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Germany Legalizes Marijuana for Recreational Use

Germany Legalizes Marijuana for Recreational Use

Germany: Marijuana Becomes Legal

On February 23, 2024, the German Bundestag approved a law for the legalization of cannabis for recreational use, making Germany the third European country, after Malta and Luxembourg, to regulate the marijuana market. The new law, which will come into effect on April 1, 2024, will have a significant impact on the German market, with implications for consumers, businesses, and the government.

What the law entails:

The law allows adults over the age of 21 to possess up to 25 grams of cannabis for personal use and to grow up to three cannabis plants at home, provided they are not visible from public spaces. The sale of cannabis will be regulated by a licensing system similar to that for alcohol and tobacco, with authorized specialized shops, pharmacies, and cannabis clubs. The THC content will be limited to 15%, and the government will apply a consumption tax on cannabis similar to that on tobacco.

Market opportunities:

The legalization of cannabis in Germany presents a significant opportunity for the market. It is estimated that the value of the legal German cannabis market could reach €4 billion by 2028. The new law will open the doors to new companies operating in the cannabis sector, from cultivation to retail sales, and an increase in investments in the sector is expected from both German and foreign companies.

Impact on consumers:

Consumers of cannabis in Germany will have access to a safer and more controlled product, with a greater variety of cannabis-based products available, including flowers, oils, concentrates, and edibles. Legalization will reduce the black market and the risks associated with purchasing illegal cannabis.

Challenges and concerns:

The legalization of cannabis in Germany also presents some challenges and concerns, including market control to prevent criminalization, raising awareness among consumers about mental health risks and driving under the influence of drugs, and analyzing the social impact, particularly on young people.

Conclusions:

The legalization of cannabis in Germany is a historic event with significant implications for the market, consumers, and the government. The new law represents an important opportunity for the German cannabis market, but it will require addressing challenges and concerns to ensure proper implementation and management.

Howard Marks: “Mr. Nice”, the well-known Welsh drug-dealer has died

Howard Marks: “Mr. Nice”, the well-known Welsh drug-dealer has died

Howard Marks: “Mr. Nice”, the well-known Welsh drug-dealer has died

Have you ever heard of Howard Marks?

Dennis Howard Marks, better known as Mr. Nice, has been an iconic figure in the cannabis world between the 70s and the 80s.

Born in 1945 in Wales, Howard Marks, became known as an international drug dealer when, in 1988, got into jail and was sentenced for international drug selling.

His story is incredible and it’s worth telling. His autobiography “Mr. Nice” was published in 1996 and it’s full of information and interesting details of his adventures.

Introduced to cannabis while he was studying Physics at university, Mr. Nice started selling on a small scale in its faculty. Until the 60s he was selling to his friends and acquaintance but in 1970 there was a big change.

He met Mohammed Durrani, a Pakistani hashish dealer. He offered him the possibility of selling hashish in London, getting out of his circle of friends.

With time and with the consolidation of his position in London, Howard Marks started being used to move capital and hashish abroad.

These have been the first steps of the big empire he would have created in the few years following.

A real empire

Howard Marks, according to his stories, managed to create a real hashish and marijuana empire in a short time. The partnership with Durrani allowed him to access the supplies of hashish and marijuana that were coming from the bags of the diplomatic personnel coming from Pakistan. This way, with the help of some hired dealers, he managed to obtain huge profits. In 1972, thanks to a new route from Kabul to Ireland, he managed to earn even £50,000 per travel!

His high rank figure drew the attention of the MI6 that hired him to get information thanks to his contacts in Lebanon, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

At the beginning of the Seventies, Mr. Nice was a “big shot” of international drug dealing.

Although he was arrested by Dutch police in 1973, he managed to evade custody and to continue his activity by expanding to the US thanks to Yakuza. In the mid Seventies, he was an international high-level dealer and he was extremely rich. He was using different pseudonyms and he was in disguise to avoid jail but he equally managed to travel and manage his smuggling. By collaborating with all the criminal associations, he managed to import in the US a huge quantity of hashish and marijuana and became the unbeatable leader in his sector.

