PROHIBITION'S FRIENDS AND ENEMIES

Whose side are you on? - prejudice and quasilegality - racism - legal amnesia - bullying - creativity - period pains - various pills and potions - statins - cholesterophobia - spines good and bad - the stress agenda - alcohol - psychiatrists - doctors - fat profits - other prescription drugs - work accidents - driving - alcohol substitution - donors - medical fraud - vix medicatrix naturae - stigma - scientific neutrality - crime - lawyers


As a social construct, prohibition has social allies and social antagonists. Its unpleasant effects create or at least exacerbate prejudice. It does not deal in details nor in the big picture. Instead tribes form around the poles of the social construct - police vs. people, rich vs. poor, intellect vs. violence.

A neutral assessment of prohibition requires conditions unlikely to pertain: equal resources, no fear of being honest, and not being a member of one tribe or the other. History is littered with political movements which did evil, but with good intentions. You could say Hitler had good intentions. Lenin meant well. The best we can do is to be professional and objective, and ask cui bono?

An approach to this is to examine who and what are the friends, and enemies, of prohibition.

SUMMARY OF PROHIBITION'S FRIENDS: Racists, scapegoaters, plunderers, religious nuts, painkiller sellers, insulin sellers, atypical antipsychotic sellers, tummyache remedy sellers, big pharma, medicofinancial bloat, "good vs. bad euphoria", overdoses and overdose deaths, supporters of alcohol, poverty, pain, irrationality, obesity, PTSD, cancer, stigma, witch-hunts as a mode of politicking, prejudice, puritanism, the stress agenda, plastic rope, plastic clothing, and low risk police hours.

SUMMARY OF THE ENEMIES OF PROHIBITION: vis medicatrix naturae, ghrelin, enhanced consciousness, creativity, ineffable experiences, many positive benefits and low risks, all of the Benedictions.


Prejudice: FRIEND

To find out what purposes ambiguous and erratically applied drug laws serve we begin in Africa.

"This article explores the concept of quasilegality in relation to two of Africas drug crops: khat and cannabis. It argues that the concept is useful in understanding the two substances and their ambiguous relation to the statute books: khat being of varied and ever-changing legal status yet often treated with suspicion even where legal, while cannabis is illegal everywhere in Africa yet often seems de facto legal. The article argues that such quasilegality is socially significant and productive, raising the value of such crops for farmers and traders, but also allowing states to police or not police these substances as their interests and instincts dictate. It also argues that there is no clear link between the law on the statute book and the actual harm potential of these substances. Finally, it suggests that the concept has much wider use beyond these case-studies of drugs in Africa in a world where global consensus on drug policy is cracking, and where many other objects of trade and activities find themselves in the blurred territory of the quasilegal."

and

"Quasilegality

"Quasilegal is a term with resonance in a number of fields, from the study of law and the state to the study of drugs and other such goods. The prefix quasi adds the idea of ambiguity to the term legal through its meaning of as if, almost or seemingly. Quasilegal can refer to procedures and rules within an organisation that are not supported directly by state law, but resemble them in form, while also referring to what might elsewhere be termed paralegal. Oren Perez links the quasilegal to fuzzy law, soft law that lies between the poles of lawlessness and complete legality. Such a definition is useful for our purposes, linking the term as it does to spaces where state law is often rivalled by semi-autonomous social fields in the words of Sally Falk Moore, spaces that the substances we examine travel through while often regulated by relationships of trust more than legal contract. The term also hints at the vagueness of the law and its flexibility. In this regard it links to debates in criminology regarding the concept of discretion, where there is much leeway in the interpretation and application of legal statutes. Again this leeway is often influenced more by social relationships than by reference to the law. The law is an imprecise tool, so in using discretion as to whether to charge someone with an offence or whether to apply a more or less lenient penalty, those who apply the law enter into an ambiguous - quasilegal - realm. The law and its vagueness is also capable of being corrupted by its protagonists, where discretion becomes a tool for indiscretion and discrimination."
https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/121129/1/Quasilegality_author_accepted_version14_Augut_2017.pdf [2150]

It is clear from this that the lesser rights are ascribed, to those to whom the erratic laws have been applied, compared to the more fortunate Homo sapiens who were left alone. This could be based on economic, political, religious or racial groupings. Or language groupings. It could be the person who complains about the Town Smell, or has somewhere to live unencumbered by relatives or slack bill-paying sharers. It could be people with red hair, or lights in their windows. It could be people who don't give in to other types of extortion or theft.

But what would we say about a society which thought it perfectly acceptable to arrest, fine or imprison, or confiscate the property of some people with an interest in vitamins, or insulin, or Scotch whisky, while others were allowed to go freely about, openly producing and consuming the same?

Would such a society and its legal edifices command the respect of its population?

Racism: FRIEND

Black Americans are arrested for cannabis at four times the rate of the whites. John Hudak, Deputy Director at the Center for Effective Public Management and Senior Fellow in Governance Studies, has written a book, reviewed on the website of the Brookings Institution, which "traces its beginnings to 1916, when a group of leading reformers founded the Institute for Government Research (IGR), the first private organization devoted to analyzing public policy issues at the national level." It was the first American "think tank".

Hudak's book

"explores the explicitly racist roots of cannabis policy in the United States as well as the broader War on Drugs. It highlights how politicians across the political divide spent much of the 20th century using marijuana as a means of dividing America. By painting the drug as a scourge from south of the border to a 'jazz drug' to the corruptive intoxicant of choice for beatniks and hippies, marijuana as a drug and the laws that sought to control it played on some of Americas worst tendencies around race, ethnicity, civil disobedience, and otherness."
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/how-we-rise/2020/06/23/marijuanas-racist-history-shows-the-need-for-comprehensive-drug-reform/ [1530]

A discussion can be found here:

https://www.brookings.edu/events/webinar-marijuana-a-substance-at-the-intersection-of-race-politics-and-culture/ [1531]

Legal amnesia: FRIEND

All your previous legal decisions, such as when weed was like heroin, or when weed was no longer like heroin but still bad in unspecified ways, or when weed was not a net benefit at the population level, are disguised as a creeping technological advance, whereas the evidence shows that it was really just ignorant bigotry from the get-go.

Any improvements in the law cannot be retrospective for the victims. It is thought people would, if their previous convictions for sorcery or heresy were reversed, might lose respect for the law. Nothing could be further from the truth, as they would need lots of lawyers to fight for their compensation.

Creeping improvements are no better. History will remember.

Bullying: FRIEND

Obese boys <15 were between 1.67 times more likely to be victims of bullying. Obese boys BMI>30 and >=15 were 2.16 times more likely to carry weapons.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2826832/ [1272]

Creativity: ENEMY

"Participants [given 50 micrograms of LSD] were asked to come up with alternative uses for items (such as a stone) or interpret drawings (like waving lines).

"'When we looked at the responses, there was a distinct pattern to those under the influence of LSD that was different from placebo, which we have termed symbolic thinking. For example, when asked to find creative uses for a knife, those who had gotten the placebo answered that it could open a plastic bag or be used as a mirror,' says Wiener. 'Those under the influence of LSD gave responses such as cutting the important from the trivial in life. These responses moved away from concrete, rational thinking towards more abstract or symbolic thinking.'"
https://www.lucid.news/do-psychedelics-boost-creativity/ [1022]

Wiener et al (2022) found...

"In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study, 24 healthy volunteers received 50μg of LSD or inactive placebo. Near drug peak, a creativity task battery was applied, including pattern meaning task (PMT), alternate uses task (AUT), picture concept task (PCT), creative metaphors task (MET) and figural creativity task (FIG). Creativity was assessed by scoring creativity criteria (novelty, utility, surprise), calculating divergent thinking (fluency, originality, flexibility, elaboration) and convergent thinking, computing semantic distances (semantic spread, semantic steps) and searching for data-driven special features.

"Results: LSD, compared to placebo, changed several creativity measurements pointing to three overall LSD-induced phenomena: (1) pattern break, reflected by increased novelty, surprise, originality and semantic distances; (2) decreased organization, reflected by decreased utility, convergent thinking and, marginally, elaboration; and (3) meaning, reflected by increased symbolic thinking and ambiguity in the data-driven results.

"Conclusion: LSD changed creativity across modalities and measurement approaches. Three phenomena of pattern break, disorganization and meaning seemed to fundamentally influence creative cognition and behaviour pointing to a shift of cognitive resources away from normal and towards the new. LSD-induced symbolic thinking might provide a tool to support treatment efficiency in psychedelic-assisted therapy."
https://labs.psych.ucsb.edu/schooler/jonathan/sites/labs.psych.ucsb.edu.schooler.jonathan/files/pubs/wiessner_2022_lsd_creativity.pdf [5572]

St Pierre et al (2025) confirm the worst fears of the anti-creatives:

"Using multi-level modeling, we identified higher (p <.001) ratings of Wellbeing (F(1,768) = 160.15), Productivity (F(1,917) = 108.69), Creativity (F(1,899) = 25.99), Connectedness (F(1,859) = 253.4), Contemplation (F(1,864) = 180.5), and Focus (F(1,846) = 191.72) on microdosing days compared to non-microdosing days. For the domain of Creativity, increased scores were more pronounced among respondents with a history of using larger doses of psychedelics (F(1,899) = 4.40, p = .04)."
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00213-025-06913-9 [5613]

While Ptuj will be outraged at the finding of Prochazkova et al (2025) that

"Microdosing psilocybin increased quality of original ideas."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S002839082500440X

 [5622]

"Ayahuasca-inspired DMT/harmine formulation alters creative thinking dynamics during artistic creation" say Suay et al (2025):
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/02698811251353256 [5303]

Other papers relating to creativity are reviewed in [1022].

Some idea about the dangers awaiting those who are too afraid to try a psychedelic can be discerned from "Leveraging psychedelic neuroscience to boost human creativity using artificial intelligence" wherein Brian M Ross of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine reveals the key threats to Slovenia arising from their use:

"Psychedelics, such as LSD and psilocybin, disrupt entrenched cognitive patterns by facilitating novel insights and new associations."

"...reduced latent inhibition, increased divergent thinking, and enhanced implicit learning..."

"...intensified meaning-making..."

"...enhancing communication between otherwise segregated brain regions..."

"...Several studies suggest they facilitate novel associations by relaxing cognitive constraints and encouraging a more fluid, exploratory mindset. However, these effects are not uniform."

"...Although some artists use psychedelics regularly as a means of enhancing creativity, this pattern of use typically does not become problematic. Indeed, most classical psychedelics have low addictive potential, even with repeated use, likely due to their intense and often challenging psychological effects which naturally limit excessive or compulsive use."
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/artificial-intelligence/articles/10.3389/frai.2025.1589086/full [5097]

Let's hope psychedelics fix up Slovenia's AI, such as Gastarbeiter - for foreign workers in Slovenia - before it's too late:



"In 1966, researchers at the International Foundation for Advanced Study in California gave mescaline to 27 men who were engineers, physicists, mathematicians, architects, furniture designers, and artists.

"While on the drug, one came up with a new conceptual model of a photon particle; another envisioned a new approach to the design of a vibratory microtome, a lab instrument that cuts material into small slices; and an architect produced a design for a home that was later approved by his client. The mescaline seemed to help 'facilitate creative problem-solving, particularly in the "illumination phase",' the researchers wrote."

But, as the Vice article discusses, revelations can vary in quality. But that's true of people who don't take psychedelics too.

https://www.vice.com/en/article/5dgkkn/the-insights-psychedelics-give-you-arent-always-true [1030]

Insulin sellers: FRIEND

"On January 23rd, 1923 Banting, Best, and Collip were awarded the American patents for insulin. They sold the patent to the University of Toronto for $1 each. Banting notably said: 'Insulin does not belong to me, it belongs to the world.' His desire was for everyone who needed access to it to have it.

"In order for the insulin to be mass produced and widely available, the pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly and Co. were given the rights to do so. While this incredible advancement was intended as a gift from the discoverers, Eli Lilly and the two other major insulin producers, Sanofi and Novo Nordisk, have turned insulin into profit machines, assisting in bringing in billions of dollars in profit every year. By 1923, insulin was the highest-selling product in Eli Lillys history, and profits from it accounted for over half of the companys revenue. As we know, the prices have continued to skyrocket ever since."
https://www.t1international.com/100years/ [2359]

"Between 2012 and 2016, Lilly almost doubled the price of its insulin, prompting letters from members of Congress about the sudden and huge price increases."
https://skwawkbox.org/2024/10/17/the-trail-of-streetings-jabs4jobs-slimming-drug-company-is-littered-with-massive-lawsuits/ [3611]

The cost of insulin varies widely around the world. Rand has a report and according to Figure 2.9 therein the price per standard unit in 2018 was $119.36 in the US, but only $8.19 on average in non-US OECD countries.

Does it cost any more to make Americans' insulin? Is their infrastructure so decrepit that distribution costs fourteen and a half times more the other OECD countries? Profit over life is part of the American dream.
https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RRA700/RRA788-1/RAND_RRA788-1.pdf [954]

NECUD increases diabetes. Clark [707] mentions it 53 times. Besides insulin, the TZD PPAR agonist drugs are also FRIENDS of prohibition.

