How not to legalize weed - Macleans.ca - Kate Robertson:
October 17, 2019 - "When I ran out of cannabis on Thanksgiving Day, I had a few choices. I could halt dinner prep for eight guests to visit a downtown Toronto store where I would line up to buy some crumbly, expensive bud from a licensed shop. Or, I could continue mashing the squash after placing a delivery order from my friendly, local unlicensed shop. They take credit card payment at the door, I can redeem loyalty points, it’s less expensive, and the weed? Well, it’s dank. I'll let you guess which option I chose.
"The first year of cannabis legalization has been ... an utter disappointment for many of us who do consume cannabis: we were looking forward to safer, better access; a vast array of employment opportunities; the decriminalization of a drug within a legal system that unfairly targeted minorities and the vulnerable; quality products and increased dignity for medical consumers. And while I am fiercely proud of the direction we’ve taken and I’m not proposing we go back to pre-legalization days, I do feel let down by how we’re doing so far.
"[L]et’s talk about the 'black market,' or as many of us in the weed world prefer, the unlicensed market.... Statistics Canada has reported steady sales declines and claim about half of the cannabis sold currently is illicit (in other words, $4.16 billion of the industry’s estimated GDP of $8.26 billion is unlicensed). But an RBC Capital Markets report cited by the Globe and Mail puts the regulated market at just 12 per cent of cannabis sales....
"[Toronto Liberal MP Nathan] Erskine-Smith acknowledges there is more work to do, particularly in Ontario. 'An incredible idea — the legal market provides what people want and people don’t go to the illegal market,' he jokes. 'Consumer demand will push governments in the right direction'.... [C]an this consumer demand that we design some elements for actual cannabis consumers? How about lower prices, less packaging and better pot?...
"Are we treating Canadians like responsible adults?... [K]ids aren’t allowed in a lot of shops across this great nation, unlike most booze shops where they can accompany their parents running errands. In some provinces, those responsible adults have to find somewhere to put their kid if they want to grab some pot.... Surely we can trust them to decide how to talk to their kids about the regulated products they’re buying....
"[M]edical cannabis consumers are being left behind ... access to medical cannabis, which is a constitutionally protected piece, isn’t being honoured — it’s taxed, it’s prohibitively expensive, it isn’t covered by most drug plans, and it’s inconsistent and onerous for sick people.... Private cannabis clinics are often contractually obligated to refer patients to specific cannabis cultivators who pay kickbacks for new patients. That means a medical cannabis consumer can spend months researching where to find the types of products they need only to be denied that access because their clinic won’t receive a payout.... And there is still an excise tax on medical cannabis, a very strange rule intended to keep recreational consumers from infiltrating the medical system. So much for treating us like adults....
"Look, no one was more excited about legalization than I was. But we’re talking about average price differences of $10.23 per gram for regulated versus $5.59 per gram for unregulated products, according to the latest survey results — I can’t afford it! And it’s too inconvenient, and the products are inconsistent.
"In September, Global News reported that only 44 Canadians have been able to clear their criminal records through the pardons program, for something that never should have been illegal in the first place. We’re still treating people like criminals — or at least sometimes, anyway.
"On this one-year anniversary of legal cannabis, and with more edible and topical products on their way, I’m managing my expectations. I’ll be skipping the anniversary events."
Read more: https://www.macleans.ca/opinion/how-not-to-legalize-weed/
'via Blog this'
October 17, 2019 - "When I ran out of cannabis on Thanksgiving Day, I had a few choices. I could halt dinner prep for eight guests to visit a downtown Toronto store where I would line up to buy some crumbly, expensive bud from a licensed shop. Or, I could continue mashing the squash after placing a delivery order from my friendly, local unlicensed shop. They take credit card payment at the door, I can redeem loyalty points, it’s less expensive, and the weed? Well, it’s dank. I'll let you guess which option I chose.
"The first year of cannabis legalization has been ... an utter disappointment for many of us who do consume cannabis: we were looking forward to safer, better access; a vast array of employment opportunities; the decriminalization of a drug within a legal system that unfairly targeted minorities and the vulnerable; quality products and increased dignity for medical consumers. And while I am fiercely proud of the direction we’ve taken and I’m not proposing we go back to pre-legalization days, I do feel let down by how we’re doing so far.
"[L]et’s talk about the 'black market,' or as many of us in the weed world prefer, the unlicensed market.... Statistics Canada has reported steady sales declines and claim about half of the cannabis sold currently is illicit (in other words, $4.16 billion of the industry’s estimated GDP of $8.26 billion is unlicensed). But an RBC Capital Markets report cited by the Globe and Mail puts the regulated market at just 12 per cent of cannabis sales....
"[Toronto Liberal MP Nathan] Erskine-Smith acknowledges there is more work to do, particularly in Ontario. 'An incredible idea — the legal market provides what people want and people don’t go to the illegal market,' he jokes. 'Consumer demand will push governments in the right direction'.... [C]an this consumer demand that we design some elements for actual cannabis consumers? How about lower prices, less packaging and better pot?...
"Are we treating Canadians like responsible adults?... [K]ids aren’t allowed in a lot of shops across this great nation, unlike most booze shops where they can accompany their parents running errands. In some provinces, those responsible adults have to find somewhere to put their kid if they want to grab some pot.... Surely we can trust them to decide how to talk to their kids about the regulated products they’re buying....
"[M]edical cannabis consumers are being left behind ... access to medical cannabis, which is a constitutionally protected piece, isn’t being honoured — it’s taxed, it’s prohibitively expensive, it isn’t covered by most drug plans, and it’s inconsistent and onerous for sick people.... Private cannabis clinics are often contractually obligated to refer patients to specific cannabis cultivators who pay kickbacks for new patients. That means a medical cannabis consumer can spend months researching where to find the types of products they need only to be denied that access because their clinic won’t receive a payout.... And there is still an excise tax on medical cannabis, a very strange rule intended to keep recreational consumers from infiltrating the medical system. So much for treating us like adults....
"Look, no one was more excited about legalization than I was. But we’re talking about average price differences of $10.23 per gram for regulated versus $5.59 per gram for unregulated products, according to the latest survey results — I can’t afford it! And it’s too inconvenient, and the products are inconsistent.
"In September, Global News reported that only 44 Canadians have been able to clear their criminal records through the pardons program, for something that never should have been illegal in the first place. We’re still treating people like criminals — or at least sometimes, anyway.
"On this one-year anniversary of legal cannabis, and with more edible and topical products on their way, I’m managing my expectations. I’ll be skipping the anniversary events."
'via Blog this'
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