Lexicon Issue 006 - Legalise It (part 2)

With all the recent hype and controversy about the weed in the media recently we chanced upon the opportunity to follow up our ‘legalise it?’ feature as screened in the last issue by giving you a reminder of the herb news in the last six months and let’s face it if you’re smoking to many ‘ziggies’ today you might just need a reminder! Then as promised in the last issue we go into some of your’s – the readers’ – thoughts on the topic along with a selection of views from the industry.

In December, 2001, after a six month probationary period the police have continued to maintain a relaxed attitude towards cannabis possession in the south London borough of Lambeth. Fundamentally this means anyone caught in possession here will be warned instead of being given a caution by the police, which was the old method. The experiment has proved a success and one major plus point has been the freeing up of police time to catch those involved with hard drugs and street crime – the real burden on society.

From the beginning of july to the end of november, 2001, 381 people were arrested for cannabis possession. It is estimated that two officers can spend up to five hours filling in forms at the police station for each arrest. With warnings over cautions being implemented in Lambeth it is thought the mandatory paperwork will now take one officer under two hours to complete. In the event that officers suspect a person to be lying about their details or find a larger amount of drugs on them (that is deemed to be more than personal consumption) they still can implement their power of arrest.

In April of this year Britain’s second cannabis café opened in the sunny seaside resort town of Bournemouth. Dutch Experience 2 opened on April Fools’ Day and smartly sought professional advice from the local council before going ahead. It has been busy selling teas, coffees and other sundries for near on two months now. It doesn’t sell hash though, it just provides a haven for those who consume it to socialise and mix with fellow smokers. Situated near Boscombe station the café bears a resemblance to a greasy spoon on the inside complete with a murial in honour of Colin Davies. The founder of the first UK Dutch Experience café in Stockport is still residing at her majesty’s pleasure whilst his café remains open for business.

A placard in the Dutch Experience 2 reads ‘No Victim, No Crime’, another, ‘If anyone offers you hard drugs tell a member of staff’. There are clearly displayed house rules too: ‘no under 18s, police officers, alcohol, recording equipment and unreasonable behaviour’. They run everything by the book, right down to the punctual closing times and surprisingly the customers adhere to this more than you would find at your local pub. The café attracts a wide range of people from all different walks of life, professions and ages. Currently there are plans to open more of these styled cafes in Livepool, Preston, Rhyl and London.

On monday 18th march this year the police chief who has been for many years praised for helping to restore harmony to Brixton, London, after bitter community-police relations was sacked. Brian Paddick was ousted from the Metropolitan police after a former boyfriend was paid by the Daily Mail to dig some dirt on the former commissioner. The accusation was Brian Paddick smoked more than 100 spliffs in front of his estranged partner. Disgruntled Brixton residents overwhelmingly showed defiance by slapping up protesting posters around the area, starting petitions and claimed the Met were brushing him aside because of their homophobic outlook. Mr Paddick had been constantly seeking to decriminalize cannabis in his policing area reasoning that there were much more serious issues to be tackled in society.

Just to prove that the royals aren’t so much unlike us after all and to add another embarrassing blow to our beloved monarchy was good old Prince Harry. The 17 year old it appears enjoys nothing more than a swifty and a spliff, both illegally. Unfortunately last summer whilst on his school holidays he was about to find out that he wasn’t above the law near to the family home at Highgrove, Gloucestershire.

The young Prince frequented the local watering hole, The Rattlebone Inn, in Sherston and like most other kids his age liked to get well and truly ratted. It was upon visiting nearby Club H that his luck was about to run out though. Staff dobbed His Royal Highness into police after getting a whiff of the green stuff and decided that enough was enough. Being seen to do good Prince Charles promptly sent Harry to drug rehabilitation programmes to talk to users. Just what he thought he could tell them that they didn’t already know is anyone’s guess!

Much of the current debate surrounding the legalisation of cannabis argues that taking the focus away from draw will allocate more time for police to tackle dangerous and addictive drugs on the street. Over the last decade heroin and crack cocaine use has been soaring and now looks set to reach epidemic levels, not least those between 14 and 18 years old. Use of crack cocaine has become so extensive in the last couple of years that the number of arrests of crack addicts has far overtaken those of heroin users.

The alarming rise has been blamed on crack’s repackaging as a designer drug in recent times breaking down previous social and race barriers. The street price has almost halved in some places and the number of addicts seeking help with crack addictions has shot up by 50 per cent in the past year alone. It is proven that heroin and crack spur more crime such as burglary and muggings because addicts find it impossible to hold down jobs and resort to desperate measures to fund their fix.

