Cannabis Legislation

overthefalls's picture
overthefalls started the topic in Tuesday, 29 Sep 2020 at 9:03am

New Zealand goes to the polls on October 17 to vote on cannabis legislation, which makes me wonder when, if ever, Australia will get to have a say in the matter. Supposing there was a similar referendum in Australia, how would you vote and what would be your reasons?

freeride76's picture
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freeride76 Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 2:53pm

I can't go near those strong hydro varieties they knock me out.

just the local bush bud thanks.

stunet's picture
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stunet Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:08pm

Same. Two summers back I got given some seeds and grew a big fuck off plant between the shed and the back fence. Damn thing grew like Jack's beanstalk. A magnificent specimen! But come harvest time I realised it was just too strong and I chucked it all the in the compost. Not enjoyable at all.

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Blowin Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:13pm

I went to some markets the other day . Had a nice walk around with friends . Got a tasty coffee and glowed in the coffee buzz. Ate some incredible butterflied Yamba prawns . Enjoyed just walking around watching people, checking out the stalls and admiring the river lazily flowing past the whole set up.

I left the other crew and took a couple of plants I’d just bought back to the car . When I pulled some shit out to fit the plants in the back the cover fell from the little section in the side panel which houses the Jack and tyre iron . As I went to put the cover back on I noticed the little metal tin I’d stash pre-rolled joints in so I could readily and easily spark one whenever the urge took me back in the not-so -distant past when I was in one of my pot smoking phases.

I flashed on how I’d been living my life last time I saw that tin. It was stoned from the moment I woke to the moment I slept. Wake and bake without a moment’s hesitation or contemplation. I’d loved every second of it and could not imagine going without pot for any task or activity.

The phase ended as abruptly as it started like always. One day I was all in them the next I just was not interested at all. Nothing bad had happened, no circumstance forced me into relinquishing my cherished habit.

It was over. End of story .

It seemed strange to see that little metal tin and realise that there’s no way in hell I’d have been at that market straight during a pot phase and yet now I couldn’t conceive of how it’d improve my day if I was to blaze up.

Strange how it seems to grab hold for a while and then let you go.

I do disagree with the claim that there’s nothing good about a drug habit. I think there’s a lot of good about it - that’s why we do it. Doesn’t mean I’m sad to see the back of it though.

The ever present smell. The decreased fitness. The inconvenience . The constant rolling of joints and the endless need for the five minute window to smoke.

The tin box went back and I returned to the markets sparky and happy without feeling like I was deprived of anything . Felt healthier and happier to be free of it if I’m honest.

Blowin's picture
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Blowin Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:11pm

What’s that you say- you threw a new quiver and a ticket to Indo on the compost ?

Hmmm.

stunet's picture
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stunet Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:20pm

Wasn't comfortable selling something that I wasn't comfortable smoking.

Didn't spend too long thinking about what could have been...but it was a lot.

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Blowin Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:26pm

By the same rationale I shouldn’t really have that 6’5” Rusty of mine on Gumtree as it took my surfing backwards.

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ringmaster Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 3:40pm

I forgot about the 4th no no rule for weed smoking:

-No hydro. My understanding of hydro is that it's not so much the strength/potency but all the artificial ingredients used to cultivate them which are pretty toxic and harmful from my limited knowledge. Plus, as others have said it blows your doors off to the point where you're actually 'too stoned' if that's a thing.

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The Fire Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 5:46am

Post deleted

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AndyM Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 6:50pm

“I've never been the same since.“

In what way?

Pretty much all the crew I saw who started choofing habitually from their early teens seemed like they had mental impairments.

Chicken or egg I don’t know.

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AndyM Tuesday, 20 Oct 2020 at 6:55pm

Having said that, I fully support total legalization of pot and decriminalization of all drugs.

I think that taking away the “anti-glamour” of illegality would to an extent reduce the attraction of drugs to many.

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The Fire Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 5:45am

Post deleted

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Rabbits68 Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 11:01am

“Post deleted”

Damn the paranoia.....