Period pains FRIEND

Period pains and all the symptoms of the luteal phase which cannabis shortens are friends of prohibition. So prohibition is FRIENDS with mood swings, irritability, anxiety, fatigue, bloating, tender breasts, headaches, breakouts or spots, changes in appetite, and changes in sex drive, because it is friends with all the pharmaceutical treatments for all of these.
https://www.clearblue.com/how-to-get-pregnant/luteal-phase [960]

Prohibition is an American export, so here's a list of treatments from the American dysmenorrhea pharmacopoeia.

https://www.drugs.com/condition/dysmenorrhea.html?page_all=1 [958]

Quite a few of these are based on ibuprofen, which is an over-the-counter medication in the UK, but not Slovenia. And

"...if taken inappropriately and over long periods, ibuprofen can cause gastro-intestinal, renal and cardiac complications, especially among the 'at risk' patient groups."

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1753-6405.12589 [959]

It also seems quite important to not do any serious research on using cannabis for menstrual pain. Any research that is done is to examine the problems of these cannabis abusers etc. etc. Accordingly RDTGH authors Ferretti et al (2024) - insisting that feeling better must have nothing to do with feeling good - claimed a first with their tiny study, after finding only 33 subjects fitting the criteria:

"...who self-reported experiencing normal menstruation (occurring every 2138 days and lasting between 4 and 8 days; Creinin et al., 2004), willingness to track their menstrual cycles systematically, and experiencing MRS."

The researchers had noticed that

"Some individuals attempt to alleviate menstrual-related symptoms (MRS) by using cannabis and report having expectations that cannabis can improve MRS; however, no study has examined the effect of cannabinoids on MRS."

...and so women who had used cannabis in the last 30 days were excluded.

In a two-dose analysis of the utility of CBD only, the authors used the Menstrual-Related Symptom Questionnaire, the Brief Irritability Test, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale21, Global impression of change, and Subjective Severity.

2 4 mixed ANOVA analyses revealed lower MRSQ, stress, anxiety and irritability scores, and a main effect of time for GIC and subjective severity ratings of MRS, in all three months, but no effect on depression.

"The present study findings are consistent with past research showing the beneficial effects of CBD on various experiences associated with MRS, including reductions in monthly ratings of MRS (using the MRSQ, subjective severity, global impression of change), stress, and anxiety (Zuardi et al., 2017). Data revealed reductions in both physiological and psychological symptoms, which is consistent with past literature documenting effects of CBD on both types of outcomes (Boyaji et al., 2020; Shannon et al., 2019; Linares et al., 2019; Loflin et al., 2017); however, various physiological symptoms that are assessed in the MRSQ had not been examined in relation to CBD prior to the present investigation (i.e., abdominal bloating, nausea, appetite-related symptoms; Sexton et al., 2016; Slavin et al., 2017) and thus warrant future research and replication.

"CBD has been associated with reducing pain related to inflammation (Burstein, 2015). To the extent that some physiological MRS may be a result of inflammation (Barcikowska et al., 2020; Gold et al., 2016), CBD may reduce some pain-related physiological MRS; though this study did not examine anti-inflammatory outcomes, future work may examine the effects of CBD on biological markers of menstrual-related inflammation."
https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2024-61679-001.html [3889]

The researchers do not seem to be in any great hurry under this heading. Money is to be made curing symptoms - e.g. with NSAIDs - while CBD is seen to prevent them. According to globenewswire.com on 26 March 2024:

"The PMS and menstrual health supplements market has grown strongly in recent years. It will grow from $24.53 billion in 2023 to $26.23 billion in 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.9%. The growth observed in the historical period can be attributed to factors such as the increasing awareness of women's health, changes in lifestyles and dietary patterns, a growing recognition of PMS symptoms, efforts in consumer education and health information dissemination, and a shift in cultural attitudes towards women's health.

"The market is expected to see strong growth in the next few years. It will grow to $35.19 billion in 2028 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.6%."
https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2024/03/26/2852663/28124/en/Global-PMS-and-Menstrual-Health-Supplements-Market-Analysis-2024-2028-2033-by-Product-Formulation-Consumer-Group-Sales-Channel-and-Region.html#:~:text=The%20PMS%20and%20menstrual%20health,(CAGR)%20of%206.9%25. [3890]

Covid- and pollution-induced anosmia and ageusia: FRIEND

On 12 Dec 2025 openpr.com predicted "Chronic Smell and Flavor Loss Market Size to Reach USD 4.1 Billion by 2034"

"Pune, India, December 2025 - The global Chronic Smell and Flavor Loss Market is projected to grow from USD 2.5 billion in 2024 to USD 4.1 billion by 2034, expanding at a CAGR of 5.2% during the forecast period. Growing awareness of sensory disorders, improvements in clinical diagnostics, and increasing research collaborations continue to boost market expansion."

The worldwide fallout from Covid is the main driver:

"Chronic smell and flavor loss conditions-anosmia, hyposmia, ageusia, and hypogeusia-are becoming increasingly recognized as significant health burdens. The surge in sensory impairment cases following viral infections (especially COVID-19), coupled with increasing elderly populations and neurological disorders, is strengthening long-term demand for diagnostic and therapeutic solutions."
https://www.openpr.com/news/4312514/chronic-smell-and-flavor-loss-market-size-to-reach-usd-4-1-billion [5721]

Various pills and potions: FRIEND

Prescriptions for drugs used to treat pain, anxiety, high cholesterol, nausea, psychoses, seizures, sleep disorders, depression, and spasticity all fall with legalisation.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/1753-6405.12589 [491]

Writing in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Thapa et al (2023) point out the expanded notion of the endocannabinoidome:

"While ECS components including CB1 and CB2, and eCBs and their enzymes have been shown to play a key role in the pharmacological action of cannabis and cannabinoids, recent studies have revealed a more complex picture involving other GPCRs and endocannabinoids-like molecules. GPCRs are the most common human membrane receptor targeted by currently available drugs. More than 34% of FDA-approved drugs target GPCRs and account for annual international sales of over 180 billion USD."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10572150/pdf/ijms-24-14677.pdf [4039]

In "The endocannabinoidomes: Pharmacological redundancy and promiscuity, and multi-kingdom variety of sources and molecular targets" Iannotti and Di Marzo (2025) spell out the growing scope of the endocannabinoidome and by implication mechanisms in which the Benedictions could exert their nutraceutical effects:

"This complex network now encompasses: (i) the 2 most established eCBs, 2-AG and AEA; (ii) several dozens of eCB-like mediators, including long-chain 2-MAGs, NAEs, N-acyl amino acids, N-acyl-taurines, N-acyl-serotonins, N-acyl-dopamines, and primary fatty acid amides; and (iii) redundant metabolic enzymes and molecular targets for these molecules; and has been defined, due to its wide biochemical diversity, as the 'endocannabinoidome' (Cristino et al, 2020) (Table 1).

"Concomitantly, it has been found that both eCBs and other eCB-like molecules containing polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in their chemical structures, can be oxidized by the same enzymes that were already known to transform such fatty acids, when in their free form, into bioactive prostanoids, eicosanoids, and, more in general, 'oxylipins.' These enzymes include 12- and 15-lipoxygenases, cyclooxygenase-2, and cytochrome p450-containing oxygenases and thus engender a parallel 'oxyendocannabinoidome.' These oxidative metabolites of eCBs and eCB-like mediators have receptors often, but not necessarily, in common with those of the parent compounds (Simard et al, 2022a) (Table 1)."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031699725074782 [5108]

Morris et al (2025) believe CBD, but not THC, acts upon anti-inflammatory lipid mediator synthesis via the LOX pathway - but do not consider cannabinoid ratios, congeners, or entourage effects:

"This present study aimed to investigate how CBD and THC effect plasma levels of eicosanoids generated through LOX, COX, and cytochrome P450 (CYP450) pathways. Using plasma sample data from multiple clinical studies, we tested the hypothesis that high-CBD cannabis use would increase eicosanoid levels compared with high-THC cannabis. Results: Following cannabis use, high-CBD cannabis led to a rise in plasma eicosanoids, particularly lipoxins, while high-THC cannabis did not. Conclusions: CBD promoted anti-inflammatory eicosanoid production via the 15-LOX pathway, therefore supporting the potential role of CBD as a therapeutic candidate for inflammatory diseases."
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40552985/ [5112]

The problem is, cannabis just doesn't cause enough side-effects - iatrogenic illnesses which, according to the western money model, require more drugs.

Reporting in the journal Health Economics in April 2022, Raman and Bradford examine the impact of recreational legalization in 10 states plus Washington, D.C.:

"We find significant reductions in the volume of prescriptions within the drug classes that align with the medical indications for pain, depression, anxiety, sleep, psychosis, and seizures. Our results suggest substitution away from prescription drugs and potential cost savings for state Medicaid programs."

"Our findings show significant reductions in the Medicaid prescribing rate relative to implementation of an RCL in six of our nine condition-specific drug classes. We find that RCLs are associated with the following condition-specific drug utilization reductions: 11.1% (95% Confidence Interval [CI] = −18.2 to −4.1) for depression, 12.2% (95% CI = −19.5 to −4.8) for anxiety, 8% (95% CI = −15.4 to −0.6) for pain, 9.5% (95% CI = −16.6 to −2.5) for seizures, 10.7% (95% CI = −17.8 to −3.6) for psychosis, and 10.8% (95% CI = −16.1 to −5.4) for sleep. We do not see a measurable change in drugs used to treat nausea, spasticity, or glaucoma following RCLs, in the Medicaid population."
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hec.4519 [1203]

"'Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.' DEA Administrative Law Judge Francis Young Docket No. 86-22. 1988."
https://www.medicalcannabis.com/wp-content/uploads/young.pdf [2159]

"Cholesterol Is A Nutrient, Not A Disease," says Dr Jocelyn Foran, MD:

"Without Abundant Cholesterol Our Bodies Cannot Make:
Testosterone
Aldosterone
Cortisol
DHT Dihydrotestosterone
DHEA Dehydroepiandrosterone
Estradiol
Estriol
Estrone
Progesterone
Vitamin D

"The Most Important Fat In Our Body Is Cholesterol:
Protects against chemicals, toxins & heavy metals.
Prevents dementia & cognitive decline.
Protects against all cause mortality.
Production of all steroid hormones.
Bone density & Osteoporosis prevention.
Protective against stroke & heart disease.
Important for lungs & airways.
Building block of all cells & mitochondria.
Absorption of Vitamins A, D, E & K.
Critical for digestion & bile acids.
Immune system protection against infections.
Protection against bacteria, pathogens & viruses.
Lowers risk of cancer & death.
Lowers risk of depression & suicide.
Lowers stress, cortisol & anxiety.
Optimal brain is 60% fat & 25% cholesterol."
https://x.com/ValerieAnne1970/status/1929081019225014360 [5040]

The statin market is predicated on the dogma that cholesterol is bad. By 2018 Pfizer's Lipitor beccame the most profitable drug in the history of medicine. Statins in condiments at burger outlets, and in the water supply, have been proposed. Skeptics like Dr Maryanne Demasi say statins serve no purpose in lowering cholesterol. By simply lowering the threshold of what we call high cholesterol, the "need" for statins was increased in the customer base.

"Skepticism arose when it was discovered that 8 out of 9 of those people deciding to lower that threshold actually had direct direct financial ties to statin manufacturers."

"In 2013, American College of Cardiologists and the AHA moved away from a single cholesterol number."

Her Youtube discusses the role of calculators in assessing CV risk. Instead of a single number, they started including cholesterol, age, blood pressure, weight, diabetes etc.

Different standards evolved for prescribing in the US vs the UK. In the US a 7.5% risk of developing CV disease in the next ten years triggers a statin recommendation. In the UK it is 20%.

"By simply changing from a single cholesterol number to this very low percentage risk profile, it increased the number of Americans being prescribed statins by 12.8 million."

"4 out of 5 'calculators' were over-estimating the risk, up to 115%."

This is referred to as the 'statinisation' of the population.

Yet the actual data on their alleged effectiveness is a secret property of a tiny group.
https://youtu.be/BzTjPuikhQE [3027]

Prior to 2013 statins were thought to be blockbuster. In 2019 the question of statins was brought to the attention of 32 European national regulators. Jefferson, Demasi and Doshi simply asked what you might think was common knowledge already, namely:

"1. Are any of the seven statins authorised in [Country X]? (yes/no for each statin)

"2. If yes, what year was each statin authorised?

"3. Was each statin first authorised on the basis of [Country X]'s assessment of a marketing authorisation application (MAA)? (yes/no)

"4. If Q3 = yes. Does Country X still hold the clinical trial evidence (including clinical study reports) in its archives? (yes/no)

"5. If Q3 = no. Which country evaluated the MAA and granted a license that was recognized by [Country X] (for example, on the basis of the mutual recognition or decentralised or national authorisation procedures)?

"6. If [Country X] authorised the statin please refer us (via a weblink or URL) to the healthcare professional prescribing information for each statin, in English if possible."
https://www.bmj.com/content/354/bmj.i4992/rr-14 [3033]

Cholesterophobia is a relatively recent preoccupation, postdating the SCND, while at the time of the Opium Conference essential fatty acids and messenger lipids were unknown.

"[Ernst] Wynder in the 1970s became concerned with professional views of what was the 'normal' blood cholesterol level. Most clinical laboratory forms of the time used the cut-point of 300 mg/dl to flag abnormal. Below that level, attention was rarely called to cholesterol. Wynder decided to gather representatives of each major medical discipline and charge them with defining 'optimal' blood cholesterol levels, insisting on their independent deliberations. He enlisted Barry Lewis of London to summarize clinical data, Bob Wissler, the pathological data, and Henry Blackburn, the epidemiological data. Each group of experts arrived at Wynders elegant quarters at the Ford Foundation in Manhattan in the Fall of 1979 and deliberated separately, presenting their conclusions in a final plenary session.

