What are some good points for and against legalising cannabis in australia?
To begin with, in a free society there is a strong philosophical argument that a substance should be legally available, at least to adults, in the absence of a convincing argument to the contrary. The fact that something is potentially dangerous is not usually seen as a reason to criminalise it. There is no law in Australia against eating unhealthy food, drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, gambling, abusing over-the-counter sleeping medication, et cetera. Going back to John Stuart Mill, we have the idea that the law should only regulate conduct which harms others. The individual should be sovereign over his or her own body. Looking at some more practical points, research shows that the prohibition of cannabis has no significant deterrent effect. In fact in the Netherlands, where cannabis use is ‘tolerated’, fewer citizens use it than in many countries which enforce prohibition. Research has found that people who do not use cannabis are far more likely to cite a lack of interest as their
