Problems in The Industry? Cannabis Giant Canopy Growth Sells Retail locations

It’s the coolest industry in the world, right? Well, maybe it is, but for all the government claims of tax flow, it doesn’t seem to be the most lucrative. Now, as industry giant Canopy Growth makes deals to sell its retail locations, what does this really say about our coolest new industry?

Canopy Growth selling its retail locations could signal a big problem in the retail weed market. This news site is an independent resource for stories in the growing cannabis and psychedelics industries of today. Subscribe to the Cannadelics Weekly Newsletter for regular updates to your email, and to get access to a host of awesome deals on a range of products including vapes, smoking devices, edibles, other cannabis paraphernalia, and the highly-in-demand cannabinoid compounds Delta 8 & HHC. You can find more info in our ‘best of’ lists, so head on over, and pick out the products you’re most happy to use.

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Who the heck is Canopy Growth?

A decade ago, cannabis companies weren’t much of a thing. Sure, there were some medical markets opening, but recreational was still years away, and the same issue of federal government illegalization kept anything from really popping on a huge level. Plus, weed was still illegal for all purposes nearly everywhere in the world at that time, so no large global markets existed.

Since then, the cannabis industry has become a real thing, complete with verticals from seed to sale. And while we hear of all the money its worth, and projections for how big it *could get, the reality has been creeping alongside the whole time; that it’s not quite the lucrative industry so many predicted. In fact, it’s quite the opposite, a very much struggling industry. This is exemplified by recent news of industry giant Canopy Growth, making plans to sell off its 28 brick-and-mortar retail locations.

Canopy Growth isn’t a nobody in the industry. The company, based out of Swiss Falls, Ontario, in Canada, was the largest cannabis company in 2019 in terms of stock value. Canopy Growth came out of a merger between Tweed Marijuana, Inc, and Bedrocan Canada, in 2015. The company has the designation of being the first Canadian cannabis company to be federally regulated, licensed, and publicly traded in North America.

It trades under WEED on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and opened in the New York Stock Exchange under CGC in 2018. It was the first cannabis producer to enter the NYSE. Canopy was also the first company to make a recreational cannabis sale when it was officially legalized in Canada. This took place in a Tweed store located in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Back in November 2016, the company was singled out as the first unicorn of the weed industry, with a $1 billion valuation according to the Financial Post. The company operates dispensaries through its subsidiary Tweed, Inc. in the provinces that allow a private sector market, including Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. It operates as well in Manitoba and Ontario under the brand name Tokyo Smoke.

By 2018, the company had market capitalization exceeding $14 billion, and Canopy even funded Professorships in Cannabis Science at University of British Columbia in Vancouver. However, the company’s quick rise, started to falter in 2018. The biggest issue stemmed from Canopy’s attempt to make greenhouses in British Columbia and Quebec larger, which led to pretty big losses. How big? In the last quarter of 2018, the company posted losses of $335.6 million for shareholders. Constellation Brands, which held four out of seven board seats at that time, was unhappy with the company’s direction.

All this led to an emergency board meeting where CEO Bruce Linton was thrown out; but this didn’t stop stock prices from falling. In 2019, stock prices slid further down for Canopy, and it was reported that all of the cannabis industry was suffering, showing the lowest numbers since 2017. The company instituted new CEO David Klein in December 2019. By 2020, Canopy was already announcing the closing of stores.

Canopy Growth has operations globally. It’s partnered with Alcaliber S.A. pharmaceutical company in Spain; owns Spectrum Therapeutics GmbH in Germany for medical cannabis imports; is partnered with Spectrum Cannabis Denmark ApS, which cultivates medical cannabis; acquired Annabis Medical, a Czech Republic distributor; as well as Daddy Cann Lesotho, an African medical cannabis supplier; has a partnership with the UK’s Beckley Foundation for medical cannabis; and has other operations in Australia, Brazil, Peru, Chile, and Jamaica.

Foreign Investors are Rushing to Buy Cannabis Companies 

Canopy Growth sells retail locations

It was already a downhill slide for the weed giant, so this latest news isn’t surprising, but it is a little depressing; especially in what it signals for the legal marijuana industry as a whole. On September, 27^th, 2022, the company announced that it was forging agreements to sell off its retail market locations throughout Canada. This includes retail stores under both the Tweed and Tokyo Smoke brand names.

OEG Retail Cannabis, already a Canopy partner that owns and operates franchises of Tokyo Smoke stores in Ontario, will take all of Canopy’s corporate stores outside Alberta, and all intellectual property related to Tokyo Smoke as well. Canopy also reached an agreement with the company 420 Investments Ltd., in which the latter will take ownership of five retail locations within Alberta. Neither deal is officially closed, as they are both subject to regulatory oversight and approval.

While this doesn’t necessarily say good things about how Canopy Growth sees the retail market, it’s certainly not the end of the company, which is using this move as a way to refocus attention elsewhere. According to its press statement, the company will continue on with a focus on premium cannabis consumer packaged goods.

According to David Klein, “We are taking the next critical step in advancing Canopy as a leading premium brand-focused CPG cannabis company while furthering the Company’s strategy of investing in product innovation and distribution to drive revenue growth in the Canadian recreational market.”

Premium cannabis goods

He continued of the deals, “By realizing these agreements with organizations that possess proven cannabis retail expertise, we are providing continuity for consumers and team members. Through the best-in-class retail leadership that OEGRC and FOUR20 have demonstrated, they will continue to serve Canadian consumers with the high-quality in-store experiences that are essential for success in a new industry.”

It’s expected that this change will lead to operational savings for the company. These savings are projected to put the company back at the high end of their yearly target range. The company announced its overall cost reduction plan earlier this year in April.

What does this mean for the cannabis industry?

Companies switch direction all the time, or take on new ventures. Technically, it’s not that weird for a company to see a different aspect of a market, and go towards it. Cannabis food products are getting quite popular, so it could be seen as Canopy Growth simply changing lanes for the drive forward.

But there are some other stark realities to this situation. Realities that are often hidden behind announcements of all the cannabis tax income for states. The reality that this industry is not bringing in nearly as much revenue as expected. That the black market is a formidable opponent that many still prefer, and that legal markets were instituted with taxes so high, that it makes legal operators struggle to stay afloat. Sure, some companies are making money, but not that many.

Massachusetts Rakes It In With Cannabis Taxes, More Than Alcohol

It’s easy to forget that one of the biggest winners in the weed game is not private companies, but government entities. And for them, this is all new income; so whether its high or low, its adding money to government coffers. Think of how much cigarettes cost because of those ‘sin’ taxes meant to dissuade us from buying them. Obviously, sin taxes don’t work, but what they do mean, is that as we continue to buy these sinful products (in the same quantities as when they weren’t taxed to kill us), the government reaps the benefits.

