I just learned yesterday how the price of Gold had soared in the last year or so in response to wars and such. Perhaps it is no longer such a good comparison pricewise.

Another argument against prohibition is the effect it has had on strains. The potency of Grass has increased more than tenfold in recent decades thanks to selective breeding by guerilla farmers and in particular hydroponic farmers. In attempting to get the greatest yield possible in a high risk industry they have naturally bred the best plants from each generation. Growers will proudly state that their product is fourth of fifth generation hydro for example. There has never been so many varieties of Cannabis. Varieties like Skunk have arisen from a plant which once grew wild and was comparatively mild.

I find it hilarious that the Government then uses the strength of Marijuana as an excuse for prohibiting it when the potency in question is a direct result of the prohibition.

if marijuana users formed a national religious group, allied to a political party, then they might have some political clout - and get tax benefits.

Certainly more popular than other religions, i would think.

It only needs one senator to make a difference(eg Family First)

I think it's inevitable that drug laws will change in this country. Besides, enough people seem to ignore them anyway.

I figure what someone wants to do to or with his or her body, so long as he or she is not affecting another, is his or her decision. There's a difference between all sorts of behaviour that is fun and harmless and such behaviour that gets out of control, yet generally, we don't seek to ban people from enjoying themselves. Sensibly, we deal with reckless behaviour and leave the rest alone.

Maybe I'm wrong here, but I tend to think a large part of the anti-drug moralising, much like anti-alcohol moralising, anti-sex moralising, or anything else, is in large part due to some sort of post-Judeo-Christian hangover that is anti-fun/anti-minding-one's-own-business that still affects society in general.

I don't smoke marijuana, and never have. I also don't drink alcohol anymore. However, much like some guy who wants to have a beer or two whilst watching the footy, I couldn't give a rodent's earlobe about some guy who wants to toke up on the weekend, or even some guy who wants to stick a needle in his arm, so long as they don't affect me.

WayneSmith,

You ask a valid question as to why tobacco smoking is allowed while Marijuana isn’t, but then there are many areas where the law is illogical. I think both should be banned, though I agree that prohibition never really works. Nonetheless, both tobacco smoke and marijuana smoke stink, pollute the air, damage health and unnecessarily contribute to increased atmospheric CO2. I strongly resent my right to clean air being fouled by smokers. Alcohol is potentially dangerous, but is evidently harmless in moderation (unlike tobacco and dope). I’ve never tried dope and I never will. I have met numerous dope smokers and in every case I observed a significant lack of mental agility. Sadly, Australia is truly a nation of “dopes”.

Robg,

I think you will find that the proportion of less desirable people who smoke 'dope', pop 'pills' or sniff powder is no more than in any other walk of life.

You take 100 non-drug takers and maybe 10 of them have problems in life. You take 100 pill popping clubbers and you will find 10 of them have problems in life as well. I have met many people who like a toke or a sniff and they no different to anyone else.

I am sure that 10 in every hundred cyclists has problems in life - we're not going to ban cycling are we?

Prohibition is simply the modern day equivalent of burning witches at the stake. Its not about preventing drug use or the harms associated with drugs. It is about the state justifying its own importance by creating an imaginary evil to do battle with. It is the mystical witchcraft upon which the state can blame all the ills of the world without actually having to deal with the truth.

Daniel,

You comparison with witchcraft is absurd. The illegal status of marijuana is because of the conclusive evidence that it harms human health. Not only is marijuana smoke substantially more carcinogenic than tobacco smoke, it is also implicated in irreversible memory loss and mental illness. Prohibition does not work because a certain proportion of people simply refuse to obey laws, which in this case are intended for the good our health. I find it almost laughable how many marijuana smokers dismiss the health concerns as nonsense – ignorance is bliss. In relation your suppositions about the percentage of people with problems, let’s first agree the before anyone ever tried a drug, 10% of the population had problems. It is far more likely that that 10% will try drugs to seek relief from their problems. Therefore the percentage of people with problems must be higher amongst drug users than non users.

Really, however, prohibition is not working because there are so many marijuana smokers out there. I think it’s a very disappointing sad aspect of Australian society, which does not bode well for our physical or mental health. Perhaps if it was legalised it would eventually go out of fashion, like tobacco. In the end I don't really care, I just want to breathe fresh air.