Cannabis vs Alcohol corruption
O’Connell is right on the button… a billion dollar rort indeed. No other area of public policy sees otherwise good people put in jail, arrested and detained without ‘a body’ or complainant all exacted under the warrant of the Minister of Health. Yet… recently published in the Lancet. “a recent study estimating that marijuana accounted for about 0.2% of the total disease burden in Australia, a nation with one of the world’s highest rates of cannabis use. Its health impact was one-tenth that of alcohol and one-fortieth that of tobacco, the study found.”
So why are we not arresting people for having a tipple, or owning a wine glass or an empty bottle of beer, or for that matter ‘matches’ as they evidence having formed the intent to use tobacco?
Consider also from the October 17 Lancet edition:
Overall, “the public health burden of cannabis use is probably modest compared with that of alcohol, tobacco, and other illicit drugs”
Cannabis is illegal BECAUSE without it the (unaccounted for) Police Drug squad would have bugger all to do and National Drug Intelligence’s recent 2010 drug report would look all the more stupid for its argument that the cannabis social harm is the amount of money spent policing it.
Curiously, why has media not reported the wisdom of the ALCP president. Oh, lets pretend crime IS the problem.
Yet the Australian Prime Minister recently awarded Mr Ian ‘harm reduction’ Webster for excellence at their 2009 National Drug And Alcohol Awards – he said “I think Alcohol and Drug problems are markers or indicators of underlying community and social structures, and are PRODUCTS OF THAT MORE THAN THE DRUG ITSELF”.
Money laundering bill passed by Parliament
ALCP comments : Cannabis Anomalies