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AndyM Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 11:20am

The Fire - I really don’t think you can develop a sensible policy for drug use based on one person’s experience.
Anyway, I’m anti drugs but we all know about the effectiveness of. prohibition.
I believe that if drugs were decriminalized or legalized then smack wouldn’t have cut a large swathe through my friends in our early 20’s

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Sheepdog Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 2:27pm

AndyM if you drink alcohol, then you are pro drugs. Alcohol is a drug. You can't be pro alcohol and anti drugs. It's scientifically but more importantly ideologically hypocritical. Same with tobacco... If you are a non drinker non smoker, disregard.

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goofyfoot Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 5:40pm

Sounding very authoritarian there sheepdog, haven’t been hanging around VL have you by any chance?

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Vic Local Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 6:34pm

Given I'm pro decriminalisation of all recreational drugs, your comment is pretty fucking ridiculous goofyfoot.
Don't take my intolerance for idiots as some form of authoritarianism. I just don't like morons mate.

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The Fire Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 6:54pm

For the record this is where i stand on "drugs".

If it grows naturally then it should be legal, ie..

Mushrooms
Cactii
Marijuanna
Kratom
Etc

If its synthetized then no, illegal, ie..

Cocaine
Heroin
Meth
Lsd
Mdma*
Etc

Weed should atleast be legal for cbd products/ medical marijuanna usage.

I asterixed mdma because im a believer in using some psychedelics for therapeutic use for treating various conditions specific to the person.

It needn't be a sweeping change all at once but in baby steps it would benefit our society to have some of these laws wound back.

While increasing others, alcohol age as an example.

I also own shares in multiple medical marijuanna companies despite being a non user.

I believe in cbd. Not thc.

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troppo dichotomy Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 7:28pm

Coffee is the gateway to harder drugs!
The Hare Krishna's claim caffeine distorts your vision of god.
The Mormon's also abstain but......i'll ask my 2nd wife if tea is o.k.?

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DAW Wednesday, 21 Oct 2020 at 7:29pm

Well said sheep dog

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AndyM Thursday, 22 Oct 2020 at 12:00am

You've got me thinking there Sheepy.

I suppose my stance is a bit vague.
I don't believe in any drug as a lifestyle.
I think a beer or two isn't an issue, same with the occasional joint.
Pretty much any drug is ok with a known dose in moderation, it's a matter of when it starts impinging on your life.
So when I say I'm anti drugs, I'm really saying that they're ok in moderation but there are better things to do with your life than live a drug lifestyle and damage your health.

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juegasiempre Thursday, 22 Oct 2020 at 11:28am

AndyM said "I think that taking away the “anti-glamour” of illegality would to an extent reduce the attraction of drugs to many."

This is so true. I spent a lot of my 20's trying every drug I could get my hands on, just from a curiosity standpoint. Looking back, I believe this was fostered by "drugs" being illegal and I was indoctrinated into thinking they're * insert propaganda here *.
After trying weed as a teenager, I realised that 'they' were full of shit and if they lied to me about weed, are they lying about every drug? Time to find out!

After trying most drugs, no, they weren't. Meth and Heroin done often enough leads to the same dead end, but the message is lost in 'All drugs are bad!'. The flip side is some psychedelics are life transforming in the positive and to deny that is pretty sad from a societal standpoint. Same goes for telling teenagers not to fuck, by making it taboo you're making it infinitely more intriguing vs the reality.

As for synthetic vs natural, there's an argument that some synthetic drugs will fuck you up if you do them enough, meth for sure, synthetic opoids 100X stronger than morphine for sure!

As I get older, I miss having coca tea when I was in South America. It's like a coffee that tastes worse but gives you energy and vitamins without the sketchiness of caffeine. I also question with modern day cannabis, the outrageous THC to other cannabanoid ratio. These days I'm looking on toning down the mega potency strains and trying for some 1:1 THC/CBD but don't forget that these mega potency cannabis strains are a direct result of prohibition, just like fentanyl. I believe with increased legalisation you will see a swing to varieties with a more diverse, balanced cannabinoid/terpene profile.

