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Suetaz

Pot luck for India too?

TIMES NEWS NETWORK | JUNE 15, 2004

When David Beckham and his mates played against France on Sunday, many were braced for a less-than-flattering image of British culture. More than 50,000 fans have followed Team England to Euro 2004 in Portugal, preceded by a reputation of 'hooliganism'.

Portuguese police have prepared for the worst, and allowed allowed fans to smoke dope in the hope it will calm them down, maybe even put them to sleep. Wander down the Rua Augusta, a thoroughfare of cafes, boutiques and banks in Lisbon, and it's impossible to avoid an offer. A young man, usually with a moustache, flashes a sachet, and accompanies it with a nod and a wink.

But far more representative of British ways is a less menacing blend of rowdiness and alcohol, which Britons place under the general category of 'yobs' —a word derived from the backward spelling of boy. In British parlance, hooligans are also yobs, but not all yobs are hooligans. Not surprisingly, cops in Lisbon plan to crack down on drunk fans while turning a blind eye to those spotted puffing on a spliff. Pot-smoking fans have been assured they will not be arrested, cautioned or even have their drugs confiscated. Says Alan Buffry of the Legalise Cannabis Alliance: "If people are drinking, they lose control; if they smoke cannabis, they don't."

Dutch police used a similar policy in Euro 2000, and England's 'hooligan' elements were too stoned to fight. The old-fashioned, of course, would go to coffee shops in Amsterdam expecting tea and scones —oops, there's cannabis to be had there. Fact is, when the Euro 2000 finals were held in Holland, Ecstasy was available with the Euro 2004 logo on it.

Says a Lisbon police spokesperson: "If people cause a problem through drugs, then police will take action. But when this doesn't happen, why should the police be the ones making the fuss?"

Is a similar situation possible in India? Should the controlled intake of cannabis be allowed at, say, sporting events and rock concerts so that fans can chill out? Delhi Times finds out...

YES . Amit Kilam, Indian Ocean: The more you suppress something, the more its surreptitious use. Cannabis is freely available in India and seen at concerts. Don't our sadhus smoke cannabis?

NO . Narayan, Aryans: I don't see it happening in India. It is injurious to society and can never be accepted.

NO . Mehar Singh, ACP, narcotics: Though we seize narcotics, its surreptitious use prevails. Still, I don't see the availability of cannabis being legalised.

YES . Suhel Seth, adman: There has to be liberty. In Amsterdam, cannabis is on the menu card at coffee shops. So what's wrong with controlled consumption?

NO . Tikka Shatrujit Singh, fashion advisor, LVMH: I'm against substance abuse in any form at any event. There are so many youngsters getting into drugs that the last thing one needs is sanction.

NO . Venkat Vardhan, DNA: We've organised shows at which beer was served. But beer is one thing, dope another.

NO . Packiam Julius, Joshilay: Get your high from the event — why do you need to be stoned? An artiste doping is justifiable. But why the spectator?

YES . Rahul Nanda, CEO, Tops Security: If football fans in Portugal can dope, why can't Indians? We're quite educated and know the ifs and buts involved.

NO . Anjali Kalia, fashion designer: The same part of the brain that gets positive vibrations because of meditation gets negative effects when one is on substance abuse. I'm against it.

YES . Shonali Nagrani, model: It's OK to have controlled intake of cannabis at stadia, concerts. People do it in any case.

NO . Sanjay Sharma, head, Swarovski India: Why does one need either cannabis or alcohol to get a high? An event itself is a high in itself. Plus, doping can create problems of violence at events.

YES . Navin Ansal, businessman: If it's done once in a while to chill out, it's OK. But the individual concerned must know where to draw the line.

NO . Timsy Anand, entrepreneur: As it is, we have more problems handling abuse than use. India can't afford to take a chance by sanctioning cannabis consumption, even if it's a one-off situation.

NO . Shibani Kashyap, singer: I can smell cannabis in the air during performances. If consumption is legalised, the situation will escalate out of control.

YES . Anil Thakraney, ad man: What's a concert without a bit of funny smoke? It's all right if one is in control. Like the Beatles go... 'As long as I am sitting in the sky with Lucy with the diamonds.'

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Greenbud

So, Venkat, are you justifying the drunken rioting of "hooligans" yet condemning the peacefulness of stoned concert goers and sports fans? Please elaborate.

I know I meditate better when I'm stoned. Try it sometime.

Dude, did you not just hear about the lack of violence at Lisbon when marijuana use was allowed? How about Euro 2000?

Out of control???? How????

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Suetaz

This is the truth of it that some people just don't seem to see. The "NO" comments prove to me that those that said no don't know anything about cannabis. "It is injurious to society" has already been proven wrong by the England-Portugal game. I think the lack of knowledge and experience with cannabis shows in the no comments. Perhaps if it is legalized in India more people will learn the truth and realize they are better off with it legalized.

SevenLeafs

Exactly! Beer is one thing and dope, or pot, or marijuana, is another...

Lets see, marijuana hasn't been linked directly with causing the death of anyone in the WORLD!. It has not been linked, again directly, to any diseases, although some consider consuming it a disease itself, how absurd! Alcohol, which is what beer has, or we could say that it is its main "ingredient", does cause many diseases, problems with liver, loss of coordination and damage to the brain.

So, I absolutely agree with this person, Venkat Vardhan, beer is one thing, dope another...


I find myself very confused after reading this... How is it justifiable for an "artiste" and not for the spectator? If you are saying that the artist that uses dope to elaborate or create such amazing things, be them songs, drawings, sculptures, etc., is more justified than the spectator who uses it to appreciate his or her art better, or in a different and unique manner, then clearly this person hasn't given the issue enough thought.

This statement is ridiculous, in my most honest opinion.


Uhm.... what?!?

Stand back people!, Kalia, the fashion designer turned neuro expert is saying something that.... well, frankly confuses me.

Off course substance abuse will derive in "negative effects", but this person is talking about abuse and in general of any substance.


"People do it in any case" is not argument enough. I could say for example that "it's OK to have controlled intake of cannabis" at any place because the simple act of using it in a "controlled" manner shows some responsability on the part of the user.

We shouldn't do things, or allow them, because "people do it in any case".


Ok, I respect what this person's comment, we don't need either cannabis or alcohol to get a high, we should enjoy the event, be it any event, for what it is. As Sharma says, "an event itself is a high" because the mere act of participating in the event makes your inner self experience something knew and/or exciting.

But some people may enjoy the situation better, or differently, from antoher point of view, as in under the influence of dope (or alcohol for that matter). What I believe is that alcohol impairs your perception, when pot only changes it, so my opinion, or criticizm, would be that when this person says "doping can create problems of violence at events" he, or she, should change the word "doping" to drinking.

Anyways, I like the comment about the event itself being the high. Kudos!


*sigh* How do you, Shibani Kashyap, know this? Have you ever been in that situation where cannabis consumption is legalised and then escalated out of control? People now-a-days seem to talk for no apparent good reason.

By the way, what do you mean with "the situation will escalate out of control", is Shibani refering to crime? to use? to world crisis? WHAT!?


Answer: this one's easy, it's a concert dood! *talking to the person* I think you have problems man, if you can't enjoy a concert without some "funny smoke", then I suggest you stop smoking for a bit and get things into perpective....

Peace.7L

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