Question:
I was just reading in the "Berkeley Guides - Europe on the Loose" abouttravel in Amsterdam. They devoted a paragraph to the smoking coffeeshops there. Is it really legal to smake marajuana in Amsterdam, or isit just so prevalent that the authorities don't do anything about it? Any responses/comments appreciated.

Answer: It is technically against the law but the government made adeliberate decision to enforce the rules against "hard"drugs (heroin etc.) while not hassling users of softdrugs (marijuana, hash) as long as they were not causingproblems. There is an interesting movie about theseDutch policies called "Sex, Drugs, and Freedom".The Dutch government does not approve of the use ofany kind of drugs, but they realize soft drug useis relatively harmless and will exist whether theytry to stop it or not, so they direct their resourcesinto areas they think are more worthwhile.