"It turned out that experts from each discipline had arrived at virtually identical conclusions on what were ideal levels of blood total cholesterol for a population, and what levels they thought were feasible to achieve in Western industrialized populations. At the time, data on lipoprotein subfractions from representative populations were not available. The ideal mean value of 160 mg/dl was illustrated in a curtotic distribution with few population values above 200. It was thought feasible in a decade or so to arrive at a mean of 190, with a standard deviation of +/-30, compared to the existing mean of 210 with a standard deviation of 35. Wynder went on to develop similar recommendations for ideal blood lipid values for youth.

"Following the success of the LRC Primary Prevention Trial in 1984, a consensus conference of the NHLBI formalized recommendations for a National Cholesterol Education Project (NCEN) in the medical and public health community, where 200 mg/dl was the upper limit of 'normal' for the individual and 130 as the upper limit for LDL. The NCEN have since modified these recommended values as a result of extensive subsequent trial data indicating the lower LDL and the higher HDL the better."
http://www.epi.umn.edu/cvdepi/essay/optimal-blood-lipid-levels-an-international-report/#:~:text=Wynder%20in%20the%201970s%20became,was%20rarely%20called%20to%20cholesterol. [3028]

"Total cholesterol and all-cause mortality by sex and age: a prospective cohort study among 12.8 million adults" by Yi et al (2018) found the lowest mortality in the 210-250 TC range:

 
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-38461-y.pdf [3806]

"In the UK, two medical experts have earned a major win in the High Court in a case described by the Judge as 'the most significant piece of defamation litigation' he has seen in a very long time.

"The case shines a light on how journalists cover scientific issues and how the media seeks to discredit those who challenge official narratives.

"For decades, Malcolm Kendrick, general practitioner and Zoe Harcombe, PhD in nutritional science, have publicly challenged the role of saturated fat and cholesterol in heart disease, as well as the widespread use of statin medications."

The experts accused the Daily Mail of bias, and a hatchet job.

"Justice Matthew Nicklin issued a 255-page judgement and dismissed a 'public interest defence' because the articles in question had 'seriously misled readers.'"

and

"The Professors included Rory Collins, Peter Sever, and Colin Baigent who co-authored a 2016 review in The Lancet which promoted the wider use of statins, even for people at low risk of heart disease a view that Kendrick and Harcombe had publicly challenged.

"Their advocacy of statins to lower cholesterol is well-known.

"Collins told Calman that anyone who thinks LDL-cholesterol does not 'cause' heart disease is akin to 'flat earthism' and 'in the same realm as claiming that smoking does not cause lung cancer.'"

So...

"Calman put out a call for people to come forward and tell their stories, but he was apparently 'inundated by stories of people who have stopped taking statins and felt far healthier.'

"He also received 'two quite dramatic stories' of patients who were taken off their statins by their doctors after they developed serious liver problems and died from complications. 'The families themselves both naturally question whether statins caused the problems,' noted Calman.

"All these case studies contradicted the narrative that stopping statins was dangerous, so Calman wrote to the Professors. 'What we havent had is a single story which backs your thesis, and obviously Im concerned,' he explained. 'I think it makes us look rather weak.'"
https://brokenscience.org/doctors-sue-british-tabloid-for-libel-and-win-first-battle-round/ [3409]

Other evidence links statin use to reduced impairment of coenzyme Q10 production, mitochondrial dysfunction, disruption of intracellular calcium metabolism, muscle fibre damage, declines in muscle function, grip strength, appendicular lean mass (ALM), and increased insulin resistance.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/jcsm.70132 [5720]

Supporting the idea that the LDL-C hypothesis is broken, while "acceptable" levels have been lowered to trigger statin prescribing, Ravnskov et al (2020) in a systematic review of cohort studies report as follows:

"We identified 19 follow-up studies including 20 cohorts of more than six million patients or healthy people. Total mortality was recorded in 18 of the cohorts. In eight of them, those with the highest LDL-C lived as long as those with normal LDL-C; in nine of them, they lived longer, whether they were on statin treatment or not. CVD mortality was measured in nine cohorts. In two of them, it was inversely associated with LDL-C; in five of them, it was not with normal BMI associated. In the study without information about total mortality, CVD mortality was not associated with LDL-C. In two cohorts, low LDL-C was significantly associated with total mortality. In two other cohorts, the association between LDL-C and total mortality was U-shaped. However, in the largest of them (n>5 million people below the age of 40), the mortality difference between those with the highest LDL-C and those with normal LDL-C was only 0.04%.

"Conclusions: Our updated review of studies published since 2016 confirms that, overall, high levels of LDL-C are not associated with reduced lifespan. These findings are inconsistent with the consensus that high lifetime LDL levels promotes premature mortality. The widespread promotion of LDL-C reduction is not only unjustified, it may even worsen the health of the elderly because LDL-C contributes to immune functioning, including the elimination of harmful pathogens.
https://meddocsonline.org/annals-of-epidemiology-and-public-health/the-LDL-paradox-higher-LDL-cholesterol-is-associated-with-greater-longevity.pdf [3805]

While some have suggested cannabis can increase LDL-C to HDL-C ratios, the studies on cholesterol have been very small and do not prove anything either way. For instance Cusihuaman et al managed to find 20 heavy cannabis users in Cusco, Peru (2022). Although HDL-C was raised after smoking, the irony of the condition of the original cohort seems to have been lost on the authors, who report matter-of-factly that before the experiment began, out of these twenty heavy users with normal BMI

"...12 (60%), 10 (50%), and 11 (55%) had desirable total cholesterol, fairly good HDL-C (4060 mg/dL) and fairly good LDL-C (100129 mg/dL) values, respectively."

...while how many candidates for this research were rejected because they were too fat is not recorded.
https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/10/8/1597 [3029]

A true understanding of the risks vs. benefits at the biochemical level is bedevilled by the significant number of variables, including all the cannabinoids and terpenes, genetic predispositions, diet and other environmental factors, as well as prohibition itself (the cannabis cohort may be in hiding). The epidemiology, as the evidence shows, tells a different story.
https://www.healthline.com/health/can-weed-raise-your-cholesterol [3030]

For instance, in a comparison of cannabis use with the odds ratio of hypertriglyceridemic waist (HTGW+/+) phenotype in U.S. adults:

"Of the 47,364 adults included, 48.5% were women. The prevalence of HTGW+/+ phenotype was 11.7%. Current, but not former, users were less likely to show HTGW+/+ phenotype. Current cannabis users with greater or equal to four uses per week showed a significant lower likelihood for HTGW+/+ than those who never used cannabis (AOR 0.46 [95% CI, 0.220.97]). HTGW+/+ phenotype was associated with neither two to three uses per week (AOR 1.12 [95% CI, 0.403.12]) nor less than two uses per week (AOR 0.56 [95% CI, 0.181.73])."

The analysis shows that ex-users (<2 uses per week in the past) suffering from NECUD/SPUK for 1-10 years fared the worst, with a 60% higher chance of HTGW. They were followed by ex-users (>=4 uses per week in in the past) with 28% higher, compared to never-users.

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/can.2019.0048 [3031]

And here's an illustration from the Lancet's 2019 position statement on visceral and ectopic fat, atherosclerosis, and cardiometabolic disease, outlining the outcomes.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/landia/article/PIIS2213-8587%2819%2930084-1/fulltext [3032]

Indeed the most interesting thing about more reliable large-scale studies of cannabis and cholesterol is the lack of them.

In a two-way fixed-effects regressions and leverage variation from eleven U.S. states that adopted a recreational cannabis law (RCL) between 2010 and 2019, Raman et al found a 26% reduction in pharmacy-based distribution of codeine and as much as a 37% reduction after recreational cannabis laws have been in effect for four years.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hec.4652 [2686]

Cannabis and classical psychedelics are a direct rival of atypical antipsychotics. If you want to know when elongating your dendritic spines is dangerous, that's when cannabis and psychedelics are responsible. The advantage of atypical antipsychotics such as clozapine over conventional antipsychotics such as haloperiodol is:

"...that in rat dissociated hippocampal neurons 1.0 μM clozapine administration increased DS-enriched protein spinophilin by 70%, increased post-synaptic protein shank1a puncta density by 26% and increased overall primary dendrite DS density by 59%. Filopodia and mushroom DS were particularly affected by clozapine. Conversely, 0.1 μM haloperidol decreased spinophilin protein by 40%, caused a 25% decrease in shank1a puncta and reduced the numbers of filopodia. In contrast, neither haloperidol nor clozapine induced any change in the levels of the pre-synaptic protein synapsin. This indicates that clozapine and haloperidol differentially regulate DS and post-synaptic plasticity. These findings may provide a molecular and cellular correlate to the superior therapeutic profile of clozapine when compared with haloperidol."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1044743106001047?via%3Dihub [2969]


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golgi%27s_method [2975]

Please note that the public's dendritic spines belonged to them even before their description and naming in 1888 by Santiago Ramn y Cajal. Much of his insight into their purpose and function proved to be correct, while opponents who argued spines were an artifact of the Golgi staining process were eventually proved wrong, but not until after his death in 1934 and the application of electron microscopy.

"De Robertis and Palay performed the first ultrastructural analysis of synapses (DeRobertis and Bennett, 1955; Palay, 1956) and shortly afterwards, synapses were demonstrated on spines (Gray, 1959a,b). Cajal was proven correct and spines became a bona-fide topic of interest for neurobiological studies."
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnana.2015.00018/full [2968]

So in respect of our treatment of our dendritic spines and its relevance to this hearing, if some evidence in support of the legal status quo claims there is no need for these drugs to promote DS growth, or that spine growing is dangerous, remember how great the atypical antipsychotics are supposed to be, and why.

Remember that dendritic spine length is considered a valuable measure of the utility of both legal and illegal drugs.

Can the same effect be useful for legal drugs and not useful for the illegal ones? That doesn't make sense. No law can change the utility of elongated DS which, let us remind ourselves constantly, belong to their owners and not to Pfizer or Krka; nor to Gibanje Svoboda or the SDS; not to the judiciary, nor to the Archbishop of Ljubljana; finally our dendritic spines do not belong to the Republic of Slovenia, its Courts, or to the staff of UNODC.

Suffice to say, they were not a topic of concern at the 1925 Opium Convention, as Cajal's work was still in the wilderness, and much still remains to be elucidated even today. Had the relevant discoveries about recreational drugs and dendritic spines predated the anti-drug treaties, if would have been rather hard to argue for prohibition.

The devastating effects of cannabis upon rival drugs may be extrapolated from the results of a 2023 survey of over 200 prescribees in New Zealand:

"Of the participants who took cannabis for other reasons, such as autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and difficulty eating, 98% found taking cannabis helped.

"Study co-author Dr Geoff Noller, of the Dunedin School of Medicines Centre for Bioethics, says as with several other studies undertaken in Aotearoa New Zealand, there was consistent reporting of positive effects on pain relief, sleeplessness and anxiety.

"'An important finding of the study was that participants either decreased or stopped their use of prescribed medicines, many of which were opioid based,' Dr Noller said in a press release."

What proportion of the population experiences anxiety? This Defence says 100%.
https://cannabishealthnews.co.uk/2023/06/05/new-zealand-new-findings-prompt-calls-for-wider-access-to-medicinal-cannabis/ [2685]

The stress agenda: FRIEND

Psychedelics enthusiasts have long managed without technical explanations of the biological mechanisms of fear. Fear of breaking a law lacking rational explanation is no different to any other kind of fear.

But since the user is expected, unlike the prohibitionists, to provide a rationale for their actions, the Defence is obliged to Chung et al (2025) who explain "Psychedelic control of neuroimmune interactions governing fear":

"Neuroimmune interactionssignals transmitted between immune and brain cellsregulate many aspects of tissue physiology1, including responses to psychological stress, which can predispose individuals to develop neuropsychiatric diseases. Still, the interactions between haematopoietic and brain-resident cells that influence complex behaviours are poorly understood. Here, we use a combination of genomic and behavioural screens to show that astrocytes in the amygdala limit stress-induced fear behaviour through epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Mechanistically, EGFR expression in amygdala astrocytes inhibits a stress-induced, pro-inflammatory signal-transduction cascade that facilitates neuronglial crosstalk and stress-induced fear behaviour through the orphan nuclear receptor NR2F2 in amygdala neurons. In turn, decreased EGFR signalling and fear behaviour are associated with the recruitment of meningeal monocytes during chronic stress. This set of neuroimmune interactions is therapeutically targetable through the administration of psychedelic compounds, which reversed the accumulation of monocytes in the brain meninges along with fear behaviour. Together with validation in clinical samples, these data suggest that psychedelics can be used to target neuroimmune interactions relevant to neuropsychiatric disorders and potentially other inflammatory diseases."
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08880-9 [5120]

Chung et al "specifically included that astrocytes are direct targets of corticosterone signaling for chronic stress, linking these inflammatory signals with fear behaviour through glucocorticoid receptor activation and epidermal growth factor receptor upregulation. This specific receptor expression in the amygdala inhibits stress-induced, pro-inflammatory signal transduction cascades, while enabling neuronal-glial crosstalk. These findings support the mechanism of psilocybin for the use of neuroimmune modulation and support for neuropsychiatric disorders." [5119]

The Defendant's infographics explain where this psychiatric paradigm fits in with typical naturalistic use.

