Revisiting Pot Tourism
Submitted by fyl on Fri, 2013/02/22 - 08:12.
We have previously talked about the idea of developing marijuana tourism in Nicaragua. The biggest issue was, as expected, how the US would respond to doing it. Well, with the law changes in the states of Colorado and Washington, it may be worth revisiting the issue.
An article in Activist Post talks about how the pot tourism idea is evolving in Colorado. (Visiting the article is worth it just for the graphic.) It offers a new data point.
There has been no issue with drug tourism in Amsterdam but it is both far away from the US and has a very different politicial relationship. Colorado, on the other hand, in in the middle of the US and shares borders and major highways with surrounding states. So, if Colorado can do it, why not Nicaragua?
An Amendment 64 Task Force was created to handle ongoing regulation of the open consumption and sale parameters. Regulators have noted that Amendment 64 does not exclude open consumption of cannabis by visitors, which has led to the current discussion about how to address pot tourism.
What are you smoking?
I see a couple of problems....
Have you been to the States lately? In LA you can not walk 10 blocks with out coming across a "Pot Shop" EVERYONE I know who smokes has a "card". It is no big deal.
I have a husband, son and house in Washington and I still vote in the state. When it passed I called my son (who does indulge) and asked if he was elated. He said the only change was he could bring his bong out of the garage to wash without having to hide it.
Point one: I really feel that people will not plan a trip to Nicaragua just to smoke out, however if you did smoke and maybe surf and the choose was Costa Rica and legal Nicaragua you may choose Nicaragua.
Point two: I am sure you have read La Prensa over the last couple of days and they just passed the Family Value things...(or what ever they call it) So do you really think that this is something that would fit into the master plan? Just saying.
Actually, I haven't
My last day in the US was 10 January 2002. But, I do understand the trend. The thing is, how things work all over the US is not the same as on the west coast. Norml has a nice map to show the laws. The laws in Texas, while better today, are still not exactly enlightened.
That said, I am not suggesting that if pot was legal in Nicaragua that someone would fly down to get stoned for the weekend. Currently, most travel books warn you not to use any illegal drugs (not just in Nicaragua) because the legal system may not be as fair (cough, cough) as it is in the US. This fear could be removed. Legalization would also take the criminal element out of it.
As for family values, that problem is not unique to Nicaragua. To me, family values means my family does what it wants and your family can do what it wants. The good news is that there is less money in Nicaragua to try to tell others what they can and cannot do.
Finally, if Nicaragua gets a bit enlightened, it could start growing hemp. Easy to grow crop which could easily create significant exports of manufactured goods. My last hemp shirt (which finally wore out) came from China. How about Levi-equivalents, made from what Levis were originally made from, manufactured in Nicaragua?
I know this goes far beyond tourism but it all has to do with recognizing that legal pot and hemp is a plus on the balance sheet. Nicaragua could figure that out long before Texas does.
Chose choose
Sorry typo
One thing I forgot
If it does become legal maybe Rick Steves could book some tour;)