Let’s talk numbers: according to his autobiography, at the peak of his activity he was selling more than 30 tons of drugs. He created 25 businesses in the world to recycle money, he was using 43 different identities and had 89 phone lines!

Arrest

In 1988 Howard Marks was arrested in a joint operation of the Spanish and American police. He was arrested and taken to Madrid, and his extradition to the US was requested. He tried to defend himself by saying that his drug dealing activities did not involve the US but Australia. He also tried to argue that he was a spy for the MI6 and that the whole operation was setup. According to his deposition, he was framed because he found drug-trafficking by some CIA agents. Despite this, he was extradited in 1989 in Florida.

During the trial, some of his old collaborators testified against him. He was sentenced to 25 years in jail and a fine of $50,000.

In 1995 however, Howard Marks was freed for good conduct. His stay in jail and its details offer an interesting part of life in a supermax prison, as described in his autobiography.

Political activity and legalisation

After his release, Howard Marks engaged in different activities proving himself as a versatile person.

He worked as an actor in some movies, he collaborated for the creation of videogames, he published a best-selling autobiography. We can say that Mr. Nice lived multiple lives in just one.

In 1997 he even run the British elections pursuing the request to legalise drugs. Following his action, the LCA (Legalise Cannabis Alliance) was born. And from that moment on, his role as an activist was predominant.

His personality was complex and interesting, he was a man that became a drug dealer starting from being a nuclear physicist, to then get into politics and activism. For a long time, he fought for the legalisation of cannabis. After being released he founded the Mr. Nice Seed Bank in the UK, which is one of the most important banks for cannabis seeds. The Mr. Nice Seed Bank was born for research, for the creation of new plants and to sponsor medical cannabis.

Mr. Nice fought until his death for the right of free cannabis for everyone.

He never refused his past, as his trafficking activity was functional to the achievement of his objectives. Wealth, ease, and interesting encounters were part of his life and his magnetic personality helped attracting them. However, when his dealing activity ended, he managed to find a new way to stay afloat. His claim on his questioned past does not erase his battles fought in the third part of his life.

His loss, happened in 2016, deprived the world of a very interesting and controversial figure. He was a giant who helped the world of cannabis move around and who’s been its undisputed protagonist for over three decades.

Covid-19: Charlotte, the 13 years old kid who revolutionised medical cannabis, died

Covid-19: Charlotte, the 13 years old kid who revolutionised medical cannabis, died

Covid-19: Charlotte, the 13 years old kid who revolutionised medical cannabis, died

The global movement for the liberalisation of medical cannabis mourns the death of Charlotte Figi.

Covid-19 does not spare anyone and continues its destructive path of contagion and death. Initially it was thought that kids were immune but however it’s not this way anymore. Many cases of prematurely dead kids are making headlines.

On April the 7th 2020 Covid-19 has made another little victim. Charlotte, whose story has revolutionised the medical cannabis, died following complications related to Covid-19.

Charlotte was admitted in the hospital on the 3rd of April following symptoms linked to coronavirus, then she was discharged following an improvement of her conditions. As she got back home, she enjoyed a couple of calm days before the worsening of her health. The worsening led to another immediate hospitalisation, but doctors did not manage to fight against Coronavirus that ended her young life.

The world of medical cannabis, that owes a lot to the experience of this kid, lost the first engine of a liberalisation movement still active to this day.

Charlotte’s story is exemplary, and it started the global movement for the freedom of usage of cannabinol.

Born in 2006 in Colorado Springs in the US, Charlotte quickly showed symptoms of a rare condition that knows no medicines. It was a form of drug-resistant epilepsy known as Dravel Syndrome.

Dravet Syndrome, an illness without cure

Charlotte showed the first symptoms of the Dravet syndrome at the age of just three months. She started having strong epilepsy crises that growing up increased in frequency up to 300 attacks a week. At the age of 5 she was forced to use the wheelchair and to be fed with the probe. The frequency of the attacks did not allow her to have a normal life. She got to a point when she could not talk nor keep eye contact.

