systemic-racism-and-wealth-inequality-limit-diversity-in-the-cannabis-industry/

'“Marijuana is less habit forming than opiates and carries virtually no risk of fatal overdose, thus it has been wrongly classified,” says Rajiv Kafle, a prominent legalisation activist. “Moreover, when the drug was banned it was done without proper scientific research. Studies have shown that the chemical cannabidiol found in marijuana has beneficial medical properties.”

Activists also say that marijuana can help control crime and wean the dependency on other hard drugs. The most vivid proof of that is KC, who did heroin for 22 years. He says marijuana coul be added to harm reduction in drug rehab in Nepal if it was available legally.

“Take it from me, marijuana was my saviour. It made my pain bearable and took away my addiction to heroin. Believe me, many heroin addicts like me would give up heroin,” says KC. Activists say that legalising marijuana will help patients to get high quality cannabis for their conditions, and by regulating the drug, the government can keep a tab on the criminality associated with it.'
https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/undo-hash-ban,3657

'The question is frequently asked: Why does a man become a drug addict?

The answer is that he usually does not intend to become an addict. You don't wake up one morning and decide to become a drug addict. It takes at least three months' shooting twice a day to get any habit at all. And you don't really know wht junk sickness is until you have had several habits. It took me almost six months to get my first habit, and then the withdrawal symptoms were mild. I think it is no exaggeration to say it takes about a year and several hundred injections to make an addict' - Prologue, Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Kathmandu had become a haven for anti-war ‘peaceniks’, draft dodgers, and Vietnam veterans. White House recordings from the early 1970s reveal Secretary of State Henry Kissinger warning Nixon: “They come from Nepal to demonstrate against you because up there they can get free pot … or at least it is legal.”

Banning cannabis drove the cultivation and use of this important cash crop underground and into the hands of organised criminals with police and political protection. Nepal’s subsistence farmers were pushed deeper into poverty, and may even have sparked the Maoist revolution in later years.

Campaigners in Kathmandu now see no reason why Nepal should keep the ban when the Americans who forced it on Nepal have legalised it in 25 states for medical and commercial purposes.'
https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-grass-is-greener-in-nepal/

'The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) said that its recommendation is motivated by an interest in reducing overdose deaths and promoting treatment. This announcement comes two years after the organization created a commission tasked with studying decriminalization, the results of which were released in a new report.

“Canada continues to grapple with the fentanyl crisis and a poisoned drug supply that has devastated our communities and taken thousands of lives,” CACP President Adam Palmer said in a press release. “We recommend that enforcement for possession give way to an integrated health-focussed approach that requires partnerships between police, healthcare and all levels of government.“'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/top-canadian-police-association-says-its-time-to-decriminalize-all-drugs/

'If people tell you that all this is necessary for the maintenance of the existing order of life and that this social order, with its destitution, hunger, prisons, executions, armies and wars, is necessary for society, that still more miseries will ensue were that organization infringed; all that is said only by those who profit by such an organization. Those who suffer from it - and they are ten times as numerous - all think and say the contrary. And in the depth of your soul you yourself know it is untrue, you know that the existing organization of life has outlived its time and must inevitably be reconstructed on new principles, and that therefore there is no need to sacrifice all human feeling to maintain it.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'An analysis of NPS reported to UNODC suggests increasing diversification in the NPS market until 2015, followed by a trend towards stabilization in the number of new substances arriving on the market in individual countries, at an overall rate of more than 500 NPS per year, with 528 synthetic NPS and 13 plant-based NPS reported in 2018. While there was a decrease in the number of new synthetic cannabinoids arriving on markets worldwide over the 2014–2018 period, the number of NPS with stimulant effects increased, and the number of newly emerging NPS with opioid effects rose sharply, from 7 substances in 2014 to 48 in 2018. That increase represents a rise from 2 per cent of all NPS in 2014 to 9 per cent in 2018.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Where data are available, they show a steady decline in the use of NPS in Europe, but such substances have established themselves in some marginalized groups in society, such as the homeless or people in prison, among whom the smoking of synthetic cannabinoids has been identified as a problem. In Europe, the use of NPS in prisons was reported by 22 countries, with synthetic cannabinoids identified as posing the main challenge and health risks (16 countries), whereas the use of synthetic cathinones in prisons was reported by 10 countries, NPS with opioid effects by six, and new benzodiazepines by four countries. In Latvia, the use of synthetic opioids in prisons has also been linked to an increase in overdose cases and in injecting drugs and sharing needles among prisoners who use drugs.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Data on the United States also indicate a marked decline in the use of NPS. In particular, the prevalence of synthetic cannabinoid use among twelfth-grade students fell from 11.4 per cent in 2011 to 3.3 per cent in 2019. Similarly, the use of ketamine fell from 1.7 to 0.7 per cent over the same period, and the use of “bath salts” (synthetic cathinones) dropped from 1.3 per cent in 2012 to 0.6 per cent in 2018, the most recent year for which data are available. This happened in the context of a deterioration in the reputation of many of those substances among young people, in parallel to several waves of controls of synthetic cannabinoids and synthetic cathinones at the national level during the 2010–2012 period and later at the global level, as well as the control of ketamine at the national level in 1999. Over the 2000–2019 period, the annual prevalence of ketamine non-medical use among twelfth-grade high-school students fell drastically, from 2.5 per cent to 0.7 per cent' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'By whatever names we dignify ourselves, in whatever apparel we attire ourselves, by whatever and before whatever priest we may be smeared with oil, however many millions we possess, however many special guards are stationed along our route, however many policemen guard our wealth, however many so-called miscreant-revolutionaries and anarchists we may execute, whatever exploits we may ourselves perform, whatever States we may found, whatever fortresses and towers we may erect - from the Tower of Babel to that of Eiffel - we are always all of us confronted by two inevitable conditions of life which destroy its whole meaning. There is first of all death, which may at any moment overtake any of us, and there is the transitoriness of all that we do and that is so quickly destroyed leaving no trace. Whatever we may do - found kingdoms, build palaces and monuments, compose poems and romances - everything is transitory, and soon passes leaving no trace. And therefore, however we may conceal it from ourselves, we cannot help seeing that the meaning of our life can be neither in our personal physical existence, subject to unavoidable sufferings and inevitable death, nor in any worldly institution or organization.

Whoever you may be who read these lines, consider your position and your duties - not the position of landowner, merchant, judge, emperor, president, minister, priest, or soldiers, temporarily attributed to you by men, nor those imaginary duties imposed on you by that position - but your real position in eternity as a creature who by Someone's will has been called out of unconsciousness after an eternity of nonexistence, to which by the same will you may at any moment be recalled. Think of your duties - not your imaginary duties as a landowner to your estate, as a merchant to your capital, as an emperor, minister, official to the State - but those real duties which follow from your real position as a being called to life and endowed with reason and love.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The question, of course, could be asked: Why did you ever try narcotics? Why did you continue using it long enough to become an addict? You become a narcotics addict because you do not have strong motivations in any other direction. Junk wins by default. I tried it as a matter of curiosity. I drifted along taking shots when I could score. I ended up hooked. Most addicts I have talked to report a similar experience. They did not start using drugs for any reason they can remember. They just drifted along until they got hooked. If you have never been addicted, you can have no clear idea what it means to need junk with the addict's special need. You don't decide to be an addict. One morning you wake up sick and you're an addict.' - Prologue, Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The 2019 drug use survey in India estimated that nearly 1 per cent of the population aged 10–75 had misused pharmaceutical opioids in the past year and that an estimated 0.2 per cent of the population (2.5 million people) were suffering from drug use disorders related to pharmaceutical opioids. Although the breakdown by type of pharmaceutical opioids misused in India is not available, buprenorphine, morphine, pentazocine and tramadol are the most common opioids misused in the country.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The non-medical use of tramadol among other pharmaceutical drugs is reported by several countries in South Asia: Bhutan, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. In 2017, 130,316 capsules containing tramadol and marketed under the trade name “Spasmo Proxyvon Plus (‘SP+’)” were seized in Bhutan. In Sri Lanka, about 0.2 per cent of the population aged 14 and older are estimated to have misused pharmaceutical drugs in the past year. Among them, the non-medical use of tramadol is the most common, although misuse of morphine, diazepam, flunitrazepam and pregabalin have also been reported in the country. The misuse of more than one pharmaceutical drug (including tramadol) is also a common pattern among heroin users who may use them to potentiate the effects of heroin or compensate for its low level of availability. Recent seizures of tramadol suggest the existence of a market for the drug: in April and September 2018, 200,000 and 1.5 million tablets of tramadol were respectively seized by customs in Sri Lanka.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The trafficking and availability of tramadol for its non-medical use is a public health concern, but limited distribution of tramadol for medical use would also pose a public health concern, in particular in Africa, where there is a chronic shortage of pain medications. There are no data on the availability and use of tramadol for medical purposes, but data on internationally controlled substances clearly highlight the gaps in the accessibility of pain medications. The general lack of access to opioid-related pain medications under international control is a specific problem for developing countries, which is even more pronounced in countries in West and Central Africa than in other parts of the world.

Against this background of a de facto non-availability of internationally controlled opioids for pain medication for large sections of the population in West and Central Africa, tramadol – even though it is under national control in some West African countries – is in fact a widely available opioid in those countries, used for both medical purposes (including outside prescription) and for non-medical purposes' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In the Sudan, while population-based estimates of the extent of substance use are not available, research suggests that the drug scene has rapidly changed, especially with the increasing non-medical use of pharmaceutical drugs among young people, including tramadol, benzodiazepines, cough syrups and antihistamines, trihexyphenidyl, anticonvulsants and neuropathic pain agents such as pregabalin and gabapentin.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'I have never regretted my experience with drugs. I think I am at better health now as a result of using junk at intervals than I would be if I had never been an addict. When you stop growing you start dying. An addict never stops growing. Most users periodically kick the habit, which involves shrinking of the organism and replacement of the junk-dependent cells. A user is in continual state of shrinking and growing in his daily cycle of shot-need for shot completed.' - Prologue, Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'In North Africa, tramadol is reported as the main opioid used non-medically in Egypt, where scientific literature about tramadol misuse is more available than elsewhere in the subregion. An estimated 3 per cent of the adult population misused tramadol in 2016, the latest year for which data are available, while 2.2 per cent were diagnosed with tramadol dependence. In drug treatment, tramadol was also the main drug, accounting for 68 per cent of all people treated for drug use disorders in 2017. A cross-sectional study conducted over the period 2012–2013 among 1,135 undergraduate college students in Egypt showed that 20.2 per cent of male and 2.4 per cent of female students had misused tramadol at least once during their lifetime, resulting in an overall lifetime prevalence of 12.3 per cent The average age of initiation of non-medical use of tramadol was around 17 years. Polydrug use was also quite common, with the majority of respondents (85 per cent) reporting use of either tobacco, alcohol or cannabis with tramadol. Among those who had misused tramadol, 30 per cent were assessed to be tramadol dependent.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Hypocrisy in our time is supported by two things - pseudo-religion and pseudo-science - and has reached such colossal dimensions that were we not living in the midst of it, it would be impossible to believe, that men could reach such a degree of self-deception. They have now reached such a strange condition and their hearts are so hardened that though they have eyes they see not, and having ears they hear not, neither do they understand.

