Last month, Bryce Edward missed the biggest issue on cannabis.
Total political cowardice.
The issue has been argued and those calling for the continuation of prohibition have lost.
Regulated cannabis markets in American States are clearly showing a vast improvement in almost every single indicator. Vast sums of taxation are being created, lower negative social stats are occurring and Police arrests drop dramatically.
So why are we dragging the chain here in NZ when the home of the war on drugs is calling a truce?
We can’t even get Helen Kelly medicinal cannabis for God’s sake!
We need a regulated cannabis market and we need one now. As dairy collapses, our next new cash crop should be Hemp.
Building a Hemp industry that produced hemp products and cannabis for medicinal and recreational use would create jobs, create taxation, limit social harm, lift tourism, counter our agricultural climate change gases and shut down a vast money making operation for organised crime.
The only thing missing is actually political courage. The tiny steps that Dunne is taking are a joke.
Even the bloody Australians are ahead of us!
We have no real political leadership on this because of political cowardice.
The people are ready but the political class is missing in action.
Amen.
Peter Dunne is such a bland, wimpy, conformist and such a National party sychophant (and we know what they think of cannabis law reform – legislation passed in 1975 (51 years ago) is still relevant – despite what the research shows) – it is truly a miracle anything is happening. Sad – yes, pathetic – yes, entirely predictable – Yes sir!
I think it’s because the jonkey government hasn’t been given permission. We are ruled from offshore and there’s more going on here than is being told:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/02/06/business/economy-business/predators-behind-tpp/#.VtzLqZx97IX
If jonkey wants to keep his head and his role he has to obey:
http://www.stage2omega.com/robert-kennedy-jr-just-dropped-a-truth-bomb-that-will-shock-every-american/
The people of NZ have to unite just like the people of Iceland. Who is this jonkey anyway????? We voted him in we can call for a vote of no confidence and push him out. Or we can sit and do nothing.
Thanks Helena, good article you have linked to from the Japan times. Well worth a read.
I’m not sure why anybody gives Bryce Edwards much credibility.
He doesn’t actually SAY anything – rather he simply reviews and spins what others are saying – not unlike a bad book reviewer.
He does have something in common however with Peter Dunne – basically both are just a bit ‘wet’
The problem is that the people aren’t ready. Decades of bullshit propaganda has demonised weed. If you took an opinion poll tomorrow, unfortunately the majority would still vote to keep prohibition.
It’s all down to scaremongering politicians too. Cynically pretending to protect us from something relatively harmless compared to New Zealand’s drug of choice – alcohol.
The Cannabis trade already exists, the only thing we have to do is introduce a new way of regulating it. Personally I feel it would be a monumental mistake to let Peter Dunne have anything to do with forming any new legislation on this matter.
We already have a model to follow, Alcohol, basically use the same legislation but where it says Alcohol change it to Cannabis, Dunne.
In New Zealand the use of Cannabis, is a part of everyday life for many good, otherwise law abiding people, from all walks of life. A large number of which don’t wish to be defined by Cannabis, in the same way many wouldn’t define themselves by the Alcohol they drink. It is well known others only judge whether they’ve had a good time by the excessive amount they’ve consumed, that’s life.
When it comes to Medical Cannabis we should be free to use as a herbal supplement, if big pharma can take the plant and do its magic and make a myriad of targeted drugs good on them.
But if it’s only put in the hands of one sector to decide the fate of its use , then you are back to step one, a defacto prohibition of sorts. To endorse persecuting adults criminally, in this day and age for Cannabis use, just goes to show how little some know, or unwilling to admit.
On Peter Dunne’s facebook page, he has a favorite JFK quote of which this is a part.
“There is no comfort or security for us in evasion” How true.
The Cannabis trade already exists, the only thing we have to do is introduce a new way of regulating it. Personally I feel it would be a monumental mistake to let Peter Dunne have anything to do with forming any new legislation on this matter.
We already have a model to follow, Alcohol, basically use the same legislation but where it says Alcohol change it to Cannabis, Dunne.
