Pubdate: Fri, 17 Aug 2001 Source: Otago Daily Times (New Zealand) Copyright: Allied Press Limited, 2001 Contact: http://www2.odt.co.nz Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/925 Author: Duncan Eddy CANNABIS PROF ROBIN Taylor's response to Stephen McIntyre (6.8.01) shows that Prof Taylor misses the point of cannabis law reform entirely. Prof Taylor claimed that ". . . the onus is on those who support the free use of cannabis to reassure us that the harmful effects on the lungs are somewhat different from those of tobacco". He obviously hasn't realised that any effect cannabis may have on the lungs doesn't justify the criminalisation and incarceration of otherwise law-abiding individuals. The damage which unnecessary criminalisation of cannabis users causes, vastly exceeds the negative effects of both responsible and irresponsible cannabis use. Prohibition hasn't stopped many hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders from diverse geographic and demographic communities from smoking the herb. It simply means that many who choose to smoke are deprived of State, community and family support, and young cannabis smokers are deprived of the ability to make informed judgements regarding their cannabis use. Harm minimisation, effective education, and better funded treatment providers are clearly a better option than the terrible cannabis policy we are currently burdened with. Cannabis law reform is both inevitable and necessary. Duncan Eddy City Rise