End war on ‘weed’ TT

For too many years our young and even old have been incarcerated wrongfully for a plant which has done no wrong, cannabis or “marijuana” and “ganja” as its commonly referred to has so many benefits which would help us grow economically, medically and it also helps in making socialising with friends a more enjoyable time. Out of the 50 states in America 23 have legalised medical uses of marijuana and Oregon, Colorado and Washington has legalised it for recreational use.

Also countries such as Columbia, North Korea, Spain, The Netherlands and Uruguay have legalized marijuana fully.

In recent years many doctors and scientists have made many discoveries regarding the medical uses of cannabis. According to the University of Washington and University of California, cannabis can be used to treat many medical conditions such as childhood epilepsy, chronic pain for HIV/ AIDS patients, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, osteoporosis, Gliomas/ Cancer, diabetes and many more.

Cannabis has been found to be more effective than many of the medications available to the public, not to mention the cost behind those.

In addition to medical uses, legalising cannabis will also bring in a large source of revenue. Given the recent economic problems within TT, it would also boost our economy . According to CNC3 news, police have destroyed over ten million dollars’ worth of marijuana from the period July 14 to July 25. If the Government were to legalise marijuana the whole country would gain from this extra source of revenue. Legalisation would also mean that the money used to take care of prisoners who are incarcerated for marijuana possession would be allocated to better uses such as health care and also in our education system.

Lastly, cannabis is used for recreational purposes on probably the largest scale. Marijuana is widely used for recreational purposes all over the world, users who have smoked or eaten it usually talk about “a high” they experience resulting in different symptoms such as excessive laughing, unlocking creativity, becoming closer with friends, your senses are heightened which make food, music and pictures even more pleasant and its most common use a source of stress relief.

Marijuana has always helped persons to enjoy life more and remove stress better and is safer than drugs such as alcohol, cocaine and other drugs which cause serious health issues with excessive use.

As you can see, legalising cannabis has many positives, not just for the users but for the nation as well, as everyone will gain in the long run from doing so which is why we need to come together and make a stance regarding what is right and to stop punishing the children of our nation for a harmless plant.

Nathaniel John Arima