Her desperate parents tried all the existing medicines in the market without finding what could actually help the kid.

One day her mother, while researching, found some studies about the usage of medical cannabis to treat epileptic and convulsive crises. At that time Colorado was one of the few states in the US that would allow the usage of medical cannabis as a treatment for seizures.

In a desperate attempt she managed to convince the GP to prescribe the cannabinol to the kid and found two cannabis farmers willing to help her: the Stanley brothers. They were cultivating a new variety of marijuana with a high CBD content and low THC content that is the psychoactive component.

As soon as Charlotte started taking the cannabis oil, her epileptic crises decreased considerably. The kid started playing, walking and they removed the feeding devices too.

Her life expectancy before the treatment with the cannabis oil was of about 8 years. However, her conditions improved so much and quickly that it became a case well know all over the world.

A revolution for medical cannabis

Charlotte’s case, resonating in the news, contributed substantially to the decision of the American government to use cannabinol for medical uses.

A CNN documentary of 2013 showed that the kid was able to walk and play, giving hope to those who have members of their families suffering from the same conditions.

It was a real revolution for medical cannabis! To the point that many families with children having the same condition as Charlotte, moved to Colorado to enjoy the same treatments. Their movement was named “Marijuana refugees”.  A moving collection of their stories has been made by Charlotte’s mum on her Instagram page “Realm of Caring”.

In 2018 the Food and Drug Administration decided to approve a drug made of cannabinol called Epidiolex, to treat convulsions of the Dravet Syndrome. The first ever approved drug for the syndrome.

To date, in the US there are 34 states that have legalised medical cannabis and its use is spreading also in the rest of the world.

From the experience of Charlotte and her family, the “Realm of Caring” association was born, and it helps those in need of taking Cannabinol.

Charlotte’s web

“Realm of Caring” works closely with “Charlotte’s Web”, the society founded from the Stanley brothers. Over time the two brothers have developed and perfected a variety of cannabis suitable to treat convulsive crises. This plant variety took the name from the child who inspired its creation: Charlotte’s Web.

The world rotating around medical cannabis owes a huge thanks you to Charlotte and her family. Their experience allowed to shed light and stimulate the whole sector. The refinement of Charlotte’s Web and its medical use led to an improvement of the life quality of many people.

Research is still continuing, and the usage of cannabinol is proving more and more effective where other drugs are not succeeding.

Covid-19 killed a young person to whom we own a lot. Without her experience and without the patience and energy of her family, the whole marijuana medical sector wouldn’t have got so far.

Little Charlotte, thanks to the new treatment, managed to live her few years in the best possible way.

Rest in peace little Charlotte, we want to remember you smiley and happy, on the slide with your sister.

Cannabis is an essential service in the US and Europe

Cannabis is an essential service in the US and Europe

Cannabis is an essential service in the US and Europe

Cannabis is more and more considered as an essential service in different parts of the world. The spread of its usage for therapeutic and leisure usage, as well as its legalisation in many countries, has led to a very important change. Today considering cannabis as an essential service is the natural consequence of the progressive global openness of its usage. More and more countries have changed their laws by including cannabis among the legal products and its usage has definitely experienced an increase. More and more people buy and use it habitually and the numbers linked to its legal market are higher and higher.

This is key to understanding the dynamics of the events recurring lately everywhere. Cannabis as an essential service for more and more people has become the subject of hoarding. Just like necessities, in many part of the world lately, there have been queues to purchase marijuana.

US, dispensing cannabis as a guaranteed service

cannbisIn the US there are many states that consider cannabis as an essential service, and in the middle of the coronavirus emergency, have enacted laws to protect its sale. From San Francisco to New York and Nevada, the cannabis “dispensaries” are included in the essential services and will remain open. Given that cannabis has therapeutic use, the seller will have the chance to keep on selling it, as long as it follows some hygienic rules. They need to guarantee the minimum distance between clients and use protective tools and hand sanitizer as a rule. All the sellers could remain open as long as they follow these procedures. It’s a step forward in recognising the importance of marijuana in people’s lives.

