September
2007 - Sham consultation excercise Drugs, our community,
your say
The
government finally gave up pretending to have an evidence
based drugs policy and resorted to a PR campaign of
sham consultations Drugs, our community, your say
July
2007 - Talk to
Frank Cannabis information
Updated
critiqe
June
2007- Cannabis explained Withdrawn
27th
June (cannaprag campaign blog)
May
2007 - Cannabis explained
One
of the occasional booklets issued to FRANK supporters
known as "Action updates", this one was
issued on May 25th.
Hard
to know where to begin with this one, but it gets
off to a good start with what it thinks is a picture
of cannabis leaves:
The
rest of the publication is just as badly informed.
Cannabis explained
- a critique.
January 2007 - Contamination alert
Following
the efforts of UKCIA and other activists sites to
raise awareness of the "grit weed" issue
Frank finally carried a health warning from the department
of Health about the contamination. This was some six
months after it became a widespread issue (see here).
The
advice clearly comes from the department of Health
rather than the Frank advertising team, it's written
in DoH language rather than Franks annoying "yoof
speak". Of course, it doesn't explain that the
contamination was caused by the governments prohibition
policy (the Keymer raids of summer 2006) and mixes
the warning with the "don't use" message.
But it does reluctantly accept that it is an additional
risk above and beyond anything pure cannabis can pose.
However,
this information isn't where you would expect to find
it, it's in the "what's new" section linked
from the front page, but it's not on the cannabis
information page.
It's
also wrong - it says about the grit weed "e.g.
finding grittiness when rubbed between moistened fingers".
This just shows they haven't actually researched the
situation, the beads are too small to feel with your
fingers. Rubbing the bud with a wet finger then sucking
it and feeling the beads grind in your teeth is the
only way to do it.
They
don't give the simple advice that's needed in a clear
"user friendly" way - which is
Don't
sell grit weed
Don't buy grit weed
Don't smoke grit weed
And
using contamination caused by the governments actions
as a reason not to use cannabis is sadly typical.
DoH contamination
alert
November
2006 - A new look
Frank
had a makeover towards the end of 2006 with some new
features being added. However, the front page has
a flash image that can take over a minute to load
(on an 8M broadband running Firefox and Win2K for
the technical minded). When it does load you get a
confusing and amateur looking kaleidoscope of letters,
the ABC of drugs, which used to be a simple menu.
Other
features added include "Yourspace" - a cunning
reference there to the popular "myspace - but
which turns out to be a postcard design page, so you
can send anti drug messages to your mates. Hmmm....
A
section called "sharing experiences" has
some anti drug stories, but doesn't seem to be growing
very fast. The stories claim to be from real people,
they just happen to be "on message".
The
cannabis information is much as before, tidied up
a little but no more useful.
"Oh
no, the Stoners are coming" seems to have gone.
All
in all, visually a bit better, but doesn't seem to
work very well - at least as far as loading the front
page goes.
October
2006 - The Brain Warehouse
Set in some kind of shop we see people looking at different types
of brain for sale. Using fisheye lens filming techniques
we see a salesman selling a new brain to customers
(in a psychotically scary way).
For some reason the young customer is offered a brain which doesn't
cause puking, then we hear a backgound announcement
about paranoia reduction. Then we get to the "freakout
free X50" brain...
The aim of the advert is to try to dissuade kids from using cannabis,
as such this is an important issue which must be treated
in a serious and honest way, so it's very regrettable
that the advert includes a claim which is knowingly
untrue
Frank's voice over makes the case by prefixing the message "With
stronger strains than ever before". By doing
this, Frank is spreading the myth put about by some
of the gutter tabloid press about highly potent "skunk".
That statement simply isn't true, there has always
been strong cannabis, it is not "stronger than
ever before".
So
one statement of "fact" in the advert is
known to be untrue. If we know Frank tells lies, why
believe anything he says?
But as always, Frank is only telling a part of the story. The true
danger is prohibition and the total lack of control
over the supply side. But of course, Frank can't tell
the whole truth, he works for the government.
Watch
the Talk to Frank "Brain warehouse" advert
August
2006 - Oh no, the stoners are coming
Frank
launches "Dopedash", an online game in which
you walk around a park trying to avoid people offering
you cannabis. If you eat the hamburgers that pop up,
you get told cannabis gives you "hangar pangs"
called the munchies. You're given two other snippets
of anti cannabis factoids: Cannabis can "mess
up your vision and even give you hallucinations"
and "cannabis can make you uncoordinated",
the game then ends as the straight/stoned meter at
the top hits "stoned". Frank has never been
to happy telling the truth about cannabis, this game
has set a new low however.
Play
"Dopedash"
(this link no longer works, "dopedash" was
scrapped
.
