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Tag: recreational marijuana

  • Despite Legalization, Canada’s Pot Black Market Continues To Thrive

    Despite Legalization, Canada’s Pot Black Market Continues To Thrive

    Officials are hoping that dealers on the illegal market will be priced out.

    Last week Canada became only the second country in the world to legalize recreational marijuana, but the black market for pot is continuing to thrive as customers seek out products that they can’t buy legally, including edibles, and sellers push back on government intervention in their industry. 

    “We’ll keep selling what we are selling,” Don Briere, the owner of an illegal Vancouver pot shop, told The New York Times. Briere sells edibles and other products that are currently illegal under the national law, which only allows for the sale of fresh or dried cannabis, seeds, plants and oil. 

    Canada—especially Vancouver—has long had a thriving illicit marijuana industry, worth an estimated 5.3 billion Canadian dollars each year.

    One of the aims of legalization was to close the illegal shops that are common in cities like Vancouver. 

    However, Briere and other industry insiders object on principle. “The government taking over the cannabis trade is like asking a farmer to build airplanes,” he said. He’s not alone. In Vancouver, hundreds of illegal shops remain open.

    At a lower level, street dealers try to entice customers by offering services like delivery and selling joints at a two-for-one price. Some customers who were frustrated that legal stores ran out of product went back to their illicit contacts. 

    “Definitely going to use my dealer from now on his business is going way up because of your crappy service,” one frustrated customer wrote on Twitter.

    Despite the disregard for the law, Canadian law enforcement isn’t likely to step up consequences for people who are selling illegally. They have their hands full dealing with more pressing issues, including fentanyl overdoses, said Chief Constable Del Manak, police chief of Victoria and president of the British Columbia Association of Chiefs of Police.

    However, this doesn’t mean that authorities are oblivious to the fact that the illegal market still exists. “It is naïve to think that just because cannabis is legalized, the criminal will walk away from a highly lucrative industry,” said Del Manak. 

    Mike Farnworth, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, said that the government is hoping that over time the legal market will undermine the demand for illegal sales. “It’s a very Canadian way of doing things,” he said. “It won’t happen overnight.”

    Farnworth added that there won’t be any police raids with “guns and head-bashing.”

    However, in Toronto, police raided five illegal pot shops after the legalization law was passed. Others have voluntarily closed, showing that the government’s approach might be working. Even Briere has shuttered some of his stores across the country and is applying for licenses for the remaining stores. 

    Officials are also hoping that dealers on the illegal market will be priced out. Today, marijuana on the street costs about one-third of what it did five years ago, making it less lucrative for dealers.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Canadian Pot Companies Use Legal Gray Areas To Promote Product

    Canadian Pot Companies Use Legal Gray Areas To Promote Product

    The companies are not allowed to promote their product with testimonials, glamorous images or mascots, according to Bill C-45.

    As Canada attempts to contend—with varying degrees of success—with the massive demand for cannabis after the country legalized recreational marijuana on Oct. 17, various entrepreneurs have leapt into the fray to connect consumers with product in creative ways.

    Among these is the delivery start-up Eddy Delivery, which is offering a unique promotional campaign to bring visitors to its website. The company offered to deliver free snacks to those who add their information to its mailing list, and add their names to a grand prize drawing for a visit to a licensed cannabis production facility.

    The campaign is intended to help Eddy add delivery of recreational marijuana to its current service, which delivers medical marijuana. 

    Eddy’s website states that customers who sign up for its service would be added to a delivery list, which will be served with free snacks (while supplies lasted) on the first day of legal recreational marijuana sales.

    Those who signed up could increase their chances for a windfall of munchies by sharing the information and tagging friends on Instagram. Participants were also entered into a random drawing for a “Lucky Green Ticket,” which would grant four winners a tour of a licensed cultivation facility—or “local weed factory.” 

    The ultimate goal for Eddy is to branch into recreational cannabis delivery, though it will have to overcome considerable hurdles set in place by the legalization legislation.

    As High Times noted, prospective cannabis companies are not allowed to promote their product with testimonials or mascots, but the specifics of this rule are—according to Scott Hulbert, managing director of the promotional products company Ideavation—”really gray.”

    “It’s a moving target, as far as legalities, restrictions and advertising opportunities,” said Hulbert. “Will it be like tobacco, which is very restricted in its advertising, or alcohol, which has been given more of a carte blanche? We just don’t know.”

    Eddy CEO Ryan Dempsey echoed Hulbert’s understanding of the current bill. “They recently changed regulations to allow Ontario retail stores to be run by private companies,” he said. “They’re still also considering changes for other rules, such as private e-commerce and delivery.”

