"Why are drugs illegal?"

David Nutt on top form in The Guardian:

... the short answer to the question “why are (some) drugs illegal?” is simple. It’s because the editors of powerful newspapers want it that way. They see getting drugs banned as a tangible measure of success, a badge of honour.

He then ruins an otherwise excellent article by finishing off with this:

And behind them, the alcohol industry continues secretly to express its opposition to anything that might challenge its monopoly of recreational drug sales. But that’s another story.

Quote(s) Of The Day

Well, yesterday, actually:

Alan Johnson, in his letter dismissing a scientific advisor for complaining that the government was completely ignoring his findings:

"I cannot have confusion between scientific advice and policy"

In case you thought that the main opposition party would be any better, their spokesman had this to say:

"This was an inevitable decision after his latest ill-judged contribution to the debate but it is a sign of lack of focus at the Home Office that it didn't act sooner given that he has done this before."

"Will no-one rid me of this turbulent Drugs Tsar?"

From the BBC:

The UK's chief drugs adviser has been sacked by home secretary Alan Johnson after criticising government policies.

Professor David Nutt had been critical of the decision to reclassify cannabis to Class B from Class C. He accused ministers of devaluing and distorting evidence and said the drugs classification system was being used in a "political way". The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, which he headed, is the UK's official drugs advisory body.

A couple of these quangista actually take their remit seriously, do some proper research and go round telling the truth. Look where it gets them.

Bansturbators of the week

From the BBC:

Council advises ecstasy downgrade

The body that advises the government on illegal drugs is to recommend ecstasy be downgraded to a Class B drug...

The Home Office has made it clear it will reject the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs' recommendation. Last month, the Home Office restored cannabis from Class C to Class B, against the wishes of the advisory council...

The Police Superintendents' Association of England and Wales has expressed opposition to suggestions that ecstasy should be downgraded to a Class B drug...

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling* said it called into question the government's choice of advisers...

* I hereby withdraw the half-a-cheer I awarded him earlier in the week.

Tabloid Editors: 1 - Commonsense: 0

According to the ticker that run along the bottom of BBC's News 24 Channel, Professor David Nutt has been forced to resign/has resigned. Maybe I misread it, just thought you might like to know.

Presumably in protest at the fact that they're now going to ban horse-riding, seeing as of how it's so dangerous, innit?

UPDATE It would appear that I totally misread it, oops, nothing to see here.

@ EV, of course you can compare the relative mortality statistics of 'active' and 'passive' activities, why on earth not?

I didn't know that horse-riding was that dangerous...

From The Telegraph:

In the article, titled "Equasy: An overlooked addiction with implications for the current debate on drug harms", Prof Nutt wrote that "equasy", short for "Equine Addiction Syndrome", had caused 10 deaths and more than 100 road traffic accidents a year. Through hunting, it also led to "gatherings of users that often are associated with these groups engaging in violent conduct... Dependence, as defined by the need to continue to use, has been accepted by the courts in divorce settlements ... Based on these harms, it seems likely that the ACMD would recommend control under the MDAct perhaps as a class A drug given it appears more harmful than ecstasy."

... David Raynes, an executive councillor at the National Drug Prevention Alliance said: "Professor Nutt has made numerous unwise comments prejudging the ACMD review of Ecstasy. Is he on a personal crusade against the laws enacted by Parliament?

Professor David Nutt - you rock!

Rather disappointingly, the National Drug Prevention Alliance/Positive Prevention Plus appears to be a proper charity run by nut cases ... but half their income (Note 2, page 4) was from Drug Free America, who in turn are a USA-based fakecharity, who got $1m dollars - the bulk of their funding - from "Public Support and Revenue", see page 13.

Bingo. What complete and utter shits. If the US government has something to say, then it should say it, trying to influence UK drugs policy like this is totally underhand.