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Oh Mr Southcott - what a dope!

Tory Shepherd

by Tory Shepherd

18 Mar 05:45am

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Filed under: Alcohol, Andrew Southcott, Drugs, Food, Hemp, Marijuana, Society

123 comments

Stoners Australia-wide may have got excited by the idea that the Government is considering legalising dope cookies, but most people realised they were not going to get a Home Brand high.

This should be just enough for tomorrow's picnic

Food Standards Australia and New Zealand is looking at whether ‘hemp foods’ should become part of the national diet. They’d have negligible amounts of THC, but plenty of other good stuff. Like boring old protein, Omega 3s and dietary fibre.

But Andrew Southcott, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Parliamentary Healthcare, immediately touched base with his inner wowser.

Under a press released headlined ‘Roxon needs to nip cannabis cookies in the bud!’, he said in essence that people would not be able to distinguish between good cannabis and bad cannabis.

The introduction of cannabis products into our food sends a mixed message to consumers that the use of cannabis is safe and acceptable. It is not.

Introducing cannabis into the food supply is the thin edge of the wedge.

There is a potential risk that high-THC seeds could enter the food supply if low-THC hemp foods are approved.

Oh, come on.

1 – OK, so there are some young people who, when first experimenting with ‘drugs’, might mistake dried herbs for the real thing. Or a Panadol for a pill, for that matter. But most people will realise that cannabis without THC is … a harmless substance. Otherwise we would have seen hippies running around sucking on their own clothing.

2 – The use of cannabis is, with some awful exceptions, safe anyway. Yes, it’s connected to psychosis in some individuals. But it’s much safer than alcohol, for example. Possibly even safer than crossing the road. The acceptable part? Well that just depends who you hang out with.

3 – The thin edge of the wedge? Which wedge? The wedge that ends with supermarkets stocking hugely potent fudge cookies in packaging designed to attract children?

4 – Yes, maybe people could smuggle high-THC seeds into cannabis icecream supposedly only containing low-THC seeds. They could also put smuggle THC into the icecream production line now, if that’s what they really wanted to do.

The proposal to allow hemp use in food came from Dr Andrew Katelaris, who reportedly was given a three-year good behaviour bond in 2006 for illegally growing almost 50,000 plants.

Not the best proponent, then.

But FSANZ has found the seeds are nutritious, products made from them would have no psychoactive properties, and that people would have to consume an ‘unrealistic’ amount of hemp seed oil daily to fail a drug test. They say there is no public health or safety risk.

I don’t know if we necessarily need hemp in our food. I was never a fan of the taste. But for an MP (and former doctor) to spout spurious arguments like this – well, it’s just plain dopey.

Most commented

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231Craig Thomson speaks. Meanwhile, in Australia...

123 comments

Show oldest | newest first

    • Erick says:

      04:53am | 18/03/11

      I don’t like the taste either, though eating cannabis is far healthier than smoking it. It’s a shame we’re still arguing over this issue, when marijuana should have been fully legalised years ago.

      Making it illegal in the first place was a huge mistake, as it led to the flourishing of criminal networks and a breakdown in respect for the law. If the government makes too many stupid laws, people will start to think that laws in general are stupid.

      Reply

    • adriane says:

      08:16am | 18/03/11

      They had to protect the cotton industry somehow /sarcasm

      I agree with you.

    • rufus says:

      08:39am | 18/03/11

      This may be the first time I find myself in full agreement with Erick.

      I have a carpet at home made of hemp fibre. Please don’t tell Mr Southcott. He may find it a mixed message.

    • Eleanor says:

      10:25am | 18/03/11

      And again, Erick, I agree with you. The benefits to be had from cannabis legalisation far outweigh the cons. Boost to the economy, stamping out a large section of crime and related violence, creation of jobs, and not to mention making criminals out of cannabis users.

    • Martin Hopes says:

      11:25am | 18/03/11

      Well said Erick. I’m so sick of conservative God loving righteous views like that of Andrew Southcott. Come July we get rid of Senator’s Barnett and Fielding, and now, up pops another ill-informed ‘Nancy’.

      California recognises the medicinal value of Hemp, users carry a card issued indirectly by their Doctor which allows them to carry up to one ounce.

      I suffer from severe Gout and Hemp is the only ‘herb’ that relieves me of pain. As for the seeds, it would not matter how much THC they contained, seeds wont get you stoned - You don’t have to do a lot of research Mr Southcott to realise what benefits Hemp has.

      It has always amazed me how Alcohol is tolerated by so many people yet Hemp is seen as some kind of evil drug.

    • Rick says:

      03:07pm | 18/03/11

      agree Eric (for once) what I would like to know is how they came up with the data that suggests canabis cuases phycosis?How do they know that these people wouldn’t develope phycosis any way. Did they do a double blind trial?

    • Yeah says:

      04:17pm | 18/03/11

      What,Whats goin on,what did you say,ah,what

    • Bobster says:

      04:19pm | 18/03/11

      William Randolph Hearst had some business interests to consider - so he Murdoched cannabis into the dark ages.

      Gotta love the unbiased media. Contrary to popular opinion - it ain’t going downhill.

      It’s always been like this.

      That dude had an eye for a story though - hundred years later, we’re still going.

    • Richard says:

      08:36pm | 18/03/11

      Its amazing how so many people feel the need to comment on just about every single thread that they agree with Erick, for the first time ever apparently, as if this is such a shocking admission.

      Face the facts punch community: Erick is 100% correct on most issues. Deal with it, and get over your breathless admissions of agreement with what is usually just a statement of the bleeding obvious, a common-sense opinion, or at the very worst an advocation for male rights (which rarely gets addressed by mainstream commentators).

    • Caz Jones says:

      07:30am | 19/03/11

      Punchy Tory. I would add something else - I recently asked a couple of pollies how much the expensive helicopter war on stoners etc is costing. They said the police wouldn’t or probably couldn’t tell them! Do you know of any journalists that have FOI’ed any such or related information - is it more governance or 20th century prohibition by secrecy?

