You’ve got to lively up yourself …

Written By: - Date published: 7:18 am, December 12th, 2018 - 44 comments
Categories: Media, national, Politics, same old national, Simon Bridges, spin, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, you couldn't make this shit up - Tags:

Another day and more ineptitude from the National Party. Fresh from siding with Donald Trump and Breitbart in the hope that they could wedge Winston Peters they then decided to engage in a bit of reefer madness.

Perhaps they have our best interests at heart. Maybe this is what they think will happen if people dying from cancer are allowed to regulate their pain by using something that is actually not toxic.

But their response to the passage of the Government’s medicinal cannabis law was really weird.  It was like they had smoked a few really fat doobies and then decided on what to say.

I mean it is a bit of a jump to go from having a quiet joint because you are dying from cancer and the pain is intense to making the smoking of cannabis in front of mental health centers compulsory.  And the claim that this is decriminalisation by stealth with no controls is plainly wrong.  The only people who can safely smoke cannabis are those who have been certified by a medical practitioner as requiring palliation.

But National leader Simon Bridges went all “hold my joint” on it … this is what he said in Parliament during the debate on the bill:

The Minister is sitting there, he’s looking down, he doesn’t want to listen to this, but not a single thing he has said in this House over the passage of this bill says anything otherwise: that when this bill passes, when it is signed off by the Governor-General, loose-leaf cannabis will be able to be smoked in public in New Zealand. What do you call that? He’s shaking his head. That Minister has been asked these questions. He’s had the ability every single time he’s spoken to answer the basic questions, and he hasn’t done that. In fact, he’s all but confirmed it. I say to him: what will the police do when they’re outside a school and someone, under this legislation, is smoking cannabis? What will they do? Chlöe Swarbrick’s shaking her head. I’ll tell you what they’ll do. I don’t reckon they’ll do much at all, actually, because today that’s what this Parliament arguably—but certainly there’s been nothing to allay our concerns—has lazily, has irresponsibly done in this House.

I don’t think that the risk of cancer sufferers electing to smoke joints in front of schools just because they can is a very high one.

Finally some advice I hope Simon Bridges never accepts.

44 comments on “You’ve got to lively up yourself … ”

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  1. Gabby 1
    12 December 2018 at 7:26 am

    Why would people with cancer want to risk being rolled by schoolkids?

  2. solkta 2
    12 December 2018 at 7:32 am

    loose leaf cannabis

    I wish they would stop using this term. I mean, if they are only going to legalise cabbage then what’s the point.

  3. Cinny 3
    12 December 2018 at 7:39 am

    When people mention cannabis, many immediately imagine people rolling up joints.

    Many who use cannabis for medicinal purposes don’t smoke it.

    But maybe the nat’s forgot to mention that.

    PS simon people smoke pot in public anyways, so what was you point?

    Jeepers old simeon brown was slayed on his twitter comment, lmao

  4. marty mars 4
    12 December 2018 at 7:41 am

    even barry soper is laughing at simon

    “Opposing the law change, Simon Bridges, in referring to the first bill he’s actually spoken to since becoming leader, seemed to have his drugs confused, telling Parliament’s bear pit he wanted to make it crystal clear. Seriously though, he and his colleagues said it was the decriminalisation of cannabis by stealth.

    Next thing, he fumed, they’ll be smoking it outside the school gate – and then appeared to contradict himself, saying National’s up for debating the decriminalisation of dope.”

    Yeah well, someone smoking weed with a terminal illness isn’t likely to be on the school run. Anyone in palliative care listening in to Bridges banging on would at least know where to go to get their illegal supply – there’ll be shoes all over our power lines, he told his fellow grizzlies.”

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12175176

    Might be good for simon to do a drug test methinks. You know leadership and all that and then the rest of the motley bunch can follow their beloved leader.

  5. Heather Tanguay 5
    12 December 2018 at 7:53 am

    The man is a complete tosser, he appears to have no knowledge on the subject at all.
    Friend who is having chemo has cookies, which she now will be able to eat without being arrested. The green fairies can help people, just like Lucretia Seals and Helen Kelly battled for.
    Two amazing women, may they rest in peace.

  6. WILD KATIPO 6
    12 December 2018 at 8:27 am

    Oh yes the pot issue. I’ve stayed out of this one by and large because I’m in two minds about it. Not sure I like yet another substance to be on the market that makes us go a lil AWOL… I’ve worked with those who have had some and they are a real pain in the date after partaking… yet others not at all… it seems.

