Leaders | Regulating cannabis
The argument for the legalisation of cannabis has been won. Now for the difficult bit
IT IS like a hash-induced hallucination: row upon row of lush, budding plants, tended by white-coated technicians who are bothered by the authorities only when it is time to pay their taxes. Cannabis once grew in secret, traded by murderous cartels and smoked by consumers who risked jail. Now, countries all over the world have licensed the drug for medical purposes, and a few are going still further (see article). Four American states have so far legalised its recreational use; little Uruguay will soon be joined by big, G7-member Canada in the legal-weed club. Parliaments from Mexico to South Africa are debating reforms of their own.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “The right way to do drugs”
From the February 13th 2016 edition
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