      My concern is that as Labor falls in NSW and is replaced by a “moderate” leader in O’Farrell, albeit with the stacked right wing factions of Christian extremists weighing and preying on him,  the Libs will resume Labors secret and wasteful policies to save the embarrassment of having to opening discuss their war on farce and their rabid beliefs and pursuits of discredited 20 th century or medieval ideas?

      Like to hear your opinion.

    • TChong says:

      04:54am | 18/03/11

      Reefer Madness.- its all true.

      Reply

    • steve parker says:

      05:42am | 18/03/11

      The use of cannabis is, with some awful exceptions, safe anyway. Yes, it’s connected to psychosis in some individuals.

      Dear God, are you a lunatic or something? How can something with ‘some awful excepions’ be safe? How do you find out if you are one of the awful exceptions?

      Reply

    • Bonestar says:

      07:33am | 18/03/11

      Only a square would say something like that.

    • Basic Info Goes A Long Way. says:

      08:27am | 18/03/11

      Safer than alcohol???  With some exceptions cannibas is okay???

      Youre an effing journalist, do some proper research.  Or better yet try volunteering in a mental institution and hang out with the guys with drug-induced psychosis for a day.  Let me tell you it’s not a warm/fuzzy experience.  The ridiculous assertion ‘with a few exceptions’ is like legalizing open speed limits on suburban roads - sure, there’ll be a FEW dead children but I can get to work quicker, which makes me happy. I think that’s a pretty awesome trade.

    • rufus says:

      08:43am | 18/03/11

      Are you a lunatic or something, steve parker? Would you disagree with this statement: ‘passenger planes are, with some awful exceptions, safe’? Ditto electrical items, cars, dogs as pets, walking under ladders and any number of things.

      Perhaps you shouldn’t venture out of the home in case you become one of the comparatively small number of road fatalities. After all, how do you find out if you’re one of the exceptions?

    • Tory Shepherd

      Tory Shepherd says:

      08:56am | 18/03/11

      Like peanuts. Safe for the majority of people, but for some people very dangerous. Do we outlaw peanuts?

      I’ve met people with drug-induced psychosis, and of course it’s terrible. But alcohol, for example, is far more dangerous. My point is if you start demonising anything that can possibly harm you, you end up, what? Living in a bubble? It’s about education, personal responsibility.

      This wasn’t about legalising marijuana - but your analogy with legalising open-speed limits on suburban roads is entirely false.

      People are allowed to drink in their own homes peacefully - it’s when they do go on the roads or in public that there’s a problem.

    • rufus says:

      08:57am | 18/03/11

      @basic info:  victims of alcohol abuse and addiction far outnumber those in the health system for whom other drugs are the main problem. All sorts of statistics are available to show that alcohol causes the large majority of health and social problems of all abused substances combined. This is basic info.

    • Chris L says:

      09:06am | 18/03/11

      Steve, swimming at the beach is, with some aweful exceptions, safe.

      How do you find out if you are one of the aweful exceptions? Jump in the water, if something eats you, you one of the aweful exceptions.

      If my examples sound rediculous to you, please review your post with that in mind.

    • Zeta says:

      09:14am | 18/03/11

      The evidence that cannabis causes psychosis is non-existant, the research flimsy at best.

      There are a percentage of people who develop psychosis or have psychotic episodes who are habitual cannabis users. That number is higher than the percentage of the population who would ordinarily display signs of psychosis. But the researchers could not prove the psychosis was caused by the cannabis.

      A great example is tobacco use amongst schizophrenics. Check out this research from the Royal College of Psychiatrists: http://apt.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/6/5/327

      In one study, 88 per cent of schizophrenics were found to be heavy cigarette smokers. Using the methodology that created the scare campaign about cannabis and psychosis, you could quite reasonably state ‘Cigarettes cause schizophrenia’. But they don’t. And neither does cannabis.

      People who are predisposed to mental illness often experiment with drugs for other reasons, this predisposition skews research establishing causality and leads to the politically motivated scare campaign about cannabis and mental illness.

    • Sam says:

      09:50am | 18/03/11

      I think you will find far fewer deaths caused by h the alcohol simply due to the relative numbers of users. Should h be legal?

    • iMitchy says:

      10:17am | 18/03/11

      I think I am one of the exceptions. Everytime I have touched the stuff in the last five or so years I have ‘Greened Out’ - which is a feeling worse than death - last time I was trying to beg for an ambulance but couldn’t speak properly.

      But I support the legalisation of cannabis anyway.

      I have a theory that the psychosis and “allergic” reactions like mine aren’t from the cannabis or THC itself. If you look at the people from the 60’s and 70’s who smoked ‘bush bud’ and even the people who still grow their own now, the psychosis rates are as low as the rest of society.
      The majority of weed getting around now is hydroponic cannabis which can be laced with all sorts of drugs (or household poisons) to make it more potent. I believe that this is the stuff that is causing psychosis.
      I used to know a dealer who would say “I never get high on my own supply” then oneday I saw him adding cloudy amonia to the hydro water. When this guy did smoke (every day) he smoked hydro bud laced with methamphetamine.
      There is no way to know what is in the stuff without government regulation. I can go to any bar and drink any drink and know how many I can handle. With weed you never know how strong it will be or if the only drug you are consuming is marijuana.
      And let’s not forget we are footing the bill for the medical treatment while collecting no GST on the sale of pot. Even the dealers get off having to pay income tax.

    • Ando says:

      10:49am | 18/03/11

      Basic Info Goes A Long Way,
      Those poor buggers with psychosis either A. would have had it eventually anyway or B.smoked about 20 bongs a day since they were 15.
      Moderation is the only issue with drugs all the rest is crap peddled by people who are so out of touch they don’t realize there are people in every profession who are fully functional moderate drug uses i.e a cone at night to wind down

    • longhairjnr says:

      11:31am | 18/03/11

      Some exeptions is a great line, Lets replace cannibas with seafood,  nuts or pollen. With some exceptions it’s ok to eat seafood, nuts or pollen, but occasionally some one will die from eating or inhailing these substances. I understand it’s not walk in the park for people working or living with some one with drug induced psychosis, but it’s not walk in the park for people living with allergies either, or disabilities. It’s part of life and we need to start accepting that.