Men have long been living in antagonism with their conscience. If it were not for hypocrisy they could not continue to do so. Their present arrangement of life in opposition to their conscience only exists because it is masked by hypocrisy.

And the more the divergence between reality and men's conscience increases, the more is that hypocrisy extended. But hypocrisy has its limits. And it seems that in our day those limits have been reached.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The non-medical use of tramadol is of particular concern among young people in many countries in that subregion. For example, a cross-sectional study among 300 young people in western Ghana found that while the majority (85 per cent) of respondents knew someone who misused tramadol, more than half of the young people interviewed had used tramadol themselves for non-medical purposes, and one third of the users reported misusing 9–10 doses of tramadol per day. Another qualitative study from Ghana reported curiosity, peer pressure and iatrogenic addiction as the three main factors for initiation and continuing non-medical use of tramadol, while perceived euphoria, attentiveness, relief from pain, physical energy and aphrodisiac effects were mentioned as some of the reasons for continuing non-medical use of tramadol.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The drug use survey in Nigeria reveals tramadol to be a more accessible opioid than heroin, although it is still relatively costly if used frequently. While use of tramadol appears to cost about one third the price of heroin ($3.60 versus $10 per day of use in the past 30 days), in a country where the minimum wage of a full-time worker is around $57 per month, regular tramadol use still poses a considerable financial burden on users and their families. There is no information on the prevalence of drug use in other West African countries, but treatment data reveal tramadol to be the main drug of concern for people with drug use disorders. Tramadol ranks highly among the substances for which people were treated in West Africa in the period 2014–2017. This was particularly the case in Benin, Mali, the Niger, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The clandestine manufacture of fentanyls within North America is thus not really a new phenomenon and has the potential to increase in importance following the recent control of fentanyls substances in China. Moreover, the clandestine manufacture of fentanyl has already spread beyond North America to neighbouring subregions, as a clandestine fentanyl laboratory was dismantled in the city of Santiago, Dominican Republic, in 2017. At the same time, there is a risk that other countries with a large and thriving pharmaceutical sector may become involved in the clandestine manufacture of fentanyls. In 2018, for example, authorities of India reported two relatively large seizures of fentanyl destined for North America. Furthermore, according to United States authorities, in September 2018, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence of India, in cooperation with DEA of the United States Department of Justice, dismantled the first known illicit fentanyl laboratory in India and seized approximately 11 kg of fentanyl' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'A single execution carried out dispassionately by prosperous and educated men with the approval and participation of Christian minister and presented as something necessary and even just, perverts and brutalizes men more than thousands of murders committed by uneducated working people under the influence of passion. An execution such as Zukhovsky proposed to arrange, which was to arouse in men a sentiment of religious emotion, would have the most depraving influence imaginable.

Every war, even the briefest, with the expenditure usual to war, the destruction of crops, the plundering, the licensed debauchery and murders, the sophisticated excuses as to its necessity and justice, the exaltation and glorification of military exploits, patriotism and devotion to the flag, the feigned solicitude for the wounded, and so on, does more to deprave people in a single year than millions of robberies, arsons, and murders committed in hundreds of years by individual men under the influence of passion.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Junk is a cellular equation that teaches the user facts of general validity. I have learned a great deal from using junk: I have seen life measured out in eyedroppers of morphine solution. I experienced the agonizing deprivation of junk sickness, and the pleasure of relief when junk-thirsty cells drank from the needle. Perhaps all pleasure is relief. I have learned the cellular stoicism that junk teaches the user. I have seen a cell full of sick junkies silent and immobile in separate misery. They knew the pointlessness of complaining or moving. They knew that basically no one can help anyone else. There is no key, no secret someone else has that he can give you.' - Prologue, Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'According to United States authorities, most of the fentanyls destined for the North American market have been manufactured in China in recent years, from where they were either shipped directly to the United States, mostly through postal services, or were first shipped to Mexico and, to a lesser extent, Canada and then smuggled into the United States. However, after the introduction by China in May 2019 of drug controls based on generic legislation with regard to the fentanyls, which effectively brought more than 1,400 known fentanyl analogues under national control in China, early signs suggest that fewer fentanyls were smuggled from China to North America. At the same time, attempts to manufacture fentanyl and its analogues inside North America are increasing, notably in Mexico, by means of a method using precursor chemicals smuggled into the subregion from East Asia and South Asia.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The current crisis of fentanyls appears to be more supply-driven than earlier waves of increases in the use of pharmaceutical opioids or heroin. Fentanyls are being used as an adulterant of heroin, are used to make falsified pharmaceutical opioids, such as falsified oxycodone and hydrocodone – and even falsified benzodiazepines – which are sold to a large and unsuspecting population of users of opioids and other drugs; users are not seeking fentanyl as such.

It seems that some local distributors are not able to distinguish between heroin, fentanyl and fentanyl laced heroin, nor between diverted pharmaceutical opioids and falsified opioids containing fentanyl. A general problem with fentanyls is dosing by nonprofessional “pharmacists”, where small mistakes can lead to lethal results. Furthermore, as the overdose death data suggest, even people using cocaine and psychostimulants, such as methamphetamine, are also exposed – probably unintentionally – to fentanyls or other potent synthetic opioids mixed with those substances' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'There is a great incentive for trafficking organizations to expand the fentanyl market: the large associated revenues. Compared with heroin, the production costs of single-dose fentanyls are substantially lower. For instance, it may cost between $1,400 and $3,500 to synthesize 1 kg of fentanyl, which could bring a return of between $1 million and $1.5 million from street sales. For comparison, 1 kg of heroin purchased from Colombia may cost $5,000 to $7,000,99 around $53,000 at the wholesale level in the United States and around $400,000 at the retail level in the United States. With fentanyls, the logistics for supply are also more flexible because fentanyls can be manufactured anywhere and are not subject to the climatic conditions or the vulnerable conditions required for the largescale cultivation of opium poppy.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Let all the external improvements that religious and scientific people dream of be accomplished; let all men accept Christianity and all the improvements the Bellamys and Richets desire be accomplished with all possible additions and corrections, but if at the same time the hypocrisy remains that now exists, if people do not profess the truth they know but continue to feign belief in what they do not themselves believe and veneration for what they do not respect, the condition of people will not only merely remain what it is but will become worse and worse. The better men are materially provided for, the more telegraphs, telephones, books, papers and periodicals they have the more means there will be of spreading contradictory lies and hypocrisies, and the more disunited and consequently unhappy will men become, as indeed occurs now.

Let all those external alterations be realized and the position of humanity will not be bettered. But let each man according to the strength that is in him profess the truth he knows and practises in his own life - or at least cease to excuse the falsehood he supports by representing it as truth - and at once, in this very year 1893, such changes would be accomplished towards man's liberation and the establishment of truth on earth, as we dare not hope for in hundreds of years.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'All factors driving fentanyl use converged from 2013 onwards in the United States and Canada, which may explain the unprecedented spread of the fentanyls in those markets: factors such as the diffusion of simpler, more effective methods of manufacture of synthetic opioids and their analogues (primarily fentanyls), assisted by the availability on the Internet of instructions for their manufacture; a shift from preparation by a limited number of skilled chemists to preparation by basic “cooks” who could simply follow the posted instructions; the discovery of ever more fentanyl analogues; a lack of effective control of precursors and oversight of the industry; expanding distribution networks that reduced the risk of detection through the use of postal services and the Internet; and increased licit trade including e-commerce.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Unlike other plant-based drugs, for which cultivation and production is concentrated in only a limited number of countries, cannabis is produced in almost all countries worldwide. The cultivation of cannabis plants was reported by 151 countries in the period 2010–2018 – countries home to 96 per cent of the global population – and was reported through either direct indicators (such as the cultivation or eradication of cannabis plants and the eradication of cannabis-producing sites) or indirect indicators (such as seizures of cannabis plants and the origin of cannabis seizures reported by other Member States).' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'I have learned the junk equation. Junk is not, like alcohol or weed, a means to increased enjoyment of life. Junk is not a kick. It is a way of life.' - Prologue, Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Most countries do not have a comprehensive system in place for monitoring areas under illicit cannabis cultivation. At present, the information available is insufficient to produce scientifically accurate global estimates of the area under illicit cannabis cultivation. In addition, most of the estimates of the areas under illicit cannabis cultivation reported to UNODC do not generally meet scientific standards.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'In general, hypocrisy having entered into the flesh and blood of all classes in our time has reached such proportions that nothing of that kind any longer arouses indignation. Not for nothing was "hypocrisy" derived from "acting". And anyone can act, that is, play a part. Such facts as that the representatives of Christ, at divine service, bless ranks of murderers holding loaded rifles in readiness to shoot their fellow men, that ministers of all the Christian sects take part in executions as inevitably as the executioners, by their presence acknowledging murder to be compatible with Christianity (a clergyman officiated in America at the first experiment of murder by electricity), no longer occasion surprise to anyone.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Globally, outdoor cannabis cultivation continues to be more widespread geographically than is indoor cannabis cultivation. Overall, 88 countries reported outdoor cannabis cultivation, law enforcement activities linked to outdoor cannabis cultivation (eradication, seizures of cannabis plants, seizures of cannabis-producing sites) or trends related to outdoor cannabis cultivation over the period 2012–2018, while only 64 countries reported data for those activities as linked to indoor cultivation. Some countries reported both indoor and outdoor cannabis cultivation.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'The largest quantities of cannabis herb seized in 2018 were those reported in the Americas (61 per cent of the total), with South America alone accounting for 43 per cent of the global total. Of note is the marked decline in the share of seizures made in North America, which had long been the subregion reporting the largest cannabis herb seizures: on average, 50 per cent of the global total over the period 2008–2018, falling to 17 per cent of the global total in 2018, that is, to less than the total for Africa that year (19 per cent). The next largest regional reported seizure totals in 2018 were those for Asia and Europe.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'The quantity of cannabis herb seized in 2018 declined by 16 per cent compared with a year earlier, falling to 4,303 tons, the lowest level since 1999. As compared with 2010, the quantity seized fell by 34 per cent at the global level, largely due to decreases reported in North America (-84 per cent), with marked declines being reported by Mexico, the United States and Canada. Discussions and policies aimed at liberalizing the cannabis markets, including changes in the drug’s legislation in Canada and some jurisdictions of the United States, legalizing the production, distribution and the recreational use of cannabis, seem to have played a key role in this respect. By contrast, the quantities of cannabis herb seized almost doubled in the rest of the world over the period 2010–2018 (South America: +194 per cent; Oceania: +94 per cent; Europe: +73 per cent; Asia: +71 per cent; Africa: +53 per cent). The global cannabis herb trafficking index, based on qualitative information reported by Member States on trends in cannabis herb trafficking, also increased over the same period, although the trend appeared to be stabilizing in 2018.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'The ruling classes, having no longer any reasonable justification for the advantageous position they hold, are obliged, in order to keep these positions, to repress their higher rational capacities and their love for their fellow-men, and to hypnotize themselves into the belief that their exceptional positions are necessary. And the lower classes, crushed by toil and intentionally stupefied, live in a continual condition of hypnotization, deliberately and incessantly induced by people of the upper classes.