Accordingly this mechanism is included among the Benedictions. Psychedelics are fundamentally inimical to governments' attempts to reduce political inclusivity and public participation, using the fear cycle.

By reducing fear extinction, THC, LSD, DMT, DOI, TCB-2, 𝑅-MDMA, and 4-OH-DiPT ameliorate the effects of today's stress agenda. Those who profit from the stress agenda - basically by piling it on - have nothing to gain from people with a cool, calm and collected view of problems and solution-oriented behaviour.


Alcohol: FRIEND

"A recent study [3144] found that more Americans now consume cannabis every day than drink alcohol on a daily basis. Since 1992, it found, the per capita rate of daily cannabis consumption in the country has increased nearly 15 times over.

"A multinational investment bank said in a report late last year that marijuana has become a 'formidable competitor' to alcohol, projecting that nearly 20 million more people will regularly consume cannabis over the next five years as booze loses a couple million drinkers. It also says marijuana sales are estimated to reach $37 billion in 2027 in the U.S. as more state markets come online."
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/peoples-use-of-alcohol-or-opioids-causes-greater-secondhand-harms-than-marijuana-consumption-does-study-finds/ [3145]

According to Casswell et al (2016) in "How the alcohol industry relies on harmful use of alcohol and works to protect its profits":

"The alcohol industry have attempted to position themselves as collaborators in alcohol policy making....The goal of their public relations organisations is to promote responsible drinking. However, analysis of data collected in the International Alcohol Control study and used to estimate how much heavier drinking occasions contribute to the alcohol market in five different countries shows the alcohol industry's reliance on the harmful use of alcohol. In higher income countries heavier drinking occasions make up approximately 50% of sales and in middle income countries it is closer to two-thirds. It is this reliance on the harmful use of alcohol which underpins the conflicting interests between the transnational alcohol corporations and public health and which militates against their involvement in the alcohol policy arena. [Caswell S, Callinan S, Chaiyasong S, Cuong PV, Kazantseva E, Bayandorj T, Huckle T, Parker K, Railton R, Wall M. How the alcohol industry relies on harmful use of alcohol and works to protect its profits. Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:661664]"
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/dar.12460 [3960]

Taxation politicking: FRIEND. Governments sometimes try to equate high taxation with an attempt to control unhealthy behaviour. Sin taxes do not prevent or proportionately ameliorate out-of-control substance use.

"In 1993 Leung and Phelps performed a literature review of 15 studies that analyzed either statewide or nationwide data on alcohol consumption but used differing methods and criteria for subject selection and data analysis. Summarizing the broad range of reported results, the reviewers estimated that a 1-percent increase in price led to a 0.3-percent decrease in demand for beer, a 1-percent decrease in demand for wine, and a 1.5-percent decrease in demand for spirits.

"More recent research has continued to study the effects of price changes on alcohol consumption. In one study, based on a random nationwide survey of 18,000 adults, Manning and colleagues found that higher beverage prices were significantly related to lower alcohol consumption rates among the overall population. However, no significant responsiveness to price was found among the heaviest drinkers, specifically the 5 percent of the population responsible for 36 percent of the Nation's total alcohol consumption."

Abe Lincoln's quote.

A Forbes' article refers to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism:

https://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/aa51.htm [950]

on this topic, which in turn refers to

https://www.jstor.org/stable/20111841 [948]
https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/0167629694000423 [949]

And according to Forbes:

"Such claims are politically useful because the average adult who consumes alcohol may be reluctant to voluntarily impose alcohol taxes on themselves if they realized who really bore the costs.

"In order to substantiate the claim that abusive drinkers pay most of the costs, proponents rely on an unrealistic definition of an abusive drinker."
https://www.forbes.com/sites/econostats/2016/10/25/taxing-choice-and-the-road-to-prohibition/?sh=5b7121f27285 [947]

The woo woo of good vs bad euphoria: FRIEND

Big Pharma and Big Alcohol are compelled to look both ways. Euphoria from cannabinoids and psychedelics is viewed in a therapeutic context is as "bad euphoria", because it will limit sales of drugs through channels where messages against those are reinforced to sell other drugs. At the same time, alcohol creates so much health devastation it is profitable for the drugs companies. Some effort has even been put into promoting alcohol as a health benefit, but this does not hold up in the largest studies. The friends of prohibition are motivated to despise "bad euphoria" but not criticise the "good euphoria" that is causing much of the liver disease and cancer in the first place.

As in all religions in which not all persons necessarily believe, the "bad euphoria" thesis can be theologized, reified, and schismatized, for the benefit of a generation too old and fixed in its ways to change. One of the subcategories of bad euphoria in bad textbooks is "overly elated mood".

https://x.com/Peter_Grinspoon/status/1867593872831873392 [3783]

Psychiatrists on the pharma payroll: FRIEND

"Over half of active psychiatrists (55.7%) received some form of payments from pharmaceutical manufacturers. Of these, top the 2.8% of psychiatrists received 82.6% of the payments. Pharmaceutical manufacturers provided 812,877 payments worth $110,512,607.18 to 26,422 psychiatrists in the US. Compensation for services (e.g., speakers bureaus) and consulting fees altogether constituted 71.4% of the total payment, with a median value of $1,725.00 and $700, respectively. Among all psychiatrists who received payments, manufacturers that paid the most included Otsuka Pharmaceuticals, Alkermes, and Sunovion Pharmaceuticals."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7260092/ [4500]

The gravitational pull of anti-euphoria is strong. Even when the benefits of just a single puff per day must be admitted, science must strive to make sure we don't enjoy cannabis. Thus, Psychology Today is able to tell us that:

"Ordinarily, we do not view marijuana as being good for our brain and certainly not for making memories. How could a drug that clearly impairs memory while people are under its sway protect their brains from the consequences of aging? The answer likely has everything to do with the way that young and old brains function and a series of age-related changes in brain chemistry. When we are young, stimulating the brains marijuana receptors interferes with making memories. However, later in life, the brain gradually displays increasing evidence of inflammation and a dramatic decline in the production of new neurons, called neurogenesis, that are important for making new memories (Duncan et al., 2024).

"Research has demonstrated that stimulating the brains marijuana receptors may offer protection by reducing brain inflammation and by restoring neurogenesis. Thus, later in life, marijuana might actually help your brain, rather than harm it. Cannabis products may offer benefits for a variety of central nervous system diseases and dysfunctions such as forms of epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and some neuropsychiatric disorders. It may require very little daily cannabis consumption to produce benefits in the older brain; it appears as though only a single puff each day is necessary to produce significant benefit."

Gary Wenk Ph. D concludes with the inexplicable statement that:

"The challenge for pharmacologists in the future will be to isolate the beneficial effects of the marijuana plant from its psychoactive effects."
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-brain-on-food/202404/preventing-memory-loss-with-marijuana [4612]

Or as he might have said, "The challenge for pharmacologists in the future will be to create a patentable product, make sure it's no fun, doesn't work, and creates a need for more patentable drugs."

The global schizophrenia drugs market will be worth $8.02 Billion in 2021, reported Yahoo Finance in April 2022, and is expected to reach $10.15 Billion in 2027.

How do they know?

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/global-schizophrenia-drugs-market-research-080300440.html?guccounter=1 [2528]

Doctors on the the pharma payroll: FRIEND

Obesity is a reliable source of income for pharmaceuticals. Besides the downstream negative health effects of obesity, obesity per se is a target of drugs which companies are keen to keep prescribing doctors and pharmacists up to date about. In the use of anti-obesity drugs, motives of health and vanity overlap.

According to the Irish Times:

"A Danish pharmaceutical company behind popular new weight-loss drugs has made payments totalling 345,000 to Irish health professionals and organisations over the past three years.

"Novo Nordisk, the company behind the much-touted Ozempic and Wegovy treatments for obesity and diabetes, describes the payments in support of medical education as a cornerstone of its support for healthcare professionals treating patients with serious chronic conditions.

"In the UK, the pharmaceutical industry association has suspended Novo for two years over its marketing of another weight-loss drug, Saxenda, saying it breached the industrys code of conduct. The company was accused of failing to make clear its involvement in training on weight-loss drugs offered to pharmacists on LinkedIn, according to the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry.

"In response to the suspension, the Royal College of Physicians cut links with the firm and returned outstanding grants."

and

"Novo Nordisk has become one of the biggest companies in Europe thanks to soaring demand for Wegovy, used for chronic weight management.

"Wegovy has been hailed as a blockbuster new obesity treatment worldwide though it is unlikely to be available in Ireland until next year. Administered long term by weekly injection, it contains the appetite suppressant semaglutide and is said to help patients lose up to 15 per cent of their body weight. Ozempic, a diabetes drug with a slightly lower dose of semaglutide, has become the darling of celebrity dieters.

"Earlier this month [March 2023], the Observer newspaper in the UK reported the company had paid 21.7 million to health organisations and professionals in three years as part of a campaign to boost its influence in the UK. It said those with links to the company went on to promote Wegovy in media interviews and regulatory submissions without always making their connections to the company clear.

and

"Critics of pharmaceutical sector transparency claim payments by drug companies to doctors and other health professionals influence prescribing habits. Research suggests the receipt of payments from the pharma industry is associated with higher prescribing rates and costs and lower prescribing quality, according to Dr James Larkin, a researcher at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

"Dr Larkin said the transfers of value system for disclosing payments 'vastly underestimates' the actual amount of support provided by industry, because some payments are not required to be disclosed and areas such as generic drugs and medical devices are not covered."
https://www.irishtimes.com/health/2023/03/27/obesity-drug-firm-paid-health-staff-345000-over-three-years/ [2331]

"Novo Nordisk is paying the salaries of staff on NHS obesity teams and financing the launch and redesign of services, including giving 206,000 to a health partnership to transform its treatment of obesity. The Danish firm also has financial links to the co-chair of an NHS England weight management advisory group, and paid her almost 50,000 in lecture, consulting and other fees in just two years."

and

"In some cases, recipients of the funding went on to praise Wegovy or support its approval for use on the NHS without always making their links to Novo clear. This weekend, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) said an internal inquiry had found that some of those who advised it on the use of Wegovy in the NHS had not properly declared their interests.

"Now further documents reveal how Novo Nordisk has been granted a potential role in shaping obesity treatment through partnerships with NHS trusts, pharmacies and GPs to provide training and funding.

"In one case, the company is paying 206,000 to an integrated care system to help it 'transform' its specialist obesity services and 'reduce unnecessary barriers' to treatment.

"Novos money is paying for two 'dedicated' staff members and 'independent facilitation support' for a partnership with Mid and South Essex NHS trust and local councils, which aims to provide a blueprint for transforming other weight loss services across the country.

"In another partnership, Novo Nordisk has agreed to fund a weight management nurse specialist to work at the Somerset NHS foundation trust, which it has also partnered with to design an online weight management course for patients.

"A separate initiative with the National Pharmacy Association aims to 'upskill pharmacists' in obesity medicine and help them launch new weight management services. Novo is providing support with 'financial tracking and ensuring delivery of outcomes' and funding to develop resources for the two-year project.

"Novo Nordisk also has close links to the co-chair of an NHS England advisory group on specialist weight management services. Prof Rachel Batterham was appointed to the unpaid NHS role in 2021 despite a longstanding relationship with the company. Disclosure UK records which detail payments to healthcare professionals such as consulting, lecture and conference fees show she was paid 16,306 in 'service fees' by Novo in 2020 and 33,560 in 2021. She was also an investigator on a Novo Nordisk-sponsored trial of its Wegovy (semaglutide) injections and subsequently described the treatment as a 'gamechanger'."
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/apr/02/revealed-maker-of-wegovy-skinny-jab-is-funding-nhs-weight-loss-services [2347]

And in June 2023 the Guardian reported:

"Payments to UK health professionals and organisations, including donations, sponsorship, consultancy fees and expenses, reached a record 200m in 2022, excluding R&D with companies seeking to promote lucrative drugs for obesity, diabetes and heart conditions among the biggest spenders."

Among the winners:

"Eli Lilly makes drugs for diabetes and is seeking approval for its obesity drug Mounjaro, a rival to the recently approved Wegovy injections. Records show it spent 3.5m on payments to NHS organisations in 2022, up from 147,000 in 2018."

However

"The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, a trade body which publishes the Disclosure UK database of drugs industry spending, said companies were required to be transparent about payments and were banned from making payments that constituted an inducement to prescribe or promote a medicine."
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/jul/08/revealed-pharma-giants-pour-millions-of-pounds-into-nhs-to-boost-drug-sales?utm_term=Autofeed&CMP=twt_gu&utm_medium&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1688857674 [2770]

Across the pond, "Over 100 members of Congress, who took money from Danish giant Novo Nordisk, are pushing to make Medicare fund Ozempic at $1,500/month." According to Robert F Kennedy, half of this would be enough for three organic meals a day and gym membership, for every obese American.
https://x.com/newstart_2024/status/1973431677239144675 [5453]

Meanwhile the side-effects are rolling in. The EMA is investigating reports of suicidal ideation. You could be losing weight because you are suffering from gastroparesis, and throwing up three times a day, even a year after stopping the drug...

"...which works by mimicking a hormone called glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), regulating blood sugar levels and slowing down the rate at which food leaves the stomach to create the feeling of fullness."