In summary I'm glad I had the experiences of my 20's as I learnt that hedonism, whether in sex, drugs or other has a shelf life with no end point and as you go further down the road, it gets less and less fun. MDMA being a classic example of this. If drugs were available more freely with education as opposed to propaganda, most people could learn this lesson and the ones that can't, we help instead of punish.

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AndyM Thursday, 22 Oct 2020 at 4:30pm

Agree with pretty much everything you've said juegasiempre, especially the last paragraph and especially the last sentence.
Strip away the myths, the bullshit and the agendas and bring it all out in the open.
Naive thoughts, I know, when there's so much politics surrounding it.
Throw the modern media/social media in the mix and it'd be pretty hard to have an intelligent conversation.

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Westofthelake Thursday, 22 Oct 2020 at 9:35pm

Great observations there juegasy and andy.

“Psychedelics are illegal not because a loving government is concerned that you may jump out of a third story window. Psychedelics are illegal because they dissolve opinion structures and culturally laid down models of behaviour and information processing. They open you up to the possibility that everything you know is wrong.” - Terence Mckenna

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views from the ... Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 6:38am

X 2 Player and Andy,
Growing up in the 60s and 70s with a library full of medical books I couldn't wait to indulge in all the "non legal" products I read and fantasised about.
However what kept me late to the consumption table of heavier drugs was fear.
I was scared of losing my mind as I had seen and heard of quite a few who were lost souls. I had seen mull and schizophrenia ruin 2 teenage mates completely.
Ultimately one has to decide for themselves how far they want to go and of course not everyone has the same strength of will or luck.
Any misuse should be a medical issue not a police one.
Fuck the governments' "War on drugs". Stupid! And it was started by Nancy for crying out loud.

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factotum Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 11:22am

From 1991:

overthefalls's picture
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overthefalls Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 5:39pm

Thanks, Facto. Hard to disagree with such intelligent, rational discussion on the issue.

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hairmick Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 7:01pm

Not sure if this has been covered in comments above because I only had the attention span to read a fraction of them but do you want your doctors, surgeon, truck drivers, other road users, heavy machinery operators, teachers, even barber/ hairdresser on the dope once it's legal?

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overthefalls Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 7:46pm

I support legalisation, but I would not want anyone in the workforce to be under the influence of THC whilst on the job, just as I would not want them to be under the influence of alcohol. I am one of the workers you mention; I use cannabis every day but I never work when I am under the influence. Most people I know use cannabis responsibly. I wish I could say the same about how some people use alcohol. Let’s face it, there will always be a minority who abuse any drug, but that is not a reasonable justification for criminalising drug use. If it was, then alcohol would be illegal.

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hairmick Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 8:17pm

I'm inclined to agree in some ways but my understanding is that alcohol will be cleared from the body, blood stream within hours while thc takes upto weeks. Said truck driver or surgeon tests positive says it's been weeks since my last puff??? Makes me nervous.

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overthefalls Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 8:52pm

Yes, that’s the problem; the current drug testing regime only detects the presence of THC, but does not measure impairment. Personally, I make sure that I don’t drive for at least 12 hours after using cannabis. I’ve been tested several times in various locations and have been fine.
However, you must take into account individual differences. For example, some people use more cannabis than others and everyone has different metabolism. Then another complicating factor is the highly variable THC content of different strains.
Legalisation would involve tight government regulation, much like the government’s current regulation of the alcohol industry. Imagine how much the government would profit from the regulation of the cannabis industry.

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The Fire Friday, 23 Oct 2020 at 9:26pm

Hairmick = Facepalm.

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truebluebasher Friday, 30 Oct 2020 at 8:05pm

Lockdown Drug numbers 1 & 2 (The Business End)
Duttos Robo Flush S-Bend Raids have got your Number...he's waiting!

Cannabis use increased in every State & Territory during lockdown.
Not Cigs & Not Grog could get increases in all states ...Potheads win! No contest!.

* Border Supply exaggeration distorts recreational use.