Only in this way can one explain the amazing contradiction that fills our life, and of which a striking example was presented by those kindly and mild acquaintances whom I met on the 9th of September, who with quiet minds were going to commit the most cruel, senseless, and vile crimes. Had conscience not been stifled in some way in those men, not one of them could have done a one-hundredth part of what they were preparing to do, and very likely will do.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'There was one oldtime doctor who lived in a Victorian brownstone in the West Seventies. WIth him it was simply necessary to present a gentlemanly front. If you could get into his inner office you had it made, but he would write only three prescriptions. Another doctor was always drunk, and it was a matter of catching him at the right time. Often he wrote the prescription wrong and you had to take it back for correction. Then, like as not, he would say the prescription was a forgery and tear it up. Still another doctor was senile, and you had to help him write the script. He would forget what he was doing, put down his pen and go into a long reminiscence about the high class of patients he used to have. Especially, he liked to talk about a man named General Gore who once said to him, "Doctor, I've been to the Mayo Clinic and you know more than the whole clinic put together." There was no stopping him and the exasperated addict was forced to listen patiently. Often the doctor's wife would rush in at the last minute and tear up the prescription, or refuse to verify it when the drugstore called.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'In 2018, the largest quantities of cannabis herb seized worldwide continued to be those reported by Paraguay, followed by the United States and India. Cannabis herb produced in Paraguay is reported to have been mainly destined for neighbouring Brazil (77 per cent) and Argentina (20 per cent). Over the period 2008–2018, the largest cannabis herb seizures worldwide took place in the United States, followed by Mexico, Paraguay, Colombia, Nigeria, Morocco, Brazil, India and Egypt' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'Trafficking in cannabis resin continues to be far more geographically concentrated than is trafficking in cannabis herb. More than half of all cannabis resin was seized in Western and Central Europe (51 per cent) in 2018, followed by the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia (36 per cent) and North Africa (8 per cent). These three subregions accounted for 95 per cent of all cannabis resin seized worldwide in 2018.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'Morocco, with 47,500 ha reported to be under cannabis cultivation in 2018, continues to be the most frequently mentioned source country for cannabis resin worldwide in the annual report questionnaire, being mentioned in more than a fifth of all cases as the main country of origin of cannabis resin seized worldwide over the period 2014–2018; Morocco was followed by Afghanistan, where, a UNODC survey found, in 2010 an area of 9,000–29,000 ha was under cannabis cultivation. Cannabis resin produced in Morocco is mainly destined for other markets in North Africa and markets in Western and Central Europe. Some cannabis resin of Moroccan origin is also trafficked to Eastern Europe and South-Eastern Europe. Most cannabis resin of Moroccan origin destined for Europe is first shipped to Spain, from where it is smuggled to other markets in the region. For many years, including in the period 2014–2018, Spain has been identified by other European countries as the principal country of departure and transit for cannabis resin, followed by the Netherlands.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

Afghanistan and Mexico source the heroin and morphine. Mexico, Thailand, Myanmar and China source the methamphetamine. The Middle East and Eastern Europe sources the amphetamine. The US consumes heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine. Europe consumes heroin, morphine, methamphetamine and amphetamine. Asia consumes heroin, morphine and methamphetamine. Australia consumes methamphetamine. The Middle East consumes heroin and amphetamine. West Asia consumes heroin and methamphetamine. All countries grow and consume cannabis. Opioids, methamphetamine and amphetamines kill the most in terms of drug deaths, cannabis kills none. Who are the leading opponents to cannabis legalization and leading enforcers of global anti-cannabis policy? The countries involved the most in heroin, morphine, amphetamines and methamphetamines. They put on a mask of concern about harms from drugs, produce, sell and consume the most dangerous synthetic drugs and vehemently oppose cannabis legalization worldwide while clandestinely feeding their habits and protecting their sources. They use arms and armies to protect and promote their synthetic drug habits, and drug money to fund and wage a war on cannabis everywhere, pushing man and planet ever closer to death on massive scales and away from the safe, healing cannabis herb...
Jul 10, 2020, 1:14 PM

'Another point to which the attention of the Commissioners should be directed is the probability or possibility that, if the use of hemp drugs is prohibited, those who would otherwise continue to use them may be driven to have recourse to alcohol, or to other stimulants or narcotics which may be more deleterious.'
Ch.1 Introductory, Vol.1, Report of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, 1894-1895, https://digital.nls.uk/74464868

'In just the same way the judges who wrongfully awarded the wood to the landowner, did so only because they considered themselves to be not ordinary men like everybody else and therefore bound to be guided in everything by truth alone, but, under the intoxication of power, imagined themselves to be guardians of official justice and incapable of error. And while under the intoxicating influence of servility they imagined themselves to be men bound to execute certain rules written down in a certain book, called laws. And all the participants in the affair - from the highest representative of authority who signed the report, the marshal of nobility who presided at the recruiting sessions, and the priest who deluded the conscripts, to the lowest soldier now preparing to shoot his fellow-men - under the influence of power or servility considered themselves to be, and represented themselves to others as being, not what they really are but something quite different. They all did what they did, and prepare to do what they still have to do, only because they seem to themselves and to others to be not what they are in reality - men faced with the question whether they ought or ought not to take part in wicked actions which their conscience condemns - but different, conventional characters: one an anointed Tsar, a special being destined to watch over the welfare of a hundred million people; another the representative of the nobility; another a priest who has received special grace by his ordination; another a soldier bound by his oath unreflectingly to do all that he is commanded to do. All these people could only, and can only, act as they do under the influence of intoxication by power or servility, resulting from their imagined positions.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'In a despatch No. 36 (Revenue), dated 16th March 1893, Her Majesty's Secretary of State informed the Government of India that in answer to a question* put in the House of Commons he had expressed his willingness to request the Government of India to appoint a Commission to inquire into the cultivation of the hemp plant in Bengal, the preparation of drugs from it, the trade in those drugs, the effect of their consumption upon the social and moral condition of the people, and the desir-ability of prohibiting the growth of the plant and the sale of ganja and allied drugs.'
Ch.1 Introductory, Vol.1, Report of the Indian Hemp Drugs Commission, 1894-1895, https://digital.nls.uk/74464868

'The Washington Post feature, entitled, “Marijuana really can be deadly, but not in the way you probably expect,” highlights numerous other incidences where suspected marijuana use was the key factor in police engagements that resulted in civilian murders.

Since Congress classified the cannabis plant as an illicit Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substance Act of 1970, well over 20 million Americans have been subject to arrest for violating marijuana laws, and untold millions more who have been harassed under the pretense that they may have been in violation of the law. Entire communities have lost generations of citizens to cyclical poverty and incarceration due to the collateral consequences of having a cannabis-related conviction on their record.

These consequences include the loss of access to higher education, the inability to qualify for government-subsidized housing, employment discrimination, the loss of child custody, homelessness, and more. In large part due to the modern War on Drugs, the United States’ prison population has skyrocketed by over 500 percent over the last 40 years, with nearly 2.3 million people incarcerated in the United States at the beginning of 2019.'
https://thehill.com/opinion/healthcare/502489-criminalization-that-never-should-have-been-cannabis

'Schwartz and Jahn’s study is the latest of a raft of studies showing that black people in the US are killed by police more often than white people. Young black men are at highest risk. A 2019 study found that black men aged 25-29 were being killed at rates between 2.8 and 4.1 in 100,000.

Neighbourhoods are also a factor. Death rates are highest in poor neighbourhoods and neighbourhoods with high non-white populations, but black people are at higher risk of being killed in white neighbourhoods.

There is evidence that the killings have wide-ranging effects beyond those killed and bereaved. A 2018 study found that the killings had a harmful impact on the mental health of the wider black population.'
https://www.newscientist.com/article/2246987-us-police-kill-up-to-6-times-more-black-people-than-white-people/

'Doctors are so exclusively nurtured on exaggerated ideas of their position that, generally speaking, a factual approach is the worst possible. Even though they do not believe your story, nonetheless they want to hear one. It is like some Oriental face-saving ritual. One man plays the high-minded doctor who wouldn't write an unethical script for a thousand dollars, the other does his best to act like a legitimate patient. If you say, "Look, Doc, I want an M.S. script and am willing to pay double price for it," the croaker blows his top and throws you out of the office. You need a good bedside manner with doctors or you will get nowhere.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'It is estimated that the U.S. federal government spends roughly $33 billion annually prosecuting the war on drugs; state and local governments spend nearly $30 billion to the same end. The expenditures are often described as a “cost to taxpayers”; however, they could just as easily be understood as allocations to federal, state, and local law enforcement budgets. In a competitive budgetary environment, law enforcement demonstrates its efficacy through arrests, seizures of cash and assets, and drug interdictions – all of which both justify and perpetuate the continuing war on drugs. Such actions also serve as the foundation for sustaining or increasing budgets.

