2016 a Good Year for US Cannabis
January 11, 2017Marijuana in the United States got a big boost at the end of the year with the 2016 national elections.
Eight out of nine US states that had cannabis legalization on the 2016 ballet voted to legalize the plant.
California, Nevada, Maine and Massachusetts all legalized recreational refer, while Florida, Montana, Arkansas and North Dakota voted to legalize medical marijuana.
Las Vegas has some very intriguing potential here.
Of the nine states voting in 2016, Arizona was the only one to vote against cannabis legalization, although it was a narrow loss.
This latest round of voting now makes for nine US states that have legalized recreational cannabis, with Colorado, the state of Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Washington DC having legalized prior to 2016.
Medical marijuana legal states now total 28 in the USA.
Even with all the legal recreational states, there exists a massive shortage of legal consumption venues in the United States. Consumption is generally limited to private, not public spaces.
Although the trend of states legalizing recreational cannabis is encouraging, the United States is still a far cry from the scene in Amsterdam and much of Holland.
Despite changes taking place in the opposite direction with its increasing restrictions, Amsterdam is still the world's best cannabis destination in terms of cannabis infrastructure for the cannabis enthusiast.
Stories flow regularly about cannabis coffeeshops forced to shut down in Amsterdam as part of an ongoing cannabis crackdown.
But there are still nearly 200 cannabis coffeshops left in Amsterdam where any adult can enter, make a purchase, and then do something unheard of in the States - sit down and actually enjoy their purchase on the spot.
Try doing that in a cannabis dispensary in the United States and you could end up in the slammer.