Philip Morris still makes plenty of money from cigarettes, but probably not as much as the government. In Mexico, for example, its reported that an entire 70% of the price of a pack of cigarettes, is taxes. That governments have turned taxing items into a full industry, means that governments can profit off an industry as much, or more, than the actual companies within it. Such is the case right now with cannabis, where tax money is coming in, but the markets themselves are waning.

This whole concept was exemplified well by economists Daniel Sumner and Robin Goldstein, who together put out the book Can Legal Weed Win?: The Blunt Realities of Cannabis Economics. The two UC Davis, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics professionals, who did an interview for TIME magazine, point out how the legal weed industry is very much weighed down by overly strict regulatory measures, a market competitive within itself and with the black market, and because of a host of agricultural issues that come up in the industry.

As Sumner put it, “There are companies that have done well and there are lots of companies that have not done well at all. There are growers that are doing OK and there are lots of farms that are not doing OK at all… It’s been a gold rush and a few people have found some gold and a lot of people haven’t.”

Canopy Growth retail cannabis

Goldstein explained further about investing in the industry, that “The ones that are probably making the safest money are probably the ones who were taking flat fees… But folks who took their compensation in the form of shares in these big cannabis holding companies, those stocks have not done well on the whole.”

If this doesn’t sound like the headlines blaring about a massive and growing weed industry, with no obstacles in its way, that’s because those headlines mainly speak in market projections, and market projections aren’t real. That’s the nature of projections, they’re just someone’s thoughts, but they’re not facts, or indicative of what will actually happen. Market projections were extremely high for the cannabis industry, but that never meant they had to be realized.

In actuality, according to Sumner, “People say this is a $100 billion industry. Robin and I are skeptical of that, but there could be a $10 billion industry, which is a lot of money if shared among a few players… We’ve seen nothing like the consolidation yet where the really big money could be coming. We haven’t even seen an indication that it’s going that direction.”

Canopy Growth is one of those big players, which is why this move is a possible signal of a bigger problem; namely an inability to really make enough money outside of projections. After all, why would a leader in the retail cannabis industry, give up that part of their business in an effort to recoup losses? As Canopy Growth sells its retail locations and exits that part of the game, we should wonder who can survive in the market, if this company can’t.

TIME Interview and Why Legal Weed Industry Is Suffering

Conclusion

The news that Canopy Growth is selling its retail locations to focus on other aspects of the market in an attempt to recoup losses, is a pretty big indication that its a bumpy ride in the cannabis retail industry. What will happen next for Canopy Growth and the market in general? Stay tuned to life to find out.

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Owning Guns is a Constitutional Right Unless Youre a Cannabis User

Take two of the most hot-button, tendentious issues of our time – cannabis use and gun rights – combine them, and now we really have a debate. As the law currently stands, medical cannabis patients are not afforded their 2^nd amendment right to bear arms. Technically, all cannabis consumers are banned from buying guns, but only medical users who are registered in the states’ databases feel the brunt of these regulations. In Florida, the agriculture commissioner sided with medical users and filed a lawsuit on their behalf, in hopes of getting that law overturned… only to be promptly shut down by the DOJ and their illogical talking points. What exactly happened with that case, and how can an entire group of people be denied a constitutional right based on what should technically be HIPAA-protected, private medical information?  

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What’s the news? 

So, a bit of background before the most recent news. Back in April, Florida’s agriculture commissioner, who also happens to be a well-known human rights activist, as well as a born and bred Floridian –  Nikki Fried – filed a lawsuit alongside a number of medical cannabis patients on the grounds that it is unconstitutional to prevent them from owning firearms.  

“I filed this lawsuit to bring attention to how the federal government’s inconsistent and illogical cannabis policies are creating not only confusion, but actual harm,” Fried stated. “Unfortunately, the issue raised in our lawsuit is just one of the many dilemmas posed that is affecting a massive number of Floridians and even more patients nationwide.” 

At first, it seemed like this lawsuit might get some positive attention and results, but a few days ago the Department of Justice filed a motion in response to the case claiming that the existing law remains, and attempted to dispute a series of claims made by the plaintiffs. The DOJ is requesting the case be completely dismissed or issued a summary judgment.  

In addition to many outlandish statements (read below) about cannabis users and how reckless and mentally unstable we are, the DOJ made it very clear that as long as cannabis remains a schedule 1 narcotic, anyone using it (even medicinally) is breaking federal law – regardless of what the specific laws are in their respective states. In short, because of the inherent criminality of using cannabis, that means people who partake are “too dangerous” to own guns because of our disregard for federal law (insert eyeroll here).  

It’s worth mentioning that personal cannabis possession is only a misdemeanor offence. Add to that, prohibition is unjust, outdated, and ineffective anyway. It should be repealed, not enforced and followed. Numerous laws throughout history have been overturned because they were unconstitutional and/or violated basic human rights; and change typically starts with a revolt at the citizen level.  

Cannabis users are “violent”, “mentally ill”, and “dangerous”?  

First of all – no, no, and another hard no. But if you were to ask someone from the Department of Justice, their answer would be a resounding “yes” to all three. These were some of the reasons they provided when responding to the lawsuit in Florida. More specifically, they stated that: “Defendants showed that marijuana’s impairing effects make it dangerous for marijuana users to possess firearms … Cannabis can affect a user’s coordination, motor skills and cognition, as well as result in dizziness, anxiety, confusion, an inability to concentrate, paranoia and psychotic symptoms.” 

The DOJ motion also contended that, “Marijuana users also engage in criminal activity that renders firearms possession dangerous, albeit for different reasons (i.e., the propensity for violence for domestic violence misdemeanants, and the impairing effects of marijuana for marijuana users). A marijuana user who possesses a firearm will have access to that firearm when he/she uses marijuana. And because marijuana impairs judgment, the danger exists that he/she will fail to exercise sound judgment and use the firearm while impaired.” 

Is Cannabis Prohibition Unconstitutional?

Honestly, it’s one of the most ridiculous things I’ve read in a very long time. As if people get stoned and just go buck wild and start shooting with no regard to anything – very reminiscent of Reefer Madness-style propaganda. But it’s simply not true, and at this point, it’s not something that anyone with even a shred of common sense would be inclined to believe.  

They did point to a couple of flawed studies which claimed marijuana use was prevalent among men who were arrested for domestic violence. What the studies failed to address is any other confounding variables that may have led to the domestic violence – such as the use of other substances, family histories of violence, mental health, and so on. An act as serious as domestic violence is a complex psychological issue that takes years and numerous different elements to develop. It’s certainly not as black and white as “smoke weed, get paranoid, become violent”, which is what these studies, and the DOJ, are making it out to be.  