In New Zealand the use of Cannabis, is a part of everyday life for many good, otherwise law abiding people, from all walks of life. A large number of which don’t wish to be defined by Cannabis, in the same way many wouldn’t define themselves by the Alcohol they drink. It is well known others only judge whether they’ve had a good time by the excessive amount they’ve consumed, that’s life.
When it comes to Medical Cannabis we should be free to use as a herbal supplement, if big pharma can take the plant and do its magic and make a myriad of targeted drugs good on them.
But if it’s only put in the hands of one sector to decide the fate of its use , then you are back to step one, a defacto prohibition of sorts. To endorse persecuting adults criminally, in this day and age for Cannabis use, just goes to show how little some know, or unwilling to admit.
On Peter Dunne’s facebook page, he has a favorite JFK quote of which this is a part.
“There is no comfort or security for us in evasion” How true.
I suspect we’ll get change on this issue the next time a left of centre party gets in power. It won’t be in the first term as Little won’t want to upset the middle class but I think the confidence will be there in the second term.
Edwards’s round-up looked pretty balanced to me. What is frustrating is that despite decades of campaigning, and having the facts on our side, the pro-legalization movement only have 15% support in the poll Edwards cites, with 70% only willing to support medical use. How do we convince that 70% that arresting people for using or selling cannabis is as stupid and ill-conceived as arresting people for drinking or selling coffee? That cannabis-related harms are lower in countries with regulation instead of prohibition? That there is massive tax gain to be had by regulating and taxing cannabis sales? How did they do it in the US states that have legalized?
“New Zealand should grow medicinal cannabis because of its potentially good returns, a Massey University scientist says.
Dr Mike Nichols, who has also researched hemp growing, said New Zealand risked losing out on a profitable industry, in the same way it once turned down the chance to grow poppies for legal codeine and morphine.”
http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/farming/77453718/new-zealand-urged-to-grow-cannabis-for-medicinal-purposes
> The Cannabis trade already exists, the only thing we have to do is introduce a new way of regulating it.
We don’t need a new way, what we had was excellent.
Helen Clark’s partial prohibition model adopted into law in 2008 made the crucial adjustment. If people KNEW we did this and why, and how Dunne (and MSM) manipulated the synthetics mulloch to disable a UN compliant “Class D” solution, and then to just stumble along pretending to be precautionary touting language ‘of reform’ like harm reduction and health approach when it is in application and effect, the exact opposite.
99% of New Zealand knew nothing of this “world class” approach to the problem of drugs less harmful than alcohol. These rules were not in breach of our international obligations, they actually informed our adherence to convention (rather than had convention inform the body politic).
They were ‘simple, erudite and workable’ (Senator Roger Goodman, Chair of the Volunteer Cmte of Lawyers and lead proponent of the King County Bar Association, Seattle, Washington State) .
UK Neurologist and fmr Chief advisor to the UK Govt on drug policy, Professor David Nutt said of the rules, he “wished he had thought of them himself”.
We threw them out (at the behest of Dunne) despite no one ever critiquing them, no political pundits, opposition, no select cmte, no moral wowsers, no police, no justice, not even a bleep from the medical profession. Not even a squeek from the Drug Foundation. Nothing from the addiction ‘treatment industry’ either (unless it was done behind close doors).
So why the legislative about turn…. That deserves further questioning? And I suggest, some serious ass kicking.
Here are the worlds best drug laws.
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2008/0373/latest/whole.html
It means the right to possess is a barren right without the right to informed consent and full recourse to natural justice.
> The Cannabis trade already exists, the only thing we have to do is introduce a new way of regulating it.
We don’t need a new way, what we had was excellent.
Helen Clark’s partial prohibition model adopted into law in 2008 made the crucial adjustment. If only people KNEW we did this and why, and how Dunne (and MSM) manipulated the synthetics mulloch to disable a UN compliant “Class D” solution, and then to just stumble along pretending to be precautionary touting language ‘of reform’ like harm reduction and health approach when it is in application and effect, the exact opposite.
