Hope, Not Dope

Peter Hitchens writes:

Within hours of the Minneapolis murders, it was revealed the shooter had been working at a ‘Marijuana Dispensary’, of the sort campaigners want here too. Cash or debit cards accepted. Kerbside pick-up available, offering an amazing variety of vape cartridges. This is almost certainly the most important thing you need to know about this unhinged crime and its perpetrator.

Yet it was barely reported. Forty years hence, if we still have media and police, or indeed a civilisation, people will be astounded at the complacent stupidity and indulgence with which we regard this terrifying mind poison.

I refer readers again to the book Attacker Smoked Cannabis, by my friend Ross Grainger, who studied some of the many insanely violent crimes in this country carried out by marijuana users.

Laura Ingraham writes:

Author and journalist Alex Berenson raised concerns about marijuana use and its possible connection to violent crime during a recent appearance on The Ingraham Angle on Fox News.

Speaking with host Laura Ingraham after a deadly school shooting in Minnesota, Berenson argued that cannabis is increasingly tied to psychotic disorders that can lead to violence. He pointed to evidence from both U.S. cases and international studies that suggest a troubling trend. 

Cannabis and Psychosis

Berenson noted that the accused shooter, Robin Westman, worked at a medical marijuana dispensary and wrote in his manifesto about heavy cannabis use. He explained that the drug’s active ingredient, THC, has been linked to psychotic episodes.

“We know that cannabis can cause psychotic episodes in people,” Berenson said. “There’s increasingly strong evidence. When I wrote Tell Your Children in 2019, there was evidence, and now there’s more and more.”

He referenced research from Denmark showing that cannabis use contributes to new cases of schizophrenia. According to Berenson, psychosis — marked by delusions and hallucinations — can raise the risk of violent behavior. While most people with the condition are not violent, he said, some may commit extreme acts.

Evidence From Past Shootings

Berenson also tied cannabis use to several high-profile American mass shootings. He said autopsy reports have found cannabis in the systems of shooters, including Nikolas Cruz, who carried out the Parkland massacre in 2018.

“I can point you to several of the highest-profile mass shootings in the United States in which cannabis use was found in people’s bodies,” Berenson explained. “Over and over you see cannabis.”

By contrast, he argued that alcohol is not as commonly linked to these kinds of crimes. While alcohol often escalates existing violence, Berenson said, cannabis shows up in incidents where innocent people are targeted.

Pushback From the Marijuana Lobby

Ingraham noted that critics often argue alcohol is more dangerous than cannabis. She predicted the “weed lobby” would flood social media with attacks on the idea that marijuana could be connected to mass shootings.

Berenson responded that causation is difficult to prove in any one case. However, he maintained that the pattern across multiple tragedies cannot be ignored.

“In no single case can you ever prove causation,” he said. “But having looked at these autopsy reports, you see cannabis use, you rarely see alcohol. Sometimes you see prescription drugs, but over and over you see cannabis.”

Policy Debate Under Trump

The exchange comes as the Trump administration reviews federal cannabis policy. Regulators and lawmakers have debated whether marijuana should remain classified as a controlled substance or be reclassified to a less restrictive category. Such a move would expand opportunities for the industry to market and sell cannabis products.

Berenson warned that loosening restrictions would carry serious risks. “I hope President Trump understands that we are likely to see more crime like this if there is more cannabis use,” he said. “And I know public safety is important to him.”

Trump’s Position

Ingraham emphasized that President Trump remains skeptical of marijuana legalization. She said Trump understands the dangers drug use poses to young people and has long opposed efforts to mainstream cannabis.

“Legitimizing this, mainstreaming it even more, I don’t think any good is going to come of it,” Ingraham said. She thanked Berenson for highlighting research and evidence that challenge the perception of marijuana as harmless.

A Growing Debate

Berenson’s comments reflect a broader national debate over cannabis legalization. Supporters argue marijuana is safer than alcohol, while critics warn that downplaying risks could have severe consequences. With Trump’s administration expected to make key decisions on drug policy, Berenson said ignoring evidence of cannabis-linked psychosis would be a mistake.

“There is a correlation here and we’re seeing it more and more,” he said.

The New York Post Editorial Board writes:

News that Minneapolis monster Robin Westman worked at a pot shop until just two weeks ago should give pause to those in the White House reportedly pushing President Donald Trump to take a landmark step toward federal approval of marijuana use.

Westman, 23, was apparently fired from Rise, an area cannabis dispensary, on Aug. 16 over chronic tardiness and absenteeism.

If you know anything at all about the culture of this biz, that tells you the odds are awfully good that he was using, too.

And medical research in recent years keeps producing fresh evidence strongly suggesting that heavy marijuana use exacerbates other mental-health issues, perhaps making young men five times more likely to become schizophrenic.

Heck, any New Yorker’s experience with some of the clearly crazed folks roaming the city indicates some link, even if the drug use starts as amateur self-medication.

Baby Boomers’ fond memories of their college years shouldn’t guide policy: Today’s pot delivers as much as 10 times as much THC as the weed sold in past decades — and the plethora of new pot products are far more potent.

Yet by all accounts the president is considering shifting marijuana from a Schedule I drug to Schedule III — an upgrade that would make it far easier for Big Weed to operate in the states that have legalized and doubtless fuel legalization drives in the rest. That move would open up major tax deductions for the $33 billion industry, and generally boost its expansion — one reason the CEO of corporate-pot firm Trulieve bought his way into a recent $1 million-a-plate fundraiser at Trump’s Bedminster club.