The U.S.’s continued prosecution of the drug war also brings the revenue streams of law enforcement full circle. Some portion of the $63 billion allocated to law enforcement across the U.S. comes from the tax revenue generated by regulated cannabis businesses; a further portion comes from the additional taxes generated by §280E. Some law enforcement budget is supplemented by funds generated from civil asset forfeiture locally, as well as monies from participating in the federal Equitable Sharing Program. Whatever the totality of their operating budgets, law enforcement agencies have positioned themselves to profit from every aspect of the cannabis industry, from legal businesses to unregulated operators.'
https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/catching-cannabis-coming-and-going-how-law-enforcement-profits-from-illicit-and-legalized-marijuana-businesses-alike/

'As cross-border methamphetamine trafficking in North America consists mainly of trafficking from Mexico to the United States, the south-western border thus remains the main entry point for illegal imports of methamphetamine into the United States: in 2018, 95 per cent of the methamphetamine seizures made by United States customs authorities were effected at or near the country’s south-western border. Quantities of methamphetamine seized in the United States as a whole almost tripled between 2013 and 2018, whereas those intercepted along the south-western border quadrupled during the same period. Trafficking modi operandi include concealment by human couriers on commercial flights, the use of parcel delivery services, and the use of pick-up trucks and commercial buses, as well as unusual goods deliveries such as concealment in metal collars, cargo stabilizers, electric transformers and industrial drill bits, reflecting the increasing sophistication of methamphetamine smuggling activities. Another emerging trend over the past few years has been the use of drones, which easily fly over physical barriers on the border while the operators remain at a safe distance from where the drugs are dropped, thereby reducing the risk of arrest.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'While the typical purity of methamphetamine tablets encountered in East and South-East Asia has remained relatively stable in recent years (mostly within a range of 15 to 25 per cent), retail prices of methamphetamine tablets have decreased sharply in several countries in the subregion, which, when combined with the increases in quantities seized, suggests that the supply of methamphetamine may have outstripped demand in East and South-East Asia' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'The average purity of crystalline methamphetamine in East and South-East Asia continues to remain very high, again suggesting an abundant supply of the drug. The average purity of samples analysed in China reached 95 per cent in 2018 and other countries in the subregion (Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Viet Nam) reported purity levels of between 70 and 90 per cent. While purity has remained high, retail prices of crystalline methamphetamine have decreased in several countries in the subregion in recent years, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia and Myanmar, pointing to an increase in the availability of crystalline methamphetamine in the subregion. In Indonesia, Thailand and Viet Nam, retail prices of crystalline methamphetamine have actually more than halved over the past decade. At the same time, the average purity of crystalline methamphetamine rose in Thailand from 90 per cent in 2011 to around 95 per cent in 2019, with almost all (99 per cent) of the crystalline methamphetamine samples analysed in 2019 showing purity levels of over 90 per cent.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_Booklet_3.pdf

'But not only do all men involved in the State organization throw the responsibility for their acts on one another - the soldier on the nobleman or merchant who is his officer, and the officer on the nobleman who occupies the post of Governor, and the Governor on the gentleman or son of an official who holds the post of minister, and the minister on the member of the royal family who occupies the position of the Tsar, and the Tsar again on all those officials, nobles, merchants, and peasants - not only do people free themselves in this way from the sense of responsibility for their actions, but they also lose their moral consciousness of responsibility because, being involved in a State organization, they so unceasingly, strenuously, and persistently assure themselves and one another that they are not all equal, but different among themselves "as one star differeth from another", that they begin to really believe this. Thus some are persuaded that they are not simple people like other folk but are special beings who ought to be specially honoured. And it is instilled into others by all possible means that they are inferior creatures, and should therefore uncomplainingly submit to what those above them dictate.

This inequality, this exaltation of some and degradation of others, is the chief cause of men's capacity to ignore the irrationality and cruelty and wickedness of the existing order, as well as the deception practised by some and suffered by others.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Join NORML's Founder Keith Stroup, Executive Director Erik Altieri, and a number of special guests who knew and worked with Lester for a conversation honoring his life and contributions to the cannabis reform movement.

Lester Grinspoon, M.D., the longtime Harvard professor, psychiatrist, and author of twelve books — including Marihuana Reconsidered, the single most comprehensive and thoughtful and convincing explanation of the crucial need to end marijuana prohibition and establish a legal marijuana market — passed away on June 25th. He was 92 years old.

His extraordinary personal commitment to advancing both marijuana policy and the NORML organization demonstrated his deeply held belief that we all have an obligation to fight injustice whenever and wherever we find it.'
https://www.facebook.com/norml/videos/196873921743486/

'As I began using stuff every day, or often several times a day, I stopped drinking and going out at night. When you use junk you don't drink. Seemingly, the body that has a quantity of junk in its cells will not absorb alcohol. The liquor stays in the stomach, slowly building up nausea, discomfort, and dizziness, and there is no kick. Using junk would be a sure cure for alcoholics. I also stopped bathing. When you use junk the feel of water on the skin is unpleasant for some reason, and junkies are reluctant to take a bath.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'"Where does the change begin, what does the change look like?” asked DuBois.

“Well, the change has to be the voters start asking for the right things. They start demanding from their district attorneys and their state’s attorneys and their mayors and their county executives the arrest rates for real crime,” said Simon.'
https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2020/07/08/maurice-dubois-david-simon/

'Cannabis has been prohibited in all sports during competition since the World Anti-Doping Agency first assumed the responsibility of establishing and maintaining the list of prohibited substances in sport 15 years ago. In 2018, however, CBD was removed from the Prohibited List, presumably on the basis of mounting scientific evidence that the cannabinoid is safe and well-tolerated in humans, even at very high doses (e.g. 1500 mg·day-1 or as an acute dose of 6000 mg). While several recent reviews have described the impact of cannabis on athlete health and performance, the influence of CBD alone has yet to be addressed.

The aim of this narrative review was to explore evidence on the physiological, biochemical, and psychological effects of CBD that may be relevant to sport and/or exercise performance and to identify relevant areas for future research. Given the absence of studies directly investigating CBD and sports performance, this review draws primarily on preclinical studies involving laboratory animals and a limited number of clinical trials involving non-athlete populations.'
https://sportsmedicine-open.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40798-020-00251-0

'Harm Reduction International monitored prison decongestion measures adopted around the world between March and June 2020 in response to COVID-19, and found evidence of such schemes in 109 countries. We tracked criteria for eligibility and implementation of the measures. Noting that UN experts recommended countries release "those charged for minor and non-violent drug and other offences" in the context of COVID-19, we further focused on how these measures impact on people in prison for drug offences.

Despite a scarcity of official information, we found that around a fourth of countries implementing decongestion schemes explicitly excluded people incarcerated for drug offences; effectively prioritising punitive approaches to drug control over the health of the prison population and the individual'
https://www.hri.global/covid-19-prison-diversion-measures

'But is it possible that people of the upper classes support this order of things only because it is advantageous for them? They cannot but see that this order of things is in itself irrational, no longer corresponds to men's consciousness or even to public opinion, and is full of danger. People of the governing classes - the honest, good, clever people among them - cannot fail to suffer from those inner contradictions and to see the dangers they are exposed to. And is it possible that all of the millions of people of the lower order can with tranquil minds perform all the evidently evil actions - tortures and murders - they are compelled to do, merely because they fear punishment? It cannot be so, and neither the one nor the other could fail to see the unreasonableness of their conduct if the complexity of the state-structure did not conceal from them the irrationality and unnaturalness of what they are doing.

The irrationality is concealed by the fact that when any such action is committed there are so many instigators, accomplices, and abettors, that not one of those concerned in the affair feels himself morally responsible.

Murderers oblige all those who witness murder to strike at the body of the man who has been killed, so that the responsibility may rest on as large a number of people as possible. That same principle, in a more definitely organized form, is applied to the penetration of those crimes without the constant commission of which no governmental organization could exist. Rulers always try to draw as many citizens as possible into as much participation as possible in the crimes they commit and that are necessary for them.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'“In the six states surrounding Colorado—Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming—following Colorado’s legalization, the border counties experienced, on average, a decrease of 393.1 cases of property crime and 277.3 cases of larceny per 100,000 population relative to the nonborder counties.”

“Specifically, we observed that the property crime rate and larceny rate experienced substantial decreases in the border counties in neighboring states relative to nonborder counties following the legalization in Colorado,” the study says. “This is also true for the rate of simple assault…if Utah is not considered (only considering Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Wyoming as neighboring states of Colorado).”
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/colorados-marijuana-legalization-law-decreases-crime-in-neighboring-states-study-finds/

'A lot of nonsense has been written about the changes people undergo as they get a habit. All of a sudden the addict looks in the mirror and does not recognise himself. The actual changes are difficult to specify and they do not show up in the mirror. That is, the addict himself has a special blind spot so far as the progress of the habit is concenrned. He generally does not realize that he is getting a habit at all. He says there is no need to get a habit if you are careful and observe a few rules, like shooting every other day. Actually, he does not observe these rules, but every extra shot is regarded as exceptional. I have talked to many addicts and they all say they were surprised when they discovered they actually had the first habit. Many of them attributed their symptoms to some other cause.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'However, the conversation on police reform cannot simply start and end with these measures, and it must include a reexamination of our entire criminal justice system. We should be repealing mandatory sentencing and reducing over-policing (which includes finally legalizing adult-use marijuana)'
https://www.poconorecord.com/opinion/20200707/lt-gov-john-fetterman-discretion-and-de-escalation-are-police-officerrsquos-strongest-tools

'“It is hardly a surprise that those who elect to clandestinely cultivate cannabis on federal lands engage in practices that provide greater potential risks to both the environment and to the end product itself,” Paul Armentano, deputy director for the advocacy group NORML, told Marijuana Moment. “By contrast, a legal market provides regulatory oversight and demands that those engaged in these activities be licensed and utilize best practices.”

“While legalization itself will likely not entirely eliminate the illicit market, just as, for instance, broader alcohol legalization has not eliminated moonshining in its entirety,” Armentano added, “the reality is that it will continue to severely curtail these activities and the involvement of criminal entrepreneurs.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/feds-hire-hazmat-firm-for-marijuana-eradication-training/

'Medical and recreational cannabis sales in the United States are on track to exceed $15 billion this year, a jump of 40% over 2019, according to the new Marijuana Business Factbook.