Hypocrisy beyond measure 

These regulations might make more sense if everyone got drug tested before purchasing a firearm, but that is not how it goes. I’ve owned guns in three states: California, Nevada, and Indiana. California’s laws were the most stringent and even there, I did not have to submit a drug test. As a matter of fact, not a single US state requires any sort of drug screening for weapons purchases. In the latter two states (NV and IN), buying a gun was just about as easy as grabbing a pack of cigarettes or case of beer at your local mini mart. Just pick what you want, show your ID and pay, and you’re out the door with your gun of choice – be it a little purse pistol, a semi-automatic assault rifle, and everything in between.  

Now don’t get me wrong, I do not actually have a problem with that. Aside from the fact that I own guns myself and feel safer having at least one on my property; I truly believe that good, law-abiding people should be able to do whatever they want (within reason of course), and whatever makes them feel safe, happy, and comfortable in their lives. Owning a full-blown arsenal of weapons and ammo seems a bit crazy, but having a couple of guns around just in case, that doesn’t seem unreasonable to me (although this is just my personal opinion on that specific matter).  

Where this all gets hypocritical in regards to weed, is in the methodology used to deny medical cannabis patients the right to bear arms. The way that it’s done, is during the background check process in medical and adult-use states, the customer is searched in the medical cannabis patient database (if they don’t provide the information upfront) that states are required to maintain through the department of health. If they’re in it, they’ll get denied for a firearm purchase. 

The reason for this is because cannabis use is federally prohibited, and engaging in criminal activity bars people from being able to buy guns. But the fact that no drug test is administered during background checks, indirectly means that recreational users can continue buying guns unhindered; whereas medical patients, who are following the laws in their state of residence, cannot do the same. Not to mention, people who use equally illegal but much more dangerous drugs like methamphetamine, heroin, and so on, are not getting turned away at gun stores like medical pot patients are.  

And don’t even get me started on alcohol. It’s legal, despite being statistically known as the “deadliest drug on earth”, responsible for more violent crimes and homicides than all other drugs combined. In American cities and towns, higher rates of violent crimes are directly linked to the presence of liquor stores in neighborhoods. According to a 2021 study, in areas where there was a “10 percent increase in access to liquor stores and beer and wine stores, there was also a 37 percent greater association with violent crime”. Yet alcoholics can buy guns, and medical cannabis patients cannot. In the small town I currently live in – Cloverdale, IN – where we don’t even have a pet store or a CVS, we do have a liquor store and a gun shop, and they happen to be right across the street from each other.  

Does Smoking Pot Make You Want to Drink Less?

A brief history of constitutional gun rights in the United States 

Ah, the second amendment – one of the most fundamental, yet controversial of our constitutional rights as Americans. Let’s take a quick look at the exact text of the second amendment and break down what it means. The text: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

What exactly does that mean… or more specifically, what were our founding fathers referring to when they said, “a well-regulated militia”? Some argue that a “well-regulated militia” is a military group that is organized and supervised by the government, but by definition, a militia is “any fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state.” Often, militias are formed to fight against the government or ruling force of a nation. When combining “well-regulated militia” with “free state” and “right of the people”, it seems clear that the right to bear arms was established in order to give citizens a fighting chance to protect themselves against a tyrannical and out of control governing body.

There’s debate on whether the 2nd amendment is even still relevant today or not, and those who oppose the 2nd amendment generally offer two common arguments: (1) because it was written so long ago and during a much different period in history, and (2) because the weapons we have today are much more destructive and technologically advanced than weapons they had when the constitution was written.

In my opinion, both arguments are moot points because when you get down to the core of it, the right to bear arms is actually less about the right to own certain weapons, and more about the right for law-abiding citizens to protect themselves from immediate danger, whether that danger comes from criminals or corrupt government forces. And if we’re assuming that all the other amendments are still our intrinsic rights, it’s safe to conclude that the right to bear arms counts as well.

Final thoughts

Whether you like it or not, both cannabis and guns are a huge part of American culture and history; and use/ownership of both are fundamental human rights. According to founding-era legal scholar St. George Tucker, “The right to self-defense is the first law of nature: in most governments it has been the study of rulers to confine the right within the narrowest limits possible.” That’s hard to disagree with.

Regarding weed, let’s look at the preamble to the Declaration of Independence about “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. That short statement essentially encompasses the entire essence behind what a democratic government should be, and considering how cannabis is natural, therapeutic, and a person’s use of it does not infringe on the rights of another, banning it should be viewed as being unconstitutional as well.

But again, regardless of what your views are on the 2nd amendment, the main takeaway here is that preventing ONLY medical cannabis users from buying firearms, while other drug users are free to purchase them as they please, is a particularly low blow.

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Top 5 Reasons Its Insane That Plants Are Illegal

Maybe it’s a norm in life that we’ve grown up with, but does that make it right? Or, is it one of those things that needs an overhaul in how we’ve been trained to think about it. And yes, trained. When something prevails throughout your life, or a pattern of behavior happens within it that you’re obliged to go by, it does create a certain level of training in thought. We are all accustomed to the weird idea that part of nature, is banned from us, and we seem to think this makes sense. Or at least, some of us do. But some of us don’t. So, in light of that, here are the top 5 reasons it’s absolutely ridiculous to make plants illegal.

Why are we so complacent with the government telling us which plants we’re not allowed to use? Here are the top 5 reasons this practice of making plants illegal, is insane. Thanks for stopping by our comprehensive and independent news site, featuring the best in cannabis and psychedelics reporting. Subscribe to the Cannadelics Weekly Newsletter for regular updates; and product offerings on tons of cool stuff like vapes, smoking devices, edibles, cannabis paraphernalia, and the super popular cannabinoid compounds including Delta 8 & HHC. Take a trip to out ‘best of’ lists for more info, and pick yourself out the products you’re most happy to use.

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5) Nature can be illegal???

Ever since I was a child there have been plants that were legally off-limits, and somehow, in my child brain, this made sense because it was authoritative bodies telling me they were. As I got older, I started thinking about it more, and questioning it more. Why is any part of nature off limits to any of us? People sleep in live volcanoes and jump out of airplanes. We swim in shark-infested waters, and hike through areas with animals that can kill us. And according to government, these dangerous nature experiences are fine.

The truth in life is that when something is truly poisonous, or dangerous, like really in need of staying away from, we will. That’s how animals in general work. If we really have to do it, we have senses for these things, and the ability to learn from experience. Yeah, maybe someone gets poisoned here or there, but that happens anyway, and in nature, these little experiences help entire species to know what they can partake in, and what they can’t. No animal population makes a habit of eating plants that kill them. Consider how dumb governing bodies must think we are, to tell us what to be afraid of in the natural world.