    • A Dose of Reality says:

      02:18pm | 18/03/11

      Zeta says: 09:14am | 18/03/11
      “The evidence that cannabis causes psychosis is non-existant, the research flimsy at best.”

      Tell that to my wife’s cousin.  He’s had this non-existant psychosis for about 20 years.

      Tell it to his mother - who has suffered injury from attacks brought on by this non-existant condition.
      And to his father who has suffered the same.

      Remind them both of the psychological hell they’ve lived in for years.

      Tory,

      You state that it’s not as dangerous as alcohol.
      Please describe those occasions where someone has had a double-scotch and ended up with severe psychological problems for the rest of their lives.

      Or will you continue to compare the effects of continual abuse to the affects of a chemical reaction?

      …. did I hear something about goalposts?

    • True Believer says:

      02:27pm | 18/03/11

      @Zeta

      There is definitive proof that for some individuals it does cause psychosis, anxiety and depression which can lead to suicidal ideation.

      I know this both professionally and from friends who have suffered from its use. It is debilitating and can be life long.

      I suggest you do a bit more reading on the subject with a mind open to some facts you may prefer not to acknowledge.  Better to be well informed rather than ill-informed.  Especially when making statements on public sites.

      That is why cannabis in dope form is and needs to remain illegal.

    • Wynston Cruso says:

      02:42pm | 18/03/11

      Did you guys even read Zeta’s post? Or make an attempt to perhaps open your own minds and do some unbiassed research of your own?

    • Rick says:

      03:22pm | 18/03/11

      @dose of reality This guy is an obvious nut case who has to blame his condition on something So your saying he smoked some pot and hasn’t been the same for 20 years ....man I’d like to get hold of some of that gear. I’ve had some sessions on OP rum and very nearly died.I ve smoked pot for 30 years sometime to exess if there is such a thing but never thought it was going to kill me.

    • Jay says:

      03:40pm | 18/03/11

      @ Basic Info & True Believer:

      Try hanging out in emergency wards of public hospitals on Friday nights - the majority of cases being treated are alcohol related, whether accidents, violence or self-caused injury stupidity.

    • Bobster says:

      04:20pm | 18/03/11

      Cars

    • stephen says:

      08:24pm | 18/03/11

      Of course Cannabis may be more harmless than alcohol.
      But that’s not important. (Grog has a different history, is an aspect of our sociableness, therefore our ‘emotional’ consumption.)
      What is, is that cannabis is harmful because it is an addictive drug and addiction is in itself addictive : we become used to a drug and it becomes useful and easy and we take other drugs because cynicism and self-hate, (which is, in fact, WHY most take the stuff) becomes our habit.
      Habitual behaviour inhibits our responses and our experiences.
      We can’t properly love if we are doped out all the time.

    • steve parker says:

      05:45am | 18/03/11

      Oh and by the way, in your last article you told us to report any quackery we might find. How about this little gem of yours:

      The use of cannabis is, with some awful exceptions, safe anyway. Yes, it’s connected to psychosis in some individuals

      Reply

    • pat says:

      07:09am | 18/03/11

      I can legally chose to make all kinds of unhealthy decisions for myself, I could wake up ever day and buy 4 litres of cask wine, drink them and go back for another that afternoon.  I could eat nothin but Krispy Kremes, smoke a pouch of white ox a day and do no more excercise than walking to the fridge and no-one is going to kick down my door and trawl through my bins and underwear drawers in an attempt to stop me.  But smoke some pot and I’m a criminal.  Worry about your own life Steve, there is no doubt you’ve got some bad habits yourself but no-one is suggesting we should lock you up.

    • Cheeeeeech! says:

      07:36am | 18/03/11

      @steve, but then again so is life.

    • Bonestar says:

      07:39am | 18/03/11

      When you consider that alcohol and tobacco are legal it’s quite ridiculous that a harmless drug like Mary Jane is not, and compared to alcohol and tobacco it is harmless. Caffeine would be more dangerous.

    • Bonestar says:

      07:32am | 18/03/11

      If it’s got no THC than they shouldn’t bother it’s like that non alcoholic beer.

      Reply

    • James says:

      07:43am | 18/03/11

      Awesome comment haha

    • Adam Diver says:

      07:33am | 18/03/11

      “But it’s much safer than alcohol”

      Any evidence or links to this. I suspect you are referring to total incidences without adjusting for the amount of consumption.

      However I would be interested to see evidence that says otherwise.

      Reply

    • Bonestar says:

      08:29am | 18/03/11

      Heres some evidence Adam Diver, amount of times i’ve been arrested for being drunk and fighting etc. over my 30 years about 12. Times i’ve been arrested and caused fights when i’m stoned about zero. No numbers or scientific study will give you better evidence then my real life experience. Also i’ve had 4 mates die over the years due to alcohol none from weed.

    • Economist says:

      08:49am | 18/03/11

      @Bonestar not a good example mate. how many times were you stoned and drunk? Were these the times when you were arrested?

      You state “About zero” you don’t sound too confident to me.  The fact is its a drug and its illegal. With more evidence each day linking it with psychosis, because people need the stronger stuff.

    • Jarrod says:

      09:07am | 18/03/11

      Very hard to do since there’s no solid data on canabis consumption.  There is, however, modelling on the physical harm able to be caused by each substance.  Most of the harm caused by canabis is due to the method of consumption - i.e. smoking it without having complete combustion leading to higher levels of carbon monoxide and tar.  Other than this, it’s been shown in multiple scientific studies to be less damaging than tobacco and alcohol.

