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57
would we not have certain reservations about the introduction of
tobacco and alcohol if we were starting from scratch ?
Today, it can be confidently anticipated that the addicted
smoker is not oblivious of the association between cigarette smoking
and lung cancer and that, therefore, it must be assumed that the
continued use of tobacco is his decision to take a calculated risk with
his health and life span, an action which contains a pious hope that
he will prove to be the exceptional individual who escapes the dire
consequences of his addiction. Such an attitude merely emphasises a
heavy dependence upon tobacco which in no circumstances can be
condoned but, what is much more important, it can scarcely be
presented as the archetype for unrestricted excursions into the world
of drugs, 'soft' or otherwise.
Alcohol is somewhat akin to cannabis in that both affect a
person's judgement and lead to a false sense of security but, whereas
the excessive drinker of alcohol becomes confused and realises the
fact, a person under the influence of cannabis, although similarly
confused, is dangerously unaware of it. Moreover, alcohol is a
depressant which, if taken to excess, either induces sleep or precipitates
vomiting before any serious harm occurs. No such safety
regulator exists with cannabis which must be considered potentially
dangerous if for no other reason than the variability of its pharmacology.
It is true that many persons accustomed to the use of cannabis
are left with apparently little or no residual damage but it is generally
conceded that effects greatly depend upon a number of factors of
which the psychological condition of the subject is perhaps the most
important. Indeed, in 1963 the Commission of Narcotic Drugs
stated that "cannabis users in industrial countries often have a
psychopathic personality and consumption of cannabis is frequently
the first step towards later addiction to heroin and morphine".
In a number of instances, amphetamine is known to produce
paranoic psychosis and it is particularly dangerous in that a person
already inclined to feel persecuted may be stimulated from aggressive
defensiveness to something more violent—even to murder. It would
appear that petty crimes such as shoplifting, thieving, breaking and
entering, false pretences, etc., are common in case histories of
addicts to stimulants, possibly due to the need for obtaining further
supplies or an inability or reluctance to obtain gainful employment.
An investigation into delinquent adolescent boys admitted to London
remand homes revealed the presence of amphetamine-like substance
in the urine of almost 20% of whom only one fifth had conceded its
use. Out of 60 murder cases in Japan during May and June of 1954,
31 convicted murderers had a connection with abuse of amphetamine.
A drug squad recently established by Newcastle's Chief