Posted on 01/28/2015 5:25:32 AM PST by Wolfie
Legal Marijuana Blooms into the Fastest-Growing Industry in America
Back in 1938, Popular Mechanics ran an article about how cannabis (specifically, hemp) was the new "billion dollar crop." It may have taken nearly eight decades, but according to a report released this week, the legal cannabis industry is now worth well over twice that.
The report by ArcView Market Research, the research arm of cannabis-focused angel investor network The ArcView Group, finds that the U.S. cannabis industry has a value of $2.7 billion. That's a 74 percent increase from 2013, making it the fastest-growing industry in the country.
If all 50 states were to legalize sales of recreational marijuana, the market would be larger than the organic food industry, with a value of $36.8 billion, ArcView's "State of Legal Marijuana Markets" report finds.
To date, 23 states have legalized medical marijuana. Colorado and Washington state have legalized recreational cannabis for adults over 21. Voters in Oregon, Alaska, and Washington, D.C. approved recreational cannabis as well, but the retail industry is not yet off the ground in Alaska and Oregon and Congress has banned retail sales in the nation's capital.
The report predicts that in the next five years 14 other states will adopt recreational sales and two more states will legalize medical cannabis. ArcView says by 2019, the new legal markets and "maturation of the existing markets" will produce a $10.8 billion market.
Interestingly enough, Colorado is not the biggest cannabis market, according to the report. California, which legalized medical sales in 1996, leads all states at $1.3 billion. The report also says that five states now boast marijuana markets worth more than $100 million.
The success in Colorado and Washington is not due to corporate America. Instead, the legal marijuana market in America has grown thanks to entrepreneurs and private investors--"sophisticated players" who "capitalized on the seismic shifts occurring in the regulatory environment," CEO of the ArcView Group Troy Dayton says in the report.
As the recreational marijuana market in those states continues to mature, public perception also has changed, Dayton says. "In the last year, the rise of the cannabis industry went from an interesting cocktail conversation to being taken seriously as the fastest growing industry in America," he says. "At this point, it's hard to imagine that any serious businessperson who is paying attention hasn't spent some time thinking about the possibilities in this market."
It may be a fast growing industry, but it is still fragmented. It is also pump-and-dump paradise in the penny stock market.
Is this because there are more users or or more legal sales? BTW, I assume there is some increase in users.
How long until the Obama Administration starts rolling this into official economic stats?
Big money, but all in cash. A lot of profit is eaten up by the problematic issues of having to maneuver that kind of green around.
Imagine if, when Prohibition was repealed, instead of shielding children from harmful exposure to alcohol, state and federal governments had essentially abandoned them to the glamour drinking culture.
We might have seen documentaries about the social problems by 1938. Socially conservative elements in society might have lamented the situation, given the fact that such conditions couldn’t have prevailed if there were an effective government of laws, not of men.
Eventually, society would have decayed to a film noir alternate reality like that in Dashiell Hammett’s horribly cynical “Red Harvest”. The American “City on a Hill” would be well on its way to the complete dominance of brute force portrayed in Alessandro Manzoni’s “The Betrothed”.
This is essentially the situation today, with the news announcement that the US Justice Department will not prosecute any marijuana crimes unless there is indication of organized crime infiltration—as happened in the Netherlands when cannabis and hashish possession for personal use were decriminalized.
The core issue is that underage users are most seriously impacted. There are no public discussions about the effects upon minors of the marijuana gray market. The only group with an organized platform of political agitation is the “medical” marijuana industry, which has substantial incentives for current conditions to remain as they are, including essentially unregulated use by minors.
MARIJUANA’S HARMFUL EFFECTS ON CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/marijuanas-harmful-effects-on-child-and-adolescent-mental-health/
Differential Cognitive Functioning In 9-12 Years Olds Relative To Prenatal Cigarette And Marijuana Exposure
Prenatal marijuana exposure … was negatively related to executive function tasks www.sacra-pizza-man.org/executive-function-a-new-lens-for-viewing-your-child/ that require impulse control and visual analysis/hypothesis testing, and with a number of the intelligence subtests requiring these same abilities. … In utero exposure to marijuana may have a negative impact on aspects of neurocognitive competence that fall under the domain of executive function.
Neurocognitive Function In Clinically Stable Men With Bipolar I Disorder Or Schizophrenia And Normal Control Subjects
Within the bipolar group there was … a subset with significant [executive functioning] impairment.
