Between Legal and Illegal

Researchers say they have located the world's oldest stash of marijuana, in a tomb in a remote part of China.

The cache of cannabis is about 2,700 years old and was clearly ``cultivated for psychoactive purposes," rather than as fibre for clothing or as food, says a research paper in the Journal of Experimental Botany.

The 789 grams of dried cannabis was buried alongside a light-haired, blue-eyed Caucasian man, likely a shaman of the Gushi culture, near Turpan in northwestern China.

The Star

1.

I liked it better when cultural norms, not financial incentives or institutions, determined what was legal. Dope should probably be between legal and illegal; legal for those who need it, like shamans, and considered stupid for others to pursue.

The law shouldn't be enforcing this. Communities should, and exiling those who are just drug addicts while leaving those with legitimate uses alone.

2.

A blue-eyed Caucasian in China? 2700 years ago? WTF?