Cannabis Is Good For You

[Anonymous]

I've come very late to this thread, but I thought I'd add these bits:
When my Grandma was just a young girl, she was given cannibas(by doctors) for asthma! --At a much later date, she developed schizophrenia(sp?)...I don't know if those two items are related, but they may be.
I have suffered fairly severe depression on and off thru'out my life---back when I did dope in my 20's , doing a little helped a whole lot, but doing a lot made things much, much worse--and there was always a compulsion to do too much.
Sometimes I did do way too much, and much later in life I was hospitalized twice for depression--I likewise do not know if these things are related.

So...
If someone that I trusted were to offer me a toke today, I might just take it, but I'd not have it in my house.
How's that for middle-of-the-roading?

 

[James_H]

I've coughed blood a couple of times, that's scary. I think it was from damage from coughing so much more than anything.

At the moment I've been coughing up slight amount of blood, been trying to smoke less but it's quite difficult

 

[Anonymous]

coughing blood?!:eek!!!!:
Have either of you though in terms of seeing a doc?
That might be a good thing...

The one time I was coughing blood, a doctor visit saved my life...
I'm sure no one here wants to lose y'all...Stick around...

 

[James_H]

It's ok, today I'm just coughing

 

[Anonymous]

:yeay:

 

[Anonymous]

Lizard 23, how's you?

 

[_Lizard23_]

Hmmm?

Oh ok ta.

This was years ago, don't stress. These days I am more likely to keel over from a perforated ulcer or something.

 

[ramonmercado]

Supplied cannabis pizzas and biscuits
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ire ... 484312.htm
BARRY ROCHE

Wed, Dec 01, 2010

A 45-YEAR-OLD father of four who had cultivated cannabis plants to make his own cannabis cookies, butter and wine was yesterday given a three-year suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to breaches of drug legislation.

David Flynn pleaded guilty yesterday at Cork Circuit Criminal Court to possession of cannabis for sale or supply, and to cultivating cannabis plants at his home at The Thatch, Glantane, Mallow, Co Cork, on January 23rd last.

Flynn had made biscuits, desserts, pizza, butter and cannabis wine from the cannabis plants he cultivated. He called his cookies “Marakesh Biscuits” and his wine “Creme de Gras”, while other products were called “Cannon Butter” and “Alternative Pizza”.

Det Sgt Michael Corbett told the court that Flynn, who used to run a pizza company before operating his own mobile chip van, would supply his cannabis creations to his friends on social occasions in exchange for drinks. No money ever changed hands.

Det Sgt Corbett said gardaí searched Flynn’s rented house in Glantane on January 23rd last on foot of information received, and that he was very co-operative from the outset. He brought them to two upstairs rooms where he was growing the cannabis plants.

Both of the rooms had been adapted for growing cannabis plants, and gardaí found a total of 21 plants as well as 224 grammes of dried cannabis herb that had an estimated value of €2,695, said Det Sgt Corbett.

The garda confirmed gardaí found no drug packaging or weighing equipment at the scene, and gardaí were satisfied Flynn used the cannabis solely as an ingredient in his cookies and other products, and that he never charged for them.

Judge Patrick Moran said he accepted Flynn was not operating as a drug dealer in the usual sense of the term. “I am satisfied that you were not in this business for the purpose of making money,” he said. However, he said it was still a very serious matter.

He imposed a three-year prison sentence, which he suspended on condition the defendant enter a bond to keep the peace for a period of three years.

 

[Bloodbeard]

canabis

There's always the vapouriser, no carcinogens produced and it uses less product, I suppose quality is the main concern, if the government could supply and tax and ensure good quality wouldn't that be good for our beleagured exchequers, it seems to me that the absolute pig headedness that governments show in the face of ALL the evidence is a case of them reusing to admit what stupendous arses they have been. I find it unbelievable that an 18 year old can legally buy as much whiskey as he/she desires but can't buy draw.

 

[Mythopoeika]

I agree with you completely, Bloodbeard.
Just think how much better it would be for every cannabis user's health if it was legalised, taxed and regulated.
Cannabis users smoke all kinds of low grade shit (i.e. resin mixed with diesel). This wouldn't happen so much if it was legalised and quality regulations were put in place.
The government would be able to raise revenue by taxation, and wouldn't waste the police's resources by chasing petty marijuana-related misdemeanours.

