5 ms·

The cost of cultivation really isn't the issue, regardless of how legal California makes it, until something changes at the Federal level. The water rights iss

The cost of cultivation really isn't the issue, regardless of how legal California makes it, until something changes at the Federal level. The water rights issues won't go away, no matter where you grow any crop. Here in Colorado, where plenty of people are growing their own tomatoes and marijuana at home, there is a fascinating jurisdictional problem with the commercial operations. Many of the counties in Colorado are not allowing the commercial operations, so Denver county is one of the few places where it's even remotely feasible to produce at scale. While the processing facilities aren't exactly advertising their location, it's very easy to tell which parts of town they cluster just by driving around. It is very very very very obvious which neighborhoods have big commercial facilities. Right now, Denver is the only US city whose residential real estate costs are increasing faster than San Francisco's. But warehouse space is even further through the roof than that, in Denver county. It just doesn't get nearly the level of detailed analysis as the residential market, because it's more of a niche market. So most people who aren't in the weed business wouldn't care about this fairly localized problem. But if you wanted to, say, open a new hackerspace anywhere in Denver county? You're screwed.

PhantomGremlin 11y ago
But if you wanted to, say, open a new hackerspace anywhere in Denver county? You're screwed. Oregon recently legalized, and is now grappling with various practical issues. E.g. can recreational pot be sold by medical pot dispensaries? Answer: Yes, for now, until recreational stores are licensed. The point is that, if and when it's legal in most states, that should drastically reduce the demand for pot from Colorado. Of course, as you note, there's still the whole Federal issue. And especially from other countries. The growers in the article seemed relatively harmless compared to what's happening in Mexico. But I don't pay much attention to that, maybe the problems in Mexico are because of higher value drugs, rather than marijuana.
- dvanduzer 11y ago
  As far as drug policy goes, a lot of the momentum in Colorado came from some simple observations after enough experience with licensed medical dispensaries. With enough local access to a grey market, trafficking across international borders vanished. The economics involved here involve the difference between the cost of something, the value of something, the difficulty of producing it, and the difficulty of distributing it. What is unique about marijuana is that it is, indeed, as easy to produce as a tomato, which is a garden vegetable anyone can grow easily anywhere in the world. (I'm unaware of any jurisdictions where it is illegal to grow and consume tomatoes. Transporting them across state lines, though?) Plants like tobacco are much more climate restricted. Plants like hops are incredibly easy to grow. So you see plenty of people brewing their own beer at home, but nobody making their own cigarettes at home. You're misunderstanding what I'm saying about changes at the federal level, though. The warehouse space in Denver county is rapidly filling up purely based on supply and demand within Colorado. Sure, there's some tourism, but If the DEA rescheduled cannabis and nothing else, then almost nothing would change about the commercial real estate market in Denver. If nothing changes at the federal level, then almost nothing would change about the commercial real estate market in Denver. Also, this just happend: http://fox40.com/2015/11/02/ballot-initiative-filed-to-legalize-marijuana-in-california/ http://fox40.com/2015/11/02/ballot-initiative-filed-to-legal... I was unaware of this until I decided to research it just now, because I don't really care about this issue in California because I don't live there. I was responding to the original commenter because it really is unsafe to hike in Humboldt County, regardless of whether you care about marijuana. This is something that affects the poster directly. And I'm not saying I want to repeal the law in Colorado, but it's definitely having an unexpected negative effect on my neighborhood, and this is unlikely to change. Whatever industrial / warehouse space that isn't being demolished to turn into condos, is used up by the regulated marijuana industry. There is no longer any cheap real estate anywhere near me that is suitable for a hackerspace. Since the hackerspaces can move, and the marijuana processing facilities can't (until the laws change at the county level), this affects me in my backyard, regardless of how they deal with the practical legislative refinements. And because Colorado regulators were first out the gate, regulators in almost every other state that moves forward this way will use that as a model. I'm not saying we shouldn't care about violence in Mexico, but it's just not something that's going to be on the mind of most voters as these ballot measures gain momentum in other states. There will be unrelated economic sectors in Colorado and other early adopter states that will suffer ripple effects. If those ripple effects reach any special interest group here, then similar special interest groups elsewhere will fight harder against these initiatives.

PhantomGremlin 11y ago

But if you wanted to, say, open a new hackerspace anywhere in Denver county? You're screwed. Oregon recently legalized, and is now grappling with various practical issues. E.g. can recreational pot be sold by medical pot dispensaries? Answer: Yes, for now, until recreational stores are licensed. The point is that, if and when it's legal in most states, that should drastically reduce the demand for pot from Colorado. Of course, as you note, there's still the whole Federal issue. And especially from other countries. The growers in the article seemed relatively harmless compared to what's happening in Mexico. But I don't pay much attention to that, maybe the problems in Mexico are because of higher value drugs, rather than marijuana.

dvanduzer 11y ago
As far as drug policy goes, a lot of the momentum in Colorado came from some simple observations after enough experience with licensed medical dispensaries. With enough local access to a grey market, trafficking across international borders vanished. The economics involved here involve the difference between the cost of something, the value of something, the difficulty of producing it, and the difficulty of distributing it. What is unique about marijuana is that it is, indeed, as easy to produce as a tomato, which is a garden vegetable anyone can grow easily anywhere in the world. (I'm unaware of any jurisdictions where it is illegal to grow and consume tomatoes. Transporting them across state lines, though?) Plants like tobacco are much more climate restricted. Plants like hops are incredibly easy to grow. So you see plenty of people brewing their own beer at home, but nobody making their own cigarettes at home. You're misunderstanding what I'm saying about changes at the federal level, though. The warehouse space in Denver county is rapidly filling up purely based on supply and demand within Colorado. Sure, there's some tourism, but If the DEA rescheduled cannabis and nothing else, then almost nothing would change about the commercial real estate market in Denver. If nothing changes at the federal level, then almost nothing would change about the commercial real estate market in Denver. Also, this just happend: http://fox40.com/2015/11/02/ballot-initiative-filed-to-legalize-marijuana-in-california/ http://fox40.com/2015/11/02/ballot-initiative-filed-to-legal... I was unaware of this until I decided to research it just now, because I don't really care about this issue in California because I don't live there. I was responding to the original commenter because it really is unsafe to hike in Humboldt County, regardless of whether you care about marijuana. This is something that affects the poster directly. And I'm not saying I want to repeal the law in Colorado, but it's definitely having an unexpected negative effect on my neighborhood, and this is unlikely to change. Whatever industrial / warehouse space that isn't being demolished to turn into condos, is used up by the regulated marijuana industry. There is no longer any cheap real estate anywhere near me that is suitable for a hackerspace. Since the hackerspaces can move, and the marijuana processing facilities can't (until the laws change at the county level), this affects me in my backyard, regardless of how they deal with the practical legislative refinements. And because Colorado regulators were first out the gate, regulators in almost every other state that moves forward this way will use that as a model. I'm not saying we shouldn't care about violence in Mexico, but it's just not something that's going to be on the mind of most voters as these ballot measures gain momentum in other states. There will be unrelated economic sectors in Colorado and other early adopter states that will suffer ripple effects. If those ripple effects reach any special interest group here, then similar special interest groups elsewhere will fight harder against these initiatives.