"'Gastrointestinal (GI) events are well-known side effects of the GLP-1 class, the company [Novo Nordisk] told CNN. 'For semaglutide, the majority of GI side effects are mild to moderate in severity and of short duration. GLP-1s are known to cause a delay in gastric emptying, as noted in the label of each of our GLP-1 RA medications. Symptoms of delayed gastric emptying, nausea and vomiting are listed as side effects.'"

But it's not the drug manufacturers who will be committing suicide:

"Brenda Allen, from Texas, has since been managing her nausea and vomiting with a medication called Zofran and prescription probiotics."
https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/ozempic-stomach-paralysis-side-effects-b2381825.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1690330909 [2853]

The FDA, MRHA, and the European Medicines Agency are all tracking adverse reaction reports. In mixed messages...

"The ability of GLP-1s to lower blood sugar is a key reason drugs such as Rybelsus (semaglutide) received FDA approval in 2019 for diabetes treatment. According to Fiona Rutherford at Bloomberg, clinical trial data in the US do 'not support warnings for suicidal thoughts or behavior for the GLP-1s approved for diabetes indications.' 'In the US,' she adds, 'the labels for Wegovy and Saxenda already include warnings for suicidal behavior and thoughts, and recommend that patients using these drugs are monitored for worsening symptoms.'"

Having historically had a policy of opposition to medication-induced weight loss, the company Weightwatchers has made a u-turn:

"...since going all-in on GLP-1 agonists, WeightWatchers now has no choice but to address the negative publicity tied to the drugs adverse effects. Those hoping merely for reduced weight via GLP-1s may have to contend instead with a rise in suicidal thinking, as well as severe gastroparesis and cyclic vomiting syndrome that could derail their lives completely."
https://www.madinamerica.com/2023/09/obesity-drugs-suicidal/ [2944]

Fortunately, besides being an antidote to suicide, there is a treatment for gastroparesis, according to Barbash et al (2018).

"Six patients were prescribed Dronabinol, ten were prescribed marijuana and eight were prescribed Dronabinol followed by marijuana. Paired sample Ttests were performed and statistically significant improvement in abdominal pain score was seen in patients who received either cannabinoid treatment. When analyzed individually, both marijuana and Dronabinol showed statistically significant improvement in abdominal pain scores as well.

"Conclusion: Our study shows that cannabinoids may play an important role in the management of gastroparesisrelated abdominal pain. There are currently no treatments shown to be effective for gastroparetic pain in clinical trials, and cannabinoids may serve a niche for this undertreated symptom."


https://journals.lww.com/ajg/fulltext/2018/10001/cannabinoids_lead_to_significant_improvement_in.1204.aspx [3384]

Compared with similar people who didnt take GLP-1 medications, those who did had about a 50% higher risk of being diagnosed with the condition, at least three studies have shown.
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/05/20/health/glp-1-drugs-stomach-paralysis/index.html [4664]

Hollywood restaurants have emptied in an "Ozempidemic", with various celebs struggling as valiantly with addiction to weight loss and looking like a meth-head with a hollowed-out "Ozempic face" as once battled with obesity.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBbOidZffZs [3107]

The side-effects keep on coming: "Semaglutide Reduces Cardiomyocyte Size and Cardiac Mass in Lean and Obese Mice" say Martens et al (2024).
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452302X24002869?via%3Dihub [3798]

And, says the American Academy of Ophthalmology and North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society, these safe and effective miracle drugs may worsen your eyesight or make you go blind:

"A new study suggests patients taking semaglutide the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy may be at higher risk of developing an eye condition that can cause blindness. Non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy or NAION, happens when blood flow to the optic nerve is blocked, causing sudden, painless loss of vision in one eye."
https://www.aao.org/newsroom/news-releases/detail/weight-loss-drug-and-eye-health [3850]

"Thirty optic neuropathy lawsuits are pending in federal court, and more than 40 in state court, according to court records cited by Reuters."
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/federal-court-consolidates-70-lawsuits-alleging-ozempic-wegovy-caused-vision-loss/?utm_source=x&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=defender&utm_id=20251217 [5751]

Measured in column inches, such problems will receive much less attention in the media compared to CaPs. "Cannabidiol represses miR-143 to promote cardiomyocyte proliferation and heart regeneration after myocardial infarction" say Ren et al (2024):

"Our results demonstrate that systemic administration (10 mg/kg) of CBD markedly increased cardiac regenerative ability, reduced infarct size, and restored cardiac function in MI mice. Consistently, in vitro study also showed that CBD was able to promote the proliferation of neonatal cardiomyocytes. Mechanistically, the expression of miR-1433p related to cardiomyocyte proliferation was significantly down-regulated in CBD-treated cardiomyocytes, while the overexpression of miR-1433p inhibited cardiomyocyte mitosis and eliminated CBD-induced cardiomyocyte proliferation. Moreover, CBD enhanced the expression of Yap and Ctnnd1, which were demonstrated as the target genes of miR-1433p. Silencing of Yap and Ctnnd1 hindered the proliferative effects of CBD. We further revealed that inhibition of the cannabinoid receptor 2 impeded the regulatory effect of CBD on miR-1433p and its downstream target Yap/Ctnnd1, which ultimately eliminated the pro-proliferative effect of CBD on neonatal and adult cardiomyocytes. Taken together, CBD promotes cardiomyocyte proliferation and heart regeneration after MI via miR-1433p/Yap/Ctnnd1 signaling pathway, which provides a new strategy for cardiac repair in adult myocardium."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0014299923007598 [3799]

See also [1679].

According to a 21 March 2024 report by USA Today:

"More than five dozen lawsuits accuse Novo Nordisk or Eli Lilly of failing to notify patients about the side effects of their popular diabetes or weight loss drugs. Those drugs include Novo Nordisk's Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, and Eli Lilly's Trulicity and Mounjaro. These personal injury cases have been centralized under a federal judge in Philadelphia because they share common elements involving the same class of drugs.

"Among the more than five dozen lawsuits thus far, Novo Nordisk, maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, faces the most suits. However, the attorneys expect the case will eventually include thousands of others who say they were harmed.

"In a statement, representatives of Novo Nordisk said the cases are without merit and the company intends to 'vigorously defend against these claims.'"
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2024/03/21/lawsuits-ozempic-wegovy-weight-loss-drugs-diabetes-harmful/72947158007 [3111]

Mounjaro manufacturer Eli Lilly is defending a growing number of claims. According to mass tort specialists King Law:

"The number of lawsuits targeting GLP-1 drug manufacturers, including Eli Lilly, the maker of Trulicity, saw a 20% increase between August and September. As of October 1, 2024, there were 1,090 cases pending in MDL 3092 [believed to be a misprint for MDL 3094]. Increasing reports of severe side effects from users of GLP-1 agonist drugs, like Trulicity, have likely driven this rise in cases. With more Americans taking these medications, legal experts predict tens of thousands of additional lawsuits to be filed in the coming months."
https://www.robertkinglawfirm.com/personal-injury/trulicity-lawsuit/ [3612]
https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/znpnkkonzvl/fc191587-7a6d-4ef8-bbf6-6bf154db6aae.pdf [3613]

The Defence asserts that no reasonably educated person would risk taking big pharma's latest anti-obesity products when these companies have such a dismal record and basically must be costing in the litigation while keeping governments under control. Why would obese people reject the proven, but unpatentable and prohibited alternative, cannabis? Who would contine to worship this pharmaceutical mirage? Who wouldn't know what's going on?

According to finance.si 6 July 2024:

"Farmacevtska industrija spet z rekordnimi plačili zdravnikom
Okoli 15 milijonov evrov je lani farmacija v Sloveniji plačala organizacijam in zdravnikom za strokovne dogodke in udelebo, za svetovanja, izobraevanja in preizkuanja zdravil."
https://www.finance.si/farmacevtska-industrija-spet-z-rekordnimi-placili-zdravnikom/a/9025921 [3347]

In more pain for the pharmaceutical industry, as alternatives to both antidepressant and to oral anticoagulant drugs, CaPs reduce the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding which are more likely in concomitant use, as according to Rahman et al (2024):

"This study suggests that among patients with atrial fibrillation, concomitant use of SSRIs and OACs was associated with an increased risk of major bleeding compared with OAC use alone, requiring close monitoring and management of risk factors for bleeding, particularly in the first few months of use."
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/articlepdf/2816687/rahman_2024_oi_240142_1710523887.19892.pdf [4727]

Prescription drugs and accidents: FRIEND

Almost four fifths of 2183 pain and mental health patients reduced opioid use after switching to cannabis.

"93.36% of these reported a change in pain medication after medical cannabis. The majority of participants (79%) reported either cessation or reduction in pain medication use following initiation of medical cannabis and 11.47% described improved functioning."

and

"Most (90.59%) reported that medical cannabis was very or extremely helpful when dealing with their medical condition; less than 2% reported it as slightly or not helpful at all. Over 85% reported medical cannabis products were very or extremely important to their quality of life (88.67%)."
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10826084.2022.2107673 [1690]

The National Bureau of Economic Research found reductions in Workers' Compensation claims in RML states. They found declines in such filings both in terms of the propensity to receive benefits and benefit amount in states that have enacted the policy change.

Further, they identified complementary declines in non-traumatic workplace injury rates and the incidence of work-limiting disabilities in legal states.



"There are many pathways through which RMLs could reduce WC benefit receipt. We conjecture that improvements in the management of chronic pain and other health condition symptoms play a key role in the observed findings."
https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w28471/w28471.pdf [1995]

In a similar vein, after just 23 years, workplace fatalities were reduced by a third in states with medical marijuana laws. According to Anderson et al at the University of Montana:

"Participants: All 50 states and the District of Columbia for the period 1992-2015.

"Measurements: Workplace fatalities by state and year were obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Regression models were adjusted for state demographics, the unemployment rate, state fixed effects, and year fixed effects.

"Findings: Legalizing medical marijuana was associated with a 19.5% reduction in the expected number of workplace fatalities among workers aged 25-44 (incident rate ratio [IRR], .805; 95% CI, .662-.979). The association between legalizing medical marijuana and workplace fatalities among workers aged 16-24, although negative, was not statistically significant at conventional levels. The association between legalizing medical marijuana and workplace fatalities among workers aged 25-44 grew stronger over time. Five years after coming into effect, MMLs were associated with a 41.1% reduction in the expected number of workplace fatalities (IRR, .663; 95% CI, .482-.912). MMLs that listed pain as a qualifying condition or allowed collective cultivation were associated with larger reductions in fatalities among workers aged 25-44 than those that did not.

"Conclusions: The results provide evidence that legalizing medical marijuana improved workplace safety for workers aged 25-44. Further investigation is required to determine whether this result is attributable to reductions in the consumption of alcohol and other substances that impair cognitive function, memory, and motor skills."
https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/bitstream/1/15294/1/Anderson_MML_and_Workplace_Fatalities_06_13_18_v5.pdf [2019]

If workplace fatalities would be associated with a reduction of one third without the ZPPPD, the ZPPPD would be associated with a 50% increase in workplace fatalities.

That would be five or six deaths - there were 17 in Slovenia in 2020, according to Eurostat, and 16872 non-fatal accidents at work besides.

Europe-wide we see 3355 deaths at work in 2020. The U of Montana findings were that the improvement grew over time, a period when the stigma of cannabis use would have presumably diminished. The authors adjusted for recreational legalization, meaning that even better results could have been obtained had they not. The authors also find a greater reduction in states where pain was included as a qualifying condition. The Montana authors also manage to find a milquetoast way of dealing with an awful possibility, when they say "the effects of legalizing recreational marijuana and decriminalizing marijuana could be similar to the effects of legalizing medical marijuana". Well why would they be worse? Does the marijuana know whether it is medical or recreational? It does not. Worse yet, there is no reason to suppose legally smoked cannabis is any more effective in this regard that illegally smoked cannabis.

Therefore the ZPPPD is a dangerous piece of legislation, not only because it encourages people like Mr Teodorović and the Police to manipulate each other for their own imagined gain, but for the very simple straightforward reason of this association with workplace fatalities, among the many other damages attributable to its restraining effect on marijuana as a choice.

All the ZPPPD has going for it is, it is a law, and has a big sack of woo woo on its side from people whose interest in occupational injury is probably limited to their compensation claims.

Why can't they sue the government for increasing this risk? Sunk cost error, along with an emotional and economic attachment to the woo woo have killed 1379 EU workers in one year.

Measuring after five years of (at least) MMLs, they found a 41.1% reduction in fatalities. It is fairly simple to transpose the nationwide Montana findings [2019] to the Eurostat figures and multiplying 3355 by 0.441 suggests that had the combined anti-cannabis laws of the Member States been abandoned in 2015 the number of deaths in 2020 would have been 1379 lower, at 1976. Therefore I propose the ZPPPD is an extermination. Just another government extermination dressed up as a health measure.
https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Accidents_at_work_statistics#Number_of_accidents [2024]

In Ptuj sized units, in the smarter-five-years-ago scenario, Slovenia's seven avoidable 2020 workplace fatalities is 2.33 Dreveneks per year. Europe-wide it's 459.67 Dreveneks per year.

In past-year cannabis users, Toronto researchers Zhang et al found a 19% lower incidence of workplace injury during the same period.

"We performed a cross-sectional analysis of the Canadian Community Health Survey (201316) of working individuals. We used multiple logistic regression modelling to calculate the odds of experiencing a work-related injury (defined as non-repetitive strain injury) among workers who reported using cannabis more than once during the prior 12 months as compared to non-users. We repeated the analysis among participants working in high injury risk occupational groups only.

