Category: Weed smokers

Smoking ban in Artis, celebrities getting into cannabis, and world cannabis news

Regular Artis visitors should pay attention. The Amsterdam zoo has turned its tobacco and cannabis-friendly tolerance policy on its head. Other news: American celebrities, such as director Francis Ford Coppola and hiphopper 2 Chainz, see the benefit of selling their own cannabis; South Koreans must also comply with the South Korean national ban, even in countries where cannabis is legal. And finally, scientists are enthusiastic about the world of cannabis.

From our journalists

Weed and tobacco are no longer welcome in Artis

Until recently, the Amsterdam zoo, Artis, assumed a policy of tolerance towards smoking joints and cigarettes on their property. Visitors were allowed – with the exception of playgrounds, terraces and indoor spaces – to walk through the park with a lit cigarette or joint. That has all changed.

Recently, the fact that it was possible to smoke a joint in Artis became more widely known. However, this news brought considerable criticism. In addition to discussions on social media, the subject has now also touched the capital’s metropolitan politics. After a motion was introduced by the political party, D66, a large part of the Amsterdam city council stated they wanted a tobacco and cannabis-free Artis. The alderman responsible, Marjolein Moorman, went so far as to say that the zoo’s municipal subsidy would be at risk if Artis did not meet this requirement.

Smoking ban

All this commotion produced results. Artis director, Rembrandt Sutorius, stated earlier that he wanted to introduce a smoking ban as of 2020, but he has now announced that the zoo will become completely smoke-free in 2019.

The main reason not to impose a general ban immediately? He does not want to offend regular visitors who enjoy a smoke.

The Godfather of … marijuana?

Francis Ford Coppola regisseur Wiet

None other than director Francis Ford Coppola (famous for such films as The Godfather 1,2 & 3, Apocalypse now) has jumped on the cannabizz bandwagon. In addition to his film work, Coppola already has a business of lifestyle products that sells wine, among other things. He believes cannabis is a logical addition to his line.

Organic outdoor weed

Quality is of the utmost importance for the 79-year old Coppola. The three exclusive weed varieties he has chosen are called The Grower’s series (costs $99 per packet of three including rolling papers and pipe). The cannabis is grown in Humboldt County, California, which is perhaps the best-known marijuana plantation area in the US. The Grower’s Series is a limited edition, and is only for sale in California for the time being.

Gas Cannabis from 2 Chainz

Cannabis is apparently booming with the rich and famous as another famous American links his name and face to a new brand: rapper 2 Chainz.

The popular hiphopper is known as a fervent cannabis user. Earlier, we wrote about his experiences in the programme, Most Expensivest Shit, from the GQ lifestyle magazine, in which he tested the most expensive types of weed. Recently, 2 Chainz launched his own brand of cannabis in California: Gas Cannabis (with packaging in the form of petrol pumps). According to him, the weed is top quality and affordable for everyone…

World weed: Canada versus South Korea

There has been a run on cannabis since Canada legalised the smoking product on 17 October. They apparently can’t keep up with the demand! In South Korea, on the other hand, they are nowhere near that point.

In addition to the citizens who wish to consume, the Canadian government, as well as banks and investors, are very happy with the legalisation. Hundreds of applications for new cannabis companies have been sent to the government, waiting to be assessed.

South Korea: punishment at home and abroad

Canadians are lucky. In South Korea, for example, things are moving in a totally opposite direction. The free consumption of cannabis has been an illusion for South Koreans since 1976. In fact, it could turn into a nightmare. Not only is the South Korean government threatening severe penalties for domestic use, it does not even allow South Korean nationals to enjoy a joint when they are abroad – imposing a fine of up to €43,500 or a prison sentence of up to five years.

Big Brother

For the South Korean authorities, the Cannabis Legalisation Day in Canada was a reason to strongly remind its citizens of the strict policy through traditional and online media. The nub of the message is: Big Brother is watching you. This is true even for South Koreans in Canada.

Cannabis conquers science

Since cannabis is gaining legal status in more and more places, the scientific community has become more interested in the plant’s attributes. Reason for other researchers to study the hype of cannabis science.

According to recently published research Trends in Publications on the Use of Medical Cannabis from the Year 2000 the number of scientific studies concerning cannabis increased exponentially from 620 to 2,388 between 2000 and 2017.

Cannabis

Medicinal weed was the main subject of research, particularly in the field of psychiatry. Publications on the use of cannabis in neurology and cancer control also increased, particularly between 2011 and 2013.