 

[ArthurASCII]

I agree with you completely, Bloodbeard.
Just think how much better it would be for every cannabis user's health if it was legalised, taxed and regulated.
Cannabis users smoke all kinds of low grade shit (i.e. resin mixed with diesel). This wouldn't happen so much if it was legalised and quality regulations were put in place.
The government would be able to raise revenue by taxation, and wouldn't waste the police's resources by chasing petty marijuana-related misdemeanours.

Hear hear!

Another benefit might be that Regulation would make it harder to get the more psychotropic strains of skunk.

 

[LordRsmacker]

Another benefit might be that Regulation would make it harder to get the more psychotropic strains of skunk.

Why would that make any difference? Surely someone who wants mental skunk is going to get/grow it, regardless what else is on offer legally or otherwise?

 

[Cultjunky]

Another benefit might be that Regulation would make it harder to get the more psychotropic strains of skunk.

Why would that make any difference? Surely someone who wants mental skunk is going to get/grow it, regardless what else is on offer legally or otherwise?

I challenge you to roll a fat one and see if you can be bothered to get off the sofa, never mind look for mental skunk :lol:

The probability is that if a weaker, legal version of canabis is readily available, there will be less demand for the more extreme skunk varieties. It would be far easier to regulate the production of legitimate canabis, and police illegal growers. Who goes looking for moonshine from a grubby still when alcohol is readily available? Well, apart from Russians, or so I'm told

 

[Bloodbeard]

legalise it

I have been smoking for twenty odd years and i know many cannabis smokers young and old who don't like skunk and will avoid it depending on availability, skunk has an unpleasant sledge hammer like effect, a nice organic grass is not so chemically unbalanced, as different as special brew to a fine ale, like Bitter and Twisted for example

 

[drjbrennan]

I always imagined that any government who legalised a drug would, in law, be liable for any damage sustained by users. Far easier to keep 'em illegal.

 

[Quake42]

I always imagined that any government who legalised a drug would, in law, be liable for any damage sustained by users.

Hmm... under what law would that be? :?

 

[ramonmercado]

I always imagined that any government who legalised a drug would, in law, be liable for any damage sustained by users.

Hmm... under what law would that be? :?

Indeed. Alcohol and tobacco are legalised but no government is responsible for those who suffer ill effects.

 

[Pietro_Mercurios]

I always imagined that any government who legalised a drug would, in law, be liable for any damage sustained by users. Far easier to keep 'em illegal.

Would that also apply to those governments which continue to penalise drug users and make their lives misery? See the USA's 'War on Drugs', for some examples of how far wrong such a policy can go.

War on Drugs, Timeline:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=9252490

USA: Drugs, Race & Prison:
http://www.drugwarfacts.org/cms/node/64

War on Drugs, comparison between Drugs Policy in Netherlands and USA:
http://drugwarfacts.org/cms/?q=node/67

The Global Commission for Drugs Policy report on just how wrong the policy of a Global, 'War on Drugs' has been.

Global Commission on Drugs Report:
http://www.globalcommissionondrugs.org/Report

 

[paranoid420]

Cannabis indica is known for less paranoia than cannabis sativa. "Skunk" is just a strain of weed, though the UK media is misusing the term to refer to all strong weed. Anyway there is a thousand year history of indica use with no mention of it causing insanity and one theory that is gaining popularity is cannabis sativa, and its paranoia inducing high, is to blame.
The biggest debate is the what came first the mental illness or the drug use? Like are people using pot to combat mental illness, or is the pot causing it?
Anyway i use it to combat depression, does it cure it? No, but neither do any of the pills the doctor wants to give me. Those affect you 24/7 the weed only affects me an hour or two. I should have the right to choose. And i certainly call BS on anyone who wants to use someone elses mental illness as a reason i cant smoke weed. My uncle is a drunk, but i dont want to stop you from drinking because he has a problem.

 

[Cochise]

Based on information recieved I'd suggest that if you want to use cannabis for its medical qualities, you don't smoke it. Put it in cookies, make coffee with it whatever. Because I'm informed from a reliable source (a chemist) that it is primarily the products of combustion - i.e. burning leaves that produce tar and other nasties - that cause all the breathing problems associated with tobacco smokers, not the nicotine. Nicotine may or may not cause the cancers (the way the prevalent cancers have moved around with the changes in the use of nicotine is fairly good evidence), but there are plenty of other unpleasent things you can avoid by not smoking.

