[Morecambe Ex Pat]

There are convincing arguments from both sides of the legalising cannabis fence.
Medical use has been promoted for a number of years for conditions such as MS.
I have very limited experience of its medical use so would prefer to comment on the aspect I do have experience of which is social use.

The experts against legalising/non criminalising it tell us that it is addictive, causes paranoia, leads to the use of more powerful substances and turns people into social degenerates.
Smoked in small quantities, cannabis can be enjoyed as a recreational drug and the user suffers no after effects at all. It isn't addictive and does not automatically make the user want to try something stronger. It invokes a state of mild contentment and a feeling of extreme well being. In that respect, it is just the same as alcohol which when taken responsibly, creates a very pleasant atmosphere and causes the user no after effects at all, except in the case of alcohol a hangover the following day.

On the other hand, over use of cannabis does cause mental anxiety and can trigger some very serious mental problems. Smoked in large quantities, it is a very dangerous substance indeed.

Most cannabis smokers and alcohol drinkers take their chosen substance in controlled quantities and having enjoyed the effects, return back to their normal mental state and carry on with their lives.

Heavy smokers and heavy drinkers on the other hand, just don't know when to stop. Binge drinkers will quite happily drink themselves into oblivion and try the fight with the rest of the world on the way to the kebab shop after a session.
Heavy smokers will exceed the feeling of contentment and enter a state of near unconciousness. In the same way that excessive alcohol can damage vital organs of the body, cannabis too can damage the body, particularly the brain. Small amounts of cannabis have little, long term, effect on the brain but increased use can severely affect shorth term memory and induce paranoia.
The Government seem to have a strange attitude towards what we as the general public are and are not allowed to do. They make laws preventing us from using harmful substances such as cannabis yet allow the purchase of other, far more dangerous things such as Alcohol and Fireworks to be perfectly acceptable.
I respect the wishes of people who do not wish to smoke cannabis in the same way that people can choose not to drink alcohol or eat meat etc. but I do object to not being allowed to make a choice.

Just for the record, I would not even consider taking any of the white powders and mysterious tablets which are available these days, common sense tells me that they could contain anything. I have also seen first hand how such substances can turn coherent human beings into non functioning zombies in an alarmingly short time.