ACT- Coke Spike > Grog-Cigs-Pot (up) {vs} Heroin & Meth plunge
NSW- Bush Meth Heroin spike > Grog-Cigs-Pot (up) {vs} city Heroin/Meth-s plunge
NT- Pot -MDA spike > Cigs (up) {vs} Meth plunge (*NT has Supply exaggeration)
Qld- Bush Meth spike > Cigs -Pot (up) {vs} city Heroin plunge
SA- Pot-Meth (up) {vs} Coke-Heroin plunge
Tas- Pot (up) {vs} Grog -Meth (down)
Vic- Coke spike > Cigs-Pot (up) {vs} (*Lockdown exaggerated supply Spikes/Drops)
WA- Coke-Pot (up) {vs} Heroin plunge (*Border exaggerates supply Spikes/Drops.
https://www.acic.gov.au/publications/national-wastewater-drug-monitoring...

Surveys back up increased use of Pot (Oz-49% / US-46% / UK-44%)

Med Cannabis scripts ($5-$15 /day) 2019 Aug 2878 > 2020 Aug 5739
600,000 were self medicating with cannabis...40+ Age group is increasing use!

Crew feel for NSW Aboriginal Injustice...pretty tough, just to have a toke!
52.29% Pot users face Court > Aboriginals 82.55% (with Non indictable quantity)
40.03% cautions > Indigenous only get 11.41% cautions.
Aborigines receive triple length cannabis sentences (Notably Women)> Kids Stolen!

Kiwi Reeferendumb pass it 'round...
NZ still has 500,000 numbers to unroll.
For = 46% (vs) Against = 53%

[ Bonus ] ( Drug Dealer Flushes himself down the drain to escape Death Row )
Chinese Drug trafficker escapes Jakarta's Death Row thru- Prison sewage system.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-23/indonesia-jailbreak-chinese-drug-...

The Fire's picture
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The Fire Friday, 30 Oct 2020 at 9:49pm

"Drug Dealer Flushes himself down the drain to escape Death Row"

Thank you tbb. You're still #1!

Sheepdog's picture
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Sheepdog Saturday, 31 Oct 2020 at 10:47am

Looks like NZ has voted YES for euthanasia, but NO for Legal weed. So in essence, Fine........ Kill yourself....... But don't get stoned before you do it. We can't have that.

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truebluebasher Monday, 30 Nov 2020 at 1:35pm

1973 - Oregon began legalising Pot in small amounts
https://www.civilized.life/articles/the-history-of-marijuana-in-oregon/
1998 - Oregon legalized Med Marijuana
2014 - Oregon legalized & Taxed personal use Cannabis
2020 - US Election > Oregon 60% voted as 1st state to decriminalize Street Drugs.

https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2020/11/here-are-the-drug-limits-und...
https://www.oregonlive.com/politics/2020/11/oregons-decriminalization-me...

'Non Criminal' Street Drug amounts include...
Heroin 1gm, MDMA / XTC 5 pills, Cocaine 2gms, Meth 2gms, LSD 40 units, Psilocybin 12 gms, Methadone 40 units & Oxycodone 40 pills

Street Drug amounts reduced from 'Felony to misdemeanor'
Heroin 3gms, MDMA 4gms, Meth 8gms, Cocaine 8gms.

1st Feb 2021 - Personal Possession (No Offence / jail) > Fines $100 or screening

Oct 2012 - "Legal Pot Tax + Street Drug fines" go into Rehab / Recovery Funds

31 Dec 2022 - Audits the effectiveness of Legalized Drug Fund

2020 - More Oregon + Other US States Drug Voting News
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/11/04/election-drugs-oregon-n...
New Jersey, Arizona, Montana, & South Dakota voted to Legalize Personal Pot.
Mississippi voted to legalize Medi Pot.