Moreover, total U.S. sales could reach as high as $37 billion by 2024.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/week-in-review-us-cannabis-sales-to-top-15b-illinois-licensing-delays-nj-at-forefront-of-legalization-more/

'Here's the crux: legalizing marijuana no longer exposes pot companies to 280E and its high effective tax rate, but it also doesn't generate nearly as much taxable income for the federal government, even if a federal tax is added to legal weed sales. Keep in mind that adding yet another tax to legal marijuana would mean that some consumers will shift their buying habits away from legal channels and toward the black market due to cost.

In other words, the status quo of marijuana being illegal at the federal level with more and more states legalizing has become highly profitable for the federal government. That's a big reason there's a reluctance to legalize.'
https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/06/29/the-surprising-reason-the-us-may-be-reluctant-to-l.aspx

'A judge, a policeman, a governor, or an officer, can keep his position just the same under Boulanger, Pugachev, Catherine, or a republic. But should the existing order which secures him his advantageous position collapse, he would certainly lose that position. And so these people are none of them alarmed as to who will be at the head of the organization of violence - they can adapt themselves to anyone. They only fear the abolition of the organization itself, and that is the reason - though sometimes an unconscious one - why they maintain it.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The probes froze billion-dollar deals in place for months. And while companies waited, the fast-moving industry shifted to the point where deals had to be renegotiated or abandoned, even after they received approval. At least three large acquisitions failed after receiving DOJ requests for vast amounts of extra information that required months to prepare and deliver.

“It was a pain in the ass,” one industry insider at a company that went through the review and asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, told VICE News'
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/akzk9b/trumps-war-on-legal-weed

'The study of herbal medicine spans the knowledge of biology, history, source, physical and chemical nature, and mechanism of action, traditional, medicinal and therapeutic use of drug. This article also provide knowledge about macroscopically and microscopically characters of Cannabis sativa with geographical sources. The wellknown cannabinoids are Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), Cannabidiol (CBD) and Cannabichromene (CBC) and their pharmacological properties and importance have been extensively studied. Hence, efforts are required to establish and validate evidence regarding safety and practices of Ayurveda medicines.

Conclusion: These studies will help in expanding the current therapeutic potential of C. sativa and it also provide a strong support to its future clinical use as herbal medicines having safe in use with no side effects'
https://www.eurekaselect.com/183226/article

'Results and conclusion: Through a detailed analysis of the available resources about the origins of C. sativa we found that its use by ancient civilizations as a source of food and textile fibers dates back over 10,000 years, while its therapeutic applications have been improved over the centuries, from the ancient East medicine of the 2nd and 1st millennium B.C. to the more recent introduction in the Western world after the 1st century A.D. In the 20th and 21th centuries, Cannabis and its derivatives have been considered as a menace and banned throughout the world, but nowadays they are still the most widely consumed illicit drugs all over the world. Its legalization in some jurisdictions has been accompanied by new lines of research to investigate its possible applications for medical and therapeutic purposes.'
https://www.eurekaselect.com/182145/article

'The doctor's office was in junk territory on 102nd, off Broadway. He was a doddering old man and could not resist the junkies who filled his office and were, in fact, his only patients. It seemed to give him a feeling of importance to look out and see an office full of people. I guess he had reached a point where he could change the appearance of things to suit his needs and when he looked out there he saw a distinguished and diversfied clientele, probably well dressed in 1910 style, instead of a bunch of ratty-looking junkies come to hit him for a morphine script.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'As a further factor, in most countries the highest prevalence of drug use is found among adolescents and young adults, in particular those aged 18–25. Over the period 2000–2018, the population in that age group grew significantly in developing countries – by 18 per cent, thus raising the overall vulnerability to drug use in those countries. In developed countries, by contrast, the population in that young age group decreased by 10 per cent over the same period.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Often when I see not only the levies of recruits, the military exercises and the manoeuvres, but also the policemen with loaded revolvers and the sentries with rifles and fixed bayonets, when for whole days at a time I hear (as I do in the Khamovniki where I live) the whistling and rattle of bullets as they hit the target; and when I see in the city (where any attempt at violence in self-defence is suppressed, where the sale of drugs and ammunition is prohibited, and where rapid driving and treatment by an unlicenced doctor is forbidden) thousands of disciplined men trained to murder and subject to one man's will, I ask myself: How can people who value their safety quietly allow and put up with this? Apart from its harmfulness and immorality, nothing can be more dangerous. What are men - I do not speak of Christians, ministers of religion, humanitarians, and moralists, but simply men who value their own lives, safety, and welfare - what are they thinking about? For this organization will act in the same way in whomsoever's hands it may be. Today, let us say, the power is in the hands of a tolerable ruler, but tomorrow it may be seized by a Biron, an Elizabeth, a Catherine, a Pugachev, a Napoleon I or a Napoleon III. And the man in whose hands the power lies may be tolerable today but tomorrow may become a beast or he may be succeeded by a mad or crazy heir - like the King of Bavaria, or our Paul I.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The lack of disaggregated data makes it impossible to obtain a global overview of drug use as distributed between urban and rural areas and to analyse interacting global trends in urbanization and drug markets. From the information available, it seems that drug use is more prevalent in urban areas than in rural areas, in both developed and developing countries, with the exception of some major rural drug-producing areas. Urbanization has also been found to be a general risk factor for drug use; for example, data from school surveys in Colombia and Mexico show the prevalence of use of some drugs being up to 60 per cent higher in urban areas than in rural areas. Data on drug law offences including possession and trafficking of drugs in Germany and Austria confirm the same patterns with main cities showing higher per capita offences than the national average (typically around 50 per cent higher in 2018)'- United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Data on the annual prevalence of drug use among adults in Australia, the United States of America and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, for example, show there is much higher drug use in urban areas than in rural areas, with the divide being even more pronounced among frequent users in the United States, where, in 2018, past-month prevalence of drug use was almost 80 per cent higher in large metropolitan areas than in rural areas.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'All croakers pack in sooner or later. One day when Roy came for his script, the doctor told him, "This is positively the last, and you guys had better keep out of sight. The inspector was around to see me yesterday. He has all the R-xes I wrote for you guys. He told me I will lose my license if I write any more, so I'm going to date this one back. Tell the druggist you were too sick yesterday to cash it.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'This suggests that while people with higher socioeconomic status may have a greater propensity to experiment, it is among the lower socioeconomic classes that the most negative impact of the onset of recreational drug use is found, with a higher proportion of people becoming dependent. This suggests that poverty is associated with drug use disorders. Indeed, poor people living on the margins of society tend to be more vulnerable to slipping from recreational drug use into full-scale drug abuse and drug dependence because treatment facilities for intervening at an early stage in a drug career are often unavailable or unaffordable for such population groups. In this context, drug use itself may exacerbate poverty and marginalization, thus creating the potential for a vicious cycle' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Over the past two decades, drug markets have become increasingly complex in terms of variety and combinations of substances used and trafficked, manufacturing processes and the organizational structure of drug trafficking organizations. There has been a rapid emergence of new substances, as well as new mixes of controlled and non-controlled substances, with an increasing misuse of pharmaceuticals, which poses new challenges for both drug demand and supply control efforts at the national, regional and global levels.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'All the injustice and cruelties customary in present-day life have become habitual only because there are men always ready to carry out these injustices and cruelties. If it were not for them there would not only be no one to wreak violence on those immense masses of oppressed people, but those who issued the orders would never venture to do so, and would not even dare to dream of the sentences they now confidently pass.

Were it not for these men ready to torture or kill anyone they are commanded to, no one would dare to claim what is confidently claimed by all the non-working landowners, namely that land surrounded by men who are suffering for lack of land, is the property of a man who does not work on it, or that stores of grain collected by trickery ought to be preserved untouched in the midst of a population dying of hunger, because the merchant wants to make a profit. But for the existence of these people, ready at the will of the authorities to torture and kill anyone they are told to, it could never enter the head of a landowner to deprive the peasants of a wood they had grown, or of the officials to consider it proper to receive salaries taken from the famishing people for oppressing them, not to mention executing, imprisoning, or evicting people for exposing falsehood and preaching the truth. In fact all this is demanded and done only because the authorities are all fully convinced that they have always at hand servile people ready to carry out all their demands by means of tortures and killings.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'In the late 1990s, some 230 psychoactive substances were under international control, of which a handful dominated the global drug markets, most notably cannabis, cocaine, opium, heroin, amphetamines and “ecstasy”. Two decades later, the situation has changed, as there are now far more substances on the market. A number of synthetic NPS (i.e. psychoactive substances that mimic the properties of substances already under international control) emerged on the drug markets in the past decade, including synthetic cannabinoids, cathinones, phenethylamines, piperazines and various fentanyl analogues, resulting in a new wave of scheduling of such substances at the international level, with the total number of substances under international control rising from 234 in 2014 to 282 in 2018. At the same time, the number of NPS rose from 166 substances over the period 2005–2009 to 950 substances by the end of 2019. Worldwide, in recent years authorities have identified more than three times as many NPS as there are psychoactive substances under international control' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Ten minutes later Herman arrived. The brother-in-law was giving him the same treatment when Herman pulled out a silk dress he had under his coat - as I recall somebody unloaded a batch of hot dresses on us for three grains of morphine - and turning to see the doctor's wife who had come downstairs to see what all the commotion was about, he said, "I thought you might like this dress." So he got a chance to talk to the doctor who wrote him one last script. It took him three hours to fill it. Our regular drug store had been warned by the inspector, and they would not fill any more scripts.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Beyond internationally controlled substances, the legal status of many substances in the market differ from country to country, and sometimes within countries. This creates quite complex production and trafficking patterns in which some substances are under national control in some countries but not in others, leaving ample opportunities for producers and traffickers of the substances to select countries depending on the legal status of those substances in the respective jurisdictions, while also quickly adjusting to new controls wherever and whenever they may occur. The multiplicity of substances currently in the market challenges the effectiveness of national and international interventions because the elimination of one substance from the market easily leads to replacement by another.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The growing complexity of drug markets can be also seen in the manufacturing processes of synthetic drugs. In the past, a limited number of precursor chemicals was used to manufacture synthetic drugs, such as amphetamine (manufactured mostly from P-2-P), methamphetamine (manufactured mostly from ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, or from P-2-P in North America) and “ecstasy” (mainly manufactured from 3,4-MDP-2-P). This has changed over the past two decades. As the key precursors mentioned above are all under international control, traffickers have been looking for alternatives. Over the years, different strategies have been adopted by traffickers to overcome controls using as alternative precursors substances that were not equally well controlled in all countries, noncontrolled pre-precursors and so-called “designer precursors”, that is, chemicals specifically designed to circumvent existing precursor control systems. Pharmaceutical preparations containing controlled precursor chemicals have also been used to supply precursors because, although controlled, they are exempt from a number of control mechanisms such as the system of pre-export notifications' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Both those in authority and their subordinates, though they explain the motives of their conduct differently, agree that they act as they do because the existing order is just the order that must and should exist at the present time, and that to support it is therefore each man's sacred duty.

