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Don Brash: cannabis should be decriminialised

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Sun, 25 Sep 2011 11:11a.m.

According to Don Brash more than $100 million is spent in New Zealand each year policing cannabis

According to Don Brash more than $100 million is spent in New Zealand each year policing cannabis

ACT leader Don Brash is calling for the decriminalisation of cannabis.

He says prohibition of the drug hasn't worked, and policing it costs millions of tax payer dollars and clogs up the court system reports Newstalk ZB.

He's told TVNZ's Q&A programme there are other ways to restrict the use of marijuana.

"It's estimated thousands of New Zealanders use cannabis on a fairly regular basis, 6,000 are prosecuted every year, a $100 million of tax payers money is spent to police this law," says My Brash.

NZN

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Comments

30 Sep 2011 01:57p.m.

Mike wrote:

You don't have to be a libertarian (I'm not) to see that legalising, not decriminalising, is the only sane move. Brash is right - for once - that this is a needlessly expensive way to treat grown adults like mindless babies. Why not pump the $100 million saved into the health service? It annoys me to the point of abstratction. How is it, that in a moderate, intelligent place like New Zealand, that this ridiculously backward law is still in place?

26 Sep 2011 06:44p.m.

kiwi wrote:

@wolfman the real question is why should the taxpayers pay money to keep something illegal that has been proven safer than alcohol or tobacco, or to keep people from having the medication they need

26 Sep 2011 05:42p.m.

Davo wrote:

Fantastic argument, Luke, let perpetual greed run amok. A capital idea for the sociopathic capitalist.

26 Sep 2011 06:41a.m.

Wiseacre wrote:

Decriminalisation is nothing more than a cop-out. Cannabis would still be illegal to grow or use - if caught with some it will be confiscated and you will be ticketed and fined. It would not be taxed or regulated, so no new revenue streams. No new industries or jobs will arise to take advantage of the thousands of industrial uses that legal cannabis could bring. Gang-run tinny houses will still be dealing to children. Medicinal users will still be persecuted. Cancer sufferers will continue to die. Anything less than full legalisation, with regulation & taxation such as alcohol & tobacco receive, is an abdication of responsibility by the state to the criminal network.

25 Sep 2011 11:15p.m.

Luke wrote:

@Wolfman I can see the logic behind your statement. I think you will find most ACT supporters believe in freedom of the market and individual responsibility. It makes no sense that those who heavily drink should have medical treatment paid for by the state but those who choose something else should not. Maybe if everyone paid their own way then it would be up to the individual to decide what is best for their own body and life. Remove the politics, and allow private insurance companies to offer medical cover based on their customers lifestyle choices rather than having one blanket cover that is scientifically wrong because of its political control.

25 Sep 2011 10:22p.m.

reefer madness wrote:

Whether the law is changed or not it makes no real difference to the Pot culture in NZ, regardless of the law it's happening right now, in your street, so a change in the law saves the country some money and frees up police to catch actual criminals, would that be so horrible? If Kronic taught us anything it's that if there is an overwhelming market for a substitute for the real thing then there's more pot smokers than people care to admit.

25 Sep 2011 09:45p.m.

Davo wrote:

I understand perfectly what libertarianism is. It is a philosophy for a fringe minority of sociopaths that justifies selfish and egoistic behavior. On face value, it appears to espouse absolute freedom, but this couldn't be further from the truth. On the contrary, libertarianism simply shifts absolute power from the state to the rich and powerful. Sensible, mentally sound intellectuals have no truck with this poisonous philosophy that should've been outlawed in this country in the same way national socialism was banned in Germany. People who love themselves love Don Brash.

25 Sep 2011 08:00p.m.

Wolfman wrote:

So are all the potheads prepared to sign away their rights to medical attention if this is decriminalised? Why should the taxpayers pay for idiots that smoke pot, drive a car and kill or injure someone. Are they prepared to sign a waiver to so they will pay for all medical costs to their victims? Sounds like a lot of posters are smoking too much of their product.

25 Sep 2011 06:34p.m.

Luke wrote:

All those who are calling this politics and that Brash is "Vote buying", you really have no idea what Libertarianism is. You are in serious need to pick up a book or do a simple search and some study of Wikipedia. Act is a libertarian party, or as close as we have it in NZ. Loosening up laws to lower costs and shrink the size of government are core aspects of any true libertarian party. Good on ACT for giving people a little more freedom from government oppression.

25 Sep 2011 06:29p.m.

John wrote:

$30k+ of tax payers money was spent to convict me. I still smoke pot most days... pointless law. Decrim is quite confusing, its a step in the right direction though.