Buying race

Apart from the decision of many US states to consider cannabis as an essential service, these days we have witnessed a completely new phenomenon. A phenomenon that tells us how much cannabis has took over the habits of consumers. In all the states where cannabis is legal there have been long queues outside the stores dedicated. Yes, Americans have assaulted supermarkets, gun shops and now cannabis shops!

It’s definitely an unexpected event. Not only necessary goods or personal defence goods, but also cannabis has become a good to stock up in the case of an epidemy. Long queues have been seen in many states and many people queued to purchase enough weed for their quarantine. Without respecting the security distance and without protection, hundreds of people have waited to get their portion of cannabis home.

The rules change …

It’s a real revolution! It started as a good secretly and illegally bought and now cannabis is an essential service that makes people queue for long hours. No matter whether for therapeutic or leisure use, this fact shows that now cannabis is part of those goods regularly purchased. Hundreds of people now use it regularly and don’t want or can’t risk going without.

There have been queues everywhere in the US, both in those states that have declared cannabis as an essential service, but also in those states where the sellers had to close. This shows that the race for procurement does not only depend on the possibility of buying it legally during the lockdown. This means that in many people’s minds cannabis is now part of the necessity goods so people now queue for toilet paper, food and cannabis. This is something definitely healthier and innocuous than queuing for arms!

The Netherlands and its assaulted coffee shops

The US were not the only country experiencing long queues for cannabis! We already know that cannabis has been seen as an essential service in the Netherlands for a long time. The fact that in the Netherlands cannabis is of common use is a cliché but also a real fact. Many coffee shops in different cities sell marijuana legally and when the government has requested the close down there have been problems. Following the announcement of the closure of the coffee shops due to the Coronavirus emergency, many people went on the streets and rushed to the closest coffee shop to queue and get their supply before the closure.

There have been long queues that did not respect the security distance and there have been tense moments as well. The Dutch media has reported the fact that in order to skip the queue, a guy pretended to cough to scare the other people queuing. Only the police managed to establish the order by arresting the guy.

Following these unexpected and dangerous events the government decided to take a step back due to the contagion. Coffee shops have been included in the shops open for trade because of necessity. Right now is then possible to go to a coffee shop to buy marijuana but not to consume it in its premises. Indeed, in order to stay open, all the stores need to guarantee the basic rules of safety to avoid the contagion. Security distance and protective tools such as masks and gloves, as well as the ban on consumption indoor are rules that need to be respected.

A global phenomenon

Cannabis is an essential service not only in the US and the Netherlands! In other cities such as Barcelona, there have been queues to buy cannabis before the lockdown. This is the proof that cannabis and its multiple benefits is not part of the daily lives of so many people. More and more people use it frequently both for therapeutic use but also to relax.  

Home delivery for weed, therapeutic cannabis

Home delivery for weed, therapeutic cannabis

Home delivery for weed, therapeutic cannabis

In such uncertain times. Getting home delivery for weed could make a difference! I am thinking about those who consume cannabis for therapeutic use and all of a sudden found themselves without a way to restock it. With the quarantine, many people who were using marijuana to ease their health issues. Found themselves in the situation of not being able to find it.  So, apart from the uncertainty of the future and the fear of the virus, they saw their health conditions worsening.

Home delivery weed could then help all those habitual consumers who are forced to stay at home right now.

Therapeutic cannabis. Usage

In the past years therapeutic cannabis has spread widely also thanks to the possibility of having it prescribed for a number of pathologies that would greatly benefit from receiving cannabis through home delivery.

According to the ministerial order of 9th Noember 2015, therapeutic cannabis can be prescribed for a range of pathologies. Although, according to the order, it cannot be considered as a therapy, weed is being used as a symptomatic treatment and aid for many illnesses. Otherwise it can be authorized as a treatment in all those cases where official treatments do not obtain the desired outcomes or have too heavy side effects.