On this acceptance of the necessity and therefore the immutability of the existing order rests also the argument by which those who take part in governmental violence always justify themselves. They say that as the existing order is immutable, the refusal of some one individual to fulfill the duties laid upon him has no real influence on things, but only means that his place will be taken by someone else who may do worse than he; that is, exercise more cruelty and do more harm to the victims.

It is this conviction that the existing order is a necessary and therefore immutable order, to support which is the sacred duty of every man, that makes it possible for good men, of high principles in private life, to take part with more or less untroubled conscience in affairs such as that committed in Orel, and that which the men in the Tula train were going to perpetrate.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The growing complexity of drug markets can be also observed in the organizational structure of the actors involved. There has been a general trend over the past two decades towards an increasing fragmentation of the serious and organized crime landscape and the emergence of more groups and looser networks. Organizations based on loose cooperation across criminal networks have proved more resilient to law enforcement interventions than other types, as a network that gets dismantled can, in general, be easily replaced by another. The landscape of the global illicit drug trade has thus become more complex, is rapidly evolving and is facilitated by new technology such as encrypted communications software and the darknet.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Our croaker had packed in. We split up to comb the city. We covered Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, Jersey City and Newark. We couldn't even score for pantopon. It seemed like the doctors were all expecting us, just waiting for one of us to walk into the office so they could say, "Absolutely no." It was as though every doctor in Greater New York had suddenly taken a pledge never to write another narcotics script. We were running out of junk.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The shift away from purely hierarchically organized crime groups, characterized by an extensive division of labour within such organizations, also entails the emergence of new groups engaged in specific activities, covering only limited aspects of drug manufacture and logistics or specific areas such as money-laundering and the investment of drug proceeds. Moreover, a number of new groups have emerged in recent years, bypassing many of the traditional actors, purchasing and selling drugs online through the darknet to end users. They make use of private or public postal services to transport drugs to anonymous post office boxes from which they are collected by the end users. The payment is made in parallel by means of cryptocurrency transactions on the darknet' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The way drug trafficking organizations operate has been influenced by the growth of licit international trade and by the emergence of new ways of transporting goods. Notably, the use of containers has increased, and GPS devices have helped to retrieve the drug cargo within the multitude of containers. In a few cases, organized crime groups have even succeeded in hacking the computers of shipping companies to have containers redirected to locations where the drugs could be more easily removed from the container. In parallel, technological innovation has also enabled drug trafficking groups to acquire semi-submersibles to transport drugs, such as cocaine, from South America to Central and North America and, more recently, even to Europe, without being easily detectable. Moreover, drones are being used by drug trafficking groups to assist them in the shipment of drugs across borders. Another technological advance that has facilitated the connection of criminal groups is the emergence of encrypted messaging applications for mobile telephones, which have helped drug dealers to stay connected while maintaining a high degree of anonymity' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'The condition of Christian humanity, with its fortresses, cannon, dynamite, rifles, torpedoes, prisons, gallows, churches, factories, custom-house and palaces, is really terrible. But neither the fortresses nor the cannon nor the rifles will attack anyone of themselves, the prisons will not of themselves lock anyone up, the gallows will not of themselves hang anyone, nor will the churches delude anyone or the custom-houses hold anyone back, and the palaces and factories do not build themselves or maintain themselves. All this is done by people. And if they once understand that there is no necessity for all these things, these things will disappear.

And men already begin to understand. If they do not all understand, the leaders among them do - those whom the rest will follow. And what the leaders have once understood they cannot possibly cease to understand. And what the leaders have understood the rest of mankind not only can, but inevitably must, understand too.

So that the prediction that a time will come when men will be taught of God, will cease to learn war any more, and will beat their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning-hooks (which translated into our own tongue means that all the prisons, fortresses, barracks, palaces, and churches, will remain empty, and that all the gallows, guns and cannon will remain unused), is no longer a dream but a definite new form of life, to which humanity is approaching with ever-increasing rapidity.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Polydrug use is not a recent trend. It remains a public health concern because the use of multiple drugs potentially increases risks and exacerbates dependence. The management of polydrug use remains a complex and challenging task because treatment is often less successful for individuals who use multiple substances. Moreover, it is difficult to find evidence to address the question about whether the complexity of the drug markets has increased over the past two decades in terms of the number of substances and combinations involved in polydrug use.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'There is evidence that the number of polydrug users has increased in the United States and in the United Kingdom because in both countries the ratio of the aggregated number of users of individual drugs compared with the total number of drug users has followed an upward trend. It is still difficult, however, to assess the actual impact of this trend in terms of health consequences.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'One day Herman told me about a kilo of first-class New Orleans weed I could pick up for seventy dollars. Pushing weed looked good on paper, like fur farming or raising frogs. At seventy-five cents a stick, seventy sticks to the ounce, it sounded like money. I was convinced, and bought the weed.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'However, polydrug trafficking is not limited to Europe and can also be found in other regions and subregions, including North America, South America, Asia, Oceania and Africa. For a number of years, for example, polydrug trafficking organizations have been dismantled in the United States. A recent example was the dismantlement in July 2019 of an organization involving more than 50 people selling counterfeit oxycodone pills (containing fentanyl), methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and benzodiazepine pills, as well as various types of weapons.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'Demand-driven dynamics of drug markets are the result of changing patterns of drug use and the desire of users to experiment with new substances, which may lead to an increasing number of users starting a new habit. The establishment of the tramadol market for recreational use in certain regions may have initially been generated by an increased demand based on the supply available for medical use. But once a demand was generated, a new supply-driven phenomenon further expanded the market with illicitly manufactured products that were not part of the medical market' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'This is what ought to happen wherever violence is used. The officer feels dull. He has nothing to do. He has been put, poor fellow, in a position in which he has to give orders. He is shut off from all rational human existence. He can only look on and give orders, give orders and look on, though nobody needs either his orders or his attention. All our unfortunate rulers, ministers, members of parliament, governors, generals, officers, archbishops, bishops, priests, and even rich men, already find themselves partly, and soon will find themselves completely, in that position. They can do nothing but give orders, and so they make a fuss and send their subordinates about, as that officer sent the gendarme, to interfere with people. And as the people they interfere with ask them not to interfere, they imagine themselves to be quite indispensable men.

But a time is approaching and draws near when it will become perfectly evident to everyone that these people are of no use at all but are merely a hindrance, and those whom they interfere with will say amiably and quietly, like the man in the peasant's coat: "Don't interfere with us, please!" And then all these emissaries, and those who send them, will have to follow the good advice, that is, cease to ride about with an arm akimbo hindering people, and get off their horses, doff their uniforms, listen to what is being said, and join with others in real human work.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'Increases in drug use have at times also been supply driven, as users react to growing supply and the attendant falling prices by increasing their consumption of those drugs. This was the case with cocaine in recent years, among other drugs. Some of the recent changes in drug markets, such as the opioid crisis in North America and the rapid emergence of a synthetic drug market in the Russian Federation and Central Asia, can also be defined as supply driven phenomena. The expansion of the synthetic drugs market in the Russian Federation seems to be mainly linked to the Hydra darknet platform. While there may now be an established user-based demand for synthetic drugs, the initial trigger was new suppliers. The rise of fentanyl in North America was not defined by a new demand either but was the result of opportunities seized by drug suppliers to reduce costs and thus increase profit margins.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'While the main drug treatment interventions in Asia and Europe continue to be linked primarily to opiates, in Africa to cannabis, and in South America to cocaine, in North America there has been a shift over the past decade from the predominance of cocaine to an increasing importance of opioids. Marked shifts in the main drug for which patients receive drug treatment can also been observed at the subregional level. In a number of countries in East and South-East Asia, for example, methamphetamine has emerged as the predominant drug; in the Near and Middle East, “captagon” tablets (amphetamine), and along the eastern coast of Africa, heroin, have emerged as the predominant drugs.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In practice, pushing weed is a headache. To begin with, weed is bulky. You need a full suitcase to realize any money. If the cops start kicking your door in, then you are like with a bale of alfalfa.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Although in Europe opioids continue to be the predominant main drug for which people seek drug treatment, cocaine has become more common in Spain and methamphetamine remains the main drug of concern in Czechia. Within the amphetamines group, different patterns have developed in different subregions. For example, amphetamine continues to be the primary ATS of concern in Europe and in the Middle East, while methamphetamine has emerged as the primary ATS of concern in East and South-East Asia and in North America.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime,
World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'When all this becomes quite evident to everybody it will be natural for men to ask themselves: "Why should we feed and maintain all these kings, emperors, presidents, and members of various chambers and ministries, since nothing comes of their meetings and talks? Would it not be better, as some humorist has said, to make an India-rubber queen?

And what do we want armies for with their general, and their bands, and cavalry, and drums? What are they wanted for when there is no war and no one wants to conquer anybody? And even if there were a war, other nations would not let us profit by it, and the army will not fire on its own people.

And what are the judges and lawyers for, who in civil cases decide nothing according to justice, and in criminal affairs themselves recognize the uselessness of punishments?

And what are the tax-gatherers for, who exact taxes reluctantly while what is really needed is easily collected without them?

And what is the use of the clergy, who have long since ceased to believe in what they have to preach?

And what use is capital in private hands, if it can be useful only after becoming public property?"