I'm not sure how we decided to cede to goverments the right to decide what recreational driugs we can or can't have, but it seems they are trying to do something that they actually do not have the power to do - always a futile exercise. I mean, prohibition of alcohol was a raging success, wasn't it?

 

[ramonmercado]

Cannabis Enhances Bipolar Patients' Neurocognitive Performance

14 Aug 2012

According to a study published online in the journal Psychiatry Research, individuals with bipolar disorder who used cannabis showed higher neurocognitive performance than patients who did not use cannabis.

Researchers at The Zucker Hillside Hospital in Long Island, NY, in collaboration with a team at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, examined the difference in cognitive performance among 50 individuals with bipolar disorder who had a history of cannabis use, with 150 bipolar patients who had no history of cannabis use.

Both groups of patients were similar in age at bipolar onset. In addition, the groups did not differ in racial background, age, or highest education level achieved.

The team discovered that patients who used cannabis showed superior neurocognitive performance than those who did not. However, patients who used cannabis did not differ considerably on estimates of premorbid IQ.

The researchers explained:

"Results from our analysis suggest that subjects with bipolar disorder and history of (cannabis use) demonstrate significantly better neurocognitive performance, particularly on measures of attention, processing speed, and working memory.

These findings are consistent with a previous study that demonstrated that bipolar subjects with history of cannabis use had superior verbal fluency performance as compared to bipolar patients without a history of cannabis use. Similar results have also been found in schizophrenia in several studies."


They concluded, "These data could be interpreted to suggest that cannabis use may have a beneficial effect on cognitive functioning in patients with severe psychiatric disorders. However, it is also possible that these findings may be due to the requirement for a certain level of cognitive function and related social skills in the acquisition of illicit drugs."
What is Bipolar Disorder?

Bipolar disorder, more commonly known in the past as manic depression or manic depressive illness, is a mental disorder in which the patient has mood instability. In severe cases the illness can be very disabling.

An individual with bipolar disorder typically has unusual shifts in mood, energy, and the ability to function - these changes can last for weeks and sometimes months.

The fluctuations present in bipolar disorder are nothing like the "ups-and-downs" we all go through - they are much steeper changes and can damage relationships, destroy job prospects, and undermine school performance. Some patients find their symptoms so unbearable that they attempt to commit suicide.

With proper treatment, the majority of patients can lead full and productive lives.

Written by Grace Rattue
Copyright: Medical News Today

References:
"Cognitive and clinical outcomes associated with cannabis use in patients with bipolar I disorder"
Raphael J. Bragaemail et al
Psychiatry Research August 2012. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2012.05.025

14 Aug. 2012. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/249006.php>

 

[ramonmercado]

But then again, it may be bad for you.

Marijuana use may increase risk of testicular cancer: study
September 10th, 2012 in Cancer

A new study from the University of Southern California (USC) has found a link between recreational marijuana use and an increased risk of developing subtypes of testicular cancer that tend to carry a somewhat worse prognosis.
Published early online in Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society, the findings suggest that the potential cancer-causing effects of marijuana on testicular cells should be considered not only in personal decisions regarding recreational drug use, but also when marijuana and its derivatives are used for therapeutic purposes in young male patients.

Testicular cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in young men ages 15 to 45 years. The malignancy is becoming more common, and researchers suspect this is due to increasing exposure to unrecognized environmental causes.

To see if recreational drug use might play a role, Victoria Cortessis, MSPH, PhD, assistant professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC in Los Angeles, and her colleagues looked at the self-reported history of recreational drug use in 163 young men diagnosed with testicular cancer and compared it with that of 292 healthy men of the same age and race/ethnicity.

The investigators found that men with a history of using marijuana were twice as likely to have subtypes of testicular cancer called non-seminoma and mixed germ cell tumors. These tumors usually occur in younger men and carry a somewhat worse prognosis than the seminoma subtype. The study's findings confirm those from two previous reports in Cancer on a potential link between marijuana use and testicular cancer.

"We do not know what marijuana triggers in the testis that may lead to carcinogenesis, although we speculate that it may be acting through the endocannabinoid system—the cellular network that responds to the active ingredient in marijuana—since this system has been shown to be important in the formation of sperm," said Cortessis.

