"The illegality of cannabis is outrageous, an impediment to full utilization of a drug which helps produce the serenity and insight, sensitivity and fellowship so desperately needed in this increasingly mad and dangerous world."
– Dr. Carl Sagan
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Firstly, prohibition has been proven to be ineffective. There will always be a demand for Cannabis and therefore there will always be a supply of it. If you prohibit Cannabis that leaves criminals to be doing the supplying.
Criminals supplying Cannabis means:
- There is no age restrictions – anybody can get hold of it, even our youth.
- Bulking agents used to increase the weight of the product are contaminating the Cannabis – often these are dangerous chemicals.
- No quality control – Mouldy Cannabis, therefore dangerous Cannabis, may be sold.
- The government do not "control" Cannabis, like they think they do. It is entirely in the hands of criminals.
- The profit often goes to more severe crimes, funding gang warfare.
I could carry on forever listing negative effects of Criminals supplying the Cannabis.
Legalisation means:
- Enforced age restrictions make it less accessible to youths.
- Quality controlled Cannabis means the Cannabis is suitable for human consumption.
- No contaminants will be added to increase the weight.
- There is no risk involved when purchasing, as there would be when coming into contact with a real criminal.
- No criminal will attempt to push harder drugs onto the customer – it separates Cannabis from the black market.
- Millions of people, wrongly classed as criminals – even though they have no victim, will no longer be seen as such.
- Prisons would become far less crowded.
Again, I could go on forever.
Secondly, Government should not be telling us what we can and can't do with our bodies. At 18 or over, we are officially seen as adults and we should be treated as such – we are mature enough to make decisions such as these, and it is a human right that we should have that choice. By consuming Cannabis, as user harms nobody but themselves and without a victim there can not be a crime.
At the end of a hard day, whilst some people like to relax with a glass of wine, other people like to relax by consuming Cannabis. It is their drug of choice and it shouldn't be taken from them.
Thirdly and finally, to withhold Cannabis, a drug that has been proven to act as an effective medicine, from the millions of people who would benefit from it's therapeutic properties, is a crime against humanity!