"Among the 136 536 working participants, 2577 (2%) had a work-related injury in the last 12 months. Of these 2577 who had a work-related injury, 4% also reported being a cannabis user in the same period. We found no association between past-year cannabis use and work-related injury (odds ratio for work injury among users 0.81, 95% confidence interval 0.660.99). The association was unchanged in the subgroup analysis limited to high injury risk occupational groups.

and concluded

"We found no evidence that cannabis users experienced higher rates of work-related injuries. While awaiting prospective studies, occupational medicine practitioners should take a risk-based approach to drafting workplace cannabis policies."

This was the largest study sample I could find on work-related injuries, but cannabis use may be underreported as the survey preceded legalisation in Canada. Previous work is mentioned, viz.:

"Our finding was consistent with, but expanded upon, a number of smaller studies published previously. In a study of 5466 job applicants with the US postal service, Normand et al. found that testing positive for illicit drugs (including cannabis) during pre-employment screening did not increase the risk of injury or accidents occurrence. Similarly, an analysis of over 12 000 young people in the USA showed that the life-time use of cannabis did not increase the incidence of occupational injuries. In contrast, a cross-sectional New Zealand study of 15 687 employed individuals in various sectors found that cannabis use in the last 12 months did slightly increase the risk of work injuries, but the authors did not adjust for other potential confounding variables in the model. Wadsworth et al. conducted a community based survey of 7979 individuals in the UK and found that cannabis use in the past year was not associated with increased odds of work incidents, but increased the odds of overall incidents (e.g. accidents, road traffic accidents, minor injuries, cognitive failures). This is similar to the result of another cross-sectional analysis of 27 934 survey subjects in Spain which showed that cannabis use in the last 12 months was not associated with injuries at work but seemed to increase the frequency of overall non-traffic injuries."

In contrast to cannabis,

"Factors associated with increased odds of injury included male sex (OR 1.55, 95% CI 1.411.71), non-white ethnicity (OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.171.53), history of back problems (OR 1.75, 95% CI 1.611.93), migraine headaches (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.101.41), mood disorder (OR 1.46, 95% CI 1.2711.67), smoking (OR 1.31, 95% CI 1.201.43) and workplace stress (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.611.93). Participants working in industry (OR 3.16, 95% CI 2.753.62), trades (OR 2.98, 95% CI 2.653.36) or sales and services (OR 1.99, 95% CI 1.772.23) occupational groups were significantly more likely to report work-related injuries."

Besides its size, the most remarkable thing about this paper is the downplaying of the result. Nowhere do terms like "inverse association" or "negative relationship" appear!

Having failed to produce a result assistive of the drug war, do the authors discuss the possibility that cannabis users are safer, perhaps more careful, less reckless people?

Far from it - the authors redefine this alarmingly positive outcome as merely "no evidence of higher rates". One out of five accidents are somehow absent in the cannabis cohort, yet this cannot be applauded, obviously.

Maybe they have fewer accidents because they are smoking weed in the factory yard instead of working. The researchers are not thinking or behaving very scientifically at all.
https://academic.oup.com/occmed/article/70/8/570/5941608 [2091]

According to Cannatech today:

"Historically, in every single jurisdiction on earth where legalization was pursued and achieved, without exception, there were cannabis opponents spreading anti-cannabis myths and half-truths to try to deter voters or lawmakers from supporting reform.

"One of the most popular areas of focus for cannabis opponents was, and presumably always will be, impaired driving. The talking point can come about in a variety of forms, however, the main premise of the talking point regardless of how it manifests itself is this that if cannabis laws are reformed there will be terror on the roadways in the form of increased vehicle crashes.

"Unfortunately for cannabis opponents, and fortunately for rational-thinking people worldwide, the data does not support opponents claims."
https://cannatechtoday.com/how-is-canadian-legalization-impacting-traffic-crashes/ [2612]

In a Canadian sample of 2745 workers:

"Overall, 11.3 per cent of workers in the sample experienced a workplace injury, but the risk of injury was different for those who used cannabis at work and those who did not. When compared to those who did not use cannabis in the past year, the risk of workplace injury for those who reported workplace use over the past year (specifically including use during a shift or up to two hours before) was two-fold higher (a risk ratio of 1.97). In contrast, for workers who used cannabis in the past year but not before or at work, the injury risk was not statistically different from that of workers who did not use cannabis in the past year.

"These results underscore the importance of distinguishing cannabis use at work and off work when examining the link with injury risk. Rather than considering any cannabis use as an occupational safety risk, this finding suggests that workplaces need to reframe their focus on use that is likely to lead to impairment at work."
https://iwh.on.ca/sites/iwh/files/iwh/reports/iwh_issue_briefing_cannabis_use_by_workers_2024.pdf [3894]

In Ohio:

"...voters approved marijuana legalization in November 2023, with use and possession becoming legal the following month. Adult-use cannabis sales, meanwhile, began last August."

Fatal accidents fell 30%, according to data from the Ohio State Highway Patrol.



"All told, there were 1,067 fatal traffic crashes in Ohio during 2024the lowest number in at least five years, and down 7 percent from the 1,150 fatal crashes in 2023.

Of those, about 20 percent (215 crashes) were linked to cannabis last yearalso the lowest number in years, and down from 27 percent (306 crashes) in 2023."
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/fatal-traffic-crashes-linked-to-marijuana-fell-by-30-in-ohio-last-year-as-legalization-took-effect-contrary-to-opponents-fears/ [3893]

In "Marijuana laws and pedestrian fatalities in the United States" (2022) Dewey and Vadlamani at Department of the Data Science & Business Analytics, Florida Polytechnic University, Lakeland found a highly statistically significant fall in daytime pedestrian deaths and a fall in night-time deaths.

They included cyclists and skateboarders, and "other personal conveyances" so scooters in this study of the whole USA for 35 years from 1985 through 2019.

"MMLs are followed by a statistically significant reduction in overall fatalities and in daytime fatalities involving alcohol. Nighttime fatalities involving alcohol decline as well, but the decline is not statistically significant. Following RMLs, there is a statistically significant decline in alcohol related daytime fatalities and a decline in nighttime alcohol related fatalities that is not statistically significant. There is no apparent change in daytime or nighttime nonalcohol related fatalities related to either MMLs or RMLs. Taken together, our results mirror findings regarding the effects of MMLs on total traffic fatalities, and the pattern of changes in alcohol related fatalities suggests the alcohol substitution hypothesis is at work. States bordering RML states see an apparent decline in nighttime alcohol related fatalities and increase in nighttime non-alcohol related fatalities, but these are insignificant statistically. Moreover, they start prior to the RMLs effective date, and thus appear not directly related to liberalization in neighboring states.

"One might at first expect the effects of RMLs to be larger than the continued effects associated with MMLs. However, the analysis of marijuana laws in Dewey et al. suggests most variation in marijuana laws is associated with a single underlying dimension of state permissiveness toward marijuana use, and that permissiveness is well captured by the presence of an MML. Therefore, in practice, the difference between a state with an old MML but no RML and with an old MML and a RML may be less than it at first seems."

And their data leads them to conclude:

"Liberalization, and RMLs in particular, may eventually be shown to lead to more pedestrian fatalities under some sets of circumstances. However, as of 2019, we find liberalization has been associated with lower pedestrian fatalities, not higher. Further, the pattern is consistent with the alcohol substitution hypothesis. Specifically, the induced decline in alcohol related fatalities following liberalization is large enough to more than compensate for any additional fatalities due to marijuana consumption. While there has been an increase in pedestrian fatalities concurrent with liberalization of marijuana use laws, and particularly RMLs, there is no evidence to suggest it is due to that liberalization. To the contrary, if anything liberalization appears to have reduced the size of the increase."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0386111223000067 [2263]

Up in Canada, M J Armstrong from the Department of Finance, Operations & Information Systems at Brock University was researching exactly that alcohol substitution hypothesis...

"Specifically, he discovered that for every dollar of legal marijuana sold, there was a tie to declines in alcohol sales between 74 to 84 Canadian cents. Prof. Armstrong says the findings are not causative though it does suggest that alcohol is being replaced by cannabis. Additionally, he found that sales of alcohol from 2017 to 2018 were around 1.8% less than they would have been, had Canada not regulated medical cannabis.

"'The negative association was robust to several alternative modeling choices,' he writes.

"'From an academic perspective, this study found evidence that cannabis on average was a substitute, not a complement, for alcohol in Canada. This suggests cannabis might also have a substitution effect in other countries that legalize it, though that remains to be seen,' says Professor Armstrong in the paper.

"'From a public health perspective, the results likewise imply that reductions in alcohol-related health impacts might partly offset the increased cannabis-related health impacts that legalization might bring,' he continues. 'Furthermore, medical cannabis presumably improves the health of at least some patients by treating symptoms that alcohol had merely masked,' Armstrong says."
https://cannabis.net/blog/news/the-cannabis-correlation-every-1-spent-on-cannabis-leads-to-a-drop-in-alcohol-sales-of-0.75-to [2613]
https://dr.library.brocku.ca/bitstream/handle/10464/17045/ArmstrongMJ_MedicalCannabisAlcohol_Appendix.pdf;jsessionid=6E7863AD5A0CCC4A65F8F23585AF8CE3?sequence=2 [2614]

Kam Insight's 2024 report "The Future of Socialising" tells us that 58% of UK psychotropic-curious consumers say their consumption of alcohol declined when taking Cannabis or Psychedelics.
https://kaminsight.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2044/2024/07/KAM-X-High-Dry-The-Future-of-Socialising-2024.pdf [3249]

In Toronto:

"Regardless of the outcome, neither the CCA nor the NCS [number of cannabis stores, per capita] is associated with concomitant changes in the outcomes. In hybrid DID [difference-in-difference] models, the CCA is associated with non-significant decreases of 9% (incidence rate ratio 0.91, 95% confidence interval 0.74,1.11) in traffic crashes and in the hybrid-fuzzy DID models, the NCS are associated with nonsignificant decreases of 3% (95% confidence interval - 9%, 4%) in the same outcome."
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/dar.13678 [2609]

It was a similar story in Ontario generally, and in Alberta:

"There was no evidence of significant changes associated with cannabis legalization on post-legalization weekly counts of drivers traffic-injury ED visits in: (1) Alberta, all drivers (n = 52,752 traffic-injury presentations), an increase of 9.17 visits (95 % CI -18.85; 37.20; p = 0.52); (2) Alberta, youth drivers (n = 3265 presentations), a decrease of 0.66 visits (95 % CI -2.26; 0.94; p = 0.42); (3) Ontario, all drivers (n = 186,921 presentations), an increase of 28.93 visits (95 % CI -26.32; 84.19; p = 0.30); and (4) Ontario, youth drivers (n = 4565), an increase of 0.09 visits (95 % CI -6.25; 6.42; p = 0.98)."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0376871621005032 [2610]

Another Canadian study examined

"ED visits in Ontario and Alberta and hospitalizations in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, the Prairies (Manitoba and Saskatchewan) and the Maritimes (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island)."

for

"motor vehicle injury or pedestrian/cyclist injury"

and Walker et al say

"There were no statistically significant changes in rates of ED visits and hospitalizations for motor vehicle or pedestrian/cyclist injury after RCL after accounting for multiple testing. After COVID-19, there was an immediate decrease in the rate of ED visits for motor vehicle injury that was statistically significant only in Ontario (level change β = −16.07 in Ontario, 95% CI = −20.55 to −11.60, P = 0.000; β = −10.34 in Alberta, 95% CI = −17.80 to −2.89, P = 0.008; α of 0.004) and no changes in rates of hospitalizations.

"Conclusions: Canadas recreational cannabis legalization did not notably impact motor vehicle and pedestrian/cyclist injury. The rate of emergency department visits for motor vehicle injury decreased immediately after COVID-19 lockdowns, resulting in rates below post-recreational cannabis legalization levels in the year after COVID-19."
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/add.16188 [2610]

In good news for the auto insurance industry...

"In California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada four states that fully legalized marijuana in 2016 traffic fatalities declined or remained the same in the three years that followed, compared to a slight increase in states where it remained illegal.

"A comprehensive study of traffic data in the U.S. and Canada failed to find a statistically significant change in accidents and fatalities after legalization.

"Alcohol, which remains fully legal in all 50 states and D.C., is a factor in nearly a third of all automotive fatalities."


https://qz.com/advisor/auto-insurance/has-marijuana-legalization-made-roads-less-safe/ [4271]

Had an accident? Conversion of a hospital visit into a hospital admission was more likely in alcohol positive RTA/MVA victims:

"10 322 injured drivers visited a participating trauma centre between 2018 and 2023. 1649 (16.0%), 1716 (16.6%) and 463 (4.5%) drivers had detectable levels of alcohol, THC or both, respectively. Compared with sober drivers (BAC=0), drivers with 0%<BAC<0.08% had increased odds of admission (aOR=1.69, 95% CI=1.31 to 2.19), as did drivers with BAC≥0.08% (aOR=1.36, 95% CI=1.16 to 1.60). THC did not modify the relationship between alcohol and admission. Neither alcohol nor THC predicted were associated with length of stay following admission."
https://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/early/2025/07/16/ip-2025-045642 [5250]

Police car chases are a great American, if not Slovenian, tradition and on Youtube a large proportion of fleeing vehicles seem to contain marijuana. Not infrequently this is the only reason for flight.