We’re always told we’re the most intelligent species, right? So, why then are we considered incapable of assessing which plants we want to come into contact with? There are actually poisonous plants out there that will kill immediately upon consumption, and somehow, plenty of them are legal. But a few that make a person feel good, or worse, help them in some way? Apparently all those are off limits. The #5 reason its insane to make plants illegal, is because it illegalizes part of the natural world. As animals, we have no reason to have a governing body tell us which parts of nature we can use. If it grows out of the ground, it should it be automatically accessible to everyone who wants it.

4) Here, have a fake version

The reality of the pharmaceutical industry, is that its based on natural plants, even if the medicines produced are all synthetic. The only reason for this? That plants growing naturally can’t be patented. This means, companies aren’t allowed to take a plant in its natural environment and claim it legally. This, obviously, is a good thing. If it wasn’t this way, Johnson & Johnson could literally take a plant like cannabis, pay a certain amount, and then have all control of it.

Since plants can’t be patented, their chemical abilities can’t be monopolized by one company. Instead, many companies can use the same plant to come up with their own synthetic formulations, and this is how the pharmaceutical industry works. Not every medicine is taken from a plant, but the vast majority are, as there is less basis to know how to treat things without the backbone of natural medicine. For as much as Western medicine likes to degrade Eastern medicine, it is still nearly 100% based on it, since pharmaceutical medicines are based in real plant structures.

When plants are illegal, and only their synthetic counterparts are legal, it means pushing synthetics over the real thing. Much like the idea of making part of nature illegal, this is a weird concept we’ve been acclimated to; that a fake version of a real thing is somehow better, and the real thing is somehow dangerous. A great example of where this fails, is antibiotics, and the oft mentioned issue of antibiotic-resistance.

Study Shows Real Cannabis Products More Popular Than Synthetics

Antibiotics fail because they’re simple, and bacteria can adapt to them and change. But they can’t do this with the original plant compounds, as those are way more complicated. It’s almost funny that this fear of antibiotic resistance continues, when the plants will always work. That brings us to the #4 reason plants shouldn’t be illegal. Because its means pushing people toward the fake version, instead of the real one.

3) They’ll save you if you let them

Natural medicine traditions didn’t persist through thousands of years because of how useless they are. They maintained through history because they work, and they work using natural plants with no synthetic components or processing, because back in the day, these things weren’t possible.

One of the interesting things about natural medicine traditions, is that there are tons of them. Think of how many little cultures of people came and went through history, or still exist in their tiny corners of the earth. These traditions have mostly been separated by space and time, with often no knowledge from one reaching another. After all, can you imagine natives in Siberia sharing their wisdom of fly agaric mushrooms with natives in Brazil, 1,000 years ago…wouldn’t have been possible. Yet, many compounds found their ways into the exact same places of treatment and spiritual use, in tons of different cultures.

Or, as native cultures use the plants relevant to where they are geographically, similar compounds from similar plants are used in different traditions, for the same ailments. This is a massive backing up of these plant attributes, that unrelated cultures would use them through history, in the exact same ways. If none of this worked, this repetition of use wouldn’t be seen, and it most certainly is.

Plants are extremely useful for treating nearly anything, so long as the right plant is used. There have even been studies showing plant compounds that effectively fight coronaviruses, something not mentioned during a two year pandemic in which synthetic vaccines were actually forced on people in some places. When plants are illegalized, these medical benefits, often used for thousands of years, are also barred from us. The #3 reason to question why plants are made illegal? It makes it harder to benefit from their natural properties.

2) Cocaine and heroin aren’t natural…they’re processed versions

We’re often told of the danger of plants like poppies and coca, because of the psychoactive effects. However, the drugs used as scare tactics, like cocaine and heroin, are not direct constitutions of the plants, but instead are processed versions. The actual plant versions are much weaker. Try chewing some coca leaves, it’s not the same as snorting a line of cocaine. Most of the time, the drugs we’re most warned about, are not what a person would pick out of the ground, making it even more insane that the plants take the blame.

Record High Opioid Deaths For a Record Low in America

When it comes to psychedelics and other psychoactive components from plants, like DMT, psilocybin, mescaline, fly agaric mushrooms, and salvia, the plants/compounds don’t need to be changed in order to gain effects. However, in all cases just mentioned, there’s also no death and disability toll, making for no actual danger. If it’s really not about death and disability, why does the government intervene for our safety? Doesn’t make a lot of sense. If the government doesn’t want coca leaves being processed into cocaine, or poppy leaves to be processed into heroin, then it should make those practices illegal, but the whole plant? That makes no sense as the plant itself doesn’t generally cause the extreme effects of the processed version.

And for that matter, considering all pharma products are a processed version of something, the idea that processing a plant to make an incredibly strong version of it, is sort of what Western medicine is all about. If you look up statistics for opium overdose deaths, you’ll be hard pressed to find them. What you will find plenty of, is opioid death statistics, and that relates to the pharmaceutical synthetic versions.

Which means a deadly processed version is legal and pushed by the government, while the unprocessed version which is unlikely to kill you, is banned from use. The #2 reason why its crazy to take plants and make them illegal is because the actual plants aren’t what’s causing the problem in the first place. If you look at the picture below, it highlights the misunderstanding between natural and synthetic medicine. It labels Western medicine as ‘classic’ medicine, and natural medicine, as ‘alternative’ medicine. In reality, these terms should be switched, as natural medicine is the classically used form, and Western medicine is the synthetic alternative.

1) Too much government control

Perhaps all the other reasons back up the #1 reason…it means a ridiculous amount of government control. We elect government officials to make laws and keep society functioning, but where’s the line? And if it’s crossed, how do we do anything about it? Maybe seat belts are good, and speeding limits. Maybe its good there are requirements for building engineering, and behaviors we don’t allow in workplaces.

However, this body meant to protect us, often does the opposite. It allows weird chemicals in our food that have helped the population balloon out into obesity. It allows toxins in the air that hurt our lungs and affect our ability to breathe. It allows trash to be dumped into our oceans, where it affects all marine life, including that which we eat. And it doesn’t seem to care about things like instituting a workable healthcare system, and instead will watch a sick person get themselves into debt, and then penalize them when they can’t pay.

Yet this same government which can’t get guns under control enough to not have schools shot up, and which constantly has to recall FDA approved medications due to horrifying health issues that are sometimes known about but not published, also thinks it should be able to tell us which plants are cool to use, and which are not. I mean, come on, guns are legal, but the cannabis plant isn’t? Is anyone else facepalming this massive logical discrepancy?