Researchers predict that the upward trend of scientific cannabis research will continue in the coming years.

Baby boomers smoking in Artis, Tesla boss smokes joint, and cannabis becomes the green gold

The 50-plus generation appears to have started blowing considerably more in recent years. It may not be such a bad idea to do it in Artis. Smoking weed is apparently permitted in the Amsterdam Zoo. Also this month: more commotion around the weed-smoking Tesla boss, Elon Musk; and investing in cannabis is insanely popular.

From our journalistic editors

Growing number of blowers among baby boomers

The 50-plus generation has started to smoke significantly more cannabis over the past ten years. This has become evident from an American study that was published recently.

Weed is becoming increasingly popular among ‘baby boomers’, which is what the generation born after the Second World War is commonly referred to. Ten years ago, only 4.5 percent of those aged between 50 to 65 smoked, but that number has almost doubled in recent years. The growth rate is even more spectacular amongst people aged 65 and over. Ten years ago, only 0.4 percent smoked cannabis, but today it is up to 3 percent.

What’s learned in the cradle is carried to the grave

Baby boomers generally have more experience in the use of drugs. They grew up in the post-war period and became adults during the turbulent sixties and seventies of the last century. Those were the decades of secularisation, sexual revolution, flower power, hippies and drug use.

Baby Boomers smoking weed

The study also shows that a large proportion of baby boomers have previous experience with smoking marijuana. More than half (54.5 percent) of the group aged between 50-65 smoked a joint when they were younger. This can be compared to the 22.4 percent of those above 65.

Cannabis use

The study surveyed a total of 17,608 adults about their cannabis use. Cannabis (medicinal) is being legalised in a growing number of American states. The researchers suspect the increase in the number of seniors smoking cannabis is partly due to this fact. Incidentally, it appears that alcohol and drug abuse, as well as hard drug use, is also more common among the group of older people who smoke cannabis.

The research was carried out by the NYU School of Medicine and the Center for Drug Use and the Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at the NYU Rory Meyers College of Nursing.

Tesla boss Elon Musk smokes joint on radio

Elon Musk

Tesla boss Elon Musk continues to cause a stir. Everyone was talking about him last month because he wanted to buy back all the Tesla shares on the stock exchange for 420 dollars per share. This month, the CEO of the car brand eagerly picked up a joint during a radio interview.

joint

“Elon Musk’s new advisor: cannabis” was the headline in De Volkskrant on 13 September. Musk was offered a joint during a two-and-a-half-hour podcast show with Joe Rogan. He immediately accepted, even though opinions were divided about whether or not he had actually inhaled. As a result, two high-ranking Tesla employees promptly handed in their resignation after the event.

420

Musk was recently forced to take a step back at car brand Tesla. The American stock market watchdog, the SEC, forced him to do so after he tweeted on 7 August that he intended to buy back all the shares of the car brand on the stock market with a bid of 420 dollars per share (please note the figures 420, which refer to cannabis use). Musk was apparently stoned out of his mind when he made the proposal.

Tesla

The stock market watchdog, the SEC, was not amused. In addition to a fine of $20 million, Musk had to resign as chairman of the supervisory board. He will however remain on as CEO. The stock market watchdog hopes to protect investors against the erratic behaviour of the unconventional 47-year-old Tesla boss.

Watching monkeys with a joint

Artis Zoo appears to tolerate cannabis smoking! The smoking ban is not (yet) valid in the zoo; so, the authorities are allowing cannabis smoking by turning a blind eye to smokers.

Smoking cannabis in Artis

Watching elephants, giraffes or monkeys with a joint? It’s allowed at the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam. The zoo has no clear smoking policy, as a result of which cannabis smoking is tolerated. This is a very active topic of discussion on social media and tourist forums.

Smoking

Artis director Rembrandt Sutorius only expects Artis to be completely smoke-free in 2020. To accommodate the regular smoking visitors, the zoo is introducing the smoking ban step by step. Smoking has already been banned on the terraces, in the playgrounds and in covered areas since the beginning of the year.

Because Artis doesn’t draw a distinction between smoking tobacco and smoking cannabis, you’re still allowed to light a joint in most places…for the time being.

Weed as the new Bitcoin

Investing in cannabis is hot. The fact that a growing number of countries is legalising cannabis means it is becoming more interesting for companies to go public. Cannabis oil, cannabis candy or beverages; more and more companies see money in weed. Stock market analysts predict that the green gold is set to become the new Bitcoin.