      I’ll freely admit that this doesn’t include the capacity for psychological harm as this can’t be modelled as readily.  I’d note that if someone is going to bring up canabis induced psychosis or schizophrenia (both of which studies have already shown requires a predisposition to it) then I’d hope you’re remembering the number of people who suffer from mental impediments caused by alcohol.

      I’m not saying canabis is harmless, as it is demonstrably not, just that there are many more harmful things which are legal.

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      09:09am | 18/03/11

      Adam - here’s some evidence: Number of people worldwide who have overdosed on dope (ever), zero. Number of people worldwide who die of alcohol poisoning 1.8million per year! (World Health Organisation).

    • Adam Diver says:

      10:19am | 18/03/11

      1.8 million, wow thats an impressive number.

      Whilst I understand everyones point it is still not great evidence for such a large claim. Obviously its a difficult premise to test correctly, but it doesnt excuse the author for making such unverified claims.

      @ Bonestar, that has to be the worse evidence provided to make a point on this site for me. “Its safer because I am a d***head”, ha ha, it gave me a laugh.

    • Tory Shepherd

      Tory Shepherd says:

      10:52am | 18/03/11

      You could talk to pretty much any doctor or scientist, read any literature around drugs and alcohol, checkout the ABS stats on death/disability.

      As a health journalist I’ve read countless peer-reviewed studies on cannabis and alcohol, spoken to all the top medical experts. They all agree that alcohol is the biggest problem - in fact it’s hard to find any deaths directly attributable to cannabis. In a couple of cases people have died from inhaling their own vomit.

      I understand what you’re saying re. total incidences, and certainly more people drink than smoke dope - but still about one in three smoke, and only the tiniest fraction of those have health issues - many of which are not causally linked to cannabis.

      Just Google cannabis vs. alcohol, wade past all the stoner hippie crap and see how you go.

    • Ando says:

      10:59am | 18/03/11

      Adam,
      Bonestars suggestion that an individuals alcohol consumption can be quite dangerous for others while pot is not seems obvious without a study. Until you come up with evidence to disprove this I’m with Bonestar .

    • Adam Diver says:

      01:17pm | 18/03/11

      Appreciate the response but the claim was fairly ambiguous as is the evidence you provide. I still think the total consumption of alcohol (which in this country is off the chart) is misleading in terms of danger to the consumer. I think Jarrod was on the right track, but no research has been provided.

      @ Ando, you are welcome to believe the anecdote of an angry drunk and regular pot smoker, I will stick to seeing evidence provided to back up claims smile

    • Bonestar says:

      01:51pm | 18/03/11

      Hahaha you guys crack me up with your sheltered views. I live in the real world (western suburbs represent), i by my own admission and Adam Diver’s view am a d***head i don’t deny it. What i am saying is for the benefit of people like Adam Diver who just wouldn’t have a clue about the real world, alcohol makes people evil Mary Jane makes people happy i take both so i know. Alcohol tears people apart Mary Jane gives you the munchies! My dead friends are evidence of the perils of alcohol abuse. How many stories were there this week in the news about stoners robbing or bashing someone? zero

    • Bonestar says:

      01:58pm | 18/03/11

      Economist, you wouldn’t know a good example if it was slappin ya missus on the behind. I was arrested once for carrying but i was not hurting anyone or trying to bash there heads in cause i was drunk as drunks often do. As for the gateway thing/people needing the stronger stuff i laugh at your pathetic view do you really live in the same land as me? SHELTERED!

    • Leigh says:

      02:01pm | 18/03/11

      Evidence? Have a look at this article on BBC News from a few years ago. Interesting stuff.

    • HappyCynic says:

      07:34am | 18/03/11

      The sooner all drugs are moved from a criminal issue to a health issue the better it will be for Australia, take the MSIC in Kings Cross for example.  Heroin use has not increased and the number of people overdosing has decreased significantly.  Also Kings Cross is cleaner and safer now than its ever been (aside from its issues with alcohol).

      The same goes for weed, let’s face it the war on drugs failed 20 years ago, so why the hell are we still trying to fight it?

      Reply

    • Martin Hopes says:

      03:19pm | 18/03/11

      Exactly HappyCynic - Nixon started the war on drugs back in the early seventies, what has it achieved? NOTHING. A whole new attitude / approach has to be taken in relation to illegal drugs, they’ve well and truly lost the current war on drugs. Since Nixon’s famous comment, the USA is now the largest consumer of heroin, cocaine and marijuana in the world, they weren’t prior to Nixon’s rant. We all know what prohibition of alcohol did for the black market, illegal drugs are no different.

      I do admit though - it would take a very gutsy leader to stand on a platform of legalising all drugs (controlled like prescription drugs are now) they would not make it to election day - the underworld would make sure of that.

    • The Badger says:

      03:53pm | 18/03/11

      “the war on drugs back in the early seventies, what has it achieved?” NOTHING.
      I beg to differ with you Martin - It has made criminals out of otherwise good people.

    • Martin Hopes says:

      04:13pm | 18/03/11

      Touché Badger wink

    • stephen says:

      08:54pm | 18/03/11

      Bullshit.
      The argument that if drugs were legalized then the criminal element would disappear, is incorrect. The crims. would just make it cheaper, and they would do this by eliminating some suppliers who would kick up the retail price, who would believe they could do this because the demand would exceed supply.(An analogy would be the fruit and vege. markets of Syd. and Melb. circa 1960’s)
      This argument of yours would eventually succumb, unfortunately, to the vagaries of Capitalism. (And we have enough of that already, I should think.)