Cannabis & Covid: Why Eastern Medicine Should Never Be Ignored

Where does it end? Especially when the same government promotes dangerous versions of the same thing through regulation? I mean, shouldn’t a person have the right to choose if they’d prefer to use the poppy plant over a way-too-strong synthetic opioid like fentanyl? The #1 reason its insane to make plants illegal, is that it allows the government a level of unnecessary control, that no government should have.

Conclusion

As more states legalize cannabis and plant-based psychedelics, or create ballot measures for their legalization, perhaps we should ask why we have to argue about this in the first place. Not only is it insane to illegalize a plant, its even more insane to make the residents of a state have to fight just to get legal access to something that should never have been barred in the first place.

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Nicotine Gummies Could Save You But FDA Prefers You Smoke & Die

So, we know smoking damage is the absolute biggest killer. When it comes to deaths from drug damage, nothing else compares. Not in the US, and not outside. Yet, every new advance to get people away from smoking, has been met with resistance by the FDA. Vapes are constantly demonized, dry tobacco vapes are massively underplayed, and now nicotine gummies are on the horizon, and the FDA would still rather have you light up and die, than eat them.

Nicotine gummies just came out, and the FDA is already trying to keep them from you….so you won’t stop smoking. This publication is geared toward the expanding cannabis and psychedelics spaces with news stories covering important topics and happenings in these industries, and beyond. Subscribe to the Cannadelics Weekly Newsletter for regular updates, and for access to a range of awesome offers on a load of products like vapes, smoking devices, edibles, other cannabis paraphernalia, and the growing-in-popularity cannabinoid compounds like Delta 8 & HHC. Head to our ‘best of’ lists for all the details, and make sure to purchase the products you’re perfectly comfortable to use.

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Nicotine gummies? For real?

Yup, guys, nicotine gummies are for real, and if you ignore government lines, they’re one of the best things to happen in light of the issue of smoking damage and death. The story came to national attention last month, when the FDA started sending warning letters to VPR Brands, which is the parent company to Krave, Inc., an outfit selling a line of flavored nicotine gummies, each containing one milligram of nicotine. The gummies come in three different flavors. The letters were of the cease and desist nature.

There are currently a lot of issues with cannabis companies using the packaging and candy designs of big-name brands in order to sell their products. Mars, Inc. just won a lawsuit against some of these companies for breaking trademark law. But that issue stems from the cannabis companies using nearly exact replicas, so close that trademark law is broken. The lawsuits weren’t about ruling out all weed gummies (all of which look like something a kid would like); and weed gummies (and edibles in general), are legally sold in tons of dispensaries.

So, the line about confusing children, well, it just doesn’t apply here. Just like it doesn’t apply to any kid-friendly looking candy sold in legal dispensaries, so long as those edibles don’t break trademark law. Yet, that’s the FDA’s ammunition. That the nicotine gummies might look a little too much like something a kid likes. And this, even though they provide an alternative to the smoking damage, which kills 480,000 people a year in the US alone, according to the very government trying to stop these new products.

Nicotine gummies

The nicotine gummies, of course, are meant for adults. And were advertised as a safe way to get nicotine in a person without smoking. If a person doesn’t have to light a cigarette, and breathe in the products of smoke, not only do they have way less chance of developing the cancers, cardiac diseases, and pulmonary issues associated with smoking, they also can’t hurt another person with their secondhand smoke. What’s the FDA’s response to this? That said nicotine gummies are a “a public health crisis just waiting to happen among our nation’s youth.”

It said the same thing about Juul nicotine vape products. Products specifically fingered for helping people stop smoking. And products for which not one claim of a health issue has come out. And yet the FDA recently banned their products from sale, because of possible (yet currently non-existent) dangers, while leaving cigarettes on shelves! Funny move if the idea is to protect children. Somehow, nowhere in any of their letters or statements, did the FDA detail how these products could pose even a fraction of the risk of smoking.

In the fight against vapes, the FDA used vaping fear campaigns to push its point. But this time around, those fear campaigns can’t apply, because vapes aren’t a part of it. Though vaping is roundly NOT associated with the issues of smoking, the FDA has been on a mission to launch fear of these products into the public’s minds, even as we – the smokers – can physically feel the difference between the two. Now, it doesn’t have that ‘vapes are bad’ line, as all those issues which it used for vapes, don’t apply to gummies.

FDA Still Trying to Limit Vaping, the Healthier Smoking Option

So, it’s just talking about kids. And instead of having a realistic conversation over what smoking dangers are, and how these gummies can prevent them, its trying to scare you from using them. Let’s remember, if you’re not buying cancer sticks, the government doesn’t make an insane profit from exorbitant cigarette taxes. The exact taxes put on to dissuade people from smoking, but which actually just bring in loads of revenue for the government. The government’s antics imply an expectation that people can and will simply stop smoking, without the need for an alternative; even as reality repeatedly proves this is not true.

How bad is nicotine? Or…is it bad at all?

I don’t know, do you think coffee is bad? They’re on par, if you haven’t noticed. They’re both minor stimulants that give a little kick, without a cocaine-like burst. That’s why nicotine and caffeine users use so much. It’s pretty standard in this world to go through 2-10 cups of coffee a day. I picked those numbers based on what I tend to see around me, but we all know the general range. And let’s not forget tea products, soda like Coke, Pepsi, and Mountain Dew, chocolate products, energy drinks, and all the other non-caffeine products that get caffeine shoved into them, so you can get that boost more often. It’s literally everywhere.

Has anyone ever complained about the detriments of caffeine addiction? Nope. Want to take a wager on why? I’m going to go out on a limb here and say it’s the inherent lack of a death or injury toll associated. But make no mistake, caffeine-addicted people have a monumentally hard time breaking the habit, and are often cranky and irritating when they don’t get their fix. Just like smokers.

Coffee addiction

The reality of nicotine is that it doesn’t hurt or kill anyone. There’s no death toll associated with it, and it doesn’t seem to be wildly different than caffeine in addiction potential, or overall use. In fact, let’s be honest for a second, not everyone smokes, but nearly everyone ingests caffeine, at least sometimes. If this doesn’t sound like what you hear from government agencies, check it out yourself. Look up death statistics for nicotine. Not for smoking, but for nicotine itself. I couldn’t find even one.

Its not about nicotine. Which means its not about tobacco, as the part of tobacco always spoken about as the danger point, is nicotine. What it really is, is that lighting anything on fire and breathing it in, means breathing in carcinogens. And nicotine is addictive enough to keep people doing that, since there aren’t a million ways to get nicotine outside of cigarettes. If you don’t want coffee or tea, there’s Coke and Mountain Dew, but the only alternatives to cigarettes, keep getting taken away under fear campaigns. Even as they act as alternatives to a yearly 480,000 death toll.

Will nicotine gummies make it?

