Thailand Wrestles with the Ripple Effects of Cannabis Decriminalisation

[roietfortress]

just curious if Adam Judd, who lives and works in Pattaya, writes negative articles about all of the much worse things going on in his own city? excessive alcohol consumption, prostitution, bribery, blackmail, theft, murder, and of course meth in the backroom of every bar.

 

cannabis is harmless. prohibitionists are drunk clowns.

 

#

[Andrew65]

48 minutes ago, connda said:

Again - any argument used to justify the criminalization of marijuana can also be used to justify the criminalization of alcohol.  So I find the anti-ganja temperance union who bash recreational marijuana on one hand while downing whiskey in the other.

The hypocrisy is astounding.  If you want to see the type of power freaks you are dealing with, look no further than Orwell and Huxley.  In Orwell's 1984 the plods were rationed a small amount of alcohol to keep them compliant; and Huxley's Brave New World everyone was offered "Soma" which were numerous classes of drugs to take the plods drudgery away when they were not working. 

Obviously, we have Orwell's brand of power-freaks seeking to recriminalize marijuana.
If they are going to do that, criminalize alcohol too.  Pathetic.

I don't know about alcohol, but if tobacco had only just become a thing today, or in recent times, it couldn't be sold legally (when it's so well known how harmful it is).

[Mr Meeseeks]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

a government fraught with concerns about widespread drug issues

Yet they appointed a convicted drug smuggler to a ministerial position. 

[goldenbrwn1]

Thai people lower end like the farmers are losing out already to foreign influence from the likes of California and  the corrupt police and officials enabling the imports of high end weed. Also plenty is being shipped here then rerouted to the countries like the UK. Weed is massive in the UK and still illegal.  Plenty in Cali have become multimillionaires from UK importation.  Now think of how many weed shops have popped up and high end ones as well, even outnumbering 7/11’s…are they full of people buying weed?  
 

 My guess is it’s all a front for importation licences for high end weed and bulk buying in Thailand of lower shelf and it’s being shipped off to the likes of the UK. This is all speculation of course.

[off road pat]

10 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Yes, and no. I really do not give a hoot if you want to use it, I do not use it myself. My issue is the smell, after two years stuck in Blackpool UK, I felt sick most if the time as the populace stunk of it. So, If you want to do it up a mountain or 100 mt downwind of me then go ahead, its your lungs.

There are other ways to use cannabis without smoking it !!! great for the lungs !

https://www.nuggmd.com/blog/cooking-with-cannabis-a-beginners-guide-to-making-marijuana-edibles

[off road pat]

7 hours ago, wombat said:

You rang?

 

[TheTightArseTraveller]

Worst decision ever to decriminalise it.  So obvious what would happen in poorer areas that already struggle with alcoholism.

[Arthur Mullard]

11 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Yes, and no. I really do not give a hoot if you want to use it, I do not use it myself. My issue is the smell, after two years stuck in Blackpool UK, I felt sick most if the time as the populace stunk of it. So, If you want to do it up a mountain or 100 mt downwind of me then go ahead, its your lungs.

LOL.... I do sympathise with that but to clarify (IMO) the naturally sweet smelling Moroccan et al you find often on the continent, as compared with that overpowering SKUNK in and around London... repulsive. It was never like that back in the day. In fairness skunk I have not caught a whiff of, in Thailand. 

[connda]

1 hour ago, off road pat said:

 

Better than driving while on a drinking binge.  Then you wake up the next morning and can't remember a thing. 
Yeah - much better! 

[Dogmatix]

The article says young people in Isaan are smoking too much weed which apparently makes people support recriminalisation. 

 

1. Young under age people are not allowed to buy from licensed dispensaries any more than they are allowed to buy alcohol and tobacco.

 

2. Young people in Isaan can't afford to buy weed from licensed dispensaries. They buy brickweed which is smuggled in from Laos from street dealers.  Recriminalisation will probably not effort the availability of brickweed very much.

[Leif Kullberg]

12 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Yes, and no. I really do not give a hoot if you want to use it, I do not use it myself. My issue is the smell, after two years stuck in Blackpool UK, I felt sick most if the time as the populace stunk of it. So, If you want to do it up a mountain or 100 mt downwind of me then go ahead, its your lungs.

Do u want to ban cheese stores to - most of them smell quite a lot ????

[paddypower]

9 hours ago, paddypower said:

Pattaya News - similar to '' The Bangkok Post - current news'' :you will find both in the thesaurus, right under ''oxymoron''.

Confused? or am I swimming out of my depth? is there any news coming out of Pattaya, or Bangkok for that matter? we expats are stuck with the fact that there is no real news to read, in Thailand. That is why it is called an oxymoron:  a figure of speech that combines contradictory words with opposing meanings, like ''you are clearly confused“ “deafening silence,” or “organized chaos.” cheers

[ericthai]

2 hours ago, TheTightArseTraveller said:

Worst decision ever to decriminalise it.  So obvious what would happen in poorer areas that already struggle with alcoholism.

please tell us what happened in the "poorer areas" ?  

