Should you need to hide your poison?

Should smoking a joint, or sipping some magic mushroom tea really be a reason to cast aspersions?

Why should alcohol be seen as different, superior?

Picture this: It is a Sunday morning, cold and bright, and a little early – 10am to be precise. You have arranged to meet the potential buyers at the property. Your client is not there; they are away and have left you the keys.

You arrive, the viewers are already there. You can tell by their body language and interactions with one another that there is a prim and hostile vibe about them. You slap on your best smile, take a sip of water to clear your throat, and already know, this viewing requires your best speaking voice!

They manage a smile, but you can tell, they are not fans of estate agents. You open the door and let them in. The property they are viewing is sumptuous, spacious and light. A split second passes, and she, within a blink of the eye, turns to leave. Her husband, rather incredulously, asks why. That smell she snarls, that smell, heathens live here. We cannot possibly buy this house, even if it does suit our needs. My smile has now reached new heights of fakery but being somewhat flabbergasted at her outburst, I was rendered temporarily speechless.

He starts to sniff the air, and gruffly replies, he can’t smell anything, maybe a slightly earth smell, but nothing untoward. I had wandered ahead to give them some personal space, and as I walked into the kitchen, I notice, a bag of cannabis on the side and an ashtray with what is clearly not cigarette butts in it.

I think about hiding it. Then I stop, unsure what to do, but thinking, the owners have left it there, it is not my property, its hardly heroin, not a big deal.

She, on the other hand, was reacting as if she had witnessed a scene from a Godfather movie, and would need medical intervention to dull her senses.

As she fled the scene, I heard her cry to her fumbling husband, “take me to the pub, I need a sherry!”

At 10.10am on a Sunday morning, I thought to myself!

It really was a spectacle, but a spectacle, that is becoming, not an unusual occurrence.

So, when you, are in the position of a potential buyer, and are perusing a house on a viewing and you happen to spot some cannabis paraphernalia hanging around, or some evidence that mushroom consumption may be an occurrence in this household, what do you do? How does it make you feel? Does it put you off? Do you judge with the mighty wrath of a superior being, who likes to guzzle Gordon’s on a Saturday night? Followed by a few shots, and a whiskey chaser!

Or do you refrain from judgment, as your progressive outlook realises that these folks are more than likely open minded, forward thinking souls, who tend to choose tranquillity and calm over violence, death and excessive hospital admissions! And if there happens to be a bit of weed lying around, or a magic mushroom or two, then, you choose to ignore it, as whilst it remains illegal, this is more because our laws are out of date, and they do not reflect society in a meaningful and honest way – in my opinion!

Let us think for a moment about alcohol…

Who can remember when the ‘home bar’ was a status symbol? A sign of stylish and cool parents, who socialised and entertained, drinking blue lagoons, with glacier cherries and umbrellas, emanating decadence in my childish perspective.

Drinking alcohol is part of our culture, part of our fabric, and infuses much of what we do; although, it must be noted, that the younger generations, are not so enthused about drinking, as us kids from the seventies and eighties are likely to be.

Home bars fell out of favour in the eighties, however, since Covid and The Cost of Living Crisis they have made a comeback! And as the explosion of man caves, has come about, so have the optics. We tend to admire, even slightly worship these creations and boozing on a Friday and Saturday night remains a staple part of our culture.

Yet, the statistics of alcohol are depressing, alarming even:

‘There are an estimated 602,391 dependent drinkers in England.’

‘In 2020, there were 8,974 alcohol specific deaths.’

‘In 2021 there were 338,000 hospital admissions in England related to alcohol.’

‘Alcohol misuse is the biggest risk factor for death, ill health and disability.’ (Alcohol Change).

Whilst this poison is legal and widely available in the UK, and do not get me wrong, I am partial; I do however, question our stance, in particular on Cannabis and to some extent magic mushrooms. Research suggests that in comparison to alcohol, the statistics of these natural substances from our earth pale in comparison.

‘More than 20 European countries have now some forms of legalisation to permit the medicinal use of cannabis. Germany was the first major player to announce its intentions to fully legalise in 2022.’ (Sinclair). Other countries are progressively piloting programmes to learn what works and what does not work.

So, why aren’t we taking a more progressive approach?

When you compare the evidence between alcohol and cannabis, it would seem like a no brainer, - we are repeatedly told the country needs money to fill the big black hole – here’s a way to make some!

Of course, there are risks involved, but comparatively they are small in contrast to alcohol. Murders have compelling links to booze. In 2021 there was 723 reported homicides, and based on global estimates, ‘around 224 of these were committed under the influence of alcohol. (Cannabis Vs Alcohol). Whereas, the number of deaths, ‘directly caused by cannabis is only 0.15%’. The statistics for homicides linked to mushrooms could not be found, but I do not think it is unreasonable to assert, it too, will be under 1%.

Yet the cannabis smoker tends to be more demonised, and the mushroom taker aligned with a heroin user, despite the growing body of research that looks at psilocybin’s therapeutic properties for psychological disorders.

Despite the ‘risks of psychedelic substances use appearing to be markedly lower than other psychoactive substances such as alcohol’ (Bentham-Clark) and the risks related to cannabis, when compared to alcohol, ‘cannabis poses little risks while also providing important health and medical benefits’. (Cannabis Laws). We continue to judge, to sneer, and to categorise.

So, if you happen to be on a viewing in someone’s home, and spot some marijuana or magic mushrooms, do be mindful of abstaining from judgement and consider for a moment is this better or worse?

Bibliography.

Bentham-Clark, Isabella. The Magic in Mushrooms: A quick dose of the History Psychedelics. Bluesci, Cambridge University Science Magazine. https://www.bluesci.co.uk/posts/the-magic-in-mushrooms-a-quick-dose-of-the-history-of-psychedelics 21/3/2023.

Condliffe, Julie. Are Magic Mushrooms legal in the UK? Explained. Creative Legals. https://creativelegals.co.uk/are-magic-mushrooms-legal-in-the-uk-explained/ 6th August, 2024.

Sinclair, Sarah. Forbes. Where Is Cannabis Legal In Europe? A Guide To The Latest Policy Changes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahsinclair/2024/01/31/where-is-cannabis-legal-in-europe-a-guide-to-the-latest-policy-changes/ 31/01/2024.

Wilde, Anne. 21 Surprising Famous People Who Have Taken Psychedelics. https://www.psychedelicpassage.com/21-surprising-famous-people-who-have-taken-psychedelics/ Accessed on 10th October 2024.

Alcohol Change UK. Alcohol Statistics. https://alcoholchange.org.uk/alcohol-facts/fact-sheets/alcohol-statistics Accessed on 9/10/2024.

High and Polite. Cannabis vs Alcohol: What the data tells us. https://www.highandpolite.co.uk/cbdnews/cannabis-vs-alcohol-what-the-data-tells-us Accessed on 9th October 2024.

Politic.co.uk. Cannabis laws. https://www.politics.co.uk/reference/cannabis/ Accessed on 9th October 2024.

The Home bar Company. Home Bar Origins. https://thehomebarcompany.co.uk/home-bar-origins/#:~:text=The%20origins%20of%20the%20home%20bar%20is%20believed,became%20more%20popular%20over%20here%20after%20the%20war. Accessed on 10th October 2024.

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