    There’s also that synthetic cannabis which appears to be just plain dangerous and should be outlawed by comparison to the actual stuff.

    Then again , all plants contain phytochemicals , and many that can be used for our benefit , so a good , govt regulated standardized pharmaceutical extract could be developed around this long maligned plant species. ( In medieval Germany it was punishable by death if you were convicted of smoking the new ‘Tobacco’ – and people in taverns smoked weak hemp in their pipes… hemp being crucial to the sailing and clothing industry at that time…)

    Then there is the challenge to the booze industry and govt taxation to consider if for personal use. How have the Americans fared with all this ? And are they a good example anyway ? I really wouldn’t know, tbh. And after all those years of convicting , imprisoning and fining people, – how would all those people be feeling?

    I must admit to being a tad socially conservative on the issue, – but then I can see benefits and have spent a lot more time with those who do than I will say being a musician in my twenties. And I never had a problem with the partakers. But I did with the grog people.

    But since you tastefully provided the song from Uncle Bob Marley and the Wailers , Advantage ,… I must also say I had a soft spot for that movement and the imagery of Jamaica. So many poor , in their colorfully painted houses, ( often just shacks ) where it was OK to be a beach bum…where it doesn’t get freezing bloody cold like it does here… they could happily toke their tokes and I for my part could happily knock back Jamaican rum… I could happily live out my days in such a slow paced environment. I would love the sense of community and being among friends and family.

    The rat race is cancer.

    Ah but all good things have to come to an end and its the same with the Wild wood Weed… and then the vicious drug mobsters moved in on Jamaica and it all went to pot.

    Anyways,… here’s Rowley Birken QC.

    Rowley Birkin QC – Very Drunk, Terrible Flattulence – YouTube

    • Draco T Bastard 6.1
      12 December 2018 at 1:50 pm

      I’ve worked with those who have had some and they are a real pain in the date after partaking… yet others not at all… it seems.

      Never come across anybody who was an issue after smoking dope.

      I have come across people that have had issues after smoking dope that was spiked with something else that they didn’t know about.

      It is the latter that I think full legalisation needs to happen. Leaving it in the hands of criminals without regulation causes more problems.

      There’s also that synthetic cannabis which appears to be just plain dangerous and should be outlawed by comparison to the actual stuff.

      Synthetic cannabis isn’t cannabis at all. Doesn’t even have THC in it. It’s usually a by-product of creating other artificial drugs that someone has decided can be used to make a profit.

      As you say, it should be outlawed.

      In fact, we need one primary law that makes it illegal to introduce anything onto the market until it has been fully tested and regulated. That is not what happened to ‘legal highs’.

  7. Pete 7
    12 December 2018 at 8:39 am

    His poll has him at 7% and he’s trying to impress people with the same IQ. And he will, amongst their hordes of supporters.

  8. esoteric pineapples 8
    12 December 2018 at 8:44 am

    In the United States, now that many states have legalised cannabis to one level or another, I notice that people are starting to openly talk about their cannabis use, For example, Billy Crystal on The Late Show.

  9. Ad 9
    12 December 2018 at 8:59 am

    Was really impressed with the dignity of the two women sufferers on RNZ this morning.

    Also the complexity: one terminal woman’s ex was using the illegality of her using marijuana instead of chemotherapy as a factor in the family court against her retaining custody of her children.

    Both came across really well.

    I think I’m on record here as opposing this, but I like the changes to the proposed law and the more I hear people with stupid consequences of illegality the more I see it’s the right thing.

  10. Ad 10
    12 December 2018 at 9:03 am

    Also can I vote for this as best Standard headline of the year.

    Nice work Sir.

  11. NZJester 11
    12 December 2018 at 9:35 am

    The original reasons for banning it in the US were mostly on racist grounds and other countries followed the US in banning it on a lot of the fake evidence presented at the time to get it banned.
    From the history channel website

    Despite its medical usefulness, many Americans’ attitudes towards cannabis shifted at the turn of the century. This was at least partly motivated by Mexican immigration to the U.S. around the time of the 1910 Mexican Revolution, according to Eric Schlosser, author of Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market.