[Bday Prang]

1 hour ago, Dogmatix said:

Recriminalisation will probably not effort the availability of brickweed very much.

neither will it have any effect on the amount of it smoked by young people in issan

[JimboB4]

11 hours ago, Lemsta69 said:

The article is by Adam Judd from the Pattaya News, not "TVF" (whatever that is).

Right Adam from where? UK or Australia? It’s usually old people from these two countries who hate it. 

[Lemsta69]

3 minutes ago, JimboB4 said:

Right Adam from where? UK or Australia? It’s usually old people from these two countries who hate it. 

Oops I got it wrong, despite it saying "by Adam Judd" the article was written by this chap:

 

"Tom Sinclair

https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/

 

Tom is the editor of https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/ and a frequent guest writer for us as he often visits Thailand and enjoys the culture and history."

 

Sorry, I didn't click on the link to the Pattaya News article like I normally would, the tone of the first few paragraphs put me off and now I know why ????

[Lemsta69]

7 hours ago, roietfortress said:

just curious if Adam Judd, who lives and works in Pattaya, writes negative articles about all of the much worse things going on in his own city? excessive alcohol consumption, prostitution, bribery, blackmail, theft, murder, and of course meth in the backroom of every bar.

 

cannabis is harmless. prohibitionists are drunk clowns.

 

#

Ha ha I thought it was by Adam Judd as well because I didn't bother to click on the link but if you do you'll see it's written by some chap named Tom Sinclair from Pembrokeshire (whatever that is ????)

[Bday Prang]

4 hours ago, TheTightArseTraveller said:

Worst decision ever to decriminalise it.  So obvious what would happen in poorer areas that already struggle with alcoholism.

And what has happened? nothing last time I checked

[George FmplesdaCosteedback]

First I have to say all the Weed shops don't look good to Family Tourists and given all the "other" entertainment available quite openly it will not encourage them to holiday in Thailand. For myself i just get tired with the virtue signaling weed heads who go on and on about how much better it is for you and how, unlike alcohol, it doesn't kill people. The sale to adults should be allowed but with a restriction on how much you can buy in any given 30 days. A "weed licence" should be available at a reasonable price from clinics and hospitals with an electronic record of how much credit is left and have the purshaser's ID number or passport number as a means of stopping people having multiple record cards. I am not against dope but I believe it encourages people to try other drugs.

[Bday Prang]

19 minutes ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

First I have to say all the Weed shops don't look good to Family Tourists and given all the "other" entertainment available quite openly it will not encourage them to holiday in Thailand. For myself i just get tired with the virtue signaling weed heads who go on and on about how much better it is for you and how, unlike alcohol, it doesn't kill people. The sale to adults should be allowed but with a restriction on how much you can buy in any given 30 days. A "weed licence" should be available at a reasonable price from clinics and hospitals with an electronic record of how much credit is left and have the purshaser's ID number or passport number as a means of stopping people having multiple record cards. I am not against dope but I believe it encourages people to try other drugs.

Indeed, who could believe that innocent minded "families" would even consider holidaying in Thailand's drug hell? especially when they may well find themselves surrounded by prostitutes or even worse some of the prudes who like to whinge on here

There are no "virtue signalling weed heads" they don't have time to virtue signal, at least not on here, as they spend most of their time responding to the idiotic assertations of the anti cannabis brigade

Why on god's earth would you feel it necessary to impose a 30 day restriction of any sort ?  and what's the purpose of your "weed licence".  You sound like a real bundle of fun , not , 

What is it about cannabis that you think encourages people to try other drugs? after all,  the gateway drug myth was debunked years ago. I mean just think about it   Are you really trying to tell us that you actually believe that cannabis, a simple plant, has the unique ability to encourage those who ingest it to further sample multiple illegal substances, how on earth does it do that ?  If that was actually true it would be phenomenal

[JBChiangRai]

20 hours ago, Datsun 1200 said:

The previous Govt issued 6,000 Cannabis Dispensary licenses, They will all need to be compensated, as is totally legal what they have set up.

The new Govt won't want to pay, and it will remain available.

 

IH

They don't need to be compensated, because they made a risky decision to open when the health minister said not to sell recreational cannabis.

 

20 hours ago, Datsun 1200 said:

"Nothing on its devastating effects particularly on youths?"  Data please or this is just propaganda

Fast Facts

• In 2022, 30.7% of 12^th graders reported using marijuana in the past year, and 6.3% reported using marijuana daily in the past 30 days.¹
• Compared to teens who do not use marijuana, teens who use marijuana may be less likely to graduate from high school or college.^2,3
• Research shows that marijuana use during teen years can harm the brain.^4,5

How Does Marijuana Use Affect Teen Health?

The teen brain is actively developing and continues to develop until around age 25. Marijuana use is associated with increased risk for the following issues⁴:

 

• Harm to brain health. Marijuana use beginning in teen years or younger may affect brain development which may impair thinking, memory, and learning.
• Mental health issues. Marijuana use has been linked to depression and social anxiety in adults.⁴ People that use marijuana are more likely to develop temporary psychosis (hallucinations, not knowing what is real, and paranoia) and long-lasting mental disorders, including schizophrenia.
  
