There does seem to be some connection between using cannabis and disturbance to the reproductive system. The jury is still out but if Wayne Hall says this it is likely to be true. He is not some one I would usually pray in aid. The highest risk seems to be in pre pubertal boys, precisely the age when the mental harms of cannabis is most worrying. The pretence that none of this matters IS pretence. Think how long it took for the consequences of tobacco use to be widely accepted and just how strong were the representations of tobacco users to refute the harms. The later remarks from Lindesmith are subtly different. Wise to remember that Lindesmith promoted liberalisation/legalisation.
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Male fertility:
Do cannabis or THC have a negative influence on sex hormones and sperms?

Answers:

Wayne Hall, Nadia Solowij & Jim Lemon
High doses of THC probably disturb the male and female reproductive systems in animals. They reduce secretion of testosterone, and hence reducing sperm production, motility, and viability in males. It is uncertain whether these effects also occur in humans. Studies in humans have produced both positive and negative evidence of an effect of cannabinoids on testosterone, for reasons that are not well understood. Hollister has argued that the reductions in testosterone and sperm production observed in the positive studies are probably of “little consequence in adults”, although he conceded that they could be of “major importance in the prepubertal male who may use cannabis.” The possible effects of cannabis use on testosterone and spermatogenesis may be most relevant to males whose fertility is already impaired for other reasons, e.g. a low sperm count.
(Please note: This text has been taken from a scientific article. Some sentences have been changed to improve understandability.)
Hall W, Solowij N, Lemon J. The Health and Psychological Consequences of Cannabis Use. National Drug Strategy Monograph Series No. 25. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service, 1994.

Laura Murphy
In human males, cannabis smoking has been shown to decrease blood levels of the three hormones LH, FSH, and testosterone. Moreover, an increased incidence of low sperm count has been reported in men who were heavy marijuana smokers. Other studies did not find measurable differences in men who were light or heavy marijuana users. Acute THC treatment produces a consistent and significant dose- and time-related decrease in LH and testosterone levels in male rodents. In the male rhesus monkey, an acute dose of THC produced a 65% reduction in blood testosterone levels by 60 min of treatment that lasted for approximately 24 hr.
(Please note: This text has been taken from a scientific text. Some sentences have been changed to improve understandability.)
Murphy L. Hormonal system and reproduction. In: Grotenhermen F, Russo E, eds. Grotenhermen, F., Russo, E. (eds.): Cannabis and cannabinoids. Pharmacology, toxicology, and therapeutic potential. Haworth Press, Binghamton/New York 2001, in press.

Lynn Zimmer & John Morgan
By giving large doses of THC to animals, researchers have produced appreciable effects on sex hormone levels. However, the effects vary from one study to another, depending on the dose and timing of administration. When effects occur, they are temporary. (…) In neither male nor female animals have researchers produced permanent harm to reproductive function from either acute or chronic marijuana administration. (…) There is no convincing evidence of infertility related to marijuana consumption in humans. There are no epidemiological studies showing that men who use marijuana have higher rates of infertility than men who do not. Nor is there evidence of diminished reproductive capacity among men in countries where marijuana use is common. It is possible that marijuana could cause infertility in men who already have low sperm counts, However, it is likely that regular marijuana users develop tolerance to marijuana’s hormonal effects. (…) Marijuana has neither a masculinizing effect in females nor a feminizing effects in males.
Zimmer L, Morgan JP. Marijuana Myths Marijuana Facts. A review of the scientific evidence. New York/San Francisco: The Lindesmith Center, 1997.

House of Lords
Animal experiments have shown that cannabinoids cause alterations in both male and female sexual hormones; but there is no evidence that cannabis adversely affects human fertility, or that it causes chromosomal or genetic damage.
House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology. Cannabis. The scientific and medical evidence. London: The Stationery Office, 1998.

So, if there is ‘no evidence that cannabis adversely affects human fertility, or that it causes chromosomal or genetic damage’ why say it causes boys to become more feminine? Shock tactics, methinks. Why not start writing for The Daily Mail and just get it all out of your system, Mr Raynes.

There’s some information on this website about Mr Raynes you may find interesting (it’s not my site, by the way):

http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/2008/03/24/talking-about-cannabis-the-scientology-link/

“Think how long it took for the consequences of tobacco use to be widely accepted and just how strong were the representations of tobacco users to refute the harms.”

Rubbish, the harms of tobacco use were in fact very quickly recognized once large-scale studies demonstrated, unequivocally, that it causes lung cancer.

Smoking behaviour took longer to change because, well, people are quick thick, and tobacco is addictive. But experts accepted that tobacco causes lung cancer very rapidly once the proof came in.

Such proof is simply not available for cannabis as yet. The main concern over cannabis, among serious people, is that heavy use may raise the risk of psychotic disorders in some people (especially young people). The evidence here is quite compelling – although not proof, it’s enough to convince me that smoking cannabis at a young age is a bad idea and I wouldn’t want my kids smoking the stuff (if I had any).

I respectfully suggest that you focus your efforts on the psychosis angle because talking about “a cannabis personality… Users become inflexible, can’t plan their days properly, cant take criticisma and feel misunderstood.” and feminization of boys is making you look a little silly.

Here’s some more info on the NDPA

http://johnnyvoid.wordpress.com/2008/03/02/national-drug-prevention-alliance-funded-by-child-abusers/

“And it’s the Drug Free America Foundation who paid the NDPA 30 grand to organise a conference for them in London.

Ambassador Mel Sembler and wife Betty Sembler are the patrons of DFAF who include amongst their official advisors such enlightened souls as election fix-it man Jeb Bush.

In the 80’s the Semblers founded the Straight programme. Here’s what Fox News had to say about them in a piece that was pulled within a week of being published:

Samantha Monroe was 12 years old in 1981 when her parents enrolled her in the Sarasota, Fla., branch of Straight Inc., an aggressive drub rehab center for teens.

Barely a teen, Samantha also had no history of drug abuse. But she spent the next two years of her life Straight Inc. She was beaten, starved and denied toilet privileges for days on end. She describes her “humble pants,” a punishment that forced her to wear the same pants for six weeks at a time. Because she was allowed just one shower a week, the pants often filled with feces, urine and menstrual blood. Often she was confined to her closet for days. She gnawed through her jaw during those “timeout” sessions, hoping she’d bleed to death.

She says that after she was raped by a male counselor, “the wonderful state of Florida paid for and forced me to have an abortion.”

She was far from alone in her experiences. The piece goes on to say:

Soon enough, Straight’s tactics caught up to it in the courts, if not with its political cheerleaders. A college student won a false imprisonment claim of $220,000 in 1983, and another claim cost Straight, Inc. $721,000 in 1990. A Straight, Inc. spin-off called “Kids of North Jersey” settled a $4.5 million abuse claim in 2000. Straight chapters across the country began to shut down, culminating with the last branch in Atlanta closing in 1993.”