    “The prejudices and fears that greeted these peasant immigrants also extended to their traditional means of intoxication: smoking marijuana,” Schlosser wrote for The Atlantic in 1994. “Police officers in Texas claimed that marijuana incited violent crimes, aroused a ‘lust for blood,’ and gave its users ‘superhuman strength.’ Rumors spread that Mexicans were distributing this ‘killer weed’ to unsuspecting American schoolchildren.”

    It’s worth noting that research has shown alcohol to be more dangerous than marijuana. In addition, cannabis doesn’t really cause superhuman strength, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s fact sheet on the drug says that “No death from overdose of marijuana has been reported.”

    Even though there was no evidence to support claims that marijuana had a Jekyll-and-Hyde effect, 29 states outlawed marijuana between 1916 and 1931. The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 essentially banned it nation-wide despite objections from the American Medical Association related to medical usage. This act came just a year after the film Reefer Madness warned parents that drug dealers would invite their teenagers to jazz parties and get them hooked on “reefer.”

    https://www.history.com/news/why-the-u-s-made-marijuana-illegal

    My goodness (distributing this ‘killer weed’ to unsuspecting schoolchildren) where have I heard that lately?
    Is someone recycling some early 1900s racist propaganda to keep it illegal?

    • WILD KATIPO 11.1
      12 December 2018 at 9:39 am

      Here is a good site I stumbled upon once when rummaging around the history of the Old West…

      Quite an eye raiser of what the people of the 19TH century were into. But you’ve got to remember that they had none of the advantages of modern medicine and lived in far flung places as well for the most part…

      Wild West: Vices (Documentary) – YouTube
      Video for vices of the old west youtube▶ 44:29

  12. Tricledrown 12
    12 December 2018 at 9:56 am

    Even Rush Limbaugh admits he uses Cannibis.
    Simple Siomon is out of touch on just about everything his Party is spamming on Facebook to try and connect but all I see is how much people hate what National did to people. They are stuck in the dark ages pandering to the religious right the Exclusive Brethren a bunch of pedofiles trying to hold the high moral ground like Billy English stopping an enquiry into the Catholic Church.
    These religious zealots have Simon by the balls. Living in the past. Punish the poor for being poor punish those in pain because it’s God’s will. No rest for the wicked.

  13. Observer Tokoroa 13
    12 December 2018 at 9:57 am

    Hard Work

    Simon explained how hard National had worked to get to know about Cannabis. The upshot was that he kept repeating that Labour was decriminalisng Cannabis by Stealth.

    The Doctor they brought in was very repetitive too. He also explained how Labour was going to use stealth to release loose leaf marijuana at the school gates. He had flown over to America a number of times to chat with science chaps in Colorado and elsewhere. He did not say what they told him.

    As I understood him, The Doctor wanted the schools to be removed five Kilometers from the school gates, so that National could safely collect up the loose leaf. He predicted huge numbers of deaths and malfeasance as soon as Labour released by stealth the loose leaf at the school gates. (Labour are seeking to decriminalise Medicinal Marijuna- as you know! Not lose leaf. Nor ill informed politicians.)

    The Doctor did not allude to the terrible suffering of people who can get relief from medicinal cannabis. Neither did Simon. It is as if National want the suffering to continue. Simom screamed about the loose leaf at the school gates.

    Simon seemed quite happy about the excessive cost of Medicinal Marijuana. I wonder why? At least the poor won’t get any help. Written all over the mean National brows.

    • veutoviper 13.1
      12 December 2018 at 12:11 pm

      “The Doctor” you are rambling about is Dr Shane Reti, who is the National MP for Whangarei, and a medical doctor. He was not “brought in” by National as an expert or in any other capacity. He was the lead National MP on the Health Select Committee which examined this Bill, and his nose is out of joint because his various attempts to change the draft Bill to restrict it massively were not agreed.

      Dr Liz Craig, also a medical doctor and Labour list MP (from Invercargill) was also on the Committee and spoke well yesterday.

    • Draco T Bastard 13.2
      12 December 2018 at 2:06 pm

      Simon explained how hard National had worked to get to know about Cannabis. The upshot was that he kept repeating that Labour was decriminalisng Cannabis by Stealth.

      Seemed to work when John Key brought out his Communism by Stealth about WFF – which they then kept because they recognised that businesses needed the subsidy.

      Labour are seeking to decriminalise Medicinal Marijuna- as you know! Not lose leaf. Nor ill informed politicians.

      Making ill-informed politicians illegal would do us the world of good. National would be gone by lunch time.

