Let me make myself clear - I'm against legal control of most substances and in favour of education so people can make up their own minds.

Having said that, every single one of the false accusations against me came from people who had abused substances of some kind.

And the effects of cannabis that have been claimed, such as potential paranoid schizophrenia, were clearly seen in some statements.

Personally I think anyone who smokes a cigarette is mad and alcohol has just as dangerous poisons in it as heroin - which is why I, generally, have avoided all of them.

But the combination of a weakness to addiction and the effects of the abuse of some substances can be catastrophic both for the users and for innocent passers by.

I genuinely believe that none of the false allegations - many of which were exaggerations as opposed to invention - made against me would have been made had substances of some kind not been involved.

Truth can so easily become blurred.

Are you ever going to take responsibility for your actions?

No? Thought not...

I take full and total responsibility for my actions Pete. That's why I've never smoked cannabis.

And on that note you freely admit that all you know about the drug is what you read in the tabloids... And we all know that your tabloid of choice is the Daily Mail...

Enough said...

From the BBC:

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Chris Huhne said that, as their advice had been disregarded, ministers should disband the advisory council of experts and replace them with an advisory council of "tabloid newspaper editors".

"The Advisory Committee on the Misuse of Drugs said there were major difficulties establishing a cause-and-effect relationship between cannabis use and the development of psychotic illnesses, such as schizophrenia.

It said the majority of young cannabis users did not develop psychotic illness, and those that did were likely to have predisposing factors, which may be genetic.

It concluded that in the population as a whole, it was most likely that cannabis played only a "modest role" in the development of psychotic conditions."

And here are the figures in the report... To prevent one young man from developing any kind of cannabis related psychosis, they'd have to stop 5000 people from smoking it. The risk decrease dramatically for women. One in 20000 are in danger of cannabis related illness...

As I say, the Daily Mail are not experts on this subject - far from it...

One in 5000 accusing somebody of something they did not do could be very nasty indeed.

Is that it?

Where is the EVIDENCE to support your assertion that a cannabis smoker is likely to fabricate a story about being raped/buggered/abused whatever you want to call it...?

I'm sure nicotine doesn't always cause cancer. I know most people can drink with no problems. I'm sure taking all drugs, in the vast majority of cases, provokes no ill effects at all.

But one is too many.

So, that means there is no evidence....

No evidence at all for me Pete but when someone behaves in a certain way and it coincides exactly with a predicted result of any stimulant or depressant, it's sensible to consider the possibility that one, when combined with other factors, provoked the other.

I know a few people who smoke cannabis and in one case he had an addiction, which unfortunately has had a after effects, as he now suffers from depression and is a schizophrenic.

In respect of JK, the very fact that one of your alleged offences took place when you were watching the US Open Final makes me very suspicious of the allegations anyway.

My friend unfortunately is very paranoid about things and always thinks people are watching him, so I do believe that there is evidence to support the post that JK has just done.

So why do you keep banging on about Cannabis being a factor in your (ultimately self-inflicted) problems?

Why not start your thread - Alcohol/Tobacco/Cannabis/Cocaine etc - The Debate Continues.

For some reason, you have fixated on Cannabis being a factor in your 'false accusers' claims against you.

I'm sorry mate but you are clearly talking out of your arse (for a change).

Thread started because of the news topicality today.

Alright Mike, sorry...

In that case the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs have got it all wrong and I take it all back.

If you've got a mate who is paranoid and also used cannabis then that MUST be the cause...

I'll shut up now.

Which you immediately and spuriously linked to your convictions...

Actually Pete, I didn't directly say that it was 100% the cause of my friends condition. But I can only draw on that experience and make a assumption that it was only after taking drugs, he became that way.

Maybe it was something else that caused his condition.

Yes Mike, maybe it was something else. So, again there is NO EVIDENCE.

Going by Mike's and JK's experiences, I'd say there is evidence but that it's only circumstantial.

Mind you, circumstantial evidence is all that is required for a conviction in todays Britain.

A government minister said today that the reclassification of cannibis will help the police to prioritise. Does this mean that officers must, once again, arrest and process every individual found to have a tiny amount of cannibis for personal use. How many dealers will go free while the police waste time on the small time users?

I've never used cannibis, btw.

I recall you many years ago saying you were against the decriminalisation of cannabis. Has your experience of unjust laws made you more liberal on such maters?