I Am Not A Stoner

But if I was, I think I would be more than a little angry at the Government. Firstly, they have decided to completely ignore a report into the effects of cannabis that they themselves commissioned, and reclassify cannabis as Class B. The opening paragraph of the report reads:

Dear Home Secretary In July 2007 you asked the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs to review the classification of cannabis in the light of real public concern about the potential mental health effects of cannabis use and, in particular, the use of stronger strains of the drug. I have pleasure in enclosing the Council’s report. You will note that, after a most careful scrutiny of the totality of the available evidence, the majority of the Council’s members consider – based on its harmfulness to individuals and society – that cannabis should remain a Class C substance. It is judged that the harmfulness of cannabis more closely equates with other Class C substances than with those currently classified as Class B.

As Tim Worstall quite rightly points out in the article I mention below, "There doesn't seem to be much point in reading any more of that report, nor paying attention to it - since, obviously, no other fucker has either."

Funnily enough there's not been so much reporting of the other stats mentioned in the report. Except for this wonderful article in The Register. Yes, the IT crowd's favourite read (possibly bar Slashdot) and generally only interested in all things geek. They have, over the past couple of years, been increasing the politics angle (mainly related to issues of security lapses, privacy and ID cards), but this seems a step into a different area.

The article is quite compelling, with some lovely use of statistics. Like the fact cannabis use has fallen over the past ten years, the number of people admitted with schizophrenia has also fallen, and that the oft quoted stat that today's cannabis is 20 times stronger than that of 20 years ago is just plain wrong.

The second page of the article, however, has some worrying information.

Police will be able to seize high-value assets from suspected drug dealers as soon as they are arrested under plans to be unveiled this week by Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary.

As Worstal says, "Yes, they'll take your house, your cars, your bank accounts, anything with a realisable value, at the moment of your arrest. No court case necessary at all, simply forfeiture to the State on the basis of no evidence whatsoever. Even better, they won't leave you with enough money to hire a lawyer to defend yourself on those drugs charges"

More than 30 barristers from London, Leeds and Sheffield were approached to represent the offender, but refused because they felt the new fixed-rate legal aid fees of £175.25 per day does not justify the complex workload that would be involved. The case would have involved 6,586 pages of documents and a total of 4,548 transactions to prepare for an estimated six-week hearing. The offender, who has served a nine-month sentence for two drugs convictions, could not pay for the legal fees himself because his assets had been frozen.

Worstall continues: "That pretty much puts paid to the idea of innocent until proven guilty, the right to a fair trial and all the rest of that gubbins that our forefathers fought and died for, doesn't it? That's what I'm worried about, the leeching away of the very things that make us a free country in the face of this mass hysteria. It's decades since I last felt the urge to indulge beyond alcohol and nicotine, so the specifics of the drugs laws are an academic issue for me. But the abandonment of even the pretence of a fair trial should worry you as much as it does me."

I am the Revolution, and I want my fucking country back.

Albert Hoffman Dead

Albert Hoffman will be taking his trip into the afterlife, after a heart attack at the age of 103. Hoffman, for those not aware of the name, produced LSD in the 1930s - although it wasn't until 1943 that he discovered the hallucinogenic properties after accidentally getting some on his hand.

Hoffman disliked the way LSD was hijacked by the hippy movement in the States during the 60s and hoped that it would be used for more medicinal purposes as he had intended.

Have a good trip dude.

Gordon Brown On Drugs

Which is something we've all suspected, but tragically not the true subject of this story. Brown has been pontificating today on something he knows nothing about. Again.

On GMTV this morning, Brown said: "I have always been worried about cannabis, with this new skunk, this more lethal part of cannabis."

Hmm. You've always been worried about cannabis? Even since you were a child? Interesting parents you had there Gordy. I was more worried about imminent nuclear war when I was a kid, but that probably says more about me than it does about you.

"Lethal part of cannabis". Lethal? Well that would be pretty strong stuff. Not entirely sure I agree with it being lethal mind. Nor would this lot who quote the US Government: the lethal dose of marijuana is either about one-third your body weight, or about 1,500lbs depending on which agency you believe, consumed all at once.

Here's a fucking plan Gordy baby, why not legalise all drugs rather than trying to ban every fucking thing under the sun? Then you can tax them! And the added bonus is, you'd stop criminalising everyone who bought cannabis for medical reasons or leave them open to the oft-mentioned path to "harder" drugs. But hey, if they do go down that path, tax them! It's the gift that keeps on giving you pointy headed cunt.

Going To Dubai? Check Your Shoes

Read today about the Radio One DJ Grooverider being sent to prison in the UAE for four years because he carried 2.16g of cannabis in his luggage. Now, that's a pretty stupid thing to do anywhere - despite the relatively small amount of the drug in question - but to carry it into a Muslim country is just asking for trouble.

The UAE have form on this zero tolerance approach. A 43 year old youth worker from the West Midlands was also sentenced to four years in jail for carrying much, much less. By much, much less, I mean "invisible to the naked eye and weighing less than a grain of sugar". And when I say carrying, I mean "had stuck in the tread of his shoe".

Fair Trials International put out a press release earlier this month highlighting the other cases of the past twelve months that have caused them some concern.

Here are some of the more absurd examples:

Tracy Wilkinson, 45 of West Sussex
Arrested at Dubai airport in 2005 for possession of codeine, a common pain relief medication, which she had been using to ease chronic back pain. She was held in custody for 8 weeks before officials accepted proof from her doctor of its use for prescribed medical purposes only.

Robert Dalton, 25 from Kent
Robert travelled to Dubai on 13 November 2007 for a holiday after finishing his economics degree. He was stopped and searched at the airport and arrested after Customs officers alleged they found 0.03g of cannabis in his pockets. He is currently on trial and if convicted, will mostly likely receive a 4 year prison sentence.

20-year old man from West Yorkshire
Arrested at Dubai airport on 16 January 2008 while travelling back to the UK from Pakistan. Currently standing trial in Dubai after Customs officers alleged they found 0.02g cannabis in his pocket.

British resident Cat Le-Huy
Arrested in Dubai for carrying Melatonin jet-lag tablets, which are sold over the counter in the US and Dubai. Mr Le-Huy told BBC News he was forced to sign a document in Arabic and was refused a translator. He said once the tablets were proved to be Melatonin, police took what he described as dirt from his bag and said they were now testing it to see if it was cannabis.

And most bizarrely of all;

A Swiss national currently serving 4 years after 3 poppy seeds were found on his clothes by customs officials at Dubai airport. He had bought and eaten a bread roll at Heathrow before flying to UAE.

So be aware when travelling to the UAE, I'd suggest you buy completely new clothes before travelling. Oh, and make sure any drugs you might have taken have completely passed out of your system, as the UAE government also consider anything in your urine or bloodstream to be "carrying". Just so you know.