      The Doctor did not allude to the terrible suffering of people who can get relief from medicinal cannabis. Neither did Simon. It is as if National want the suffering to continue.

      They do. It’s easy to grow marijuana and so there’s going to be huge competition in providing it which is going to cut down the profits of the pharmaceutical companies.

      Keeping the suffering going keeps the profits of their donors up.

      Of course, Labour didn’t like the Green’s policy that allowed people to grow their own.

  14. The Fairy Godmother 14
    12 December 2018 at 11:02 am

    My mother aged 88 is on Oxycodone. It has terrible side effects including constipation and it also makes her dementia heaps worse meaning she find it hard to keep track of time and no longer reads as well as sometimes being nasty and paranoid . Reading novels used to help keep her happy rather than feeling utterly hopeless. If cannabis could relieve her pain without the horrible side effects of oxycodone her life would improve no end.

    • WILD KATIPO 14.1
      12 December 2018 at 11:22 am

      Yep , and I’m sure there are many ways to standardize doses and extract the active ingredients whether it is by oral or intravenous administration etc. We really have to get over the hippies sitting around strumming guitars on the commune thing and start looking at what benefits can be derived instead of this immature prejudice.

      Quinine as an example saved millions, something discovered long ago … well the same can be said for a lot of things.

      I’m positively sure it remains an untapped marketable resource. The potential for its close relative in hemp products is an example of how it can be put to work once banal prejudices are abandoned.

      That’s what I’m interested in seeing.

      • Anno1701 14.1.1
        12 December 2018 at 11:32 am

        “intravenous administration”…. Why would that be better in any way to just smoking or eating the stuff

        Just buy a vaporizer geez….

        • WILD KATIPO 14.1.1.1
          12 December 2018 at 11:56 am

          Whatever.

          Hairsplitting

        • The Fairy Godmother 14.1.1.2
          12 December 2018 at 1:10 pm

          Mum has never smoked anything in her life and I doubt with her dementia she would learn how. Pills or injection definitely would be the way to go. If marijuana or its active ingredients could relieve her pain with less side effects than her opoid based pain relief does now I would be all for it and wish she could start on it today.

          • Draco T Bastard 14.1.1.2.1
            12 December 2018 at 2:13 pm

            Can she eat chocolate?

            • The Fairy Godmother 14.1.1.2.1.1
              12 December 2018 at 2:38 pm

              Yes she absolutely loves the stuff it’s one of the things I encourage her to ear as her weight is just over 40kg

              • solkta …
                12 December 2018 at 2:42 pm

                Cannabis is great for improving appetite also.

                • The Fairy Godmother …
                  12 December 2018 at 4:04 pm

                  So a positive side effect instead of ones that make her want to throw up. The only problem is she’s in a private hospital and I don’t think it would be easy to get around the current law.

      • joe90 14.1.2
        12 December 2018 at 2:06 pm

        intravenous administration

        Umm, the goodies are fat soluble, which is one of the reasons why they’re detectable for 3-4 weeks after use.

    • Grafton Gully 14.2
      14 December 2018 at 7:26 pm

      A growing body of research on cannabis derived drugs and a recent international conference. http://international-cdp.com/whats-on/speakers/
      Botanix is developing treatments for skin diseases and there is recently approved epilepsy drug and attempts to find something for sleep apnoea. Our government looks on the right track with this legislation and good to see the opposition joining the conversation. Sorry to hear about your mother and maybe if she had access to cannabis it could help.

  15. Nick 15
    12 December 2018 at 11:33 am

    Simon is not self aware. A jibberish leader. Natz should ask themselves, “why did we put him out front and center in front of NZ and the world?”

  16. Craig Glen Eden 16
    12 December 2018 at 11:46 am

    Please please please National keep Siomon as leader, he is the bestest leader you guys could have.
    Someone might want to inform him that high school kids in Auckland are buying meth now for shits and giggles, which sadly is no laughing matter.

  17. Mr Marshy 17
    12 December 2018 at 11:52 am

    As typical, the dim socialist ‘journalist’ here fails to mention the wider intention to legalize personal use, if their referendum goes ahead. This is what Bridges is actually highlighting. But anyway, how are those leaks coming along, showing this inept government is running out of money next year …

  18. Ross 18
    12 December 2018 at 12:25 pm

    It appears that Simon, unlike Bill Clinton, really did inhale…repeatedly. How else would you explain this brain fart?