My expectation is yes, and that’s a good thing. The fact the FDA is already trying so hard, means there’s something threatening its tax revenue line, enough that it wants to attempt to put the kibosh on it now, before you even hear about, or get used to the products. Maybe it likes using the tagline of worrying about children, but what about the adults who can benefit?

Bad Study Highlights Misunderstanding About Where Smoking Risks Come From

And for that matter, let’s bring it back to the kids. See, it actually is good for kids. Maybe its best they don’t develop a nicotine addiction, but don’t we want them gravitating toward the safer option if they are going to do it? And since when did telling kids not to do something, ever work? We need to expect that a certain number will take up nicotine, and for that, we want them acclimated to a version that won’t kill them.

The popularity of vapes, and the gravitating toward them in spite of smear campaigns, is a powerful indication that regardless of government lines meant to stop people from doing the healthier thing, people seem to know. Maybe it’s a subconscious understanding, maybe its an outright distrust of government.

Maybe it’s just the underlying logic that one causes noticeable damage, and the other doesn’t. Whatever it is, the smear campaign lines are getting weaker, and that’s very positive. It’s even becoming more obvious, as countries like the UK publicize reports speaking of the detriments of any smoke damage, and how vapes should be encouraged to bring down smoking numbers.

Nictone gummies instead of smoking

One last thing to remember… There are tons of cigarette brands including small, barely-known ones. But the majority of cigarette sales come from big cigarette companies, which are fully taxed. What the US (and all other countries) is having a hard time doing, is reining in black markets related to vaping and edibles. It doesn’t have big main companies to tax, and it can’t really get to these other, smaller companies.

So, when you switch to vaping or edibles from smoking, it means all that tax money collected from your Marlboros, probably isn’t collected by the mom-and-pop vapes or edibles company you now buy from, and therefore, not going to the government. All that money you’d pay to continue smoking, is now lost to the government. Is it really any wonder that the same country allowing the continued sale of opioids through regulation (despite overdose numbers close to 100k a year), would also prefer you continue to smoke over using healthier options?

Conclusion

If you’re a smoker, and you want to quit the actual act of smoking, switch to vapes or edibles, if you can. Until any real death statistics come out related to these products, ASIDE from additives that don’t need to be used, these are your better options. And it’s actually, and fundamentally not up for debate. Not until these methods start killing anywhere near 480,000 people a year, in a place the size of the US.

Does Vaping Cause Cancer Like Cigarettes?

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7 States Where Cannabis Users Can Easily Find Jobs

As cannabis laws continue to change at bewildering speeds, the topic of employee workplace protections becomes increasingly relevant. Honestly, with how many people support legalization these days and the astronomical inflation we’ve been experiencing, it makes no sense that cannabis users should have to struggle to find decent jobs. Some states are taking action by implementing employee workplace protection to prevent unjust, adverse actions from being taken against both existing and prospective workers.

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Defining Workplace Discrimination  

First, let’s take a step back and consider where discrimination (in general) stems from. Overall, discrimination is rooted in the idea of stereotypes. And stereotypes are preconceived ideas and generalizations about how people belonging to certain groups will look, act, think, and feel. Stereotypical notions essentially oversimply entire groups of people based on impersonal attributes such as race, class, gender, sexuality, age, disability status, spiritual and religious beliefs, and other characteristics… characteristics such as smoking weed (think lazy pothead stereotypes). 

Workplace discrimination is somewhat self-explanatory but at the same time, the term encompasses a huge range of both intentional and unintentional behaviors, one-time incidents, and ongoing experiences. Discrimination can happen between employers and employees, and also amongst employees themselves.  

Generally speaking, it’s illegal for employers to discriminate against any person based on: age, ancestry, race, disability, gender, HIV positive status, birthplace, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. Most state and federal laws define workplace discrimination broadly as, “People being treated unfairly in employment based on one or more legally protected categories, or subject to illegal harassment at work, or retaliated against for exercising their rights under workplace discrimination laws.” 

Despite Shifting Views, Cannabis Stigma and Discrimination Holds Strong

Let’s zero in on “exercising their rights”, because that can vary greatly based on where a person lives… and that’s where cannabis workplace discrimination becomes of topic of discussion. In states where cannabis is legal, and especially in the case of it being used medicinally, it should be a right for people to be allowed to find gainful employment and still use whatever medicine (or recreational product) works best for them when they are not on the clock. So long as it doesn’t interfere with performance on the job.  

Weed and Work… It’s Complicated  

For current and potential employees, things are equally complicated. The idea of being able to be denied employment, which in turn impacts nearly every aspect of a person’s life, simply for smoking weed in their downtime (which is much better than many other substances people could be using when they’re off the clock, like alcohol), is beyond absurd and antiquated. Luckily, these practices do seem to be phasing out, and things are turning in favor of the employees.  

Although it’s still federally illegal to possess or consume cannabis products, because state laws are changing at such a rapid speed, it means companies in those states are scrambling to catch up. Local and state courts have started taking the workers’ sides and defending their off-the-clock pot use, leaving employers limited in their ability to fire employees for failing drugs tests, often facing discrimination charges if they do so.  

Experts do feel agree that this is hard line to tow, and that employers should have a right to implement a drug-free workplace… but since cannabis products are more often used after hours, keeping the work-place technically drug-free, it stirs up quite a conundrum for human resources departments.  

“From a legal perspective, it’s fascinating,” says Lauraine Bifulco, president and CEO of Vantaggio HR Ltd., a human resources consulting firm in Orange County, Calif. “From an HR perspective, it’s, ‘Oh my gosh, could you do anything to make my life more complicated?’ Every day we turn around and find out there’s a state or city that legalizes some form of marijuana use. The challenge for HR is keeping up to speed with the current climate and what an employer can and cannot do with regard to marijuana and the workplace. It’s changing extremely fast.” 

A Snapshot of Cannabis Use in the US 

According to a Gallup survey published in August of this year, about 16 percent of American adults smoke weed regularly. This number is up from 12 percent when the last survey was conducted just one year ago. Not to mention, these stats are substantial increase from 2013 when the number of US cannabis smokers was initially measured, at which time it was just over 7 percent.  

In total, there were about 28 million cannabis consumers in 2013, and that figure jumped to a whopping 47 million by the end of 2020. If this pattern continues, then we can expect roughly 52 million Americans will be using weed products by the end of this year.  

American Adults Are Pretty Friggin Stoned, Says New Report

Among younger adults (ages 19 to 30), those numbers were even higher. A recently published report with data collected between April 2021 and October 2021 found that that numbers of young adults who use cannabis (and psychedelics, for the record) is higher than ever before! Approximate 43 percent of respondents reported having used some type of weed product in the last year, 29 percent say they use it monthly, and 11 percent claiming daily use. In 2016, the number of daily users was only 8 percent.  