    • Darren says:

      07:40am | 18/03/11

      I am surprised that Dr Southcott is not more prominent in the Liberal Party - after all he seems dopey enough

      Reply

    • HappyCynic says:

      08:35am | 18/03/11

      It makes me wonder why he’s so vehemently opposed to weed…

      His insistance that weed is evil makes me think he’s an ex-pothead.  Afterall there is no greater zealot for a cause than those who have indulged extensively in the subject matter that they’re fighting against smile

    • Wild Eyed Fred says:

      08:12am | 18/03/11

      The suggestion is that the THC free version will cross pollenate with the THC version and reduce the amount of THC in the “wild ” THC Version,
      Hmmmmmm, maybe they should be stopped

      Reply

    • David says:

      08:40am | 18/03/11

      Tory - it is not safe. It is not necessary. There are plenty of other good foods around. This is just pandering to the “legalise marijuana” lobby.  If one person becomes psychotic as a result it is too many.  Andrew is absolutely right - but of course he is on the wrong side of politics for you so you could not agree with anything he said.
      Do you think you could keep your political bias to yourself?

      Reply

    • Chris L says:

      10:10am | 18/03/11

      David I take it you do not partake in anything that can be classed as unnecessary and unsafe? Such as driving or drinking alcohol or jogging or getting involved in an argument? All of these things involve risk at some level and are not necessary for living.

    • pat says:

      10:30am | 18/03/11

      David that argument only works if the laws actually stops anyone from smoking it, but they don’t.  Case in point - Amsterdam, where pot is legal has a lower rate of pot smoking than any Australian city.

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      10:38am | 18/03/11

      David - you should look into the ‘research’ about marijuana and it’s link to psychosis, the reasoning is spurious. People do not just randomly ‘become psychotic’ from smoking marijuana.

      They have determined that there is a link between marijuana & onset of mental illness, but only if there is a history of mental illness in the individual’s family- they are yet to find any proof that marijuana actually causes psychosis.

      If you do some research, you’d discover that excesive alcohol consumption is also capable of bringing on psychosis in people who are predisposed to mental illness.

      How the studies have been performed, is through taking a group of habitual marijuana users, and monitoring them over an extended period to determine how many display symptoms of mental illness.

      What these studies fail to take into account, is that there is a higher prevalence of substance abuse amongst people who are likely to be predisposed to conditions such as bipolar disorder or schitzophrenia.

      So right from the get go, the data is going to be skewed.

    • Ci says:

      11:04am | 18/03/11

      What an extraordinary lot of idiotic replies to this comment - Labor voters I assume? Pot smokers perhaps?
      Pot is illegal. It has not been shown to be safe - suggest you go and read ALL the research instead of howling the comment down.  Putting it in the same class as driving a vehicle etc is stupid.

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      11:14am | 18/03/11

      What is ‘ALL the research’ then Ci?

    • Wynston Cruso says:

      12:09pm | 18/03/11

      Ci - people die all the time from traffic accidents. Never has anyone died from smoking pot in 10 thousand years of its use. The comparison is valid.

    • Elphaba says:

      12:38pm | 18/03/11

      “Never has anyone died from smoking pot in 10 thousand years of its use.”

      Errr… I think that might be a slight exaggeration…

    • Chris L says:

      12:41pm | 18/03/11

      @Ci - Wow! If only we hadn’t wasted our time using comparisons or talking about studies. We could have just called everyone stupid, make comments about their voting habits and automatically win the argument without having to know what we’re talking about.

      Thanks Ci, gee you Liberal voters sure are intellectual!

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      12:59pm | 18/03/11

      @Elphaba - perhaps not too much of an exaggeration, people have been cultivating it for over 6000 years, I guess nobody recorded deaths from smoking it back then. But since we have started recording this kind of thing, there has been zero reported deaths directly attributed to smoking pot… despite what people say about Bob Marley.

      http://brainz.org/420-milestones-history-marijuana/

    • Wynston Cruso says:

      01:03pm | 18/03/11

      Elphaba - In no way is that an exageration, no recorded fatalities from using pot, and it’s been used for in excess of 10 thousand years. Research it, and the plant itself, it’s pretty interesting. One of the most useful plants in the world, if not the most. I would link articles but there are so many it’s not funny, and they’re easy to find. PLUS, I read it on the back of a Cyprus Hill CD cover. B Real wouldn’t lie. But really, from using pot alone, no recorded fatalities - ever.

    • Elphaba says:

      01:10pm | 18/03/11

      @Laura and Wynston, I was more operating on the idea that everything has the potential to kill you, which means someone at some point would have been killed by it.  But, whatever you say… wink

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      01:27pm | 18/03/11

      @Elphaba.. even rainbows & hugs & baby bunnies? I’m so disillusioned right now.
      You gotta die of something I guess….I hope I die of an overdose of kitten hugs. wink

    • Rick says:

      03:36pm | 18/03/11

      CI na Think I’ll go and have a cone and look at my pic’s of Julia

    • Kevin says:

      08:47am | 18/03/11

      There appears to be no problems with covering loaves of bread with poppy seeds.

      Reply

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      09:38am | 18/03/11

      Great point Kevin.

    • Ci says:

      11:05am | 18/03/11

      It used to be illegal in Queensland - is it still illegal there?

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      11:41am | 18/03/11

      Ci - not if my sandwich yesterday is anything to go by.

    • hot tub political machine says:

      09:09am | 18/03/11

      Obviously there would need to be lots of labelling going on here. I may be very naive on this, but isn’t Cannabis carcinogenic? (Not that there aren’t plenty of carcinogens in our food anyway) Why would you actually want it for food? I don’t smoke it but I get the reason people do, but what reason is there to eat it?

      Reply

    • Zaf says:

      09:44am | 18/03/11

      It’s like cigarettes - it’s the tar from smoking them that is carcinogenic rather than the nicotine that’s “just” addictive.  Ditto with cannabis - tar rather than THC (which is not addictive), afaik.  Clear?

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      09:45am | 18/03/11

      HTPM - From what I know, marijuana smoke is carcinogenic, the plant itself isn’t carcinogenic, until you burn it, but they haven’t actually been able to link people who smoke pot, with an increased rate of cancer.
      They did a study on it at Harvard &  think this is because THC itself has properties that destroy the carcinogens, and that it actually inhibits tumour growth & the spread of cancerous cells.

      http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070417193338.htm

    • Tory Shepherd

      Tory Shepherd says:

      10:11am | 18/03/11

      Heyya hot tub - it’s only carcinogenic if you smoke it - especially because many people mix it with tobacco.