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shoredump Monday, 30 Nov 2020 at 6:36pm

The billboards are a spin out for us tourists

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MidWestMonger Saturday, 5 Dec 2020 at 11:10pm

Camping 5 km south of Wedge Island WA. Old mate has a dirt bike and is letting other mates ride it down the empty beach. Someone stalls it and cant start it again. We all walk down and watch old mate start it with one kick. He then takes off as we walk back, lining up ramps in the back dune to try and get air. We watch as he launches off a ramp into what we can see is a limestone pinnacle.
Mid air he sees the rock and throws the bike. It hits the rock vertically bouncing off both wheels propelling itself back at airbourne rider. Front wheel KO's old mate nose, he goes down with bike on top of him. He then starts screaming as the exhaust is burning through his pinned leg. We race over, extricate him and help him back to camp.
He self medicates for next 24 hours on massive amount of buds. Feels so good before leaving camp he goes for another ride.
Comes back bleeding profusely from the nose after sinking the front wheel at speed into a seaweed hole and going over the handlebars. Again nothing 6 cones couldn't heal.
People who argue its not medicinal probably just haven't seen it in action

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truebluebasher Thursday, 21 Jan 2021 at 10:25pm

Ok! So the world had a laugh when Qldurrz told you all to shoot up AIDS.
Qldurrz feel we owe the World a slightly better breakthru...this one is way cooler.

We all know what yer thinking...
HPV Vax / HIV Covid Vax...What Next ? [ Clap Vax ]....It was just a joke!

20th Jan 2021 Qld Uni.(Breakthru) [Clap Vax]...
(Ok! So we Qldurrz are just Hollow Vessels..Ha! Ha!)

CBD can kill bacteria > Gonorrhoea, Meningitis, Legionnaires disease.
https://www.uq.edu.au/news/node/128097

Ok! So just How important is this breakthru to Oz & the World ?
*Finding could lead to 1st new class of antibiotics for resistant bacteria in 60 years.
*Gonorrhoea is the 2nd most common STD in Oz.
*There is no longer a reliable antibiotic to treat it.

tbb mindlessly included freakout facts that only Stoners knew about Munchies.

Better pack a cone before you read on...Seriously! We're blowin' this Sky High!

Q: How the fuck can Stonerz dine on Munchies without their head caving in?
A: Cannabidiol breaks down dental Plaque...("Dude Sweet Blowin!")

[Bogus Govt Health Conspiracy for Stonerz ]
Not all Govt Dental Hookah Pipes are operated by Welfare Card Swipes...(Not yet!)
PM : "You have a Cone you get yer Dole."
Stoner : "That's Bullshit Dude...he stole our Policy!"

That's not even the freakiest Trip Out!
Q: You know how typical nasty bacteria mutates to outwit our best antibiotics
A: Well! Pot just simply blows the fuck outta nasty Bacteria Bubbles! (All sorted!)
"Dude! That's why all my Thought Bubbles vanish into thin air!" (tbb : Correct!)

Gonna get higher with some Cloud 9 Tripping....
Q: You know how Golden Staph has forever plagued every Hospital Surgery.
A: Hide a Bong under each bed ('Oh No! It's Pot!') Golden Staph cries & runs away!

CBD is proving it's worth 100 fold...expect CBD on the Hospital Cafeteria Menu.

tbb agrees! You could've saved a lot of time by simply watching this video.

&feature=emb_logo

PM : Centrelink Stonerz can Panic Buy pricey Lockdown gear from Robbo's Clinics.

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Bob Sacamano Friday, 22 Jan 2021 at 10:16am

Brilliant TBB. Blew it sky high for sure.

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groundswell Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 4:35pm

I blame growing weed not smoking it for my mental state. i used to sit under my mums house since i was 19 growing around 60 plants at a time and would listen to all the voices in the neighbourhood i could hear voices from 1km away. about seven years ago i made a brilliant vertical setup that had 72 clones surround a 600 watt hps bulb growing sideways i got about 36 ounces each harvest. Sometimes as high as 48 ounces off one 600 watt light. thats like 2,3 grams per watt. when 1 gram per watt is hard to achieve.
I could hear people on my roof breaking into my manhole and when they pissed off i stripped the setup out at the tip. Not sure if the voices and footsteps on my roof were real or not.. I gave up growing cannabis because once you're caught you cant go to indo and i was earning ok money at my job anyway..it as ruining my mental health and i ended up in a psych ward for about 5 weeks Where i was talking to people in the ward to people who were not there..
The doctors confirmed i was a paranoid schizophrenic..the voices seemed real as anything even voices and people talking about me i would go outside and it was the neighbours tv....growing weed in illegal states is not good for the mind and you also come across too many scabs wanting a free deal. mates rates at $10 a gram was ok but not tick.