The main takeaway here, is that cannabis use is on the upswing and it doesn’t seem like this trend will slow down anytime soon, especially as a growing number of middle-aged and older adults begin exploring the world or legal pot. And this is all the more reason that capable adults should not be denied jobs for cannabis use, because at this point, nearly half of the United States is using it at least occasionally.  

States With Cannabis Workplace Protections  

1. Nevada – I have to say, I’m proud of Nevada. They have certainly come a long way from the time I lived there… when I was buying weed at some of the sketchiest illegal dispensaries you could imagine, and getting denied a waitressing job at a Cheesecake Factory in Las Vegas for failing a drug test for THC. On June 5th, 2019, Governor Steve Sisolak signed into law Assembly Bill 132, which effectively prohibited employers from refusing to hire a prospective employee for testing positive for cannabis on a pre-employment drug screen. 

2. New York  – On March 31, 2021, the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) was signed into law, which legalized adult-use cannabis in the state of New York, and also added various protections for people who choose to participate including expungement of previous pot-related criminal charges and preventing employers from denying employment based solely on a failed drug test for THC.  

3. New Jersey – Cannabis became legal for Jersey residents ages 21 and older on February 22, 2022. Along with legalizing weed, the state law included provisions that protect employees from workplace discrimination based on off-duty marijuana use.  

4. Connecticut – Last summer, Connecticut became the 19^th state to legalize recreational cannabis for adults. Senate bill 1201 not only requires certain former cannabis convictions to be expunged from a person’s record, but it outlines that employees should be protected from adverse action at work for using cannabis after work hours. Their laws are a bit more limited than neighboring states like New York and New Jersey, but they are looking at making some revisions soon.  

5. Montana – Montana has always been one of the more progressive states when it comes to cannabis use and personal rights in general. Although cannabis has been a topic of discussion in Montana for the last 50 years, it wasn’t until 2014 that it was officially legalized, for good. In 2020, a couple more bills (Constitution Initiative 118 and Initiative I-190) were approved that aimed to establish more legitimate framework for how recreational cannabis should work in the state. I-190 makes it unlawful for employers to deny employment or fire a current employee for off-duty cannabis use.  

50 Years of Legal Pot – How Alaska Legalized, Recriminalized, then Legalized Again

6. Rhode Island – Following legalization, cannabis use became a protected activity in the state of Rhode Island. Employers are now very limited in the type of disciplinary action they can take against an employee who fails a drug test. The only exception to this rule is if they can prove that the employee was working while under the influence.  

7. California – California is the latest to join the ranks, with Governor Newsom having signed off on Assembly Bill 2188 that offers various workplace protections for cannabis users. Despite weed having been legalized in the Golden State back in 2016, employers were still allowed to take adverse action against current and prospective employees for failed THC drug tests. Now, they have until January 1, 2024, to find a way to prove that workers are high on the job before any consequences can be dished out.

8. Other: Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico also protect employment rights of cannabis consumers, although in Puerto Rico that only applies to medical users. Furthermore, the Supreme Court of New Hampshire ruled that medical cannabis can now be covered by the state’s disability and accommodation law, although these cases will be determined on an individual basis.  

Final Thoughts 

You can consider yourself lucky if you live in one of the aforementioned areas, at least, in regards to cannabis workplace protections and the ease of which you can find jobs as a stoner. As long as the person is sober during work hours, and performing their duties up to par, there is no reason why they should be barred from employment for using pot when they’re off the clock. It’s no different than having a beer or glass of wine after a long day, and since courts are beginning to side with employees on this front, we can expect more employers in more states to start following suit.  

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President VS Supreme Court: The Mexican Vape War

This isn’t how it’s supposed to work, but the world certainly isn’t a perfect place. Most governments have a legislative branch, a presidential branch, and a judicial branch, and these separate branches are meant to balance each other out. They also hold and maintain power in different ways. Right now, a war is going on in Mexico between the president and the court system over the legality of vape products. This Mexican vape war highlights what happens when different arms of government, don’t respect each other.

The Mexican vape war is heating up as President Obrador has now acted in complete violation of the Supreme Court of Mexico. We’re a news platform based in the cannabis and psychedelics industries of today. Sign up for our Cannadelics Weekly Newsletter to receive regular news updates, along with deals on a variety of goods from vapes and smoking devices, to edibles, other cannabis paraphernalia, and super popular cannabinoid compounds like Delta 8 & HHC. Check out our ‘best of’ lists for more details, and please make purchases for products you’re fully comfortable with.

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Government is complicated…

Part of the reason the current Mexican vape war is interesting, is because of the implications it has to government at large. Indeed, government is complicated, as very few governments are made up of one ruling party. It used to be that way when the world was primarily run by monarchies, and dictators, but these days, we have multi-part governments that are meant to balance out power. Our experience with monarchies and dictators tells us it isn’t good to have all the power in one set of hands, and these multifaceted governmental structures, create systems of checks and balances. Or at least, they’re supposed to.

This doesn’t mean every country has the same government structure, and there are still plenty of nations that employ more dictator-like set-ups. One can even question how much of a difference it really makes, and how far off the actual politics are of countries ruled by dictators and those ruled by elected governments; but that’s an article for another time (and another publication).

What we tend to see a lot of, is a government structure made up of three parts, though exactly how much power each part has, is relevant to the local structure. It’s common to have a legislative branch, a presidential branch, and a judicial branch. In the US, we call the legislative branch ‘Congress’, and its split between the ‘Senate’, and the ‘House of Representatives’. This structure holds representatives from each state in both parts, and is meant to be a representative structure of the population of the country. Congress is usually where bills are created and passed into law.

Government structures

However, before passing into law, a bill generally goes through one more step, and that involves another part of government, the president. Sometimes there’s a president and a prime minister, though one is more ceremonial in such cases. Other terms for this position vary by country, and include Premiere, and Chancellor, among others. Sometimes the president is thought of as the most powerful part of government, but this isn’t necessarily true, especially since there’s another part of government, that can technically override both congress and the president.

That’s the Supreme Court, known in some countries as a constitutional court, or a high court. This court is a federal court and is the highest-level court in a country. This court is meant to uphold the constitution of a country, and makes judgements based on whether an issue breaks with the constitution or not. Because of this, it can overturn laws passed by congress, as well as presidential decrees. If a supreme court ruling is binding, it means case law is created (law that comes from the courts and not the legislative branch) and lower courts can’t rule against it.

This basic setup is relatively consistent among the countries that employ this power structure. And though it usually works pretty well, sometimes problems come up. Right now, Mexico is a great example of what happens when these different branches of government, go up against each other. With a recent presidential decree, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador went directly against Supreme Court rulings, making for an escalation in the Mexican vape war.