There are no official statistics on how many die in vehicular flight because they have CaPs on board, but in one year according to the San Francisco Chronicle:

"We found that at least 551 people, or more than 25% of those killed, were bystanders. In addition, the vast majority of these pursuits were initiated over traffic violations and nonviolent crimes such as shoplifting, not serious felonies."

...

"From 2017 through 2022, at least 3,336 people died in police chases."
https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2024/police-chases-database/ [5393]
https://www.sfchronicle.com/projects/2024/police-chases/ [5394]

The Defence hopes that it can be easily understood that no one needs to flee from the Police because of CaPs if they are legal, and therefore a reduction in this effect is included in the Benedictions on commonsense grounds, although this benefit, like many others, relies on legal status and is not an effect of the substances themselves.

Given the association between cannabis and lower impulsivity [3923] it would make sense for users to flee less, independent of legality. Interestingly the highest death rates were found in the non-RM states of Alabama and Georgia.

Policing styles and rules authorising vehicular pursuits vary by state, making comparisons with marijuana laws useless. However early legalisation adopters such as California, Colorado and Alaska were below the average deaths per 100k, according to a 2017 report. The Defence predicts less rather than more car chase fatalities from the destigmatization process as a logical effect, but cannot say how much less. As, rather like CaPs interdiction in general...

"The DOJ does not report the justifications for each pursuit."
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/states-deadliest-police-chases-144217749.html?guccounter=1 [5395]

Commenting on the fifth anniversary of legalisation in Canada

"Zac Walsh, professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, says he thinks during this time, the industry has lost some of the stigmas that were previously attached to it and has become more normalized in society."

and he thinks that

We have our own cannabis system, the endocannabinoid system, and plant cannabis binds with those same receptors. So our body is actually more geared to accept cannabis as opposed to sort of the blanket effects of alcohol.

"Cannabis has always been a controversial substance, but since legalization, Walsh says, most Canadians recognize that if they are a cannabis user, it has made a big difference in their life. And if theyre not, it probably hasnt.

"'People have been using cannabis for thousands of years and it seems like just a basic liberty issue that people should be able to grow a plant and use it as they see fit if its not hurting anyone else,' he added."
https://globalnews.ca/news/10030910/cannabis-in-canada-from-stigma-to-normalcy-the-5-year-journey-since-legalization/ [4007]

But some people don't want fewer workplace fatalities and illness. Raman and Bradford note that:

"In August [2016], the pharmaceutical company Insys Therapeutics also cited concerns for child safety when, with a $500,000 contribution, it became the largest donor to Arizonas anti-legalization drive. But their stated concerns have raised a few eyebrows across the state. Insys manufactures Subsys, a prescription painkiller derived from fentanyl, the synthetic opioid that is up to 100 times more powerful than morphine."

and

"Besides Insys, the Arizona Wine and Spirits Wholesale Association gave one of the largest donations to the states anti-legalization campaign when it paid $10,000 to Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy. And the Beer Distributors PAC recently donated $25,000 to the Campaign for a Safe and Healthy Massachusetts, making it the states third-largest backer of the opposition to recreational cannabis.

"Purdue Pharma and Abbott Laboratories, makers of the painkiller OxyContin and Vicodin, respectively, are among the largest contributors to the Anti-Drug Coalition of America, according to a report in the Nation. And the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, considered one of marijuanas biggest opponents, spent nearly $19m on lobbying in 2015."
https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/oct/22/recreational-marijuana-legalization-big-business?CMP=share_btn_tw [1677]

The pharmaceutical industry takes a serious economic hit after states legalize marijuanawith an average market loss of nearly $10 billion for drugmakers per each legalization eventaccording to a first-of-its-kind study.

The peer-reviewed research article, published in the journal PLOS ONE, looked at stock return and prescription drug sales data for 556 pharmaceutical companies over 25 years of state cannabis legalisation, analyzing market trends before and after the enactment of medical and adult-use cannabis legalization laws at the state level.

The stock returns were 1.5-2 percent lower at 10 days after legalization, the study authors found. Returns decreased in response to both medical and recreational legalization, for both generic and brand drugmakers. Investors anticipate a single legalization event to reduce drugmaker annual sales by $3 billion on average.

The California Polytechnic State University and University of New Mexico researchers said:

By expanding access and, thus use, legalization could permit cannabis to compete with conventional pharmaceuticals. Largely unpatentable, cannabis may act like a new generic entrant following medical legalization, leading some individuals to substitute away from other drugs toward cannabis. However, unlike a conventional new generic drug, cannabis use is not restricted to a single or limited set of conditions. This means that cannabis acts as a new entrant across many different drug markets simultaneously.

We find the average change in a firms market value per legalization event is $63 million with a total impact on market value across firms per event of $9.8 billion, the study says.

The study also factored in shifts in pharmaceutical drug sales post-legalization.

Using the historical price-to-sales ratio of drugmakers for the year associated with each legalization event, this implies a change in annual sales across all drugmakers of $3 billion per event, it says.

Taking these findings a step further, the researchers also estimated that predicted annual prescription drug spending would have been $1 billion lower in 2014 if all 30 states without legal medical cannabis in 2014 had legalized medical cannabis.

In addition to capturing a larger number of drugs, a larger number of conditions, and all payers, our estimate may be larger also because, unlike [researchers on a previous study], who take drug prices as given, our estimate captures the competitive pressure on prices that cannabis puts on both brand and generic drugmakers for both prescription and over-the-counter drugs, it says.

The authors note there are some caveats:

The economic significance of an estimated $9.8 billion loss in market value across firms per cannabis legalization event is extremely large, however our results should be interpreted cautiously. A key limitation is that we model investors as rational, which may overstate the economic significance of our results. Second, we are limited to publicly traded firms and past legalization events. Third, we note that estimates may be sensitive to our choice of using 150 to 50 days before the legalization event. Finally, we expect there to be measurement error due to heterogeneity in the legalization and subsequent regulatory processes.

For private and public drugmakers, we expect the response to legalization to include investment and marketing, the study concludes, citing the fact that Pfizer spent billions to acquire a biotech company that focuses on cannabinoid-type therapies."
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0272492 [1518]

For comparison, according to thebusinessresearchcompany.com...

"The antidepressants market size has grown steadily in recent years. It will grow from $16.6 billion in 2023 to $17.32 billion in 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.3%."
https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/report/antidepressant-global-market-report [3503]

ceskenoviny.cz reported 9 July 2024 that Czech National Drug Coordinator Jindřich Vobořil had resigned, citing pressure from "some major industries":

"Because of his approach, he got into a dispute with politicians, for example in promoting a regulated cannabis market or taxing silent wine, but also after his commentary on finding cocaine in the House."
https://www.ceskenoviny.cz/zpravy/protidrogovy-koordinator-voboril-se-rozhodl-odstoupit/2541571 [3234]

Towards the end of 2024 Mravčk et al considered "New legislative framework for control of psychoactive substances in Czechia" in the International Journal of Drug Policy, pointing out the failure of the international treaties and the creation of the worst possible outcome in the cases of both licit and illicit drugs.

"Acknowledging the potential benefits of such psychoactive substances and balancing them with potential harms, it suggests stringent rules for marketing, safety, and preventing sales to minors. This approach aims to quell illicit markets, safeguard vulnerable populations, and encourage controlled use."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0955395924002871 [3585]

It is difficult to see why allopathic medicine is trusted at all any more. A partial history of settlements against pharmaceutical companies:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_pharmaceutical_settlements [3391]

The egregious behaviour of Johnson & Johnson is recounted in in Gardiner Harriss "No More Tears: The Dark Secrets of Johnson & Johnson" reviewed here:
https://newrepublic.com/article/194726/johnson-and-johnson-investigation-crimes-health-care-system [5026]

Off-label promotion settlements:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_off-label_promotion_pharmaceutical_settlements [3392]

Actions by the European Commission and national competition authorities in Europe:

"Between 2018 and 2022, the EC and the NCAs adopted an average of five pharma-related antitrust decisions per year compared to only three decisions per year between 2009 and 2017.

"The total amount of fines imposed was around 1.1 billion across a nine-year period from 2009 to 2017, and about 773 million across the five-year period from 2018 to 2022, and the average fine per infringement decision remained around the same level (about 46 million).

"The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) (five decisions) led the enforcement efforts prior to the end of the transition period, followed by the Romanian Competition Council (RCC) (four decisions) and the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) and Italian Competition Authority (ICA) (three decisions each). Within the same period, the EC adopted two decisions (Aspen and Teva-Cephalon).

"The EC and the NCAs have pursued several novel theories of harm in recent years (eg, excessive pricing and vexatious litigation) and have not shied away from broadening the scope of existing theories (eg, disparagement)."


https://globalcompetitionreview.com/review/the-european-middle-east-and-african-antitrust-review/2025/article/european-union-pharmaceutical-sector-investigations-signal-increased-focus-broadened-theories-of-harm [3393]

Vix medicatrix naturae: ENEMY

Self-rebalancing in illness is not helpful to sales of medical props. Discoveries about the microbiome, the endocannabinoid system and homeostatic lipid messengers

"Relation to homeostasis
Walter Cannon's notion of homeostasis also has its origins in vis medicatrix naturae. 'All that I have done thus far in reviewing the various protective and stabilizing devices of the body is to present a modern interpretation of the natural vis medicatrix.' In this, Cannon stands in contrast to Claude Bernard (the father of modern physiology), and his earlier idea of milieu interieur that he proposed to replace vitalistic ideas about the body. However, both the notions of homeostasis and milieu interieur are ones concerned with how the body's physiology regulates itself through multiple mechanical equilibrium adjustment feedbacks rather than nonmechanistic life forces.

"Relation to evolutionary medicine
More recently, evolutionary medicine has identified many medical symptoms such as fever, inflammation, sickness behavior, and morning sickness as evolved adaptations that function as darwinian medicatrix naturae due to their selection as means to protect, heal, or restore the injured, infected or physiologically disrupted body.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vis_medicatrix_naturae [2738]

Medicofinancial bloat: FRIEND

For example:

"Objectives: Patients with treatment-resistant depression (TRD) experience high relapse rates and a relentless cycle of ineffective treatments, significantly impairing their quality of life and burdening healthcare resources. Psilocybin has emerged as a promising alternative, offering rapid and sustained symptom relief. However, its cost-effectiveness remains unexplored. This study conducted a pioneering cost-effectiveness analysis of psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) versus standard care (SoC) for individuals with TRD using a Markov model from a U.S. healthcare perspective. Methods: The model, parameterized by randomized trial efficacy data and a micro-costing approach, simulated patient transitions every six-week cycle, consistent with American Psychiatric Association guidelines. Outcomes focused on response/remission rates and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs), expressed in 2023 U.S. dollars per quality-adjusted life years (QALYs). Extensive deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses (PSA) explored uncertainties. Dosing and price point variations were also examined in scenario analysis to identify optimal strategies. Results: Psilocybin consistently dominated SoC, providing cost savings (ΔCosts = -$7,037) and superior clinical benefits (ΔQALY = 0.10). PAT increased remission by 3.20% and response by 7.75%, gaining between 0.15 and 0.25 QALYs. The PSA demonstrated an 81.98% likelihood of PAT being optimal at a $50,000/QALY threshold, with 65.89% of iterations showing greater effectiveness at lower costs. Notably, the Incremental Net Monetary Benefit (INMB) analysis indicated a value of $12,765 at this threshold, reinforcing PAT's cost-effectiveness. No scenario identified SoC as more cost-effective. PAT retained its superiority across all willingness-to-pay (WTP) values (from $50,000 to $200,000) and remained the optimal strategy across all price levels evaluated (from $500 to $10,000). Scenario analysis revealed that administering two doses three weeks apart was the most cost-effective regimen. Conclusions: Psilocybin offers a groundbreaking, cost-effective alternative to SoC for TRD. These findings support its integration into treatment protocols, warrant further research into its long-term benefits, and position PAT as a promising strategy for future clinical guidelines"
https://scholar.stjohns.edu/theses_dissertations/896/ [6014]

Stigma: FRIEND

Who can we stigmatise first? Women!

"This study found that motivations for cannabis consumption by people with endometriosis internationally are comparable to those previously reported in Australia and New Zealand (Armour et al. 2019b , Sinclair et al. 2021b , 2023a ). In addition, significant associations were observed for the non-legal therapeutic cohort relating to the negative impact of cannabis-associated stigma, breaking the law, and potentially losing employment or driving licences due to prevailing laws or workplace drug policies, which mirror concerns from previous research in Australia and New Zealand (Sinclair et al. 2023a )." [5082]

"The most common description of stigma comes from sociologist Erving Goffman, who defined it as, 'an attribute that is deeply discrediting that causes one's identity to be 'spoiled' compared to the dominant group.' He divided stigma into three types: those linked to 'abomination of the body' (e.g., physical disability); those that incite 'tribal' responses (e.g., race, religion); and those derived from 'character traits' (e.g., drug use, mental illness, HIV status). Published in 1963, Goffman's theory is dated but remains influential. For instance, the Government of Canada defines stigma as 'negative attitudes, beliefs or behaviours about or towards a group of people because of their situation in life.' This is a limited depiction of how and why stigma emerges, who benefits from enacting it, and the different ways it is sustained.