[Children are not arbitrarily exempt from mental health issues that afflict adults.]
Marijuana And Mental Health
The strongest evidence links marijuana use and schizophrenia and/or related disorders. High doses of marijuana can produce an acute psychotic reaction … the onset or relapse of schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals … distorted perceptions, impaired coordination, difficulty in thinking and problem solving, and problems with learning and memory … problems in daily life or make a person’s existing problems worse … drug impaired several important measures of life achievement including physical and mental health, cognitive abilities, social life, and career status.
Cannabis Link To Mental Illness Strengthened
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/cannabis-link-to-mental-illness-strengthened-11212002/
Daily cannabis use was associated with a five-fold increased risk of depression at the age of 20. Weekly use was linked to a two-fold increase. The regular users were no more likely to have suffered from depression or anxiety at the start of the study.…The question about a direct pharmacological effect remains.
Pot Lowers I.Q. By 8 Points – PERMANENTLY
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/pot-lowers-i-q-by-8-points-permanently/
Teenagers who regularly smoke cannabis are putting themselves at risk of permanently damaging their intelligence, according to a landmark study. Starting smoking cannabis during one’s teens can have permanent effects on the brain, found researchers. An average person [suffering an 8 point loss] dropped far down the intelligence rankings, so that instead of 50 per cent of the population being more intelligent than them, 71 per cent were.
Longtime Marijuana Use Linked With Decreased Motivation
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/longtime-marijuana-use-linked-with-decreased-motivation/
People who smoke marijuana regularly over long periods of time tend to produce less of the brain chemical dopamine which is linked to motivation.
Is It Worth Losing Your Manhood? Marijuana Use May Increase Risk Of Testicular Cancer.
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/is-it-worth-losing-your-manhood/
Testicular cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in young men ages 15 to 45 years. The malignancy is becoming more common … men with a history of using marijuana were twice as likely to have subtypes of testicular cancer called non-seminoma and mixed germ cell tumors. These tumors usually occur in younger men and carry a somewhat worse prognosis than the seminoma subtype.
Does Smoking Pot Cause Man [Breasts]?
www.sacra-pizza-man.org/does-smoking-pot-cause-man-breasts/
Gynecomastia, otherwise known as man [breasts] (or moobs for short), is caused by a hormone imbalance between testosterone and estrogen. When the ratio between testosterone and estrogen tips in favor of estrogen, the body responds by creating excessive breast tissue. Hence, man [breasts]. Animal studies have shown that exposure to the active ingredient in marijuana can result in a decrease in testosterone levels, a reduction of testicular size, and abnormalities in the form and function of sperm. Although the association between marijuana and gynecomastia hasn’t been conclusively proven, it appears very plausible. For this reason, the majority of plastic surgeons consulted routinely inquire with their gynecomastia patients about cannabis use and recommend they stop smoking pot immediately.
As America enters an era of neo pagan decadence, there will of course be clever people who will service the needs of the decadent and make money. A fertilizer salesman selling to marijuana growers won’t think twice when he buys his new car with his commissions. Nor do landlords who rent out storefronts for cash to drug dealers.
Yeah, because drinking certainly isn’t glamorized in our culture. Everything you posted above can be said about alcohol. So when do we make it illegal again?
As long as they have their dope, stoners are easier to herd and less inclined to resist illegal government actions.
Perhaps zer0 will build a “Kilostone Pipeline” to transport America’s newest economic leader.....CHOOM!
Q: How much has the hemp industry grown in states that have legalized marijuana?
That was the big sell for a long time.
Some of us think that the moral upbringing of children is properly a function of parents, not of the state and federal governments.
I guess we're just weird that way.
Pretty sure I don’t follow your question.
Why do you believe them to be at odds?
America can be proud. We’ve gone from putting man on the moon to being number one at growing a weed to smoke. Cool!
Because of nanny staters like you, tossing a grenade into a crib is now considered proper police work. The 4th amendment is dead because of drug warriors. It is for the children.
Aldous Huxley pointed this out back in 1931.
Others have been noticing this trend as well.
With the bonus of reduced - unconstitutional searches & seizures, asset forfeitures without convictions, low-level drug cases clogging local courts, and law enforcement using Gestapo tactics.
What, no blame for the Parents who ran a drug house?
That incident was a tragic mistake, but not to dopers. It is exactly the sort of thing they look for with glee so they can push their narrative.
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