And once they ask themselves these questions, men cannot fail to conclude that they ought not to support all these institutions which have become useless.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'England and Wales and Australia are examples of places where cocaine and amphetamines have competed for their share of the stimulant market over the past 20 years. Germany and the United States are examples of places where cocaine and amphetamines have together led the changes in the stimulant market

Within the stimulant markets, there are also examples of substitution effects in the “ecstasy” market. In England and Wales, for example, trend data on the use of “ecstasy”, mephedrone and NPS in the period 2005–2019 suggest that first mephedrone and later NPS filled the market space left by the decreasing supply of “ecstasy”, mainly due to a supply shortage, until 2012. Once “ecstasy” started to regain its previous share, the other substances declined sharply' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In the context of the long-term dynamics of the global drug market, there are many different changes that have affected selected geographical areas. Within the past two decades some regions have seen a gradual transformation of their drug markets: methamphetamine has become the predominant drug in South-East Asia, amphetamine (“captagon’’) in the Middle East, North America has been confronted with the opioid crisis, Africa has seen an expansion of its domestic heroin market, and countries in North and West Africa are now facing a tramadol crisis. More recently, two subregions, the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia and the Russian Federation/ Central Asia, appear to have been affected by rapid changes in their drug markets, with new drugs taking a substantial share of the drug market.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'In 1937, weed was placed under the Harrison Narcotics Act. Narcotics authorities claim it is a habit-forming drug, that its use is injurious to mind and body, and that it causes the people who use it to commit crimes. Here are the facts: Weed is positively not habit forming. You can smoke weed for years and you will experience no discomfort if your supply is cut off. I have seen tea heads in jail and none of them showed withdrawal symptoms. I have smoked weed myself off and on for fifteen years, and never missed it when I ran out. There is less habit to weed than there is to tobacco. Weed does not harm the general health. In fact. most users claim it gives you an appetite and acts as a tonic to the system. I do not know of any other agent that gives as definite a boot to the appetite. I can smoke a stick of tea and enjoy a glass of California sherry and a hash house meal.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'In the past few years, the manufacture and use of methamphetamine have emerged in the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia, subregions that until recently were dominated by use of “captagon”. Methamphetamine manufacture and consumption used to be largely unknown in those subregions. Initially reported by only one country in the subregion (Israel), the number of countries reporting seizures of methamphetamine has increased in subsequent years. Overall, eight countries in the Near and Middle East/South-West Asia reported seizures of methamphetamine in the period 2000–2009, rising to 14 countries in the period 2010–2018. The bulk of the methamphetamine seized, however, continued to be seized by the Islamic Republic of Iran.' - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, World Drug Report 2020, https://wdr.unodc.org/wdr2020/field/WDR20_BOOKLET_4.pdf

'When whole nations have sometimes submitted to a new religious creed, and become Christians or Mohammedans, these conversions have been accomplished not because men wielding power rendered them compulsory by violence (on the contrary, violence has more often acted in the contrary direction) but because public opinion made such a change inevitable. Nations forced by violence to accept the faith of their conquerors have always remained antagonistic to it.

And it is the same with savage elements existing in our society. Neither the increase or decrease of the severity of the punishments, nor modifications of the prison system, nor increase of the police, either diminish or increase the quantity of crime. Changes occur only in consequence of changes in the moral standard of society. No severities have eradicated duelling and blood-fueds in certain countries. No matter how many Circassians were executed for robbery, they continued to rob out of bravado because no maiden would marry a young man who had not shown his daring by stealing a horse or at least a sheep. If men cease to fight duels and the Circassians cease to rob, it is not from fear of punishment (indeed that makes the bravado more attractive), but through a change in public opinion. And it is the same with all other crimes. Violence can never destroy what is sanctioned by public opinion. On the contrary, public opinion need only be directly opposed to violence to neutralize its whole effect, as has been shown by all martyrdoms both past and present.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'It is estimated that at least 8238 overdose deaths occurred in the European Union in 2017. This rises to an estimated 9461 deaths if Norway and Turkey are included, representing a stable figure (an increase of 0.7 %) compared with the revised 2016 figure of 9397. These overall numbers must be understood as underestimations, as there are limitations to drug-induced deaths data, particularly to European cumulative totals.

According to the latest available data, it is estimated that there were at least 8799 deaths in 2017 among those aged 15-64 years old in Europe.'

http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/topic-overviews/content/faq-drug-overdose-deaths-in-europe_en#question2

'Marijuana Business Daily reporters were on the ground in Canada, providing live coverage of the nation’s historic launch of its recreational cannabis market.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/canadas-landmark-day-country-launches-the-industrialized-worlds-first-recreational-cannabis-market/

'The advocates of governmental violence say: " Let the murderers set us the example of abandoning killing, and then we too will give it up"; but the murderers say the same, only with a much better right. They say: "Let those who have undertaken to teach and guide us, set us an example by ceasing to kill people and then we will imitate them." And they say this not in jest but in earnest, for that is actually the state of the case.

"We cannot give up the use of violence because we are surrounded by violent men."

Nothing in our time hinders the forward movement of humanity and the establishment of an organization suitable to its present consciousness, more than this false reasoning.

Those in power are convinced that violence alone guides and controls mankind, and therefore they confidently employ it to support the existing order. Yet the existing system is really maintained not by violence but by public opinion, whose action is impeded by violence.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'The “war on drugs” is harming the most vulnerable and criminalising poverty. It is not a war on drugs – despite decades of prohibition, drug production and consumption is on the increase globally – it is a war on the poor. Prohibition damages people and the planet.

It is also a staggering waste of money. The cost of enforcing the war on drugs is in excess of $100bn (£77bn) a year. This rivals the size of the global aid budget (about $146bn). If redirected, that money could help provide healthcare, education and clean water to people across the world.'
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jan/22/take-power-away-criminal-gangs-legalise-drugs

'I once kicked a junk habit with weed. The second day off junk I sat down and ate a full meal. Ordinarily, I can't eat for eight days after kicking a habit.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'The list of states where medical or recreational use of marijuana and CBD is legal keeps growing. Thirty-three states and Washington, D.C., have passed medical marijuana laws (including 10 states and the nation's capital where recreational and medical use is legal), says Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). Also, 14 states have enacted CBD-explicit medical laws.

And, according to Armentano, all cannabis products, including marijuana and medical CBD, are illegal in Idaho, South Dakota, and Nebraska.'
https://www.webmd.com/pain-management/news/20190108/marijuana-hemp-cbd-whats-legal-and-where

'If 2019 proves too preliminary for historians to describe it as the tipping point in the founding of a global cannabis industry, it will not be for lack of trying.

Recent news of Thailand and South Korea becoming the latest countries to adopt the use of cannabis for medical purposes reinforces the remarkable, expansive rate for global acceptance of cannabis. In 2018, high courts in both South Africa and Mexico ruled cannabis as legal to grow for private, personal use. Medical cannabis is now being officially regulated among more than 50 countries, including more than two dozen amid Europe where a growing number of countries allows its use for treating a range of medical conditions.'

Likewise, cannabis is now legal for either medical or adult use in more than four dozen other countries worldwide. An estimated 1.2 billion people (15.3% of the world’s population) suffer from some condition now commonly treated with medical cannabis in markets having legalized its use and sale for medical purposes.'
https://newfrontierdata.com/marijuana-insights/50-new-cannabis-markets-globally/

Cannabis must be removed from the list of dangerous drugs that it is currently in worldwide grouped with heroin, opiates, opioids, cocaine, amphetamines, prescription stimulants, fentanyl, etc. It should not have been included in these lists in the first place but this was done out of misinformation and/or selfish interests. Global strategies have got to be clearly different for cannabis and for other drugs. The cannabis strategy has to be legalization for recreational use worldwide and removal from the dangerous drugs list. The dangerous drugs strategy can be decriminalization, regulation and approach as a social or health issue. We all need to be crystal clear on this as two separate approaches if we seriously want to address the global drug and health issues that afflict the human race.

'“The claims of legalization opponents have been studied exhaustively in states that have begun to tax and regulate legal marijuana,” study co-author and University of Illinois Professor Robert Bruno said. “While these policies have consistently brought a myriad of benefits to taxpayers and the economy, the research has failed to find any correlation between legalization and increased usage or other social costs.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/legal-marijuana-would-generate-hundreds-of-millions-for-illinois-new-analysis-finds/

The police, excise, prison officials, lawyers and judges need to support the legalization of ganja. This support for legalization will not result in a law and order crisis. It will instead ensure legal efficiency. Currently, due to the NDPS Act with regard to ganja, lakhs of people are arrested, under trial or in our overcrowded prisons. Significant police, excise, judicial and prison resources as well as taxpayers money is spent on this war on ganja. Due to the legal logjam both the innocent and guilty go through years of torment before justice is served. Often poor, innocent individuals languish in the system while the rich and the ones responsible for crimes like murder, rape, robbery, fraud, etc roam about freely. Drug cartels selling ganja and more dangerous drugs thrive and make huge amounts of money due to ganja's illegal status. Law enforcement must follow progressive police personnel, lawyers and judges worldwide who no longer support this war on ganja but support legalization. Besides vast improvements in efficiency and sustainability of law and order, the legalization of ganja will directly benefit law enforcement. Medicinal and recreational ganja is beneficial to humans and law enforcement personnel, subjected to vast amounts of stress and trauma, are also human.

'Weed does not inspire anyone to commit crimes. I have never seen anyone get nasty under the influence of weed. Tea heads are a sociable lot. Too sociable for my liking. I cannot understand why the people who claim weed causes crime do not follow through and demand the outlawing of alcohol. Every day, crimes are committed by drunks who would not have committed the crime sober.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

Two world wars and atomic destruction ran in parallel with the suppression of the herb and its prohibition. Could there be an association there I wonder?

'And therefore the transformation of human life (through which those in power will renounce power and there will be none anxious to seize it) will not come about solely by all men consciously and separately assimilating a Christian conception of life, but will come when a Christian public opinion so definite and comprehensive as to reach everybody has arisen and subdued the whole inert mass which is not able to attain the truth by its own intuition and is therefore always swayed by public opinion.

Such public opinion does not need hundreds and thousands of years for its formation and growth, for it possesses an infectious quality of acting on people and attracting collective masses with great rapidity.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

The world wide hunt for good quality cannabis is on. Demand will far outstrip supply for the foreseeable future so global legalization, support for cultivation and promotion of home growing are top priorities if enough humans are to get access to the plant. Low income individuals worldwide are the most affected as they face law enforcement action while big companies corner large legal cultivators wherever possible to supply the high income customer. Can we please stop burning and destroying the precious plant now?

None of India's invaders in its thousands of years of history prohibited or criminalized ganja. It was our own Indian government whom we elected post Independence that we used to shoot ourselves by prohibiting and criminalizing our medicinal and spiritual herb. Subsequent governments have been accomplices to this crime by continuing to enforce prohibition and use law enforcement action against the people for this. We the people have of course been sleeping through all this and continue to do so as passive victims of our own ignorance.