To Vape or Not to Vape in Mexico

President Obrador, what was your latest move?

On May 31^st, which apparently is World Tobacco Day (yup, that exists), President Obrador announced a decree banning the marketing and sale of 1) electronic nicotine administration systems, 2) similar systems that don’t contain nicotine, 3) any other device for the consumption of nicotine, 4) electronic cigarettes, 5) vaporizing devices with similar uses, and 6) all solutions and mixtures used in these devices. He did this after receiving an award from the WHO.

The decree went on to stipulate: “Whoever fails to comply with what is stated in the first article will be subject to the sanctions indicated in the applicable legal provisions.” This creates a full-blown prohibition of these actions. What exactly happens to those in violation, isn’t known, but there is a decent expectation of fines, product seizures, operation closures, and other measures for those who don’t comply.

After the announcement of this decree, the Federal Commission for the Protection Against Sanitary Risks (Cofepris) put out a maximum alert for using ecigs, saying the devices and fluids are harmful to health, especially if they have vitamin E acetate. This isn’t a legal mandate of any kind, but a sort of follow-up to the presidential decree, as if to give it more power and legitimacy.

Mexican vape laws

But that’s not what the Supreme Court said…

Besides the fact there’s literally no basis for any move like this, especially considering the dangers of smoking, and how these products can cut down on smoking related deaths (scroll down for that); it also goes directly in contrast to a Mexican Supreme Court ruling on the vape issue last year. In fact, it goes against two of them. As in, the president of a country, just flagrantly ignored and insulted their own system of government, and pulled a dictator-like move by going against a judgment made by a constitutional court.

You see, this isn’t Obrador’s first move when it comes to the Mexican vape war. On February 20^th, 2020, Obrador issued a separate decree which banned the import of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS products), along with non-nicotine vape products, from entering Mexico. This included all hardware and vape juices involved. This ban, in general, was an extension of article 16 of the Mexican General Law for Tobacco Control, originally instituted in 2005.

However, the Supreme Court of Mexico did not agree. And in two separate rulings, knocked down this ban, and then went even further. On July 16^th, 2021, the court struck down the ban on imports for “heat-not-burn” products, as unconstitutional. This took these products out of oversight from article 16. Then it stepped it up a notch on October 19^th, 2021, with another ruling. The new judgement stated that article 16 (specifically section VI) of the General Law for the Control of Tobacco (the law which banned the commercialization of vape products in the first place), is unconstitutional, as it damages free trade. And this judgement is binding, meaning lower courts can’t rule against it.

Top 5 Reasons You Should Vape Instead of Smoke

This second judgement came in a 4-2 vote over the violation of constitutional rights to equality, brought to the court by Juan Luis Gónzalez Alcantara Carrancá, the Minister of the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation. Such decrees are also in violation of Mexico’s freedom of trade, and freedom for personality development.

The thing is, a supreme court ruling can set a law, but it doesn’t create the full written text with all stipulations and regulations. That’s for the legislative branch to do. Much like with cannabis, the ruling creates a discrepancy between a supreme court ruling, and written laws. This means Obrador just put out a new decree encouraging law enforcement to go after these actions, while the highest court already ruled that going after such actions, is unconstitutional.

Don’t tons of people die from smoking?

Yes, yes they do. Like, far too many. Like, a gross amount, considering none of it has to happen. In the US, approximately 480,000 people die a year from smoking damage, with a breakdown of approximately 163,700 dead from cancer, 113,100 dead from respiratory illnesses, and 160,000 dead from cardiovascular disease. 41,000 are from secondhand smoke. In England, its 78,000 deaths a year. And in Mexico? According to Tobacco Free Kids, 63,200 people die a year from smoking-related damage, which totals 9.7% of all the country’s yearly deaths.

Vape vs smoke in Mexico

How many from vapes? None, technically. All reported vape injury so far is 100% related to additives, like vitamin E acetate, or other factors. Such additives have nothing to do with either tobacco or cannabis compounds, so it’s not either of these plants, or the direct products of the plants, that are hurting people when it comes to vaping. In fact, though the US just banned many Juul products, and essentially forced the company into a payout to end a ridiculous and senseless, ongoing probe, there’s not one story of an actual medical incident concerning the products. The closest is a wrongful death suit, which technically isn’t related to Juul, but a mother angry her son got addicted to nicotine in general, and who subsequently died of other lung issues. Yet their products were removed from shelves, as cigarettes stayed untouched.

Blaming the whole idea of vaping, because of a couple contaminated products, is like banning cows after an outbreak of E.coli in milk or meat products. Not only is it as dumb as that idea, but it means generalizing one bad product, to all products in an industry. If there was an outbreak of E.coli in milk, maybe a specific brand would get banned if it couldn’t get up to regulation, but its not like all milk would be demonized. Yet, that’s 100%, precisely what’s happening in Mexico, and in America, and a lot of other countries.

Why the discrepancy? Why are there constant smear campaigns and bans against products which aren’t associated with health issues, and which are associated with getting people away from health issues? And why do these smear campaigns and bans come out without mentioning one word about the detriments of cigarettes, or the reality that if alternatives are taken away, people will go back to smoking? While vaping could come with issues in the future, they haven’t made themselves apparent yet, so besides the use of additives which can be ruled out with regulation, there isn’t a problem to speak of. And while all this is happening to ban vapes, cigarettes are still sold. Even though their death toll is very much a part of the known world.

FDA Banned Juul Products…But Not Cigarettes

Why? It’s not for me to say, because I don’t know for sure, but I can put together enough to make sense of it. The US collected $12.5 billion in revenue just from the Federal Tobacco Excise Tax in 2019, according to Taxpolicycenter.org. These numbers stayed consistent enough through 2021, which saw $12.14 billion in cigarette tax revenue for the federal government, according to Statista. How much is the US expected to bring in, in 2027? $11.28 billion. Which kind of makes it seem like there isn’t much expectation that anyone is stopping. Plus, that’s just federal taxes, let’s not forget all the revenue made by individual states through their cigarette taxes too. Can you think of a country without exorbitant cigarette taxes? Mexico surely isn’t it, as 70% of the price of them, is indeed taxes.

Conclusion

Maybe the biggest hindrance to the general public getting laws that make sense and are in conjunction with good health, is the money that nearly every government makes off of people doing unhealthy things. The Mexican vape war goes along with the US vape war, and they both exemplify the pushing of nonsensical laws, that take away healthier options, and push consumers toward unhealthy ones.

In the case of the Mexican vape issue, the implications go far beyond the fight of smoking vs vaping, and into the heart of government structures. If Obrador’s decree is upheld, it weakens the Supreme Court, and every judgement it has made, and will make in the future.

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