    As for Eddy’s chances of entering the recreational market, Dempsey said, “Nothing definite at this point, but we’re optimistic.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Legal Marijuana Linked To Rise In Car Crashes

    Legal Marijuana Linked To Rise In Car Crashes

    Legalizing marijuana isn’t completely harmless, according to a pair of new studies.

    Car crashes went up by about 6% in states that have legalized recreational marijuana, a couple of new studies found. Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington have seen an increase in insurance claims for collisions, according to separate studies by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the Highway Loss Data Institute.

    The institutes presented their research at the Combating Alcohol- and Drug-Impaired Driving Summit on Thursday.

    The Highway Loss Data Institute focused on claims between 2012 and October 2017, comparing the results to four illegal states, including Idaho, Montana, Utah, and Wyoming. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety observed a 5.2% increase in police-reported crashes after legalization in Colorado, Oregon, and Washington.

    “States exploring legalizing marijuana should consider this effect on highway safety,” said David Harkey, president of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and Highway Loss Data Institute.

    The findings are important as the tide is increasingly turning to favor the legalization of marijuana. Nine states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana, and Michigan and North Dakota are holding a vote on the issue next month. Canada has legalized it as well.

    FIguring out who is or isn’t impaired by marijuana while driving is also a challenge, the institutes acknowledge. Marijuana’s active ingredient, THC, can remain detectable in a person for as long as 30 days—long after the high has worn off. Currently, there isn’t a reliable method to determine whether someone is currently high. But according to the studies, it’s clear that marijuana has some effect on driving ability.

    “Despite the difficulty of isolating the specific effects of marijuana impairment on crash risk, the evidence is growing that legalizing its use increases crashes,” Harkey said.

    The Center for Medical Cannabis Research at the University of California San Diego is undertaking studies to better understand the effects of marijuana on driving as well as methods to more reliably detect if a driver is currently under the influence.

    Methods now used by law enforcement are notoriously unreliable, and as a result field sobriety tests for marijuana cannot be used as evidence in some cases.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • NYC Welcomes Public To Marijuana "Listening Sessions"

    NYC Welcomes Public To Marijuana "Listening Sessions"

    The public’s feedback will help state officials draft legislation to legalize marijuana in New York.

    New York is hosting “listening sessions” across the state to gather the public’s input on marijuana legalization.

    The Regulated Marijuana Listening Sessions will run from September to mid-October across New York state, as Governor Andrew Cuomo announced in August.

    “Community input is critical as we work to draft balanced and comprehensive legislation on a regulated marijuana program in New York,” Cuomo said at the time.

    A July report commissioned by Cuomo—the Assessment of the Potential Impact of Regulated Marijuana in New York State—concluded that the positive impacts of a regulated marijuana market outweigh the possible negative impacts, according to a press release issued in August by the governor’s office.

    The feedback from the public will inform the Regulated Marijuana Workgroup, which will draft legislation to legalize marijuana in New York, that will be considered by the state legislature in the upcoming session.

    “The multi-agency report identified the benefits of a regulated marijuana market, and with these listening sessions we are taking another important step to develop a model program for New York. We look forward to hearing what New Yorkers in every corner of the state have to say,” said Cuomo.

    New York currently has a medical marijuana program in place, albeit with several limitations. Home cultivation, smokable medical marijuana, and edible products are not allowed under the program.

    The report—which assessed the impact of a legal marijuana system in New York from a health, economic, public safety and criminal justice perspective—also stated that potential areas of concern can be mitigated through regulation and public education.

    “Input from communities in every region of the state is an essential part of our approach to a regulated marijuana program,” said Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul in August. “With a thoughtful process, New York is moving forward to craft a policy that will ensure continued progress across our state.”

    The remaining listening sessions are listed below:

    Sept. 26 – Staten Island

    Sept. 27 – Long Island

    Oct. 1 – Newburgh

    Oct. 2 – Binghamton

    Oct. 3 – Buffalo

    Oct. 4 – Rochester

    Oct. 9 – Syracuse

    Oct. 10 – Utica

    Oct. 11 – Watertown

    For more information on locations and pre-registration, visit the New York state website.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Elon Musk's Apparent Pot-Smoking Sparks Backlash

    Elon Musk's Apparent Pot-Smoking Sparks Backlash

    An ex-Tesla employee who was reportedly fired after testing positive for THC says seeing Musk smoke pot was “like a slap in the face.”

    In a rambling two-hour conversation on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Tesla founder Elon Musk apparently toked a spliff during the live show, a move that fed concerns about his increasingly erratic behavior.

