M6 and cannabis: an inclusive survey

Edito. M6 broadcast on Sunday night a Enquête Exclusive report with the evocative title «Small growers, new dealers: France, European cannabis champion.» We obviously didn't expect an investigative report, as Enquête Exclusive is better known for its sensationalism than its realism. But we also didn't expect such a truncated version of reality. Let's quickly get to the point, get out of it just as quickly, and forget it forever.

Inclusive survey

So France would be subject to an epidemic, «a very particular cannabis plant, weed, a new hybrid developed by a Dutch laboratory, which grows 4 times faster.» Also having forgotten that Cannabis growers inject ecstasy into cannabis roots. To grow their plants faster, "weed," as the journalist pronounces it (likely someone from Champagne or Alsace), would therefore be a tampered version of cannabis that GROWS 4 TIMES FASTER AND IS INVADING FRANCE.

Gentlemen journalists, be serious, earn your profession, and do your research. Weed, as almost everyone knows, refers to dried cannabis flowers, as opposed to resin (our good old French-cut hash) and concentrates, which are the result of an extraction with or without solvents (for hash, without solvents).

What you seem to want to incriminate resembles more to autoflowering varieties (which flower at a fixed time regardless of light exposure), or to indoor cultivation which attempts to recreate outdoor conditions and also allows for maximizing each cultivation parameter, and therefore plant growth (as is the case with more and more strawberry farmers today).

You also state later that the development of indoor methods resulted in the seizure of 160,000 feet by the Police in 2015. The cause-and-effect link is established, but another is suggested to you.

The French prohibition of cannabis currently prevents the cultivation, possession, and sale of cannabis. However, demand is high, and supply is met by criminal networks. For this, they either import cannabis from producing countries, notably The resin that essentially comes from Morocco, either they choose «local» to minimize risks (no alter-globalization in that).

The person not wanting to buy on the black market is increasingly thinking the same way today and prefers to have one less closet to put their clothes in.

Are you following us? The prerequisite for this flood of indoor [cultivation] is therefore not the development of a cultivation method, but the failure of prohibition, which has now been surpassed by consumption figures in France, by trafficking, and by the countries surrounding us.

Health and Dangers

It almost could have been the most interesting moment of the report, but it's so biased that it won't help anyone understand the health issues surrounding cannabis.

In total disregard of therapeutic studies on cannabis, you moreover say «this new drug is extremely dangerous for health and can prove fatal for some consumers.» Okay, why not. But are we talking about cannabis or synthetic cannabis ?

Far be it from us to deny the potential dangers of cannabis; we discuss them regularly here on the youth, on the long-term consumption, on synthetic products, etc… But present us with figures, studies, rather than simply stating that cannabis kills.

Same for Prof. Alvarez, who suspects cardiac events led to death in people consuming cannabis. I'm pretty sure these people were also drinking soda. So, was it the soda or the cannabis that killed them? What cannabis? What was their consumption level? What was their lifestyle? Did they consume other drugs? Such a serious subject really deserves more information to be treated seriously.

You would do a good job of prevention (okay, okay, it's not your goal, but at least it's said) if research were cited. Here, you do the opposite. Your assertion is so huge that the average reaction will be to say: «That's nonsense, it's not possible, you don't die from cannabis,» leaving no room for the possible dangers of the substance.

Same goes for schizophrenia. Was the person already schizophrenic before their use? Did cannabis reveal a pre-existing condition? Should cannabis be banned because of this? Pregnant women are advised against going on rollercoasters; that doesn't mean amusement parks are shut down for everyone. Same for alcohol. People with liver failure shouldn't drink alcohol. It's better they know that. But that doesn't stop us from selling wine.

And that's without even mentioning the complete omission of medical uses of cannabis. Oh yes, I had forgotten, of course, France isn't first in that.

In detail

To get into the technical aspects, The effects of weed would be stronger than hashish.. This statement is complicated to defend. Generally, weed (a new word for your next report 😉) contains much lower levels than resin. Simply because resin is the result of an extraction that has gotten rid of the plant matter to keep only the plant's trichomes.

Some strains of marijuana are very potent, whereas diluted hashish will have very low THC levels. In a legal market, hashish will inevitably be more potent than marijuana, with THC levels of 40%, balanced by nearly equivalent levels of CBD.

As for the effects, weed with a THC-to-CBD ratio of 10:1 will clearly be more psychoactive than hash with a 4:1 ratio or hash cut with paraffin. This might explain it.

It's strange, moreover, that the drug test seen in one of the sequences only screens for THC, and not at least for CBD, CBN, CBG, and CBC, which is what any cannabinoid test does today. Too complicated to explain to your viewers?

And to finish

«The effects of cannabis are often underestimated, especially among young people. We couldn't agree more with your statement. However, if you watched your report, you are not advancing the issue.

Most people who look for information about cannabis do so because they are in a position where they fear their own use, or that of their child, a loved one, etc. Prohibitionist fear has been doing damage in France since the 1970s, and there is a lot of information about cannabis.

The impression left by your report places you directly behind this prohibitionist barrier. You want to scare.

From the beeswax mask of Fantomas, to Kevin (black hands, was that intentional to show?), to the «impressive hunting trophies» of the Guardia Civil (why not in France since we are the champions of cannabis according to your title?), your report serves the same meals as Mr. Debré, the Academy of Pharmacy, and my grandmother if she knew that cannabis existed.

Courage is the word that's been in vogue since Apple released wireless earbuds., Wouldn't it have been better to explain why France is in this situation, regardless of your answer to that question? What do people use cannabis for today? What precautions should be taken? Why can cannabis be dangerous? Why might it not be?

The promotion of cannabis is prohibited in France, but the duty of truth should be an obligation.