Why is Cannabis Illegal?

Question

I'm doing some research for science and i have to find out about Cannabis i'd greatly appreciate it if you could give me some help links or an explaination as to:

Why cannabis is illegal

Why people think it shouldn't be illegal

what effects it has on people

thankyou!!

Answer 1

it is a question many very educated and prominent people have been asking for years.

There has been and still is a lot of negative propaganda around cannabis. Most of the early negative stereotypes and claims were created in the mid to late 30's. Hemp was being pushed out of the picture by chemical companies like Dupont and big lumber groups who were afraid hemp was a threat.

It is hard to nail down precisely but there are many factors that keep it illegal. From the companies that are threatened to the xenophobia surrounding it, cannabis has had a tough time.

Answer 2

I don't know. Most things we consume in our day to day lives originate from plants, coffee, paracetemol, all food stuffs, all alchoholic drinks, chocolate. All these things are not exactly good for you and have been altered some way by humans.

Yet the cannabis plant (ok we grow it better so it's stronger) but it is not altered (apart from hash) before we consume it and adverse effects can be controlled/reversed by stopping it's use.

It's crazy that a plant that has been cultivated by humans and seeds carried around the globe for thousands of years should have such a status today.

The 'war on drugs' (thanks uncle sam!) has spread because of one persons personal vendetta against cannabis - our not so good friend Aislinger (can't spelll it) anyway thanks to him loads of counties followed suit and look where we are now. In the US alone there are thousands of young 'criminals' in prison because they got to close to a plant, a plant for god's sake. It's not like we're making heroin and really f***ing the country up.

By the way, the oringinal research carried out was done on a monkeys, masks pumped out pure cannabis smoke, not surpsrising some died and the ones that didnt were brain damaged. Not a very controlled experiment.

I'm not saying it's perfectly harmless (smoking anything is going to mess your lungs up) but if you way up the pro's and con's and if your sensible and employ moderation then I see no major harm.

New evidence suggests it may damage memory, jesus... getting old damages your memory so if the individual decides they want to contribute (they are not harming anyone else but themselves) why can't they consume cannabis. You don't even have to smoke it.

And the thought that it is a 'gateway drug'.....this is BECAUSE of the war on drugs, because people have to go to a dealer you are exposed to harder drugs, legalise, tax it do whatever you want and cut out this risk, just don't make us all criminals for doing something we enjoy in our own homes. It's not like we're rampaging the streets causing fights and rapiong women. That's for the alchohol drinkers !  

Fact remains that you are not going to irradicate the use of cannabis, it's taken hold, the government needs to accept this fact and deal with it in a sensible way instead of punishing people for smokling/eating a plant.

It's is clear the war on drugs is simply not working. Just a shame the government (UK & US) think it is.

Rant over !!

Answer 3

But it is now legal to grow it in Vermont and another state I believe.  It is starting to gain a lot of ground as an ecologically friendly building material in the US.  I even heard that some of the big companies like DuPont are starting to breed better hemp with increased tensile strength and such.

Answer 4

Why? Because people abuse it. Because it's a mind-altering substance. Because it's psychologically addictive. It burns out brain cells and is the gateway drug. The government legalize it and then they could tax the h**l out of it and make money. Instead it just costs money to fight a war that cant be won.

Answer 5

Sounds like one of them good ole boy tradition thingies !!  

(It needs to be studied and researched before anyone decides its legality, just like tobacco wasn't; now paying the price !!)

Answer 6

you know why Cannabis is Illegal ? It's because of a Propaganda movie made in the late 1930's"Reefer Madness" courtesy of the U.S Government but yet it won't admit to it