Alas Smith and Brown
Wednesday/07/May 2008 Filed in: Commentary
The lunacy that has been demonstrated this morning with regard to the classification of cannabis has clearly come about as a result of a real change in what we now view as the purpose of drug strategy in the UK.
Whereas once - back at the time of the 1995, 1998 and even 2002 drug strategies - the aim of strategy was clearly to pragmatically tackle the harms related to drug use, it is now the clear intention of this government, led in this respect by Jacqui Smith and Gordon Brown, to turn the clock back to a time when all you had to do was say "No Sir-ee", make sure you locked the bad guys up and everything would be fine and dandy.
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Dopes
Saturday/02/Feb 2008 Filed in: Commentary
Strong signals about reclassification may be morally reassuring, may improve Britain's reputation with those international bodies for whom the continuance of the war on drugs is a priority, may even convince people who'd already decided not to use cannabis that they were right in their decision, but will it stop people using the drug? Will it reduce the potential and actual harms of cannabis? Will it make it easier for us to deal with? Probably not. Read More...