Speaking only from personal experience; my best friend started smoking weed at 15, recreationally. In the 90's it was resin, cut with different stuff, didn't really get you off your face (yes I tried it but usually vomitted afterwards). My mate continued smoking recreationally until he got a job in his 20's. The last 10-13 years or so, he started dealing. And it was all skunk. By this time he's been smoking a couple joints a day during work, and then 3 or 4 in the evening, and I don't know how much all weekeend. I took one puff of skunk and it knocked my sideways.
Had it been leaglised then, I suspect it would be weaker and only a certain amount available. From my mate's point of view, he would have got all he could legally and then wanted more, which would have been gained illegally. Remember that long term users have a much greater tolerance, so issuing some form of legal (weaker) substance would not satisgy a lot of people.
But it's legal now (let's pretend) so you'd have people buying the legal stuff and hoarding it up. A black market would still exist, and a second black market would also exist for skunk. I don't think anyone wants to legalise it becasue with legalisation comes social acceptance....which isn't far from encouragement. You know what British youths/adults are like, you only have to look at alcohol use to see that it is abused on a daily basis by millions. Legalising it (IMHO) would not solve anything, and would only reduce current and future users from "100% illegal use" to "40% legal and 60% illegal" use, because they'd always want more/better/stronger stuff than would be available from certified outlets.
And on the subject of the effects of cannabis, again recreational/occasional use is pretty much harm-free apart from the tobacco it's often mixed with. But my mate by his own admission has destroyed his life. He became a paranoid, self-depricating, depressed hermit in his last 20 years living down here in Devon. He moved up to Yorkshire to be with his terminally ill mum, and quit weed. But the damage was done, he became so bad that not being stoned was too unpleasant for him, so he's now an alcoholic
Yup I'd agree, I've seen quite a few MH issues surrounding the current use of skunk.
Paranoia, anxiety and so on.
It's no longer the 'bit of a giggle, and attack of the munchies' that it used to be with resin, or homegrown weed..
I think, there's probs a market for the more mellow low dose thc 'shade leaves' type strength pot. Just to mellow things out a bit -
Not that I'm about to start supplying such a thing you understand..😇
Unless it becomes legal to produce.
Hemp is a really good low input crop for fulfilling all kinds of other purposes, nutritional, medicinal and fibre related
You can get a licence to grow it in this country for those reasons .
I think (but I'm not sure) that the current sort of 'legal but not quite' 'fudge' that we have now is about as good as we're likely to get under current political climate.
Of course with class As in particular it's the harms further back up the supply chain that we have to address..
No easy answers, or solutions
Yes some people self- medicate to get away from 'painful' stuff in their lives .
But it's also true that they do it for 'fun' too.
I used to be a bit of a 'raver' back in the day.
Although I personally barely ever took any ecstasy, I seemed to be able to keep.going all night just on a flask of green tea..💚
Them were the days!!
But there's no denying that pretty much everyone was having a fabulously loved up time, and it was about having the 'time of your life' not desperately trying to get away from miserable circumstances. .
