Uruguay and now Canada allow production and sale of cannabis containing products. You can eat, drink, vape and smoke to the extent that your health and budget allow.

It is very cool that some folks who have cannabis-related convictions will have them removed (depending on what exactly the circumstances were).

I live in California, and since prop 64 went into law this year I have MANY choices of cannabis vendors in my town. For me, I like the convenience of being able to purchase quality products, as desired, from sources with reliable hours of operation.

For me, the challenge was always finding sources of product. Suppliers came and went, their stock levels varied wildly. It is very nice to always be able to find quality bud. I am willing to pay more for access to steady supply. A long time 'private' supplier I know soundly criticizes me for paying club prices, but I pointed out to him examples of when he could not deliver for lack of stock.

I have consumed cannabis, mainly in potent smokable form, for a long time. I mainly vape now, but still roll the occasional spliff, or hit pipes/bongs. I have had bad luck with edibles. Hard to find the Goldilocks spot-- I either eat too little, or too much and then, well hopefully it has never happened to you :-) Have yet to try the tinctures, I have one friend who swears by them. Maybe there is a dermal patch?

I have always come across people who were fascinated by the whole concept of marijuana. The counterculture, the rebel attitude of sticking it to The Man. Me, I just want to get stoned. It is not a religious experience, I enjoy getting high. I don't carry the stuff around with me all the time. I engage as a private 'recreational' activity.

I have read stories, for example, about folks who packed up then moved to Colorado to attempt to get employment in the cannabis industry. Sadly, the firms adhere to standard conservative employment screenings as far as criminal background checks.

I know some growers. They thought their day had come once CA prop 64 was passed. Well, to generate income, one must first produce quality product. They had farm issues related to their 1) lack of knowledge and experience growing in large quantities and 2) their black market attitudes. They hired a competent grower to lead the effort, but they ignored his advice because of the expense. The result was fewer, smaller plants. They blamed the lead grower of course, and then screwed him out of some of the salary he was owed. He had a wife and child and made sacrifices of quality of life to join their business. Meanwhile said growers also had children who lived in a nice house in a nice town with a good school system. The lead lived with his family on the farm with far lesser amenities. How could people with children do that to another person who also has children?

Returning to the undergound cannabis economy for a moment, because of the difference in price, the 'private' suppliers will continue to thrive. Again, the quality and availability will be very uneven.

I see ads for delivery drivers. The model is similar to ride sharing where the driver is an independent operator. I looked into entering the deilvery market. You will be an independent contractor, getting commissions. I know someone who had their cargo confiscated by the police. I read news articles about others who had their payload grabbed by LEOs. In all cases, the cannabis was sold (and more) by the police with the proceeds going into the municipal coffers. The vendors offer no support in terms of jail bailouts and covering vehicle impound fees. Operators will have to retain an attorney on their own, probably making the overhead prohibitive compared to realistic earnings.

Of course, with any emerging industry, there are discussions about the financial areas, like investing, stocks, startup funding and services for the vendors. In general it is difficult to find banking services willing to deal with cannabis earnings. Some of the vendors I use take credit/debit payments though. I know there is an effort in California to form some type of submarket for financial services that cater to the cannabis industry. Convoluted with the terms of federal, state and local banking laws regarding schedule 1 controlled substances. Ouch.

On the rgulatory front, the USDA has stated that they would love to grant organic farming certifications to cannabis farms, but they can't because of the schedule1 controlled substance status. There is a guy in California who has organized an organic cannabis farming group. I understand he gets advice and guidance from the USDA. The growers I mentioned above feel that the regulations are too restrictive. For example, they satetd that the Colordao structure was 'militaristic.'

In my opinion, the tobacco companies will eventually buy out the successful cannabis producers. Cannabis is in the same family of plant as tobacco. Big tobacco is well situated to produce mass quantities of strong, cheap weed. They also have experience with FDA, government and social controversy. Imagine Benson & Hedges Purple Punch 100s filtered lol. Sure, have a mix of tobacco and marijuana-- people do that now.

Last thought for you: Google cannabis beer ;-)

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