99% of New Zealand knew nothing of this “world class” approach to the problem of drugs less harmful than alcohol. These rules were not in breach of our international obligations, they actually informed our adherence to convention (rather than had convention inform the body politic).
They were ‘simple, erudite and workable’ (Senator Roger Goodman, Chair of the Volunteer Cmte of Lawyers and lead proponent of the King County Bar Association, Seattle, Washington State) .
UK Neurologist and fmr Chief advisor to the UK Govt on drug policy, Professor David Nutt said of the rules, he “wished he had thought of them himself”.
We threw them out (at the behest of Dunne) despite no one ever critiquing them, no political pundits, opposition, no select cmte, no moral wowsers, no police, no justice, not even a bleep from the medical profession. Not even a squeek from the Drug Foundation. Nothing from the addiction ‘treatment industry’ either (unless it was done behind closed doors).
So why the legislative about turn…. That deserves further questioning? And I suggest, some serious ass kicking.
Here are the worlds best drug laws.
http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2008/0373/latest/whole.html
It means the right to possess is a barren right without the right to informed consent and full recourse to natural justice.
The Petro-chemical and tobacco/alcohol industries and lobbyists have jonky and his govt. by the balls.
Industrial Hemp provides not only tons of jobs but hundreds of great quality products. It could help turn our economy around with farms and manufacturing plants all up and down both islands.
The criminal petro-chemical ( prescription medications ) and the criminal Tobacco / Alcohol multi-national corporations and unethical lobbyists fight ” tooth and nail ” against it and all due to their greed and not caring about the well being of this country and the people who call this their home. It is not a ” gateway drug ” and people like dunne and others with their heads in the sand need to grow up and learn the facts and stop their nonsense. Don’t believe their fear based and ignorance based worthless rhetoric.
The legalization of medicinal marijuana is a — no brainer — and anyone with any sense and half an intellect knows that it is coming soon.
NZ is, again, way behind the times with this issue.
We need to get rid of the idiots at the helm and get in leaders and lawmakers with their heads on straight.
Thanks again, Martyn for raising important issues and bringing on discussions and debates which is a healthy thing.
Google — Industrial Hemp and Medicinal Marijuana
http://hempethics.weebly.com/what-is-industrial-hemp.html
http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashoka/2013/05/29/industrial-hemp-a-win-win-for-the-economy-and-the-environment/#5b478e5cdb11
https://norml.org.nz/medical/
i didn’t realise edwards was ‘on cannabis’..
..in fact i have always thought he needed some…
(apologies for double posting..i stuck this on gen debate..but can’t delete as it has vanished..)
peter dunne on campbells’ show..
..what a total arse he is..
..demanding that companies set up clinical-trials for any med-pot..
..so..by insisting nz must reinvent the wheel…he can ignore the many many products already available in other countries..
..he can slip/slide/slither away from any responsibility to do anything..
..and why are we even discussing this medical-trial bullshit..?
..just legalise the fucken stuff..!..you prick..!
..and banging on about the dangers from untested pot..?
..w.t.f..how much more evidence does this man who talks out of every orifice need to prove for him that pot is the safest intoxicant..
(i know a woman with stage four cancer…for whom pot provides much-needed relief from the shit she is going thru 24 hrs a day..you prick..!..
..you don’t fucken care about her and many others’ immediate/urgent needs
..i actually loathe dunne more than almost any other politician..even more so than that fuck-face killer-clown ted cruz..the current benchmark for loathsome politician..)
..and those lefty/liberals who say ‘go easy on dunne..he’s trying’…fuck you too..!
..he is playing you like a wind-instrument..you pawns…!
..and more fools you for being sucked in by this most slippery of politicians..
..everything he says/does is just an excuse to do nothing..
..now he is talking about kiwis maybe in a couple of years being able to fly over to australia to get a script..
..and you are fucken swallowing this as dunne ‘trying’..?
..is he fuck…!
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