But it’d be a very odd thing for the prez to do when he’s pushing to fight urban crime.

Pot only fuels crime because it’s outlawed, the legalizers insist.

Yet the latest study on this, by South Korean scholar Sunyoung Lee, found that crime levels rose in US states that legalized.

Auto accidents thanks to DUIs spike, too.

We’re not prudes, demanding that no one ever have any fun, but we believe science needs to guide drug policy — not the corporate interests behind Big Pot. Please play this one carefully, Mr. President.

And Horace Cooper writes:

Many on the left argue that drug legalization — particularly for marijuana — is somehow “pro-Black.” Far from it. Although legalization is a windfall for the corporate pot industry, it also deepens racial educational and income disparities, hinders Black family stability and harms inner-city communities.

It’s time to end the folly of decriminalizing and mainstreaming marijuana sales and use.

The left rails against redlining and credit card usury, yet by unleashing corporate pot dealers on Black and inner-city communities, they open the door to some of the most predatory forces targeting the poor.

Removing marijuana from the federal list of controlled substances — or even lowering its classification — would effectively make it legal and send a damaging signal to young people in Black neighborhoods that marijuana use is normal and harmless. It would also create messy challenges over past marijuana-related convictions, sowing legal confusion and undermining respect for the law.

The health risks alone should give pause. Research shows marijuana is a gateway drug. The National Epidemiological Study of Alcohol Use and Related Disorders found marijuana users are more likely to develop addictions to alcohol and nicotine products. Laboratory studies demonstrate that cannabinoids alter dopamine levels in young brains, fostering more addictive behaviors. Once marijuana use is normalized, the door opens to patterns of dependency that can last a lifetime.

Legalization has also fueled youth usage. A California study found marijuana use among grade and high school students began climbing in 2016 — after years of decline — and linked the rise to the legalization movement. The consequences are serious: marijuana increases the risk of heart attack in young users, can lead to emphysema, and carries an immune-suppressing effect that raises pneumonia risk. For those who vape instead of smoking, THC products are responsible for 80 percent of the e-cigarette or vaping use-associated lung injuries known as “popcorn lung.”

Experience has shown that even with legalized sales, street-dealing remains a threat unless the corporate product is dramatically cheaper than what’s being sold illicitly. And as long as illegal sales persist, so does the risk of fentanyl-laced marijuana — a danger that has already claimed lives. Just this year, a 27-year-old woman in Warwick, R.I., died after unknowingly consuming fentanyl-laced cannabis. Connecticut has similarly reported multiple related deaths in recent years.

The costs also extend far beyond physical health. Marijuana use is strongly associated with depression, particularly among Black males. It undermines job growth, skill retention and educational attainment. Chronic use has been linked to anxiety, elevated stroke risk and psychosis.

In Black communities, where untreated mental health issues are already a challenge, increased marijuana availability can worsen conditions and fuel behaviors that increase the risk of incarceration. The argument that legalization will keep Black men out of prison collapses when legalization fosters the very circumstances that land them there.

There are public safety concerns as well. In Colorado, a study published in BMJ Open found traffic accidents increased after legalization. Another highway safety analysis showed that Colorado, Washington and Oregon saw a 5.2 percent jump in combined crash rates compared to neighboring states that kept marijuana illegal.

Marijuana’s psychoactive effects process differently than alcohol, and impairment can linger well past the point users feel “sober,” raising the risk of workplace accidents. As occupational health expert Robert Goldsmith observes, “You can’t assume that evening or off-shift use is not associated with residual impairment during the next shift.”

The truth is that Black youth — and all young Americans — cannot afford the broad acceptance and normalization of marijuana. Jesse Jackson’s “Up with Hope, Down with Dope” message of the 20th century is far more relevant to Black communities today than the “legalize and expunge” approach championed by many policymakers.

States that have relaxed marijuana laws should take a hard look at the social, health and economic costs — particularly for Black communities — and reverse course when they ultimately conclude that the risks outweigh any supposed tax revenue benefits.

In this new Golden Era, American policymakers should do everything possible to protect Black communities and young Americans from the harm caused by marijuana legalization. This will allow them to take advantage of the amazing opportunities headed their way, not check out and miss out while indulging a case of the munchies.

There cannot be a “free” market in general, but not in drugs, or prostitution, or pornography, or unrestricted alcohol, or unrestricted gambling. That is an important part of why there must not be a “free” market in general, which is a political choice, not a law of nature.

Enacting and enforcing laws against drugs, prostitution and pornography, and regulating alcohol, tobacco and gambling, are clear examples of State intervention in, and regulation of, the economy. Radical change would be impossible if the workers, the youth and the poor were in a state of stupefaction, and that baleful situation, which has been contrived in the past, is being contrived again today.

Unlike the Conservative Party, which merely thinks that it is and acts as if it were, the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats are constitutionally committed to the “free” market. Richard Tice wants to legalise cannabis, Nigel Farage wants to legalise drugs across the board, and Lee Anderson signed a select committee report in that direction in 2023.

Instead, we need a single category of illegal drug, including cannabis, with a crackdown on possession, including a mandatory sentence of two years for a first offence, three years for a second offence, four years for a third offence, and so on. I no longer believe in prison sentences that include the possibility of release in less than 12 months; in that case, then your crime was not bad enough to warrant imprisonment, which the possession of drugs is. We need to restore the specific criminal offence of allowing one’s premises to be used for illegal drug purposes. And Peter Hitchens’s The War We Never Fought should be taught in schools, as pro-drugs propaganda is routinely.