    The long-winded chat between the business magnate and the comedian covered everything from robots to web presence, but it was a short exchange about cannabis near the end of the show that drew the most attention. 

    “Is that a joint, or is it a cigar?” Musk asked when Rogan pulled out the ganja. “It’s marijuana inside of tobacco,” the host replied, before asking if Musk had ever tried it.

    “Yeah, I think I tried one once,” he said. Rogan seemed skeptical, and asked if stockholders prevented him from toking.

    “I mean, it’s legal right?” Musk asked. “It’s totally legal,” Rogan said. (The show tapes in California.) 

    To some, the move may have seemed hypocritical, since Tesla drug tests at least some of its employees, according to Market Watch.

    Crystal Guardado, a former Tesla employee, told Bloomberg News that she was fired from the company after testing positive for THC.

    “It was just like a slap in the face to me and my son,” she said. “Elon Musk is just smoking it out in the open, knowing that he uses his very vague drug policy as a way to fire people that are a threat to him.”

    But even if he didn’t have to pass a drug test, there seems to have been some consequences for the CEO. 

    One day after the show, Tesla stock went down 9%, closing at 6%, according to Vox. This may not have been just about the on-air pot use, though, as the company generally suffered a trying week. 

    That same day, two top executives announced their departures, continuing the string of turnovers. Also on Friday, reports began surfacing that the Air Force had begun looking into the alleged post use. 

    Earlier this year, Musk sparked speculation about his love for cannabis when he tweeted about taking the company private at $420 a share. Not long after, though, he specifically shot down the idea of cannabis use and dismissed any efforts to read into the number.

    “It seemed like better karma at $420 than at $419,” he told the New York Times. “But I was not on weed, to be clear. Weed is not helpful for productivity. There’s a reason for the word ‘stoned.’ You just sit there like a stone on weed.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Canadians More Worried About Trump Than Legal Marijuana

    Canadians More Worried About Trump Than Legal Marijuana

    A new survey explored Canadians’ feelings on topics ranging from Trump and national health care to housing, climate change, and cannabis legalization.

    When it comes to the issues that worry Canadians, the impending legalization of marijuana is keeping fewer citizens awake at night than Donald Trump.

    That’s among the findings from a new poll from Abacus Data, which surveyed 1,500 Canadians about their political choices and concerns as they approach the 2019 federal election.

    Nearly half of participants said that they were “extremely concerned” about the U.S. president, while just 18% gave the same response about cannabis legalization. 

    Abacus Data conducted the survey online with 1,500 Canadians aged 18 and over from August 15 to 20, 2018. In regard to the federal election, respondents echoed statistics recorded earlier this year, with Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party netting 37% of the potential vote and Conservatives earning 33% of the vote.

    Trudeau was viewed in a positive light by 43% of participants, and 41% believed that the country was moving in what they viewed as the right direction.

    In regard to political issues concerning Canadians, Abacus Data listed nine topics, ranging from Trump and national health care to housing, climate change, border crossings and cannabis legalization.

    Responses were somewhat varied according to demographic and political affiliation: voters under the age of 45 listed climate change and housing affordability among their top concerns, while those over 45 ranked health care and affordable housing as second and third of their most pressing issues.

    Climate change and health care also saw high numbers from liberal voters, while conservatives leaned towards border crossing and debt among their top three concerns.

    However, there were two factors which received a near-unanimous response across age and party lines: Donald Trump was listed as the top concern for voters both under and over 45, as well as with liberals and supporters of the New Democratic Party (NDP).

    Trump also topped lists for voters in major cities and smaller communities, and among respondents from specific territories like Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta. Only conservative voters listed Trump at a lower position on their lists, where he placed 5th, while border crossing was given as their most pressing concern.

    Demographics were also largely in agreement in regard to cannabis legalization, which was listed last among the nine issues for voters under and over 45 years of age, liberals and NDP voters, big city residents and those in smaller communities.

    Again, conservatives placed cannabis higher than other groups, but even in that demographic, it was ranked relatively low at 6th out of nine, below health care, housing and even Trump.

    As High Times noted, the response to cannabis legalization echoed similar results from polls in 2017 that found that 68% of adults favored legalization, and in 2018, where 42% of adults voted in the positive for legalization.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • New York Takes Big Step Towards Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

    New York Takes Big Step Towards Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

    Governor Cuomo’s big move could pave the way for New York to become the 10th US state to legalize recreational marijuana.

    Governor Andrew Cuomo made a big step towards legalizing marijuana for adult use on Thursday as he pulled together a group to write the bill, Vox reports.