The treatments

The cases of cannabis being prescribed legally and that,in these days would benefit from cannabis home delivery are the following:

  • Pain treatment for some pathologies such as multiple sclerosis and injuries of the spinal cord in case of resistance to traditional therapies.
  • Treatment of chronic pain that cannot be treated with traditional analgesics, such as fibromyalgia, arthritis or neuropathies.
  • Treatment of the effects of chemotherapy or against HIV as cannabis is used for its proved antiemetic effect.
  • Treatment of eating disorders such as anorexia or loss of appetite of oncological patients thanks to its property of stimulating the appetite.
  • Treatment of glaucoma when this resists traditional therapies, for its hypotensive properties.
  • Treatment of Tourette and Gilles syndromes thanks to its capacity of reducing the involuntary movements of the body.

All those suffering of such issues who have found relief by using cannabis, now find themselves struggling because they are unable of sourcing it. The recurrence of chronic pain or other issues will be unavoidable. If there is no action plan to provide home delivery of cannabis for those who need it, their quarantine will become a cage. The pain that arises again without solution will make the forced isolation a real hell for so many people.

Prescription of therapeutic cannabis

cannabisThe means for consuming therapeutic cannabis are either through decoction or vaporization. Only the GPs or specialists can prescribe the cannabis-based treatment to those who show the above-mentioned pathologies. If, on top of that, you consider that normally doctors dislike prescribing therapeutic cannabis, you will understand how difficult it can be sourcing cannabis. Those who find themselves in situations of great despair, already in normal situations find it hard to obtain a prescription. During this emergency the situation got even worse. Sourcing cannabis is not easy and we hope that weed home delivery will become a rule for those who need it. We hope for a system of delivery that would take into account the conditions of the patient and that would help him not being exposed to the contagion.

Covid emergency and sourcing cannabis

In this period of social distancing, patients being treated with cannabis belong to the category of fragile individuals who need to be defended. Oncological patients, people with HIV, neuropathy, fibromyalgia are all people who need to be protected from the virus. They are patients who, more than anyone else have to apply the social distancing and avoid to go out as much as possible. We have seen that specifically those patients with previous pathologies are the ones that are more vulnerable to the Covid-19.

Most of the deaths of the pandemic come from fragile patients such as the elderly or people previously sick. Requiring people suffering from different pathologies to go out to get their medicines means putting them at a higher risk of losing their lives. This is the main reason why people are now requesting to have their weed delivered at home.

Home delivery. Need of including cannabis among the essential goods

A system of home delivery that could help all the fragile people is very important. In these days people are working towards this direction trying to avoid going out. However, if the food deliveries are slowly being implemented with difficulties, we cannot say the same about home delivery for weed.

People who need it to treat pathologies that could not be helped otherwise, are finding themselves in an unpleasant situation of having to go out to source it. The sick people or their relatives, have to expose themselves to the possible contagion in order to get an important medication.

All this creates difficult and uncertain situations in those who should be protected in this period of big emergency.

For this reason we hope that a system of home delivery for weed will be implemented for those who really need it.

We are not talking about leisure weed, that although is great for relaxation, is not included in the necessities. This is a very important medication for all those who, after trying “official” solutions, got to know cannabinol as last resort. Finding oneself in the middle of a pandemic, blocked at home, without a way of easing their pain, is a very unpleasant situation that needs a solution.

Let’s help those in need by thinking of a program that includes home delivery for weed for those who, having a right, request it.

Coronavirus: how our habits change

Coronavirus: how our habits change

Coronavirus: how our habits change

The Coronavirus is a watershed between what we were and what we will be once the emergency comes to an end. The unavoidable stop that it is imposing on us makes us reconsider everything in a new way. All our habits need to be reconsidered taking into account this huge health emergency that has reached all the world.

Protect yourself to protect others

The most important thing to take into account when talking about Coronavirus, is its rapidity of diffusion. The exponential growth of cases that we have witnessed in the past weeks has paralyzed our society and radically changed our habits.

The keyword now is #Istayhome, and the priority is now preventing Coronavirus from continuing spreading. Every new outbreak brings us closer to a healthcare systm collapse and we should not allow this! The priority is to protect ourselves to protect those who, hit by Coronavirus, might not survive.