The researchers also discovered that men with a history of using cocaine had a reduced risk of both subtypes of testicular cancer. This finding suggests that men with testicular cancer are not simply more willing to report a history of using recreational drugs. While it is unknown how cocaine may influence testicular cancer risk, the authors suspect that the drug may kill sperm-producing germ cells since it has this effect on experimental animals.

"If this is correct, then 'prevention' would come at a high price," Cortessis said. "Although germ cells can not develop cancer if they are first destroyed, fertility would also be impaired. Since this is the first study in which an association between cocaine use and lower testis cancer risk is noted, additional epidemiological studies are needed to validate the results."

More information: "Population-based case-control study of recreational drug use and testis cancer risk confirms association between marijuana use and non-seminoma risk." John Charles A. Lacson, Joshua D. Carroll, Ellenie Tuazon, Esteban J. Castelao, Leslie Bernstein, and Victoria K. Cortessis. Cancer; Published Online: September 10, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/cncr.27554).

Provided by Wiley

"Marijuana use may increase risk of testicular cancer: study." September 10th, 2012. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-m ... ancer.html

 

[chockfullahate]

Cannabis indica is known for less paranoia than cannabis sativa. "Skunk" is just a strain of weed, though the UK media is misusing the term to refer to all strong weed. Anyway there is a thousand year history of indica use with no mention of it causing insanity and one theory that is gaining popularity is cannabis sativa, and its paranoia inducing high, is to blame.

But, sativa is a much taller plant, and gives a lower yield than most indica weed, so commercial growers tend to grow hybrids or indica these days. Oh, and sativa takes a lot longer to grow.

Maybe the hybridisation is the issue?

 

[ramonmercado]

Pot smokers might not turn into dopes after all
Revisiting data casts doubts on link between heavy cannabis use and declining IQ.
http://www.nature.com/news/pot-smokers- ... ll-1.12207
Arran Frood
14 January 2013

Cannabis rots your brain — or does it? Last year, a paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)1 suggested that people who used cannabis heavily as teenagers saw their IQs fall by middle age. But a study published today2 — also in PNAS — says that factors unrelated to cannabis use are to blame for the effect. Nature explores the competing claims.

What other factors might cause the decline in IQ?
Ole Røgeberg, a labour economist at the Ragnar Frisch Centre for Economic Research in Oslo and the author of the latest paper, ran simulations which showed that confounding factors associated with socioeconomic status could explain the earlier result. For example, poorer people have reduced access to schooling, irrespective of cannabis use.

Is this a case of correlation versus causation?
Possibly. The data used in the original paper came from the Dunedin Study, a research project in which a group of slightly more than 1,000 people born in New Zealand in 1972–73 have been tracked from birth to age 38 and beyond. As with all such birth-cohort epidemiological studies (also called longitudinal studies), there is a risk of inferring causal links from observed associations between one factor and another.

Past research on the Dunedin cohort shows3 that individuals from backgrounds with low socioeconomic status are more likely than others to begin smoking cannabis during adolescence, and are more likely to progress from use to dependence. Røgeberg says that these effects, combined with reduced access to schooling, can generate a correlation between cannabis use and IQ change.

According to Røgeberg, people with low socioeconomic status are, on average, likely to show declining IQ as they age and gradually self-select or are sorted into less cognitively demanding arenas. For example, they are less likely than people with high socioeconomic status to attend university, and more likely to take manual jobs.

Do other studies show a drop in IQ with cannabis use?
Røgeberg cites three studies4–6 in which cannabis use is not associated with declining IQ. He says that these studies show clear reductions in IQ for the heaviest smokers, but these are not permanent, and people who have stopped smoking heavily show no decline.

What do the original paper's authors make of Røgeberg's analysis?
Related stories
Drop in IQ linked to heavy teenage cannabis use
Children of the 90s: Coming of age
Key ingredient staves off marijuana memory loss
More related stories
Madeline Meier, a psychologist at the Duke Transdisciplinary Prevention Research Center in Durham, North Carolina, who co-wrote the original paper with her colleagues, says that Røgeberg's ideas are interesting. However, she points out that the authors of the first PNAS paper restricted their analysis to individuals in middle-class families and those with low or high socioeconomic status. The outcome suggests that the decline in IQ cannot be attributed to socioeconomic factors alone.