Earlier this year it was revealed that Britain’s escalating drugs culture is costing the country as much as £18.8 billion every year. Users of class A substances like heroin and crack cost the British public about £11,000 each a year, this accounted for 99% of the total cost of this staggering figure. Arrested possessors of cannabis carry an obvious cost of police time and resources but the tax payer will surely not have to care for cannabis users. Not in the same way that a user of hard drugs needs total care and support to see them through their addiction and on the road to recovery.

“Don’t legalize it, only because I’ve given it up three months now and it won’t be fair as I’ve always had to hide it, selfish ain’t I? Seriously though I don’t really want to see 13, 14 or 15 year old kids who think they are hard walking down the street burning ziggies - just decriminalize it. If I was still smoking I’d probably still want it to be legalized.”
- DJ/Producer, anon

“Never had a fight stoned - can’t be assed! Every weekend accident & emergency departments across the country are clogged up with booze related cases. People should have a choice when smoking, I’m more worried about the tobacco than the weed.”
- Darren Jay, Wide Open Music

“Well, this is a subject that I feel strongly about. Legalise it? No. Why? Because the government will no doubt make a complete mess of it, i.e. taxing it, etc. Decriminalise? Maybe? Turn a blind eye? Yeah!! If the police continue to deal with this subject in the way they are. By turning a blind eye to it and concentrating on serious issues such as rape, murder, etc then the government don't have to acknowledge that they’ve legalised it. The police can, if they need to and then concentrate on busting the real drug lords, the ones who deal with harmful intent. Us, the public can then walk through the park on a hot summers day with a reefer the size of my arm. Basically… exactly how it is dealt with in Holland and other European countries.”
- APB, Formation Record Group

“Even though I don't smoke hardly, ever, anymore, of course it should be legalised. For most people it’s the only thing they do that’s outside of the law. It would make the bad image the police have slightly better if they don't have to nick people for having a bit of a smoke. They can get on with busting muggers instead.”
- Aphro, Aphrodite/Urban Takeover

“You mean to tell me it's not already legal? I thought it had royal approval? I think this argument has been done to death and pretty much everyone knows that it's one of the less harmful substances which humans choose to use. However if being legal means that every regular Joe will now spend his time in the bingo hall on a friday night stoned then I can't think of a better argument to not legalise it… It should have a minimum IQ requirement for users.”
- Third Alt, 3d Mode

“Legalizing it first would be a big step and may cause some problems. Decriminalizing would be much better. So it would be sold in designated places to people over a certain age but you still shouldn't be able to grow or produce it underground. Any marijuana production / business would have to be registered with the government. Have it like that for a few years and see how it goes.”
- Wizard, Gamma Ray (Canada)

“It should be legalised because it’s pretty much harmless and it’s up to people if they wanna smoke it. I know for one I smoke it because getting buzzing is heavy!”
- Junglist_dj187@hotmail.com

“Government can tax the sale of it, then give us a break in other areas that are normally taxed.”
- yakem1200@msn.com

“I'm defintely in favour. It will destroy the plastics industry as we know it because hemp is such a useful commodity. It could be used for fuel, rope, all that business, not to mention getting high...”
- anon, email

“Even though I don't smoke it nearly enough for it to be a big issue with me, I think cannabis should be legalised because: 1) Prohibiting the growth (planned or un-) of a plant is silly. 2) THC/TOEC is less dangerous to the human organism than, say, alcohol, nicotine and caffeine. You'd need to smoke yourself into a general smoke-poisoning in order to (also) get a cannabis-poisoning. 3) This drug is less addictive than the legal ones mentioned above (nicotine is more addictive than heroin). 4) Unlike alcohol, people under the influence of THC are seldom violent, aggressive, loud or otherwise unpleasant (unless, of course, you have a general distaste for the smell, or just hate smoke per se).” toxhansen@hotmail.com

“Cannabis should be legal because it is a way for some people to relax as is alcohol and smoking cigarettes.”
- loud215@aol.com

“If the government were wise and regulated it properly they could reap a lot of revenue in taxes – which would perhaps be good for more investment in hospitals and schools.”
Bryan, Guildford

“I’m thinking the only reason the Government haven’t made cannabis legal to this point is that they see it as an unsocial activity, so what do they call it when one has a skinful?”
Sarah, Birmingham

“Although cannabis is on the whole harmless there are a few downfalls which should not be ignored such as of loss of short term memory and being less responsive, which can sometimes be dangerous.”
Ian, Southampton