      Agreed re. lots of labelling! Mostly because I suspect experimenting teenagers would overeat to try to get an effect….

      FSANZ etc. say its profile is outstandingly nutritious, therefore it should be in the food chain. The Omega3s particularly, apparently. We can obviously do without it - but we can also do without the misinformed overreaction from anti-drugs campaigners!

    • hot tub political machine says:

      10:32am | 18/03/11

      Cool gang, thanks for the info!

    • JR says:

      09:33am | 18/03/11

      Industrial hemp is a billion dollar industry waiting to happen. It is a hardy plant, easily harvested and replanted. It has many valid uses. Andrew Southcott is just another fool playing politics for the sake of his own welfare.

      Reply

    • bennie says:

      10:18am | 18/03/11

      Regardless of the strain of Cannabis, the actual seeds only contain trace amounts of THC, certainly not enough to get anyone stoned.

      Reply

    • Eleanor says:

      10:29am | 18/03/11

      Just sayin’ - I’d much rather have to deal with stoned folks than drunk folks. I’ve yet to come across someone high as a kite who’ll go out of their way to glass someone or start a brawl.

      Reply

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      10:41am | 18/03/11

      Unless they’re hogging all the oreos =)

    • First time pseudonym user says:

      10:36am | 18/03/11

      I was married to a pot-monster for 12 long years. She was only a casual smoker - one or two cones a night, but it was just about every night. I watched her slide into depression, and by midday most days she was a feral, froth-at-the-mouth banshee who lacked any type of reasoning skills. After the kids were in bed she’d get her fix and flake out in front of the TV.

      If she ever missed a night or two she was unbearably psychotic.

      But according to her, her habit had nothing to do with it…it was everything/everyone else with the problem. By the time she realised what she was putting the whole family through it was too late.

      Prior to this I was one of the people saying it should be legalised, but having had first hand experience of how addictive it can be and how crazy it sends you, I’m dead against it.

      Reply

    • Syl says:

      11:08am | 18/03/11

      I know plenty of people who smoke it daily (or at least a few times a week) who do not experience these symptoms.  In general they are happy when stoned or straight, and have no addictive “need” for a “fix”.

      I was under the impression that marijuana has no addictive components ( I may be incorrect).  If so, maybe her problems were a result of a an existing mental illness where weed smoking was a “symptom”, rather than the other way around.

      Also, 1 to 2 cones a night is not a casual smoker…..

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      11:12am | 18/03/11

      Firstly, I am really sorry for what your family went through, but from what you’ve described, your ex wife may have had an issue that went deeper than just smoking pot. Nobody I have known that smokes pot has ever reacted that severly if they haven’t had it.

      I see where you’re coming from, but there is another side to this coin.
      For example, my step father has a chronic back problem after a horrible accident about 35 years ago, doctors gave him morpheine for the pain, but he hated the way it made him so out of it all the time. So he started smoking marijuana.

      This was 35 years ago, he smokes every day for pain relief, he’s now 67, and has never had a ‘psychotic episode’ he owns his own business, works long hours & is one of the most content & genuinely happy people I know, even when he doesn’t have any smoke.

      Marijuana is not physically addictive like say, heroin - where users can go into spasms & break their back if they don’t get a fix, it isn’t even as addictive as alcohol.

      With marijauna, it’s all an emotional & mental dependance, every drug addict I have ever known, (and unfortunately I’ve known too many) have gotten that way because they were using drugs as a form of escapism, they needed to forget about something, and drugs made them do that.

      Although I believe a mental addiction is probably just as difficult as a physical one, it does just come down to willpower & moderation.

    • Markus says:

      02:08pm | 18/03/11

      Sadly that sounds more like a case of a lady with depression or another mental illness who just happened to smoke a lot of pot (likely as a coping/escape mechanism), as opposed to a well-balanced individual who was thrown off the rails because of the pot.

    • First time pseudonym user says:

      06:32pm | 18/03/11

      Strange then that when she got sprung smoking it by one of our kids, and she decided to quit…3 months later she was a different person completely.

      Still a cow, but a polite one.

    • jane wallace says:

      10:43am | 18/03/11

      Your comment:
      One only gets decent cookies at Subway.

      Reply

    • True Believer says:

      11:08am | 18/03/11

      Tory
      People do die from cannabis use, it is suicide Users can also end up with a disabling drug-induced psychosis which can remain with them for the rest of their life. 

      Not everyone is affected by it in that way, but having known people and worked with people who have it can wreck a young life. It is a side of marihuana that is not widely talked about.

      Gary McDonald (Mother and Son etc)  has an excellent dvd put out by Beyond Blue where he discussed what it did to him. Severe anxiety and disabling depression.  He came right after a lot of medication and Cognitive Behaviour therapy, then said he tried the cannabis some years later, 20 I think it was, and the same thing happened to him.  These things are glossed over by the proponents of it being a “soft” drug, but they need to be known.

      Any mind-altering drug has hidden dangers and should be avoided if people want a mentally healthy life.

      Reply

    • Kevin says:

      01:19pm | 18/03/11

      Yes they might make you start hearing voices which you mistake for Jesus.

    • True Believer says:

      02:00pm | 18/03/11

      @Kevin

      That comment is beneath contempt.  Get back under your rock.

    • Paul says:

      02:07pm | 18/03/11

      It is a soft drug if it only affects a small % of the population. Just like some people can’t eat peanuts, some can’t smoke dope.

    • A Dose of Reality says:

      02:32pm | 18/03/11

      Yet another silly analogy.

      One can usually recover from an allergic reaction to peanuts (when one learns that peanuts are not appropriate).  They can then be avoided.

