But cannabis factories ('farms' seems a more apt description) flourish because they're illegal and there's a demand. The US knows a lot about this, having attempted - and failed - to outlaw the sale of alcohol between 1919 and 1933. And the history of what was later termed 'The Noble Experiment' is both fascinating and informative.
As with all such movements that seek to tell people what is good for them, the prohibition or abstinence movement was largely religion-based and started by the churches, mostly Methodists. The influence of the movement, spearheaded by the Women's Christian temperance union, which evolved into the Anti-saloon league, a name reminiscent of a band of super heroes fighting to save the planet, increased rapidly with - oddly and rather ironically - the Roman Catholic church being the only religious body to condemn the government for defining morality. Interestingly, the medical fraternity at the time agued against the proposals, as they used beer widely as a medicinal curative.
Of course, the experiment failed spectacularly, especially as the sale and manufacture of alcohol was still legal in the surrounding countries, and Canada and Mexico were making small fortunes from their illegal exports. But what made the US (and what makes our Government) believe that some reality-altering drugs ought never to be legal?
In the case of alcohol, it appears to have been drunkenness. Alcohol acts on the brain to release inhibition, so people become unaware of their behaviour on others, and generally become more like themselves, only louder. Of course, since we're all essentially selfish at the core, that's not always a pretty sight and drunks often resort to violence, throwing punches and kicking with remarkable speed and dexterity, despite the effects that alcohol is supposed to have on reaction time. But in moderation, alcohol aids the process of digestion, lowers blood pressure and imbues the drinker with a feeling of well-being.
Cannabis works in a different way, although the initial effects are similar. The initial euphoria eventually yields to a more philosophical mode, which is where a minority of users can experience feelings of anxiety and - in some cases - depression. However, all reality-altering drugs have side effects, as do all drugs, anyway. One argument for continuing to retain the status of cannabis as illegal is that some of the side effects can provoke psychotic episodes, although exactly the same is true of alcohol.
The problem our elected representatives fail to see, however, is that its illegal status is no impediment whatsoever to anyone who wants to partake, but the quality control, taxation and packaging associated with it are all being diverted to criminals. In effect, by continuing to make cannabis illegal, the government is subsidising the lifestyle they seek to emulate.
What's the answer? Drunkenness is a major factor in the current hot topic - anti-social behaviour - and illegal drug production probably the major factor behind theft and robbery, both of which could be alleviated by the legalisation and subsequent control of drugs and the increase in taxation on alcohol. But simply banning is never going to be the answer and government telling people what is good for them has no place in a modern society.
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