January 2006 - Frank on skunk
Towards
the end of 2005 the Frank site was quietly updated
with apparently a cut-and-paste addition to its cannabis
information with some interesting, if slightly wrong,
information
Frank on cannabis version 3
December
2005 - Dealer amounts?
Before
the 2005 general election, the government introduced
a bill to Parliament where it intended to set limits
for possession of drugs, above which a court would
presume an intention to supply. At the start of December they announced what they were thinking
about as a limit for cannabis, which was proposed
as being 4 ounces or resin and 0.5 Kg of "leaf". This
is an example of the already harmful and ineffective
laws supposedly governing the cannabis trade growing
even more dangerous. Not only does it add more confusion
and disrepute to the mess that is the UK's drugs policy,
but now you don't have to have the intention of committing
a "crime", or actually commit the "crime"
in order to be imprisoned for several years.
The Limits Of Possession
This
was quetly dropped in October 2006 as unworkable.
July
2005 - Drug war a total failure shock!
The
British government has been aware of the fact that
the so-called "war on drugs" that this country has
been waging at huge cost for the past 30 or so years
has been a total and utter failure.
The
report, written in 2003, shows the government is fully
aware of the futile nature of its prohibition policy,
yet it seems determined to dig its way out of the
hole it's created.
Read
the SU Drugs project report here (PDF format)
Read
UKCIA's open letter
to Paul Goggins MP
December
2004 - HIT - Know Cannabis
Talk
to Frank promotes a website from the HIT drugs advice
agency. The aim of "Know Cannabis" is to
try to get heavy users to think about their cannabis
use and to encourage them to cut down or stop, as
such the tone is sadly predictable and much of the
information seems designed to reflect the government's
agenda rather than a true harm reduction approach
- something HIT are usually rightly famous for.
The
most serious issue with the information provided by
"Know Cannabis" is the way it ignores the
issue of safer smoking - according to HIT cannabis
use means smoking with tobacco and cannabis use make
quitting tobacco harder. Some of the advice given
is almost irresponsible.
UKCIA examimes the HIT "Know Cannabis" website
here
October
2004 - which tribe do you belong to?
Talk
to Frank has a go at defining youth subcultures. Having
carried out extensive market research the advertising
executives at Frank have defined the "top ten"
tribes in the UK as being:
Geeks,
Sporties, Skaters, Trendies, Townies, Moshers, Indies,
Goths, Gangsters and Scallies -Frank doesn't seem
to have heard of "Chavs" and seems to think
"moshers" are something from 1990's American
movies.
It
also advises Moshers that they can "withstand
exposure to loud noise without going deaf", which
is, of course, stupid advice.
The
basic message the advertising agency is trying to
get across is "don't let your mates talk you
into taking drugs", which is good advice, but
they really should get out more.
September
2004 - Talk about cannabis
Talk
to Frank issued a leaflet aimed at school kids, supposedly
of quotes from real teenagers about their cannabis
experiences. Although compromised by the need to get
the legal point across without criticism, it does
contain some good information.
UKCIA summary of "Talk about cannabis"
July
2004 - Hayzy days
The
mentor foundation produced a leaflet aimed at kids,
warning of the dangers of cannabis. Whereas UKCIA
supports the aims of the leaflet - to inform kids
- the use of outdated stereo-types and the underlaying
message of Hayzy dayz devalued the leaflet.
UKCIA summary of Hayzy Dayz leaflet
UKCIA Hayzy Dayz sequel
Mentor foundation here
June
2004 - Is the Government getting the right advice?
The
Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs is the Government's
statutory independent advisory body.A campaign group
called PALAD is concerned that the ACMD is not following
Governmental codes of practise or guidelines and failing
to fulfil their duty. The resulting laws encourage
more harmful drug use rather than less - surely not
the aim of British drug policy? Read a summary
of the evidence with links to a full report kindly
sent to UKCIA by PALAD.
January
2004 - "Cannabis is still illegal"
Talk
to Frank is issuing leaflets in an attempt to explain
the new regime for cannabis. Anyone who remembers
the "Heroin screws you up" campaign of the
early 80's will groan at Franks lack of originality.
Talk to Frank's cannabis leaflets:
Cannabis info
- "Going down" and
Drugs - What
the law says...and what this means for you - both
in pdf format.
December 2003 - Cannabis advice - comments
UKCIA
reviews the updated Cannabis
information given on "Talk to frank".
This updates the original review.which you can see
here from June 2003
Autumn/Winter 2003 - Unpure!
"Unpure hash" - Talk to Frank changes his advice regarding
the purity of cannabis and joins ukcia in warning
about "Soapbar".
June
2003
UKCIA open letter to Frank. Also UKCIA reviews the
Cannabis information given
on "Talk to frank" reviewed.
Who is Frank?
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