      Mind you, witnessing a severe allergic reaction to peanuts is VERY scary, particularly if it’s a child.

      One does not recover from becoming psychotic (which is when one learns that dope is not appropriate).  Worse still is the fruitless efforts of people who try to avoid, run away, “cure” their psychosis once they learn of it. 

      Watching this progression is terrifying - and dangerous.

    • Elphaba says:

      02:37pm | 18/03/11

      @Kevin, that happened to a friend of mine.  Overdid the pot, was diagnosed with schizophrenia, and the voices he heard was God. 

      I think a Catholic upbringing had something to do with that - he drifted away from the Church and then saw the voices in his head as God punishing him for doing what he did.  He returned to what had been a familiar fabric of his life.  Very sad.  He would keep saying how I needed to be baptised a Catholic immediately to save my soul.  We had some trippy conversations…

    • True Believer says:

      11:08am | 18/03/11

      Tory
      People do die from cannabis use, it is suicide Users can also end up with a disabling drug-induced psychosis which can remain with them for the rest of their life. 

      Not everyone is affected by it in that way, but having known people and worked with people who have it can wreck a young life. It is a side of marihuana that is not widely talked about.

      Gary McDonald (Mother and Son etc)  has an excellent dvd put out by Beyond Blue where he discussed what it did to him. Severe anxiety and disabling depression.  He came right after a lot of medication and Cognitive Behaviour therapy, then said he tried the cannabis some years later, 20 I think it was, and the same thing happened to him.  These things are glossed over by the proponents of it being a “soft” drug, but they need to be known.

      Any mind-altering drug has hidden dangers and should be avoided if people want a mentally healthy life.

      Reply

    • Martin Hopes says:

      02:21pm | 18/03/11

      True Believer @ 11:08am. There would be over 2 million ‘pot’ users in Australia - what percentage of them would be psychotic? I’m guessing the figure would be minuscule. Some people are predisposed to certain disorders which might be triggered by a multitude of things, including legal drugs. If a child of mine was given a choice between Alcohol, Tobacco or Marijuana - I would hope they choose the latter.

    • True Believer says:

      02:53pm | 18/03/11

      @Martin Hopes

      One mind destroyed by illegal or legal drugs is one too many. 

      If there are that many people self-medicating on dope as you propose and you give no evidence for your figures - (where are they from?) - it is little wonder our social and health system is such a mess. So many addled brains out there - costing us all dollars, health and more often than you probably realise, lives.

      Your reasoning is illogical - and not just a little anti-social - is it a case with you of “oh I’m allright Jack?”

    • Chris L says:

      04:15pm | 18/03/11

      True Believer is demanding evidence! I may never recover from the shock! grin

      PS. Are there any figures regarding these people you say died from cannibis use? I had never heard of any deaths attributable to cannibis before.

    • True Believer says:

      04:42pm | 18/03/11

      @Chris L

      Up off the floor man!! Didn’t mean to shock you. Yes I ask evidence for things of the world which are subject to investigation and may be verifiable or otherwise.

      As for deaths resulting from marihuana use - suicides are not reported as such in the media, but they do happen.

    • Chris L says:

      06:07pm | 18/03/11

      (typing from the floor) Fair enough TB. I don’t really understand how being stoned can lead one to suicide (it always seems such a happy experience to me) but wouldn’t there be some underlying cause like chronic depression?

      My doubt stems from other examples where an innocent bystander can be blamed for terrible events, such as the Columbine massacre being blamed on computer games. The studies I’ve read (not that many, I’ll admit) have consistently failed to find any causal connection between cannibis and mental illness.

    • Ian says:

      11:31am | 18/03/11

      To live and enjoy life naturally seems to be unnatural…people are always looking for an escape…in this case trying to legalize dope cookies…the social problems related to this are enormous and far outweigh the thrill it may give to an addicted few…society has enough problems without introducing one as foolish as this!

      Reply

    • Rick says:

      03:43pm | 18/03/11

      Society has been introduced to hemp for thousands of years,it still has problems…...it will always have problems…...dope cookies exist already legal or not…......what else will we have to give to those pesky Mormons

    • Chris L says:

      04:19pm | 18/03/11

      Can’t get more natural than cannibis Ian. It’s just a plant (no chemicals or treatments necessary). If part of this plant happen to catch on fire and you breath in the smoke, well, it’s got to be expected that will happen on occasion. A lot more natural than popping pills, or sitting in front of the telly.

    • Ronaldo says:

      11:55am | 18/03/11

      Oh Tory Shepherd, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. The use of hemp is widespread throughout the world for clothing, ropem medicines and food. It has absolutely nothing to do with the plant that makes cannabis.
      Please read about hemp before spreading such rubbish

      Reply

    • Martin Hopes says:

      01:17pm | 18/03/11

      @ Ronaldo - I thought the only difference was the amount of THC? They’re both Cannabis.

    • LauraBoBaura says:

      01:48pm | 18/03/11

      @Martin, and you would be correct. It’s the same plant. Just a different variety, and they use a different part of the plant (stalks/seeds) it only contains about 0.3% THC as opposed to cannibis for smoking, which contains anywhere from 5% to 20% THC…

    • Colmac says:

      01:50pm | 18/03/11

      My partner has severe nerve damage in her leg which is a source of constant pain. The prescription medicine she is on impacts on her life more negatively than the pain. Some strains of cannabis (not all) either smoked or ingested, alleviate her pain completely,and give her the satifaction of an uninterrupted pain free night sleep. 

      To you ignorant “do-gooders” above that argue to keep cannabis illegal, would have her charged with breaking the law for simply seeking pain relief from a plant she could grow in her back yard. Shame on you

      Sourcing genuine gentle pain relief is a human right

      Reply

    • Zopo says:

      02:30pm | 18/03/11

      It is the peaeful drug, should be legal.

      I cant believe the government doesn’t legalise it, then the cops could make a fortune from everyone getting busted with cannabis in their system when driving.

