The decision follows the publication of a paper by the Centre for Crime and Justice at King’s College London, based on a lecture Nutt delivered in July. He repeated his familiar view that illicit drugs should be classified according to the actual evidence of the harm they cause and pointed out that alcohol and tobacco caused more harm than LSD, ecstasy and cannabis.
A Home Office spokesman said: “The home secretary expressed surprise and disappointment over Professor Nutt’s comments which damage efforts to give the public clear messages about the dangers of drugs.”
Richard Garside, director of the centre for Crime and Justice Studies at King’s College London, accused Johnson of undermining scientific research. He said: “The message is that when it comes to the Home Office’s relationship with the research community honest researchers should be seen but not heard.”
Having survived the 1970′s I’m quite sure that alcohol, tobacco, pharmaceuticals and street drugs like opiates, amphetamines and antidepressants are far more dangerous than marijuana and possibly even LSD and mescaline.
I’m for the legalization of marijuana, but really can’t at this point recommend it’s use. Other drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine and a bunch of pharmaceuticals are right out, unless it’s for a legitimate medical issue. And other than large volume dealers of actually dangerous drugs, drug addiction is a medical matter concerning Public Health. We have to get the Prison Industrial Complex the fuck out of it. The war on people must end.
+1 #21, especially the last two and a half sentences. And many others of common sense.
Common sense and logic have never sufficed to overcome entrenched interests, however.
Even the astounding Alfred1 has shown some flexibility. Is there hope?