In their original analysis, Meier says, she and her colleagues controlled for socioeconomic status and found that in all socioeconomic categories, the IQs of children who were not heavy users remained unchanged from adolescence to adulthood. Therefore, she says, socioeconomic status does not influence IQ decline.

So who is right?
It is hard to say. Both analyses study the same data set in different ways, and each has merits.

Is there a way to find out the answer definitively?
Perhaps — by comparing the Dunedin Study with another in a different country. Such comparisons have been done before. For example, the United Kingdom's Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) found that children who were breastfed for longer went on to have higher IQs, lower blood pressure and lower body mass indices than those who were not. However, longer breastfeeding is associated with higher socioeconomic status in the United Kingdom; when the data were compared with data from the Pelotas longitudinal study in Brazil, where breastfeeding is not associated with higher socioeconomic status, the link with increased IQ was maintained, but the other benefits disappeared7.

What do other scientists think?
Mitch Earleywine, a psychologist at the University at Albany, State University of New York, says that Røgeberg's analysis definitely supports the idea that links between adolescent cannabis use and drops in IQ are essentially spurious, arising from socioeconomic differences rather than any sort of pharmacological action. John Macleod of the University of Bristol, UK, who works on the ALSPAC data, points out that Meier and her colleagues acknowledged in their original paper that the results might be caused by confounding factors. He adds that the modelling in Røgeberg's paper shows that within a set of reasonable assumptions, this is indeed possible.

Nature doi:10.1038/nature.2013.12207

References

Meier, M. H. et al. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 109, E2657–E2664 (2012).
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Rogeberg, O. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1215678110 (2013).
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Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., Rutter, M. & Silva, P. A. Sex Differences in Antisocial Behaviour (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2001).
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Farmer, M. E., Kittner, S. J., Rae, D. S., Bartko, J. J. & Regier, D. A. Ann. Epidemiol. 5, 1–7 (1995).
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Fried, P., Watkinson, B., James, D. & Gray, R. Can. Med. Assoc. J. 166, 887–891 (2002).
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Related stories and links

From nature.com

Drop in IQ linked to heavy teenage cannabis use
28 August 2012
Children of the 90s: Coming of age
11 April 2012
Key ingredient staves off marijuana memory loss
01 October 2010
Medical opinion comes full circle on cannabis dangers
27 July 2007

From elsewhere

Madeline Meier
Ole Røgeberg
Dunedin Study
Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children

 

[liveinabin]

I was filling out a life insurance policy form the other day. One of the questions was something like 'have you ever taken recreational drugs, other than cannabis?'

 

[ramonmercado]

University Study Finds Marijuana May Combat Depression and Lead to Higher Self-Esteem
Featured Posts of the Week, News May 15, 2013 by TheJointBlog
http://thejointblog.com/university-stud ... lf-esteem/

A comprehensive four-part study conducted at the University of Kentucky has found marijuana to be helpful in reducing the pain associated with social exclusion, and that it may combat against depression, and may lead to higher self-esteem.

“The current research provides the first evidence that marijuana also dampens the negative emotional consequences of social exclusion on negative emotional outcomes,” stated Timothy Deckman of the University of Kentucky in the study.

The four-part study, which included 7040 participants and three methodologies, began with a study using data from the National Comorbidity Study – it found that marijuana consumers who reported being lonely had higher levels of self-worth, as well as overall mental health, compared with non-marijuana users who reported being lonely.

The second study used data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication, and found that those who use marijuana relatively frequently and experienced social pain were less likely to experience a serious episode of depression over the course of the past year.

The third study surveyed high school students, examining levels of depression, loneliness and lifetime marijuana consumption. The students were surveyed again two years later. Researchers found that marijuana use predicted lower levels of depression among students who were considered to be lonely.

The final study had participants play a computer game called Cyberball, which was reprogrammed to consistently ignore the participant, in order to evoke social exclusion. Researchers found that marijuana users had a smaller decrease in self-esteem after the game was finished.

You can find the study published online in Social Psychological and Personality Science by clicking here. http://spp.sagepub.com/content/early/20 ... 9.abstract

 

[ramonmercado]

Maybe not that good, depending.