      Reply

    • Rick says:

      03:38pm | 18/03/11

      Man you cant do that you’d be putting half the cop’s in the world out of a job

    • Zeta says:

      03:29pm | 18/03/11

      No one who claims cannabis causes any ill physical effects beyond weight gain, strange smells, and an obsession with Aqua Teen Hunger Force can back up their claims with research that hasn’t been thouroughly rubbished.

      Some people who use cannabis develop mental illness.

      Some people who do not use cannabis develop mental illness.

      Amongst the people who do develop a specific mental illness, a slightly higher percentage of them smoked cannabis when compared to a ratio of the general population.

      ^Those are the facts.

      Many of them might also have smoked, drank alcohol, wore nylon socks. But no one is suggesting cigarettes, alcohol or nylon socks were contributing factors because the US Government didn’t fund research to establish a link between psychosis and nylon socks. So we just don’t know.

      None of the research can prove that anyone who developed psychosis under the supposed influence of a life time of cannabis use would not ordinarily have developed that psychosis.

      The terrible reality is that serious psychotic episodes can strike anyone at anytime and the only thing we know for sure is that the people who experience them are predisposed to drug use in the first place.

      The real tragedy is that there are drugs that really do cause psychosis, and by lumping cannabis in with them, we dilute our ability to tackle the problem.

      Reply

    • True Believer says:

      02:08pm | 21/03/11

      @Zeta

      You need to do deeper research and get out from behind your computer and into some psychiatric services.

    • Mirror says:

      04:40pm | 18/03/11

      Maybe the stoner’s here are so affected by their cannabis induced psychosis, they don’t know they are affected?

      Reply

    • Erick says:

      05:27pm | 18/03/11

      @Mirror - Maybe you’re just so crazy that you don’t know you’re crazy?

    • Chris L says:

      06:09pm | 18/03/11

      Maybe you don’t even exist but are being imagined by someone else who is really stoned.

    • Mirror says:

      08:57pm | 18/03/11

      @ erick

      Pot calling the kettle black?

      @ chris

      awww did I hurt the widdle stoner’s feelings?  Must have caught you in a moment of clarity?  Are you out of dope?

    • Chris L says:

      06:15pm | 19/03/11

      It didn’t occur to me to have hurt feelings. I thought I was joining in on a joke.

      In my defense, who would have read your post and taken it seriously?

    • stephen says:

      05:26pm | 18/03/11

      When you’re stoned you’re not doing anything useful. You’re not working - or shouldn’t be - and your emotionsand perceptions are ‘unreal’ (why else would you take the stuff), and the motive for it’s ingestion(?) is always selfish, i.e. ‘I can’t or won’t, talk to any one else who’s not stoned cause they won’t understand i’m an undiscovered Genius’. (This last one, from personal experience, happened).
      They take drugs cause they’re bored, and they’re bored cause they’re boring.
      There’s a hundred things youngsters can do or at least try, things that an obsessive/addictive-type personality can get good at that won’t cost anyone else robberies or break-ins or assaults when their drug habit becomes laughable.

      Reply

    • Paul Davis says:

      05:17am | 19/03/11

      Ban the booze and legalise the good stuff, for smoking, not eating. That’s like injecting booze, without alcohol in it.

      Get a life and let us live ours

      Reply

    • Rai says:

      06:29pm | 19/03/11

      I live in his electorate of Boothby. You have to feel for the guy. For the first time in the 12 or more years he has been in Parliament he has actually said or done anything and the first thing you do is chop him down at the knees. Although he most certainly deserves it.

      Reply

    • Ben says:

      12:38am | 20/03/11

      The dopes are the people who buy into the Cancer chemo route the government, media like you, and the pharmacetical companies portray.

      The dopes are the people who believe its a really bad drug and we should stay away from it it might make you take other drugs!  gateway drug Lie.

      Hemp cures cancer and a lot of many other ailments.

      Simply consuming Hemp does not get you stoned.

      But you wouldnt know that cause you only believe what your TV tells you.. 
      Hemp needs to be heated above a certain temperature to release the hallucinogens.

      Hemp OIL extracted properly will eliminate cancer

      Problem is you cant patent a plant.. so pharma companies go broke, government gets no money from pharma companies, Media gets no government kickbacks.

      how many deaths from Hemp in the last 10 years?

      BIG FAT ZERO

      How many deaths from Alcohol, Cigarettes, perscription pills,Chemotherapy?

      HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS, if not millions.

      You hypocrites want to save the trees!!! and talk about carbon emmisions..

      well an acre block of Hemp would save 10 acres of Trees and draws in more carbon than any plant known , and does not require chemicals to treat the paper to make it white. 

      Concrete?

      Yup

      Ethanol based petrol?

      Yup

      Food

      yup…


      But no media will just keep on putting the “devils weed” lie .. to keep the public ignorant on the issue.

      youll be found out in the end.

      Reply

    • Lacho says:

      08:04am | 21/03/11

      ‘Hemp’ is different to ‘Marijuana’ for starters people. It takes 3% THC to get high, recreational varieties hit you at about 15%. Hemp has around 0.03%, no where near enough to get you high. They are both forms of Cannabis Sativa, but are very different. You would need to smoke about an acre of Hemp to get a whimsical high, I bet you would die of carbon monoxide poisoning first.
      How this entire conversation became about the affects of smoking the blessed weed, when it was about introducing the ‘safe’ form of it for nutritional benefits to all is beyond me… but if it makes you all feel better ... I have been smoking weed for about 20 years, & am definately not in danger of psychosis.
      @ Stephen 5:26pm 18/03: I Work full time, I pay a mortgage, I pay off a car, I do everything a normal society member does ... & I smoke a crap load of weed. The reason why, chronic back pain due to working my ARSE OFF! & I haven’t robbed or stolen a single thing yet, maybe I’m due for it eh man? (yes, that last sentence was dripping with sarcasm)

      Reply
 
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