    The proposal is based on the recommendations of New York’s Department of Health regarding the legalization and regulation of marijuana.

    “As we work to implement the report’s recommendations through legislation, we must thoroughly consider all aspects of a regulated marijuana program, including its impact on public health, criminal justice and State revenue, and mitigate any potential risks associated with it,” wrote Cuomo in a statement.

    Heading up the group writing the bill is Alphonso David, counsel to the governor, who is getting feedback from officials as well as a panel including public safety, public health, and economic experts. If the state’s legislature is satisfied with the resulting bill, they will sign it into law and make New York officially the tenth state to legalize recreational marijuana.

    Cuomo’s proposal is a welcome one to the New York Health Department. In a 75-page report, the department concluded that legalization would be a net positive.

    “Numerous [New York state] agencies and subject matter experts in the fields of public health, mental health, substance use, public safety, transportation, and economics worked in developing this assessment,” officials wrote in the report. “No insurmountable obstacles to regulation of marijuana were raised.”

    The report also backed up key points that marijuana legalization advocates have extolled for decades: the criminalization of marijuana has done nothing to stem its use, marijuana law disproportionately targets “low-income communities of color,” and that the state would not only be able to protect consumers with regulations but reap huge tax revenues as well. The report estimates this amount to be anywhere from $248.1 million to $677.7 million a year.

    However, the report also makes sure to mention the precautions the state should take in legalizing, including remaining vigilant of the effects of usage among its citizens.

    “A regulated marijuana program should monitor and document patterns of use to evaluate the impact of legalization on use,” the report outlined.

    It also warned of the risks of marijuana, including addiction and driving while impaired.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Widow Denied Benefits Because Husband Used Pot

    Widow Denied Benefits Because Husband Used Pot

    “I am frustrated with the system that is saying because he smoked a legal substance, we are going to take away your benefits from you and your kids.”

    The widow of a Colorado worker killed in a ski lift accident is being denied half of the workers’ compensation benefits that she would normally be entitled to because her husband had THC in his system, despite the fact that recreational marijuana use is legal in the state. 

    “I’m scared, and I have no idea how we are going to make it,” Erika Lee told The Denver Channel. “We don’t know if we will get any money, so I’m just looking now at how to survive.”  

    Lee’s husband Adam was working as an electrician at a ski area when he was killed on the job in December. A toxicology report showed that Adam had high levels of THC in his system. However, current testing is not able to say whether he was impaired at the time, or had just used marijuana recently. 

    Still, Colorado state law allows employers to cut benefits by half if toxicology reports show drugs in a worker’s system at the time of death. This is true even for marijuana, which is legal to use for medical and recreational purposes in Colorado. Lee says that this means her family—including the couple’s children—will receive $800 less per month than they were expecting. 

    “I am frustrated with the system that is saying because he smoked a legal substance, we are going to take away your benefits from you and your kids,” Lee said.

    Even in states like Colorado where marijuana use is legalized, there continue to be grey areas in the policies around cannabis. This is especially true for workers, who have to follow their employer’s policy as well as state law.

    In fact, workers can still be legally fired for using cannabis, even though it is legal in the state. 

    “This is heartbreaking, and I think this should be a message to marijuana consumers in Colorado,” said Brian Vicente, a Colorado attorney who helped legalize marijuana in the state back in 2012. “We voters spoke loudly and said marijuana should not be illegal for adults. Yet we still have some parts of the Colorado revised statutes that appear to penalize people who are using this substance.”

    Lee plans to appeal the reduction to her benefits. However, experts say that the ruling is currently in line with state law. 

    “As it stands now, with a positive test result, an employer has the right to reduce those benefits,” said John Sandberg, an administrative law judge with Colorado’s Department of Labor.  

    Lee hopes that by sharing her story other people who use cannabis will be more aware of the potential risks. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Massachusetts Could Become Marijuana Research Hub

    Massachusetts Could Become Marijuana Research Hub

    “My vision is Massachusetts could be the number one leading cannabis research state in the world,” said one public health official.

    After Massachusetts voterslegalized marijuana for adult use in 2016, sales of the drug are slated to start this July, leaving many Bay State businesses scrambling to position the state as a leader for marijuana research.

    “My vision is Massachusetts could be the number one leading cannabis research state in the world,” Marion McNabb, a doctor of public health and former global health worker who co-founded the Cannabis Community Care and Research Network in January 2017, told MassLive.

    The law that legalized cannabis in Massachusetts contains a research clause, which allows institutions like colleges, nonprofits and even corporations to buy or grow marijuana for research.

