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Absinthe could be legalised in France after 100-year ban

Absinthe, the mind-bending green spirit said to have inspired Vincent van Gogh, could be legalised in France almost a century after being deemed a public menace.

The drink's powers were notorious in late 19th-Century Paris among bohemian artists and writers. Many swore it expanded consciousness and enhanced creativity, dubbing it the Green Fairy.

Van Gogh is said to have created Starry Night under its influence and it has been suggested it played a part in him cutting off one of his ears.

But in 1915, the French authorities declared it the scourge of society and banned it, in part due to fears it would knock out French forces in the First World War....

Read entire article at Telegraph (UK)