Weed Grower

Anyone who bought shares in the Canadian cannabis company, Tilray, on their initial public offering is now cashing in. The medicinal weed producer went to the stock exchange on 19 June 2018. The initial price per share was $16 (about €14). The price is currently fluctuating around €135! The EFT cannabis fund in North America has also been hugely successful. The very first European cannabis grower also went to the stock market on 24 September: the Danish company, StenoCare.

Cannabis Products

Investing in legal cannabis producers is a relatively recent development; the reason being that the trade in cannabis products is rapidly being legalised internationally. Analysts see similarities to the hype around Bitcoin, the cryptocurrency, where prices seemed to rise unstoppably for a long time.

Cannabis Capital Convention

The European première recently took place in Amsterdam: The investors’ congress, Cannabis Capital Convention, is dedicated to investment opportunities in the explosive cannabis growth market.

Does smoking weed help combat obesity?

This was one of the most remarkable reports presented this summer. We always thought that smoking weed gave people the munchies, but apparently cannabis also affects our metabolism. Also this month: a stoned Tesla boss, investment conference on the “green gold”, and a kind of e-cigarette as an alternative to the traditional joint.

By our journalists

Tesla boss stoned out of his head?

Elon Musk

Recently, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, announced that he was going to buy every share of his company that was on the stock market, with a bid of 420 dollars per share (note the number – 420). Immediately, everyone got on his case: Musk must have been stoned out of his head when he made this proposal.

420

On 7 August, Musk tweeted to his 22 million followers: “Am considering taking Tesla private at $420. Funding secured”, he wrote on Twitter. Musk wanted to buy all the shares on the stock market with a bid of 420 dollars per share, about twenty percent higher than the going price at the time. Musk came to this remarkable decision due to his conflict with shareholders about production of the new Tesla Model 3. It didn’t take long to make the link with 4:20 or 4/20, a reference to cannabis use.

Smoking weed

In an interview in the New York Times a week later, the unconventional Musk said that he works bizarrely long days, clocks up 120 hours a week, and can only sleep with the help of pills; apparently this includes cannabis, because in the same interview he said that his share decision was not caused by the weed he’d smoked.

He was criticised following his Twitter campaign for manipulating the share price. Stock market watchdog SEC even announced a fraud investigation.

Elon Musk (47) was born in South Africa and became a millionaire through the sale of his internet companies. In 2003, Musk founded Tesla Motors.

First European Cannabis Congress

eye filmmuseum cannabiscongres Amsterdam

Het filmmuseum EYE in Amsterdam

Amsterdam honoured with a European first: on 26 September, the EYE Film Museum will host the Cannabis Capital Convention investors’ congress, which is entirely dedicated to cannabis. The idea is that processing this “green gold” in all kinds of products will offer great investment opportunities.

Legalisation of cannabis

According to “The Cannabis Industry 2017 Annual Report”, the sale of cannabis, both medical and recreational, will only increase in the coming years. One of the main reasons for this is the legalisation of cannabis use in Canada and several American states. In the US, weed is already seen as a “profitable emerging market”. The Netherlands and the rest of Europe, where more and more countries are amending cannabis legislation, are benefitting from these developments.

Green gold

Cannabis has also gained the name, “green gold”, full of business opportunities. Take Heineken for example: Legunitas, a Californian beer brewery owned by Heineken, is going to brew HI-FI HOPS. It should result in an alcohol-free beer containing THC and CBD. Another example is the development of Grön Chocolate, an American chocolate brand full of CBD.

The aim of the Cannabis Capital Convention, during which various workshops and lectures will be held, is to bring North American cannabis investors and companies into contact with the European cannabis market.

Smoking weed in The Hague

It’s not the first time we’ve mentioned it: The Hague is banning joints from the city centre. However, it looks like a company from Delft has now come up with an effective alternative: an aluminium pipe that uses a cannabis-filled ‘coffee capsule’.

The system, which looks a bit like an e-cigarette, goes by the name of Jack-Pods. The Delft company that designed Jack-Pods is called E-Njoint, and has, according to its own blurb, the perfect solution to circumvent the ban on smoking joints. Their slogan: From stash to stoned in three easy steps.

Ban on joints

There are three types of metal pipes: The Weezy, The Hero and The Rebel (priced from €9.95). All three work with ‘coffee capsules’, which you put your own weed into. If the Jack-Pods don’t turn out to be the solution to the Hague ban on joints, they might be a solution to the Dutch smoking ban. According to the company, no smoke or weed fumes are released during use.

