Leopard

[Rory]

Steady on.

Drugs are bad.

[Biddulph_PV]

13 minutes ago, Rory said:

55 minutes ago, Conrad said:

Steady on.

Drugs are bad.

When you’ve got an abscess, trust me, they’re not 🦷😫

[Conrad]

34 minutes ago, Rory said:

1 hour ago, Conrad said:

Steady on.

Drugs are bad.

Agree, but alcohol?

i know alcohol is a drug.

[NorthwoodValiant]

42 minutes ago, Rory said:

1 hour ago, Conrad said:

Steady on.

Drugs are bad.

'Good' and 'Bad' are social constructs 🤷‍♂️

[wotsyobeef]

Authur you right, the majority have no issues but some do. I can only speak about the people who I work with where their use leads to offending behaviour and i have witnessed cannabis induced psychosis. The majority like you use it with no issues.

If it and other drugs were legal some of the money made from taxes could be used towards help for people experiencing problems with addiction and associated mental health issues. Licensing regulations could reduce sales to vulnerable people and children. Policing costs would reduce massively due to a reduction in both gang related and user related crime associated with drugs. Less people would be taken advantage of through smuggling and county lines due to legitimate ways to import drugs. More money could be directed towards homeless shelters and rehab facilities. Perhaps even partially staffed by the people using them.

Drug trade in the UK is estimated to be about 10 billion pounds per year and there are millions of users and even more who have tried drugs. The current system doesn't work, is a massive drain on resources and criminalises 10% of the population unnecessarily.

Rather than supporting users to overcome their issues the current system alienates them from the rest of society. Just because heroin were to be made legal wouldn't mean that people would actively go out and take it, I would imagine the majority of 1st time users only do so because they are in a position where people can take advantage of them as opposed to being in a licensed premises buying from a responsible regulated seller.

There would still be problems within society but something needs to change and the current approach isn't working. IMO Any government brave enough to make the changes would be brave and probably wouldn't be in power long enough to see the rewards to society for their bravery but would be able to sleep soundly knowing that they had made the most positive impact on society of any government in a long long time.

[Rory]

Agree, but alcohol?
i know alcohol is a drug.

One of the worst. If that stuff came on the scene now you'd be in a lot of trouble for carrying such poison.

What are your thoughts on caffeine?

[NorthwoodValiant]

19 minutes ago, wotsyobeef said:

If it and other drugs were legal some of the money made from taxes could be used towards help for people experiencing problems with addiction and associated mental health issues. Licensing regulations could reduce sales to vulnerable people and children. Policing costs would reduce massively due to a reduction in both gang related and user related crime associated with drugs. Less people would be taken advantage of through smuggling and county lines due to legitimate ways to import drugs. More money could be directed towards homeless shelters and rehab facilities. Perhaps even partially staffed by the people using them.

Drug trade in the UK is estimated to be about 10 billion pounds per year and there are millions of users and even more who have tried drugs. The current system doesn't work, is a massive drain on resources and criminalises 10% of the population unnecessarily.

Rather than supporting users to overcome their issues the current system alienates them from the rest of society. Just because heroin were to be made legal wouldn't mean that people would actively go out and take it, I would imagine the majority of 1st time users only do so because they are in a position where people can take advantage of them as opposed to being in a licensed premises buying from a responsible regulated seller.

There would still be problems within society but something needs to change and the current approach isn't working. IMO Any government brave enough to make the changes would be brave and probably wouldn't be in power long enough to see the rewards to society for their bravery but would be able to sleep soundly knowing that they had made the most positive impact on society of any government in a long long time.

nailed it

[Alfie1962]

15 minutes ago, wotsyobeef said:

If it and other drugs were legal some of the money made from taxes could be used towards help for people experiencing problems with addiction and associated mental health issues. Licensing regulations could reduce sales to vulnerable people and children. Policing costs would reduce massively due to a reduction in both gang related and user related crime associated with drugs. Less people would be taken advantage of through smuggling and county lines due to legitimate ways to import drugs. More money could be directed towards homeless shelters and rehab facilities. Perhaps even partially staffed by the people using them.