Making a hash of it: 700 cannabis workers hospitalized after getting high on the job
http://rt.com/news/cannabis-workers-hos ... bania-133/
Published time: November 02, 2013 17:15

AFP Photo / Fadel SennaAFP Photo / Fadel Senna

At least 700 cannabis workers in an Albanian village, mostly teenagers and women, have sought medical help after serious intoxication, according to local doctors.

The workers, all of whom tended cannabis fields near the southern village of Lazaret, experienced symptoms akin to “serious disorders from cannabis intoxication,” Dr. Hysni Luka of a hospital in nearby Gjirokaster told reporters.

The symptoms were obviously related to the workers’ jobs of harvesting, planting, pressing, and packing the cannabis, the doctor said.

“The patients, among them also teenagers and even children younger than 15 years, have suffered from bouts of vomiting, stomach pain, heart problems and high blood pressure,” Luka told Albania’s Top Channel TV.

Most of those affected by the hash fumes were women and teenagers.

Lazaret, which is heavily guarded by armed patrols, is close to the Greek border. It is the largest cannabis producer in the Balkans and produces an estimated 900 tons of the substance each year - worth around US$4.5 billion, AFP reported.

In August, two people were injured by stray bullets after police raided the farm in Lazaret. After an exchange of gunfire between the officers and traffickers, 50 seasonal workers were detained.

Albania is also considered a major transit route for drugs heading from other countries into Europe, such as Afghan heroin. Last year, police seized just ten tons of cannabis destined for Greece and Italy.

 

[ramonmercado]

Thats telling the UNs chronologically enhanced auto-eroticist.

'Stop lying': Uruguay president chides UN official over marijuana law
http://rt.com/news/uruguay-marijuana-un-criticism-261/
Published time: December 14, 2013 23:33
Edited time: December 15, 2013 12:38

Uruguayan President Jose Mujica (AFP Photo / Miguel Rojo)

Uruguay’s president has accused the head of the UN’s International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) of lying and double standards, after the official claimed the country did not consult the anti-drug body before legalizing marijuana.

Earlier this week, Uruguay became the first country in the world to legalize both the sale and production of marijuana.

INCB chief Raymond Yans has slammed the “surprising” move, accusing the South American state of legalizing the drug without first discussing it with the UN organization.

Uruguay’s president, Jose Mujica, rejected the criticism on Friday, saying that he’s ready to discuss the law with anyone.

“Tell that old man to stop lying,” Mujica said in an interview with Uruguay’s Canal 4.

“Let him come to Uruguay and meet me whenever he wishes… Anybody can meet and talk to me, and whoever says he couldn't meet with me tells lies, blatant lies."

“Because he sits in a comfortable international platform, he believes he can say whatever nonsense,” he added.

People take part in a demo for the legalization of marijuana in front of the Legislative Palace in Montevideo, on December 10, 2013, as the Senate discusses a law on the legalization of marijuana's cultivation and consumption. (AFP Photo / Pablo Porciuncula) People take part in a demo for the legalization of marijuana in front of the Legislative Palace in Montevideo, on December 10, 2013, as the Senate discusses a law on the legalization of marijuana's cultivation and consumption. (AFP Photo / Pablo Porciuncula)

Yans has accused Uruguay of “pirate attitudes” for knowingly violating the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, which the South American country is part of.

But Mujica reminded that Yans did not say a word about the US states of Colorado and Washington, which also legalized marijuana.

"Does he have different rules: one for Uruguay and other for the world’s strong countries?” he asked.

First lady Lucia Topolansky, a member of the Uruguayan Senate, has fully backed her husband on the issue.

“Who is this fellow who likes to call names to countries?” she said of Yans. “I think he's crossed the line, but anyhow I believe that he has had problems with other countries, Sweden, Denmark, Holland and they will be meeting him sometime in March.”

“But to be honest, marijuana is not the heart of life or earthly issues,” Topolansky added.

The law, which allows for a government-controlled marijuana market, was passed by the Uruguayan Senate on Monday.

According to the legislation, those wishing to smoke cannabis recreationally need to register with the authorities and limit their consumption to 40 grams per month.

President Mujica and his supporters argue that regulating marijuana consumption and production will remove profits from criminals and allow less money to be spent on soldiers and police, who are ultimately unable to prevent Uruguayan citizens from using the drug.

 

[honeyplanet]

I saw that! It did make me chuckle, and also a tad envious

 

[Andy X]

That's superb I demand the license fee be increased immediately.