Manou Kersting is one of my favorite actors. I’m a fan of The Scabs. And Jacob Perceval has made a performance about cannabis. Respect! I don’t want to detract from the horror stories they experienced, but was cannabis really the cause of their problems? And not the alcohol, cocaine and other hard drugs that are discussed in the interviews?
Could it be that fame was too much to bear for Guy Swinnen, which is not uncommon in the music business? Perhaps cannabis has kept him away from the heroin that has killed others. Who knows? I’m not a doctor or scientist, but I do know that the vast majority of cannabis consumers rarely or never experience any problems. As with all intoxicants or stimulants (sugar, alcohol, illegal drugs, etc.), approximately 10 percent of people have problematic use.
I also dare to doubt that cannabis has become a hard drug, as Manou Kersting claims. He’s been clean for over twenty years, so how can he judge the potency or quality of cannabis today? If the THC content were now six times higher than before, we would be approaching 80 percent, so that is a non-argument, mainly used by people who have never consumed cannabis.
The average blower settles for 15 to 20 percent, and that level has been stagnant for years. Stronger types, from 20 to 25 percent, are more of a treat, such as expensive spirits, vodka or whiskey. Smokers used to look for top weed from Thailand or Colombia, today it is produced here, that’s the only difference.
In Germany and large parts of the United States, cannabis has been given legal status, is strictly regulated and highly valued. Would the government in those countries have decided that if it were a hard drug? Would they have ignored all scientific advice there? Have we been inundated with horror stories from the States in recent years? The only messages that reach us are about the mega profits for the state treasury, which often finance prevention and social projects.
It also strikes me that people in Brussels and Wallonia have a very different view of the legalization of cannabis. The fear of cannabis still seems much greater in Flanders than in the south of the country.
Joeri Perneel, Mechelen.
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