Drug trade in the UK is estimated to be about 10 billion pounds per year and there are millions of users and even more who have tried drugs. The current system doesn't work, is a massive drain on resources and criminalises 10% of the population unnecessarily.

Rather than supporting users to overcome their issues the current system alienates them from the rest of society. Just because heroin were to be made legal wouldn't mean that people would actively go out and take it, I would imagine the majority of 1st time users only do so because they are in a position where people can take advantage of them as opposed to being in a licensed premises buying from a responsible regulated seller.

There would still be problems within society but something needs to change and the current approach isn't working. IMO Any government brave enough to make the changes would be brave and probably wouldn't be in power long enough to see the rewards to society for their bravery but would be able to sleep soundly knowing that they had made the most positive impact on society of any government in a long long time.

Great Post and can't disagree. Worked in this field since 2004 and various ways have been tried and failed upto a point. It is hard to measure success in this field but harm reduction and prescribed medication work for some but not for all. There is no one size Fitz Hall but I doubt money gained from taxes would go where it's  needed.

[wotsyobeef]

15 minutes ago, Alfie1962 said:

Great Post and can't disagree. Worked in this field since 2004 and various ways have been tried and failed upto a point. It is hard to measure success in this field but harm reduction and prescribed medication work for some but not for all. There is no one size Fitz Hall but I doubt money gained from taxes would go where it's  needed.

True. Its a bit like the vast proportion of the money bet 365 make goes into Denise Coates' back pocket rather than towards gambling addiction.

One part I missed out of my previous post was imagine going into a pub and ordering a pint but not knowing if it was a Carling shandy or absinthe and knowing that you wouldn't know until an hour after consuming it.

 

I think the world are currently watching the countries that are taking steps towards this way of thinking to learn from their mistakes ready for the time that they follow in theor footsteps.

[Playa Amodores]

NV yes it is the gateway. People don’t jump straight into class A. Cannabis is readily available and is normally smoked whilst at school. Due to it being cheap in comparison to class A and a lot people don’t progress to harder drugs. Ive known plenty of class A addicts and yes they all started using cannabis. When they don’t get the hit they start using harder drugs and then increase their intake. It’s all about chasing the first hit, words straight from an heroin addicts mouth. I form my opinion from being around addicts. 

[Alfie1962]

2 minutes ago, wotsyobeef said:

True. Its a bit like the vast proportion of the money bet 365 make goes into Denise Coates' back pocket rather than towards gambling addiction.

One part I missed out of my previous post was imagine going into a pub and ordering a pint but not knowing if it was a Carling shandy or absinthe and knowing that you wouldn't know until an hour after consuming it.

 

I think the world are currently watching the countries that are taking steps towards this way of thinking to learn from their mistakes ready for the time that they follow in theor footsteps.

When you say children in your post I assume you mean U18s. That is the,age group I work with and I can assure you if it was implemeted they would not wait until the age of 18 to use drugs. That is why I enjoy working with this age group as feel you can make a difference.

[Alfie1962]

1 minute ago, Playa Amodores said:

NV yes it is the gateway. People don’t jump straight into class A. 

Most if not all of Class A drug users I have worked with used cannabis first and regret that day. Obviously not all cannabis users go onto to use Class A.

[Guitar Ray]

43 minutes ago, Rory said:

One of the worst. If that stuff came on the scene now you'd be in a lot of trouble for carrying such poison.

What are your thoughts on caffeine?

Your probably right regarding alcohol Rory.

[Packmoor_vale]

Cannabis is bad news fullstop.
It’s ok when your young but eventually it just turns u into a walking dope 

 

 

[Playa Amodores]

8 minutes ago, Packmoor_vale said:

Cannabis is bad news fullstop.
It’s ok when your young but eventually it just turns u into a walking dope 

 

 

PV for young people in school, it’s probably peer pressure. Nitrous oxide is another big threat to young people.