    This isn’t wholly unique—other states including Colorado and Pennsylvania have similar provisions—but with many biomedical and academic establishments in Massachusetts, people in the industry are hopeful that this will open the door to more research.

    “Given the investment in technology, the staggering array of biotech and scientific expertise, it virtually ensures Massachusetts will be an important player,” said Staci Gruber, director of MIND (Marijuana Investigations for Neuroscientific Discovery) at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts.

    However, while marijuana remains classified as a Schedule I drug under federal law, researching it will remain difficult even in states that have legalized the drug. Funding is one of the biggest challenges for marijuana research.

    It is very rare to get federal funding for marijuana research. And institutions like universities and medical schools are hesitant to fund research because they could risk losing their federal funding, especially under an administration that has been vocal in its opposition to marijuana.

    Currently, the only way to study marijuana with federal approval is to obtain samples that are specifically grown for research. However, Gruber said that these samples are different from what is being used by the vast majority of people who consume marijuana.

    “The products the government grows and oversees for research may not have any bearing on products patients are using in the real world,” said Gruber, who has been researching marijuana for 25 years.

    Even without a change in federal policy, the Massachusetts legalization of recreational pot will open new research opportunities, she said. For example, she can ask questions of people who buy cannabis at dispensaries and consume it, without providing the drug herself.

    She hopes that this will help advance marijuana policy, and take the nation out of a gridlock where quality research is prevented by the policy toward marijuana research. 

    “It’s difficult to change laws without empirically sound data, but you can’t do clinical trials that represent what most people are taking,” Gruber said.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Canada Moves Closer To Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

    Canada Moves Closer To Legalizing Recreational Marijuana

    Canada is taking a countrywide approach to avoid the issues that have unfolded in the United States, according to one Canadian senator.

    Canada is one step closer to becoming the first major global economy to legalize recreational marijuana, with the Senate passing a legalization plan on Thursday.

    The plan and all its amendments will now move on to the House, according to the BBC. If approved there, legal sales are expected to start within 12 weeks, meaning it could be legal to purchase marijuana in Canada by the end of the summer. 

    According to one Canadian Senator, Canada is taking a countrywide approach to avoid the issues that have unfolded in the United States, where cannabis is legal in some states but prohibited under federal law. 

    “We’ve very much learned from the early mistakes made by some U.S. states and other jurisdictions,” Canadian Sen. Tony Dean, an independent who sponsored the bill in the Senate, told USA Today. “We know we have a national challenge with cannabis. We have some of the highest youth consumption rates in the world, an illegal cannabis market worth upward of $6 billion annually, we know it’s harmful for kids, especially younger kids… and we had a government that wanted to tackle those issues.”

    Having a national system will allow the Canadian government to address these issues above board, according to Roy Bingham, the CEO and co-founder of cannabis data firm BDS Analytics.

    “Canada is creating a normal industry. What we have in the United States is a very abnormal industry,” he said. “In Canada, you see tobacco, alcohol, pharmaceutical companies, all these mainstream industries interested in getting involved.”

    Prime Minister Justin Trudeau ran on a platform of marijuana legalization in 2015. The senate measure will make recreational use and sale of marijuana legal, but it will leave the specifics of the cannabis laws up to each province or state. 

    Marijuana firms, researchers and public health experts will all be watching Canada closely to see how the market for legalized cannabis unfolds. 

    “It’s going to be a bit of a science fiction experience for a while,” Benedikt Fischer, an expert on substance use at Toronto’s biggest psychiatric hospital, told The Guardian. “It’s unique in the world, because it’s happening for the first time in a wealthy country. It’s not like in the U.S., where there are these state experiments. Most people kind of ignore Uruguay. And so the world is really looking at this.”

    One issue will be setting the price of cannabis high enough to prevent new users from getting started with marijuana, but low enough to discourage black market sales. 

    “What I am mainly following … is who will be the new legal growers, and whether authorities manage to get some of the illegal growers to become legal growers,” said Tim Boekhout van Solinge, a Dutch criminologist.

    Other issues including the impact of legalization on use of other drugs and dealing with impaired drivers, will also be closely monitored by policymakers and researchers from around the globe. 

    “They’re waiting to see if the sky’s going to fall,” said Jordan Sinclair, company spokesman for Canopy Growth, a medical marijuana grower in Canada. “[Investors] are waiting to see if all the stigma and all the demonization of this product that’s built up in 90 years of prohibition is true. It’s on us to demonstrate that it’s not.”

    View the original article at thefix.com