  Schizophrenia is a type of mental illness where people might see or hear things that aren’t there. The association between marijuana and schizophrenia is stronger in people who start using marijuana frequently at an early age.¹⁰
• Impaired driving. Driving while impaired by marijuana is dangerous and illegal. Marijuana affects reaction time, coordination, and concentration—skills required for safe driving.¹¹
• Increased potential for marijuana use disorder. People who begin using marijuana before the age of 18 are at increased risk of developing marijuana use disorder.¹²

Marijuana and Youth: The Impact of Marijuana Use on Teen Health and Wellbeing | Featured Topics | Marijuana and Public Health (cdc.gov)

 

I am sure you know better than the CDC, pfft

[jacko45k]

18 hours ago, roietfortress said:

just curious if Adam Judd, who lives and works in Pattaya, writes negative articles about all of the much worse things going on in his own city? excessive alcohol consumption, prostitution, bribery, blackmail, theft, murder, and of course meth in the backroom of every bar.

 

cannabis is harmless. prohibitionists are drunk clowns.

 

#

He would be asked to tone it down, ie report fewer articles that put the place in a bad light. AS happened to a prior news 'mogul'......

 

Your opinion on cannabis is simply that.... prohibitionists, I suspect avoid alcohol too, so would be unlikely to be drunk.

[Shocked farang]

23 hours ago, mizzi39 said:

Cannabis in Thailand is NOT going anywhere. Even if Thailand put cannabis back on the narcotics list  and legalized it for medical use only,  there are so many good strains floating around the kingdom now. The black market will flourish (which is obviously counter productive given the fact that it's a cash crop that should benefit the economy).

 

No matter what happens in the near future, gone are the days of only scoring (mostly)  s**t brick weed, so that's a positive.  

 

Wake up Thailand! Look at the handful of countries where cannabis is legal. Try to integrate some of the laws and policies set up to control and regulate the legal market.  

 

On another note, can't these news sites find a better stock photo?

True, as they say, the gennie is out of bottle and there's no way to put him back! 

[bobbin]

19 hours ago, goldenbrwn1 said:

Thai people lower end like the farmers are losing out already to foreign influence from the likes of California and  the corrupt police and officials enabling the imports of high end weed. Also plenty is being shipped here then rerouted to the countries like the UK. Weed is massive in the UK and still illegal.  Plenty in Cali have become multimillionaires from UK importation.  Now think of how many weed shops have popped up and high end ones as well, even outnumbering 7/11’s…are they full of people buying weed?  
 

 My guess is it’s all a front for importation licences for high end weed and bulk buying in Thailand of lower shelf and it’s being shipped off to the likes of the UK. This is all speculation of course.

You left out "pure"...

 

As in pure speculation..

[bamnutsak]

10 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

First I have to say all the Weed shops don't look good to Family Tourists and given all the "other" entertainment available quite openly it will not encourage them to holiday in Thailand.

You do know that these shops have government-issued licenses. So your issue here is that the Government is issuing too many licenses, in areas where there should be fewer shops. Good point, take that up with the Government.

 

10 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

The sale to adults should be allowed but with a restriction on how much you can buy in any given 30 days.

No issue with this, assuming the amount is reasonable, and there is a way to track purchases. That said, I'm not sure what it is meant to accomplish?

 

 

10 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

I am not against dope but I believe it encourages people to try other drugs.

Too late for Thailand, everyone's gateway drug is yaba or ice, they've skipped over Cannabis as a gateway drug. That argument last worked circa 1980. Yaba is dirt cheap and the high of choice. Decent cannabis is outside the price range for most Thai youths, so if they indulge in Cannabis it's dirtweed still damp from the trek across the Mekong.

 

 

 

[n00dle]

On 10/3/2023 at 8:05 AM, Purdey said:

It has always been available to all ages if they could afford it, as is ya ba and ecstacy.

Ya baa, ice,ketamine and cocaine maybe, ecstacy, not so readily availale.

[Sydebolle]

In Nong Khai there are dozens of cannabis outlets and they all have one thing in common - they are empty! 

Decriminalizing weed was a good thing and I would assume, that the consumer base did not grow bigger. Never tried the stuff and have no intention to change my mind now ???? 

[JCauto]

On 10/3/2023 at 6:31 AM, buriram39 said:

What government 'swept into power'. A bit of reporting license here I think.

I think they mean "slimed into power".

[goldenbrwn1]

5 hours ago, bobbin said:

You left out "pure"...

 

As in pure speculation..

Or maybe I have 2 naughty millionaire sons living in Cali…….

[impulse]

On 10/3/2023 at 12:12 PM, SunsetT said:

Now they'll be getting in their cars and driving stoned, or worse still, drunk and stoned, to go out and kill people and themselves most times! From experience I know that cannabis impairs judgement and destroys focus and concentration so I think that less of it would affect driving  ability more than low to moderate amounts of alcohol.

Seriously?  Ever seen a stoner drive before they started legalizing the stuff?  They were the most careful drivers I've ever seen.  Not a KPH over the limit, full stop on red and look both ways before entering the intersection.  Paranoid, I think they called it.   But not much of a hazard to others.

 

Drunks?  They don't give a rat...