Reduced body mass index in cannabis users

Smoke a joint to lose weight? Well it’s not quite that simple, but scientific research has shown that cannabis users suffer less from excess weight than those who never consume cannabis. Perhaps further research will show that cannabis can help in the treatment of obesity.

The report by the American Indiana University goes by the long-winded name ‘Theoretical Explanation for Reduced Body Mass Index and Obesity Rates in Cannabis Users’. It provides evidence that joint smokers suffer less from obesity.
Cannabis

CB1

The technical explanation is complicated. There are receptors in our cells that send all kinds of signals to our brains. The receptor with the name CB1 is often overstimulated in Western countries, which causes an increased intake of calories, delayed digestion, and an increase in weight. The researchers discovered that cannabis consumption suppresses the stimulation of this CB1 receptor.

BMI

Previous studies endorse these results. A study of 4,743 people aged between 20 and 59, carried out by Oregon’s Health and Science University in 2017, came to a similar conclusion: people who use cannabis more than five times a month have, on average, a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) than those who never consume weed.

Weed smokers are reliable eyewitnesses and was Jesus using cannabis oil?

There’s a lot happening in the world of cannabis, all over the globe. New scientific research shows that weed smokers are reliable eyewitnesses. Dutch GPs have been advised to stop prescribing medicinal cannabis. And did Jesus use cannabis oil?

From our journalists

Weed smokers are reliable eyewitnesses

This is evident from the outcome of a special scientific study.

Law psychologist Annelies Vredeveld (Vrije Universiteit) conducted an experiment in four coffee shops in which she showed 120 visitors footage of a violent crime. One half of the group had smoked two joints on average, while the other half had not (yet) smoked anything at all. Afterwards, both groups were shown photos of the possible perpetrators.

Experiment in coffee shop

The researcher expected that those who were stoned would be less reliable witnesses, but it turned out that, although a joint reduced the number of memories, the stoned witnesses were just as accurate in their memories as the sober ones.

Witness statements of weed smokers

Violent crimes are relatively common in places where people go out. The police regularly have to record witness statements from people who are under the influence of alcohol or cannabis, or both. Previous studies have shown that people who have been drinking also remember less than sober eyewitnesses, but the actual memories themselves are just as reliable.

GPs to stop prescribing weed

The Dutch General Practitioners Society (NHG) has jumped into the discussion about the medical use of cannabis and adopted a new position: no longer prescribe medicinal cannabis.

According to the NHG, cannabis should only be prescribed for patients without hope of a cure and where traditional treatment against pain or other complaints no longer helps.

Side effects of cannabis

The NHG adopted this new recommendation because it is scientifically impossible to determine whether medicinal weed works against pain relief or provides an improved quality of life. The NHG does recognise that medicinal cannabis can have side effects, such as headaches. In addition, not everyone feels high after use; but panic and angst can occur. In the worst case scenario, cannabis use can lead to heart problems, according to the Society.

Cannabis oil

In recent years, the use of medicinal cannabis has increased, mainly in the form of oil. Last year, the number of prescriptions increased to about 50,000, five times that prescribed in 2017. Medicinal cannabis is not registered as a medicine in the Netherlands.

NEWS IN BRIEF

European cannabis plant of the year

cannabis plant wiet The cannabis news website, Soft Secrets , has organised a competition to elect the European cannabis plant of the year. There are six categories to choose from: Indica, Sativa, Hybrids, Auto flowering, CBD Strains and New Strains. The results will be published on the website in early July.

Cannabis Liberation Day

The Cannabis Liberation Day will no longer be held. The festival took place for the tenth and last time in Flevopark in Amsterdam on Sunday the 17th of June. The organisation believes that it has achieved its aims: plans are being made to legalise weed, and the discussion should now be held with MPs in The Hague, not Flevopark.

Jesus using cannabis oil

jezus cannabisolie In conclusion: a funny message circulating the internet: did Jesus use cannabis oil to perform miracles? Carl Ruck, professor of classical mythology at the University of Boston in the US, thinks he did.

In The Guardian, he said that ancient Hebrews only anointed the priestly class (and later kings). Jesus broke with this tradition by anointing commoners, sometimes performing miracles: sick people became well after he anointed them with oil. According to the professor, that was inevitable because of the medicinal properties of cannabis and cannabis oil.