"Specifically, stigma is not stable. Whether a certain characteristic is stigmatized is constantly negotiated and re-negotiated, and this changes over time. Consider that homosexuality was once criminalized, and it later appeared as a mental disorder in psychiatric texts. Although queerness is still 'non-normal' in some contexts, general responses to it have shifted dramatically alongside legislation, policy, and evolving trends in medicine. Drug use is no different. Before anti-drug laws were implemented, and long before 'substance use disorders' existed as official diagnoses, drug use was deemed neutral. It became stigmatized as the 'war on drugs' escalated and, with it, so too did racial, ethnical, religious, and class-based inequalities. Important to remember is that in both the cases of sexuality and drug use, alterations in public perception have been due to grassroots activism and civil disobedience.

"Next, stigma is not just interpersonal. It is more trenchant than individual attitudes and behaviours, and stigma becomes institutionalized and systemic when official policies (in housing, employment, education, the child welfare system, and so on) prohibit entrance based on identification with a particular class. For example, compulsory attendance at 12-step meetings as a condition of not being re-incarcerated reflects this latter type of stigma. So too do requirements placed on healthcare professionals who have been to addiction treatment who must complete regular drug tests to remain employed.

"Finally, stigma becomes internalized. Research on this phenomena repeatedly concludes that viewing oneself as 'bad,' 'Mad,' and/or 'diseased,' which is an outcome of institutionalized and systemic stigma, leads to negative outcomes. People who are stigmatized begin to anticipate rejection, they may alter behaviour based on these expectations, and their material conditions deteriorate. This is especially true of people who are stigmatized on multiple axes, which highlights that drug use alone is not a sufficient condition for being stigmatized. Those who use drugs but are otherwise stably housed, employed, and part of dominant racial and cultural groups can consume with near-impunity. Anti-stigma campaigns, then, which address drug use and drug use alone, may not be effective because this is just one facet of one's identity."
https://www.drugpolicy.ca/critical-terminology-guide/ [1007]

Stigma comes from the top:

"Cannabis is commonly characterized as the most normalized illicit drug. However, it remains a prohibited substance in most parts of the world, including Europe, and users can still be subject to stigmatization. The objective of this study is to assess to what extent and how cannabis users in different countries with different cannabis policies perceive, experience and respond to stigmatization. We conducted a survey in the Dutch coffeeshops among 1225 last year cannabis users from seven European countries, with national cannabis policies ranging from relatively liberal to punitive. Three dimensions of cannabis-related stigma were investigated (discrimination, perceived devaluation and alienation) and a sum score was used to reflect the general level of stigmatization. Perceived devaluation was the highest-scoring dimension of stigma and discrimination the lowest-scoring. The general level of stigmatization was lowest in the Netherlands and highest in Greece. This indicates that punitive cannabis policy is associated with stigma and liberal cannabis policy is associated with de-stigmatization. Besides country, daily cannabis use was also found to be a significant predictor of stigma, but gender, age, household type and employment status were not."
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/347939939_Cannabis_users_and_stigma_A_comparison_of_users_from_European_countries_with_different_cannabis_policies/link/601a735845851589397ab034/download [2026]

In "'I'm Treated Way Differently': The Intersectional Risk Environment of Maternal Cannabis Use" Gould et al (2025) describe how superstition makes its way through the institutions, even in California:

"Participants who used cannabis during pregnancy described: 1) how their race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status impacted their care experiences together with their cannabis use, 2) their experience of poor perinatal care due to their insurance coverage and location of care, 3) worsening of care after disclosing cannabis use (e.g., being judged, ignored), and 4) removal from perinatal care after disclosing cannabis use."
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10826084.2025.2568153?src=exp-la [5464]

As soon as we recognize a stigma - which might be masquerading as a health concern, a public safety concern, a concern about "appropriateness", or a concern about immigrants...however it is dressed up - we should look to the laws against that stigma, however it is portrayed. It is up to the stigmatisers to prove their empirical bases.

"A woman from the Bronx has been awarded a $75,000 settlement after city officials wrongfully attempted to take her baby away due to her cannabis use during pregnancy. The case highlights the ongoing debate and stigma surrounding cannabis use, especially among expectant mothers. "
https://cannadelics.com/2023/09/14/cannabis-use-during-pregnancy-bronx-woman-wins-75k-settlement/ [2990]

This represents the first grinding of the rocks, where an individual is obliged to confront the system in the courts. Subsequently, when it is obvious both that the discrimination is egregious, and that such cases cannot and should not be repeated ad nauseam, a practical solution is miraculously found. Thus cannabisculture.com reported in December 2023 that:

"California employees will soon officially have protections from discrimination based on their use of cannabis or marijuana while off the clock and away from the workplace.

"The new protections come from an amendment to Californias Fair Employment and Housing Act (AB 2188) which was approved by Governor Gavin Newsom on Sept. 18, 2022, and goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. The bill makes it unlawful for an employer to not hire, penalize, or terminate a person based on their use of cannabis products outside of work.

"Although California was the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996 and became one of the first to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in 2016, AB 2188 is the first law in the Golden State to specifically provide workplace protections for employees who use it for either reason."
https://www.cannabisculture.com/content/2023/12/16/new-cannabis-laws-in-california-to-protect-employees-take-effect-in-2024/ [4286]

A hitherto invisible aspect of recreational or nootropic drug research is the situation of the researchers themselves. This was recently confronted in "'Hes used drugs - hes biased! Hes not a drug user - what would he know!': A Cross-sectional, Online Study of Drug Researchers Experiential Knowledge of Drug Use and Disclosure" (2024), wherein Ompad et al found:

"86 % of drug researchers reported drug use.

"59 % of drug researchers disclosed use at their institutions or organizations and 11% in their research/scholarship.

"Drug use experiences can positively inform research- but stigma is a barrier.

"Researchers believe drug use could strengthen research questions.

"If disclosing use, there are concerns that research would not be seen as objective."

...although no one seems to raise such concerns about research by non-users.

"Of the sample (n=669, 43 countries), 52 % were cisgender women, 89 % had post-graduate education, and 79 % worked in academia. Most (86 %) reported lifetime drug use and 47 % past 3-month use. Among 557 researchers who used drugs, 59 % disclosed their use to institutional colleagues, 59 % to colleagues outside their institution, 25 % to research participants, and 11 % in their research/scholarship. Themes included frequency; context; meaning of drug use disclosure personally, professionally, and socially; and how drug use experience and disclosure informs research. Respondents connected their concerns about disclosure in research with issues of social identity, professional risk, and the role of stigma related to lived experience. Some respondents felt that such concerns reinforce a vacuum, noting that the inability to disclose drug use limits research questions and the knowledge base overall."
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772724624000404

Scientific neutrality: ENEMY

In Ireland:

"Civil society expressed concern that dissent is not well-tolerated within the current system directing drugs policy.

"One representative said that a decision maker in a Government organisation told the board of their civil society group that they 'have no right to criticise government policy' as they were in receipt of State funds.

"Another individual agreed that this happens, and that there is 'an underlying understanding that if you are too critical, you could lose your funding sometimes it is explicit, sometimes it is implicit'."
https://crainn.com/2024/06/25/government-used-pre-selected-figures-to-influence-drug-policy/ [3171]

Establishment Religion: FRIEND.

"Gisela Kreglinger, in her book The Spirituality of Wine", notes that the rise of drugs has accompanied the decline of religious belief and practices." [265]



Democracy is prohibition's ENEMY. Cannabis and psychedelics have never been prohibited by public plebiscite. No society en masse has ever called for them to be outlawed. Any agitation has been of a conservative, top-down nature.

One state Governor determined to prevent the Benedictions is Kristi Noem of South Dakota. In 2019, Noem even vetoed a bill to legalize industrial hemp because she viewed it as a possible first step toward recreational legalization.

In 2022, the state Senate passed two different legalization bills, as well as measure to expunge prior cannabis convictions and create a tax structure for legal sales. Noem won't rule our vetoing these because she is personally anti-marijuana. Her hatred of fun is apparently pathological.

"Voters [had] already approved adult-use legalization at the ballot in 2020, but it was invalidated by the state Supreme Court following a single-subject legal challenge funded by the Noem administration."
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/south-dakota-governor-wont-rule-out-vetoing-marijuana-legalization-bill-that-passed-the-senate/ [1011]

Prohibitionists might see political profit in cannabis referendums. Interestingly no other food consumption behaviours or medical interventions are chosen democratically on a population basis.

Crime: FRIEND

Prohibition creates crime.

Crime is created which would be impossible without prohibition.

Overdoses and overdose deaths: FRIEND

Ray et al (2023) examined the effects of drug interdiction on local overdoses in Marion County, Indiana, which includes Indianapolis and a population of one million, and found

"Within 7, 14, and 21 days, opioid-related law enforcement drug seizures were significantly associated with increased spatiotemporal clustering of overdoses within radii of 100, 250, and 500 meters. For example, the observed number of fatal overdoses was two-fold higher than expected under the null distribution within 7 days and 500 meters following opioid-related seizures. To a lesser extent, stimulant-related drug seizures were associated with increased spatiotemporal clustering overdose.

"Conclusions. Supply-side enforcement interventions and drug policies should be further explored to determine whether they exacerbate an ongoing overdose epidemic and negatively affect the nations life expectancy.

Figure 4 shows the fold change observed vs. expected

https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/full/10.2105/AJPH.2023.307291?role=tab [2690]

Recreational marijuana had been legal in Oregon for six years when...

"Ballot Measure 110 was approved by Oregon voters in the November 2020 election. BM 110 reduced the penalties for most Possession of a Controlled Substance (PCS) offenses from a felony or misdemeanor to a new Class E violation, punishable with a $100 maximum fine."
https://www.oregon.gov/das/oea/pages/ballot-measure-110-savings.aspx#:~:text=Ballot%20Measure%20110%20was%20approved,effect%20on%20February%201%2C%202021. [3048]

Recreational marijuana had been legal for eight years in Washington state when...

"Because the Washington State Supreme Court declared the statute unconstitutional, Washington courts will apply State v. Blake to anyone convicted under the RCW 69.50.4013 statute. This means convictions may be vacated, dismissed, etc., by an order from the court."
https://kingcounty.gov/en/legacy/initiatives/felony-drug-possession-blake-decision#:~:text=In%20February%202021%2C%20the%20Washington,of%20the%20Courts%20(AOC). [3049]

In "One-Year Association of Drug Possession Law Change With Fatal Drug Overdose in Oregon and Washington" Joshi et al (2023) asked:

"Question Were laws that fully or partially decriminalize drug possession in Oregon and Washington associated with fatal drug overdose rates 1 year post implementation?

"Findings In this cohort study using synthetic control analysis, laws decriminalizing drug possession in Oregon and Washington were not associated with changes in fatal drug overdose rates in either state. The average rate difference in Oregon post change was 0.268 fatal drug overdoses per 100 000 state population, while the average rate difference in Washington post change was 0.112 fatal drug overdoses per 100 000 state population.

"Meaning The findings of this study suggest that legal changes to remove or decrease criminal penalties for drug possession are not associated with the fatal drug overdose rate 1-year post implementation.

"Importance Two states modified laws to remove or substantially reduce criminal penalties for any drug possession. The hypothesis was that removing criminal penalties for drug possession may reduce fatal drug overdoses due to reduced incarceration and increased calls for help at the scene of an overdose.

"Objective To evaluate whether decriminalization of drug possession in Oregon and Washington was associated with changes in either direction in fatal drug overdose rates.

"Design, Setting, and Participants This cohort study used a synthetic control method approach to examine whether there were changes in drug possession laws and fatal drug overdose rates in Oregon and Washington in the postpolicy period (February 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, in Oregon and March 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, in Washington). A counterfactual comparison group (synthetic controls) was created for Oregon and Washington, using 48 states and the District of Columbia, that did not implement similar policies during the study period (January 1, 2018, to March 31, 2022). For 2018-2021, final multiple cause-of-death data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) were used. For 2022, provisional NVSS data were used. Drug overdose deaths were identified using International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th Revision underlying cause-of-death codes X40-X44, X60-X64, X85, and Y10-Y14.

"Exposures In Oregon, Measure 110 went into effect on February 1, 2021. In Washington, the Washington Supreme Court decision in State v Blake occurred on February 25, 2021.

"Main Outcome Monthly fatal drug overdose rates."
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/article-abstract/2809867?utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=content-shareicons&utm_content=article_engagement&utm_medium=social&utm_term=092723 [3047]

Lawyers: FRIENDS

Lawyers and legal staff benefit from prohibition as NECUD ensures more accidents. Lawyers also profit by perpetuating the prosecution of FOBs and ROBs. All of the crime and domestic violence which would have been prevented by substitution of alcohol by cannabis and psychedelics is a gain for the legal profession. Litigation for pharmaceutical drug harms is reduced by provision of alternatives.

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The Englishman stands for the rights of everyone disadvantaged, discriminated against, persecuted, and prosecuted on the false or absent bases of prohibition, and also believes the victims of these officially-sanctioned prejudices have been appallingly treated and should be pardoned and compensated.

The Englishman requests the return of his CaPs and other rightful property, for whose distraint Slovenia has proffered no credible excuse or cause.

The Benedictions represent both empirical entities as well as beliefs. Beliefs which the Defence evidence shows may be reasonably and earnestly held about the positive benefits of CaPs at the population level, in which the good overwhelmingly outweighs the bad. Below, the latest version of this dynamic list.




THE BENEDICTIONS                            REFERENCES                        TIMELINE OF DRUG LAW v. SCIENCE