'Junk takes everything and gives nothing but insurance against junk sickness. Every now and then I took a good look at the deal I was giving myself and decided to take the cure. When you are getting plenty of junk, kicking looks easy. You say, "I'm not getting any kick from the shots any more. I might as well quit." But when you cut down into junk sickness, the picture looks different.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

'Quite independently of any man's opinion as to whether chicks are mature enough for him to drive the mother-hen away from the nest and let them come out of their shells, the question will be indisputably settled by the birds themselves when, unable any longer to find room enough in the shells, they begin to peck with their beaks and come out of their own accord.

It is the same in regard to whether the time has or has not come to do away with governmental authority and substitute a new type of society. If, through the growth of a higher consciousness, men no longer comply with the demands of the State, if they no longer find sufficient room in it and at the same time no longer need its protection, then the question whether they have matured sufficiently to discard the State form of life is decided from quite a different side - just as in the case of chicks that break out of their shells into which no power on earth can make them return - by the men themselves who have outgrown the State and whom no power on earth can replace in it.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

The most important aspect of ganja legalization should be the legalization of home growing of the plant for personal consumption. This should be the first step in legalization after which legalization for medical purposes, legalization for commercial purposes and legalization for pharmaceutical purposes can follow. This is because the poorest persons are the ones who have the least access, face the most criminal action and benefit the least from commercial, medical and pharmaceutical legalization. The plant's legalization should begin from the grassroots where the personal consumption needs of the individual are first met for the most number of people who need it after which the surplus can be shared, traded or consolidated for economic and industrial activity.

In the most absurd US war against the marijuana plant, finally only one of the plant's compounds THC now remains the enemy with the passing of the Farm Bill. As more and more studies come out detailing the health benefits of THC, this will also one day become de-scheduled and finally the plant will be free. The massive costs of this war are still being paid worldwide as many countries continue to wage the war like rogue units that have got used to the taste of war and oppression even as the driving force, the US, changes its stance as it realizes the costs and counts the casualties. Alcohol, tobacco, pharmaceutical, petrochemical, law enforcement, medical and possibly the arms industries continue to work clandestinely and lobby politicians worldwide in this war against the plant doing all they can to keep the image of the marijuana plant as the enemy vivid and strong in the minds of society while they in parallel explore ways to team up with the plant as a back up plan if the global war against marijuana fails..

'The judge hand-wrote a note on Vita’s letter expressing sympathy with his client.

“Federal law prohibits the use of marijuana for any purpose,” she said. “Sadly, therefore, I can’t authorize this—even if I think that medical marijuana is the greatest thing for pain (and I suspect it is).”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/federal-judge-wants-to-allow-medical-marijuana-for-man-on-probation/

'A Christian is independent of human authority because he only acknowledges the authority of God, whose law revealed by Christ he recognizes in himself and voluntarily obeys.

And this liberation is gained not by means of struggle, not by the destruction of existing forms, but only by a change in the understanding of life. A Christian recognizes the law of love revealed to him by his teacher, as perfectly sufficient for all human relations, and therefore regards all use of violence as unnecessary and wrong. He also, with his different conception of life, regards those deprivations, sufferings, or threats of deprivation and suffering, by which a man with the social conception of life is reduced to the necessity of obedience, merely as inevitable conditions of existence (like sickness, hunger, and all sorts of calamities), which he patiently endures without forcible resistance, but not as anything that can serve as a guide to his actions. The only guide for a Christian's actions is to be found in the divine principle that dwells within him, which cannot be checked or governed by anything else.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

'South Carolinians suffering from painful or debilitating chronic conditions stand to benefit from the legalization of medical marijuana. It’s senseless and cruel to deny them practical, legal, safe access to it.
https://www.postandcourier.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-medical-marijuana-can-ease-suffering/article_6ecee524-20d5-11e9-80ac-a304cfd3e062.html

'I had never been able to drink before when I was on the junk, or junk sick. But eating hop is different from shooting the white stuff. You can mix hop and lush.
At first I started drinking at five in the afternoon. After a week, I started drinking at eight in the morning, stayed drunk all day and all night, and woke up drunk the next morning.
Every morning when I woke up, I washed down benzedrine, sanicin, and a piece of hop with black coffee and a shot of tequila. Then I lay back and closed my eyes to piece together the night before and yesterday. Often, I drew a blank from noon on. You sometimes wake up from a dream and think, "Thank God, I didn't really do that!" Reconstructing a period of blackout you think, "My God, did I really do it?" The line between saying and thinking is blurred. Did you say it or just think it?' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

This probably applies to countries too...

'“In the long run, states that legalize in the earliest stages of this staggered removal of the drug’s prohibition may enjoy an early-adopter advantage with respect to the production and sale of marijuana as they gain a foothold in what may soon become a national (or international) market for the product,” the researchers wrote.

Twenty-one states legalized beer in April 1933, 22 states legalized throughout the rest of the year and the last five states legalized over the course of the following three and a half years. There was an industry-wide consolidation of breweries from 1934 to 1977, but data from the American Breweriana Association showed that breweries were more likely to survive the test of time and also expand in states that were quickest to legalize.

“The 722 breweries that were chartered in 1933 survived an average of 9.93 years, while the median brewery survived 4 years,” they wrote. “In 1950, when the number of breweries in the United States had fallen to around half of its 1935 number, 24.8 percent of the breweries chartered in 1933 were still in existence.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/history-of-alcohol-prohibition-suggests-advantage-for-states-that-legalize-marijuana-early/

'Armies are needed by all governments first of all to keep their subjects in submission and to exploit their labour. But a government is not alone; besides it there is another government exploiting its subjects by violence in the same way and always ready to rob its neighbour of the toil of its already enslaved subjects. And so every government needs an army not only for use at home but also to protect its booty from neighbouring brigands. Every government is thus involuntarily led to increase its army in rivalry with others, and the increase of army is infectious as Montesquieu already remarked a hundred and fifty years ago.

Every increase of the army in a State, though directed mainly against its own subjects, is dangerous to its neighbours also and evokes an increase of their forces.

The armies have reached their present millions not merely because the governments were threatened by their neighbours, but chiefly from the necessity of subduing any attempt at revolt on the part of their own subjects. The increase of armies arises simultaneously from two causes, each of which reciprocally evokes the other: armies are needed both against enemies at home and to maintain the position of a state against its neigbours. The one conditions the other. The despotism of a government at home increases in proportion to the increase and strengthening of its army and its external successes; and the aggressiveness of governments grows in proportion to the increase of their internal despotism.'

Leo Tolstoy - The Kingdom of God and Peace Essays

Imagine that we classified tall thin people who had below a certain amount of the skin pigment melanin as a type A and people who were of medium height and with melanin above this certain amount as type B. Imagine also that this amount of melanin which differentiates the two types of people was set almost arbitrarily. Based on this all humans were classified as two different types of people with the type A relatively free to move around than the type B who were kept restricted indoors. Soon, because we kept type B indoors, that became another way to differentiate A and B. Over time everybody believed that A and B were two types of animals and not a single species called humans. The world split hairs constantly trying to slot every person who came along into type A or B even though in every other way they were as alike as two humans could be. Type B needed to be caught and put under control because type B appeared maybe just that little bit more attractive to the observer. Sounds crazy? Well, in the plant world, type A is hemp or cannabis sativa L and type B is cannabis sativa or indica, both belonging to the plant species Cannabis. Today, the world is tying itself up in knots trying to keep this classification alive and things are getting funnier and more bizarre by the minute.

'After ten days of the cure I had deteriorated shockingly. My clothes were spotted and stiff from the drinks I had spilled all over myself. I never bathed. I had lost weight, my hands shook, I was always spilling things, knocking over chairs, and falling down. But I seemed to have unlimited energy and a capacity for liquor I never had before. My emotions spilled out everywhere. I was uncontrollably social and would talk to anybody I could pin down. I forced distastefully intimate confidences on perfect strangers. Several times I made the crudest sexual propositions to people who had given no hint of reciprocity.' - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

I suspect that there is a lot of undercover export of Indian cannabis happening, mostly to the so-called developed countries. A lot of people are making money in the process while the common man in India is being arrested, intimidated and prevented from accessing the plant. I suspect that the ones involved in and profiting from the illegal export stand to benefit from cannabis remaining illegal and are doing whatever they can to keep it that way.

'It has also been noted that, in Western societies, governance increasingly occurs not through coercive means, e.g., the use of criminal law, but by enlisting people's own sense of responsibility and encouraging them to govern themselves—essentially, to shape their own conduct. As noted, a public health approach to legal psychoactive substances involves measures such as price controls, restrictions on where they can be purchased and consumed, and health promotion campaigns. These interventions are indirect and non-coercive in the sense that they neither directly prohibit individuals from consuming nor punish them if they do. Rather, such governing practices and associated discourses “invite individuals voluntarily to conform to their objectives, to discipline themselves”.'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6089329/

Asia continues to feel the effects of the failed war on ganja even as the main proponents of the war have started to turn things around significantly for themselves.

'To wit: Among self-identified cannabis consumers (ages 15-65) in North America, the continent features a combined rate of 15.1% between consumers in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Conversely, the combined rate in Asia (2.4%) stands at less than 1/6 of North America’s, as countries in Asia are overwhelmingly characterized by strict legal prohibitions and low social acceptance.

As described by Kacey Morrissey, New Frontier Data’s Associate Director of Industry Analytics, people in legal markets are much likelier to admit having consumed cannabis. It naturally follows that countries with greater social acceptance and product availability would have residents who use it more freely.. In Asia, recreational cannabis remains illegal across the entirety of the region, thus limiting consumption as consigned to the illicit market.'
https://newfrontierdata.com/marijuana-insights/consumer-populations-do-not-always-correlate-to-frequency-of-cannabis-usage/

'Ike took a very severe view of my drinking. "You're drinking, Bill. You're drinking and getting crazy. You look terrible. You look terrible in your face. Better you should go back to stuff than drink like this." - Junky, William S Burroughs, 1977, originally published in 1953

260 million+ users of cannabis worldwide according to the latest New Frontier Data's Global Cannabis Trends Report. I believe that the actual number of users are much larger with a significant number of users being undercover due to the illegal status of the herb worldwide. Isn't even the legal numbers big enough for the wishes and choices of these people to be respected by the UN, WHO and all the heads of state worldwide? Legalize global recreational use of marijuana.

Thoughts from the void

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Tuesday, 23 October 2018

The Legality of Cannabis

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