The elderly and those with pre-existing medical conditions need to be protected from the outbreak, and the only way to do so right now is social distancing.

Then, let’s all stay at home! Let’s live in our own walls avoiding external contacts as much as possible.

If you really need to go out make sure you are protected to as not to bring Coronavirus at home and infect our loved ones.

Shaking hands, hugging and being too close are banned. You need to keep yourself one metre away from everyone, wearing gloves and mask and once you reach home you should leave your shows outside.

You need to wash your hands carefully more frequently but more importantly you need to think that we will manage to get out of this situation.

We are all far but we are all together in fighting the Coronavirus and in keeping it away until a valid solution will be found. You need to protect yourself for your benefit and to protect the community: every person that escapes the outbreak will save other lives!

Usual habits during coronavirus times

It’s important to try and maintain our habits as much as possible. Try to do your workouts, get some daylight, work and study as usual… Indoor. Coronavirus does not make discountr.

It’s not easy. Limiting freedom of movement added to the worry of this illness can lead to anxiety that can make the quarantine a real nightmare!

In Italy they are trying to face the issues in a creative way, just like it’s always been! We can’t see each other? Let’s talk from our balconies. You can’t go to the clubs or bars? Let’s dance on our rooftops while sharing music during times that won’t be repeated. All over the country people are starting initiatives to share music, songs and dances from afar to feel the same sense of belonging. The amazing part is going on the balcony and see your neighbors putting their hands up to wave at you, which is something you would have never thought of.

The virus, although it’s requiring us to keep the physical distance, it’s getting us closer. We are united to fight and save our habits and our lifestyle from an epochal chaos. The empty streets are being filled with stares and smiles of the people from afar who can’t wait to be back in the streets to meet.

Anxiety and stress, how to deal with them

Italy under Coronavirus is a compassionate and resilient Italy. The power in each of us is being challenged and most of us are trying to do their best. Rules and privations for the common benefit are the mantra that everyone is following to support each other in this period.

However, it’s not easy. One might experience anxiety and stress episodes linked to this particular situation we are facing and the privations we are experiencing. The anxiety of fighting against an invisible enemy for which we seem not have defences, can lead to states of strong distress.

It’s very important to try to calm down and to live this emergency peacefully. But how?

Friends are of utmost importance! Keeping in touch with those you love, even if far, is fundamental! So be it all the possible tools: phone, Skype, WhatApp, Telegram, Messenger. Every tool that helps keeping our contacts with the external world will help us live better.

It’s important to set a daily routine, filled with work, movement and leisure, opting for activities that are relaxing us.

A good book, series, music, are all activities that can be done in house and that will help us feeling better.

Cannabis as an aid for anxiety

If you are way too anxious, you will need to keep it down and surely cannabis can help. Cannabis is legally used to treat anxiety and stress because it helps relaxation. Smoking can help ease the emotional burden due to quarantine and helps dealing with it better!

Using cannabis as an adjuvant in the treatment of anxiety is proven and widely recognised. The cannabinol helps relaxing without causing addiction and that’s the reason why it’s preferred to any other anxiolytic in the market. You should also not forget about the leisure side of it! The long home days during Coronavirus sometimes seem neverending! After watching all the series on Netflix time seems expanding leading to boredom. How to deal with it?

Boredom is never good, and in the void caused by the pandemic, negative thoughts increase and you get into a vicious loop that lead to anxiety. Cannabis can help in this case!

Once you run out of tips, including videocalls, online games, rooftop dances, homemade pizza, you need to find something to relax. Something that could help us sleep and that could relax us for the next day full of energy.

Cannabis, as I said, in this case can also help. Its active substance, apart from acting in an effective way against anxiety, is powerful relaxing tool. Taking cannabis can help calming down and falling asleep.

Finding the way to relax is an important thing in such a period of uncertainty and fear because, if we are relaxed and peaceful, we feel good. And if we feel good, we are able to make a collective effort to fight and win this battle.