The legalisation of recreational marijuana in the American state of Colorado has attracted international attention, and New Zealand lawmakers should pay close attention to the experiment. Hundreds of people queued up on New Year's Day to be among the first people to legally purchase state-regulated marijuana, with media from around the world there to witness the historic moment. The legalisation of the drug for recreational use by adults marks a significant change in America's drug culture, but whether it is positive or negative remains to be seen. [continues 343 words]
Some heavy cannabis users are up to 11 times more likely to develop schizophrenia, a drug symposium in Auckland has been told. People with a certain gene combination that exists in 25 per cent of the population had that heightened risk, Otago University's Professor Richie Poulton told the Cannabis and Health Symposium. Risk of psychosis was elevated for those who used the drug when they were young, the Dunedin Longitudinal Study showed, but not at the levels of that gene combination. [continues 366 words]
Model for Dealing With Problem Has Not Reduced Demand or Supply So We Should Go Way of Some US States Illegal drugs are the scourge of the modern world. They have the capacity to destroy everything in their path. It is critical that this problem is adequately dealt with. But the global war on illegal drugs that was declared five decades ago has been a disaster for all except criminals. First, demand and supply for illegal drugs is much larger now than when serious attempts at prohibition began in the 1960s. Since 1998 when the UN held an event entitled "A drug-free world: we can do it", consumption of cannabis and cocaine has risen by about 50 per cent, while for opiates, it has more than trebled. [continues 830 words]
Many New Zealanders are turning to cannabis as an alternative to alcohol, which might explain why we are among the highest users in the world, a medical anthropologist says. According to the Ministry of Health's most recent New Zealand Alcohol and Drug Use Survey, one in seven New Zealand adults will have used cannabis in the past year. The survey found 46.4 per cent of all adults had used cannabis in their lifetime. That put New Zealand among the highest cannabis users in the world, according to the 2013 United Nations World Drug Report. [continues 357 words]
ALEXIS DE TOCQUEVILLE, easily the best European interpreter of America, observed of how opinion shifts in this still-new country: "As long as the majority is still undecided, discussion is carried on; but as soon as its decision is irrevocably pronounced, everyone is silent, and the friends as well as the opponents of the measure unite in assenting to its propriety." If you want to know why universal healthcare is still being fought over in America, the answer is that the country remains split on the subject. And if you want to know why gay marriage has suddenly gone from being unthinkable to being an increasingly accepted part of the American landscape, you'll notice how polling support for it has shifted from 57-40 against marriage equality as recently as 2009 to 54-43 in the latest Gallup poll four years later. [continues 887 words]
More Americans Back Legalised Cannabis Than Support Obamacare, Writes Andrew Sullivan. Alexis De Tocqueville, easily the best European interpreter of America, observed of how opinion shifts in this still-new country: "As long as the majority is still undecided, discussion is carried on; but as soon as its decision is irrevocably pronounced, everyone is silent, and the friends as well as the opponents of the measure unite in assenting to its propriety." If you want to know why universal healthcare is still being fought over in America, the answer is that the country remains split on the subject. And if you want to know why gay marriage has suddenly gone from being unthinkable to being an increasingly accepted part of the American landscape, you'll notice how polling support for it has shifted from 57-40 against marriage equality as recently as 2009 to 54-43 in the latest Gallup poll four years later. [continues 921 words]
Legalisation of Cannabis in the United States Is Only a Matter of Time, Writes Andrew Sullivan. Alexis de Tocqueville, easily the best European interpreter of America, observed how opinion shifts in this still-new country: " As long as the majority is still undecided, discussion is carried on; but as soon as its decision is irrevocably pronounced, everyone is silent, and the friends as well as the opponents of the measure unite in assenting to its propriety." If you want to know why universal healthcare is still being fought over in America, the answer is that the country remains split on the subject. And if you want to know why gay marriage has suddenly gone from being unthinkable to being an increasingly accepted part of the American landscape, you'll notice how polling support for it has shifted from 57- 40 against marriage equality in 2009 to 54- 43 in the latest Gallup poll four years later. [continues 575 words]
The latest Gallop poll in America has shown that a solid majority now support the legalisation of cannabis (Oct 25). The irony is that America is behind the pressure to prevent other countries around the world from legalising cannabis. The time has come for New Zealand to grow up and take a rational look at the benefits of hemp (cannabis). Let's move away from treating young and old as criminals for smoking a substance that has killed no-one and has minimal health risks, certainly far less than alcohol and tobacco. MARC FIBBENS Halswell [end]
I had the opportunity to speak to Nick Smith and Maryan Street at the Nelson markets. I asked them; with the amount of proof of the benefits of medicinal cannabis, why then are their parties dragging the chain on allowing people to use cannabis medicinally? Nick Smith rattled on about how cannabis causes throat and head cancers. I challenged him to produce any peer-reviewed studies to back his claim (which there are none). He muttered something about the studies he's seen from the Ministry of Health. Well, if it came from Peter Dunne, we know it will be dubious. [continues 116 words]
The Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party's leader believes new laws regulating synthetic cannabinoids mean the "dam is about to break" for cannabis legalisation. Party leader Michael Appleby was in Timaru yesterday on his way to party's annual conference in Dunedin. "We've been around years. "We actually held our first ever conference in Timaru. I don't think we're a ginger group. "Every little push we make has got our views closer to the mainstream." He said the recently passed Psychoactive Substances Act, which regulates the sale and supply of synthetic cannabinoids, was a step in the right direction. [continues 197 words]
Dunedin is a little closer to becoming the Amsterdam of the South Pacific as Whakamana: the Cannabis Museum of Aotearoa counts down to its opening. A joint venture by the Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party and Otago cannabis lobby group Otago Norml, the museum will be officially opened on Sunday, October 6, under the directorship of long-time Otago cannabis lobbyist Abe Gray. "All the local journalists and politicians will be invited, plus a few celebrity musicians. The general public are also invited," Mr Gray said. The opening would kick off Cannabis Awareness Week taking place online and at venues around Dunedin, he said. [continues 161 words]
A former senior New Zealand detective serving prison time in the Cook Islands for cannabis offences says the drug should be decriminalised because police are wasting money and resources chasing social users. Former Detective Inspector Mark Franklin admitted during an interview with Fairfax Media at Arorangi Prison in Rarotonga that he had used cannabis throughout his police career to relieve stress. He continued to use the drug in Rarotonga after he was diagnosed with cancer, as it was the only thing that helped with nausea. [continues 407 words]
YOU'D be right to wonder what has changed in Timaru since the Psychoactive Substances Bill was passed in Parliament in July. And you wouldn't be far wrong if you concluded "not much". Because in Timaru, unlike other centres, recreational drugs were no longer being sold from dairies anyway. Instead, two Stafford St retailers were the only shops selling synthetic cannabis, and they still are. Now, they do so under an interim licence, interim because the law has some catching up to do. [continues 306 words]
Two organisations behind a joint venture Cannabis Museum in Dunedin want to see the city become Dunsterdam, the cannabis capital of the South Pacific. Aotearoa Legalise Cannabis Party and Otago Cannabis lobby group Otago Norml want to achieve the status for Dunedin by opening New Zealand's first Cannabis Museum and launch a charitable trust in Dunedin this month. The function of the museum would remain within the law, says Julian Crawford, who is setting up the facility with well-known Dunedin cannabis lobbyist Abe Gray. [continues 255 words]
Former senior New Zealand policeman Mark Franklin pleaded guilty to drug charges in the Cook Islands High Court yesterday, Television New Zealand reported. A one-time detective inspector in Northland, Franklin was arrested in 2011 over allegations that he was operating as a local drug dealer, selling cannabis from a bar, in Rarotonga. Franklin's co-accused included a senior policewoman, Inano Matapo, and her partner, Giovanni Masters, who is the son of the country's deputy prime minister. New Zealand police officers based in Rarotonga helped in the major drug bust, which may lead to further charges. [continues 58 words]
Researchers are getting a better understanding of the effects of cannabis use on mental health, but the definitive answer remains hazy, write Robin MacGregor Murray and Amir Englund. Is cannabis harmful to mental health? That question has provoked much debate over the years, often generating more heat than light. The bottom line is this: Within the scientific community, there is a general consensus that most people who use cannabis will not develop significant mental health problems. Certain individuals, however, are more susceptible to the negative effects of its use. [continues 561 words]
A new ad campaign is targeting "sensible stoners" who falsely believe smoking cannabis makes them more focused behind the wheel. The New Zealand Transport Agency's (NZTA) latest safety campaign began airing on TV screens, in cinemas and online last night, targeting the misinformed demographic - drivers in their 30s and 40s who smoke marijuana and drive - for the first time. New Zealand Drug Foundation research has found that half of the drivers killed on New Zealand roads are impaired by alcohol, other drugs or both. [continues 260 words]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) - A novel New Zealand law that could legalize some designer drugs is being scrutinized with interest by other countries struggling to keep up with the proliferation of "party pills" and similar products. The law, enacted two weeks ago, represents a U-turn from the traditional approach of banning synthetic drugs. Instead, New Zealand will attempt to regulate them, allowing their sale if they go through rigorous safety testing similar to that for pharmaceuticals. Giving users a high wouldn't be a reason to ban them, a government health official said, though they would need to come with warnings, such as not driving while under their influence. [continues 491 words]
Overwhelming support: More than 1000 people - many with dogs at their side - gathered in Cathedral Square to protest against the testing of legal highs on animals. The demonstration was one of several around the country, held yesterday to coincide with Parliament sitting. Protesters, armed with placards bearing messages including "torture for profit" and "my life is in your hands", chanted "we shouldn't die for you to get high". The Psychoactive Substances Bill, which comes into force tomorrow, allows limited testing of party pills and synthetic cannabis on animals if no suitable alternatives can be found. [continues 159 words]
Drug-testing expected to cost up to 5800 their benefits, and 8000 others with arrest warrants also in jeopardy. Thousands of people are expected to be chopped off welfare benefits as sweeping changes in the social security system come into force today. The reforms represent the biggest upheaval in the welfare state since the Social Security Act was passed by the first Labour Government in 1938. All sickness beneficiaries, and sole parents and widows with no children under 14, are now subject to the same requirement to look for fulltime work as other jobless people, although sickness may be accepted as a valid reason to postpone work temporarily. [continues 365 words]
Inside New Zealand