i now grow chillies instead..anyway i think it was trying to listen to voices about me getting busted messed with my mind too much..put on two strong antipsychotics (zyprexa to help sleep and clopixol for the voices and now mentally...stable.do i think mull should be legal? fuck yeah

udo's picture
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udo Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 4:47pm

GS im liking those figures brother- Every 8 weeks approx ?

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groundswell Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 4:48pm

9 weeks 1 week veg for clones

udo's picture
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udo Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 5:11pm

These boys usually move Powder
one 14 K Triad far nth coast nsw farm had been growing hard for 6yrs before busted
farmed by illegal immigrants - and if deemed to be risk at all to the gang they fed through a tree shredder and used as fertilizer- which with if Triad involvement i fully believe
https://www.facebook.com/9NewsSydney/videos/nsw-police-make-biggest-cann...

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groundswell Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 6:10pm

Those triads are crazy bastards. i was once in a club and an asian girl started dancing with me nek minnit a crazy triad pulled a knife on me.i said "whoah nice knife can i see it again?"
Not realising he wanted to stab me.

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Westofthelake Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 6:57pm

Maybe he just wanted to hear you say "that's not a knife"...

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groundswell Saturday, 10 Apr 2021 at 7:12pm

ha maybe

batfink's picture
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batfink Sunday, 11 Apr 2021 at 11:30am
Vic Local wrote:

All you pro weed folk need to have a damn good look at the 1950s documentary "Reefer Madness".

Ha, Reefer madness, often used as an example of a really poorly made propaganda piece. Comically untrue, paid for by drug companies.

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batfink Sunday, 11 Apr 2021 at 12:06pm

“Furthermore, according to a NIDA statement, “data suggest that 30% of those who use marijuana may have some degree of ‘marijuana use disorder,’” a term recently rolled into the pot lexicon in an as yet confusing attempt to recognize a spectrum of use from relatively harmless to harmful.”

Marijuana use disorder, more drug company making up names for normal human behaviour disorders. I’ve got this oxygen disorder, crave the stuff, constantly breathing, and when I can’t breathe I get really upset.

Nassim Nicholas Taleb said it best, drug companies are better at making up disorders that they can prescribe their drugs to, than they are at creating new drugs.

I smoked pretty hard for 25 plus years, a functional user, call me an addict if you like, but it has really limited, almost negligible withdrawal, you don’t beat your wife when you smoke, you don’t drive your car at excessive speeds and in a dangerous manner, you don’t get into fights with other users, and likely if you are smoking then you aren’t doing another drug that is almost certainly worse for you.

And damn you sleep well, which as you get older becomes more important. I wish it was legal so that I would have different ways to take it, would help me reduce my alcohol intake. Seriously.

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overthefalls Sunday, 11 Apr 2021 at 2:19pm

I agree, batfink. When I was in my early 20s, I had a terrible binge-drinking habit. I would get seriously smashed a couple of times a week. However, when I started smoking cannabis, it significantly reduced my desire for large quantities of alcohol. For the past thirty years I have been smoking every day, usually just a couple of cones after work with a beer or a glass of wine. Weed saved me from been a hopeless pisshead! It has had no adverse effect on my life; if anything it has enhanced my life. The current laws in Australia are draconian and will eventually change. One of the important things for cannabis users to do is to challenge the old stereotype of the lazy, apathetic stoner by modelling responsible use. I know people from all walks of life who use it responsibly without adverse effects, but the current laws force them to hide their habit out of fear of being judged, stigmatised or even prosecuted.