Culture Archives - Page 23 of 30 - The Real Dirt with Chip Baker

Need a T Break? How to Know if You Need a Tolerance Break

by Travis C | Aug 7, 2019 | 420, 420 Culture & Travel, Blog, Broscience Mythbusters, Culture

Is that joint just not hitting the way it used to? It might be time for a T break.

A tolerance break, or T break is self-explanatory. When you start drinking, it only takes a couple beers and you’re drunk. But after you start having a couple beers a day for a few months, you won’t get as drunk because your body will start to build up a tolerance to the effects of alcohol.

The same is true for cannabis. More or less.

When do you need a T break?

It’s completely up to you because you’re the only one who knows how cannabis effects you. If you used to get baked like a biscuit off of one joint, but now need a king size or two joints to get the same feeling, it might be time for a T break.

The other option is to consume more cannabis in general, or consume more concentrated cannabis. The only downside to this is that you will be pushing your tolerance even further. Another reason to take a tolerance break is to do just that, take a break.

Cannabis is nowhere near as dangerous as alcohol or tobacco, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have an impact on your body. If you smoke frequently before bed, it can become difficult to fall asleep without it, and the same goes for eating. Maybe you need cannabis to eat which is fine, but using it to constantly just “enhance” your meal can make you eat more without thinking about portion control as much. Plus smoking plant matter in general isn’t great for you.

Lastly and probably one of the most stressful reasons to take a T break is because of a job. Unfortunately not all of us are lucky enough to have jobs that don’t drug test. If you get past the interview for a job and they need you to take a drug test, you better hope they give you some time.

THC can be in your system for up to a month if you are a heavy user that smokes several times a day, but can be out of your system in just a few days if your use is minimal and you take the necessary precautions before you take the test. If you just smoked yesterday and you have a drug test tomorrow, your chances aren’t great, but you can chug water and exercise to clean out your system as much as possible, plus other, less conventional methods we’ll save for another article.

How long is a tolerance break?

The beauty of a tolerance break is that it’s 100% customizable. If you just want to take a day off, you can. If you’re a daily consumer it probably won’t make a notable difference though. Most people stop use for a week or more, with some going a month or longer.

Some people who have used cannabis frequently for years may take a month T break and realize how different it is to not be under the influence so regularly. Some people may even quit cannabis all together after a tolerance break. But for a lot of people, it’s about regaining an appreciation for the plant.

Think about your early years with cannabis. The coughs, the laughs, the munchies, the being baked out of your mind. Over time those effects become just part of the experience, and expected with every toke.

Taking some time off can help you appreciate what cannabis really does for you, and in turn bring you closer to cannabis. It has so much more use than just getting high, and sometimes it takes taking a step back for a while to learn to be grateful for all cannabis can really do.

Nobody needs a tolerance break. Hell, I haven’t taken one in years. But just writing this out is making me consider taking a little break so I can regain some of my appreciation for cannabis too.

Leave a comment about your most recent T break, or shoot us a DM on Instagram or Facebook to share your story!

Jamaican Cannabis Rundown: Laws and Culture Explained

by Travis C | Aug 1, 2019 | 420, 420 Culture & Travel, Cannabis Law, Culture

It’s likely the most well known cannabis culture in the world. But it wasn’t always that way.

Jamaican cannabis has always been notorious. The stereotypes of the “Rasta Man” puffing on his joint with a beanie and long dreadlocks probably come to most people’s minds when you mention Jamaica. But why?

Jamaica has an interesting and relatively brief history with cannabis compared to other countries in the Middle East and Asia. Yet other than it’s clear water and beautiful beaches, cannabis is one of Jamaica’s biggest attractions.

Jamaican Cannabis Quick History

Cannabis has been in Jamaica since the mid 1800s, brought to the island by indentured servants from India while both Jamaica and India were under British rule. In fact, the word ganja used by most in Jamaica to describe cannabis stems from Hindu origins.

Believe it or not, cannabis was actually banned in Jamaica under the 1913 Ganja Law, which was supported by the European elites and Council of Evangelical Churches in Jamaica (side note, Jamaica has more churches per square mile than any other country). This law would be made even more strict over time, especially during times of civil unrest during the 1940s and 60s.

Despite the laws in place, cannabis was still a customary herb in Jamaica for over 100 years. After the 1960s, farmers in Jamaica saw opportunity to take advantage of the growing demand for cannabis in Europe and North America. This resulted in even more enforcement from police, but the resulting trafficking industry made enough money for many in the political and legal systems to look the other way.

It wouldn’t be until February 2015 that Jamaica actually moved to change their cannabis laws for the better.

Cannabis Decriminalization/Legalization in Jamaica

Taking the same name from the oppressive original law, the Ganja Law of 2015 reversed the rules of the 1913 law, and added new, more progressive amendments in their place. To start, Jamaica decriminalized small amounts of cannabis for personal use, if you consider two ounces to be a small amount.

The new Ganja Law also allowed the cultivation of up to five plants, both only resulting in a petty offense instead of a criminal record. Practitioners of the Rastafari religion were also given permission to use cannabis for religious purposes. All of these amendments were put in place not only to reduce harsh punishments for cannabis use, but to pave the way for a new, legal, medical cannabis industry.

Most notably, the 2015 Ganja Law included special amendments that aimed to help indigenous farmers get a step up in the new medical industry, including government subsidies for land and equipment, plus assistance with licensing to enter the medical industry from the private market.

While these new amendments were passed in 2015, it wouldn’t be until early 2018 that the first medical cannabis dispensary opened in Jamaica. Now while the medical industry is slowly growing, the private market has exploded, especially when it comes to cannabis tourism.

Jamaican Cannabis Culture

It only takes one visit to Jamaica to recognize that “decriminalization” means two different things in Jamaica and the United States. While the applications of decriminalization are the same — getting caught with small amounts of cannabis results in a fine and no criminal record — the degree of enforcement is vastly different.

In other words, there is almost no enforcement on the private cannabis market in Jamaica compared to the United States. While it is extremely uncommon to see someone smoking cannabis publicly in a decriminalized state of the U.S., it is much more normalized in Jamaica.

The vast difference in acceptance of cannabis all has to do with the culture surrounding cannabis. While Jamaica may have banned cannabis for some time, it never had the massive propaganda machine that the United States had to push the drug war agenda, turning millions of people against cannabis for decades.

Also having cannabis as part of the island’s main religious sacrament exposed many more to the plant from a young age where it became more normalized, and seen more as a potentially useful plant than a dangerous narcotic like how it was viewed in the states.

Due to the country’s overall embrace of cannabis since its arrival in Jamaica, the industry is thriving, and is only going to continue to grow, both legally and illicitly.

Hear more about what smoking Jamaican ganja is actually like right here.

Should Drug Tests Include Cannabis?

by Travis C | Jul 16, 2019 | 420, Blog, Cannabis Law and Compliance, Culture

It’s time for drug tests to change. That’s just reality.

Drug tests have probably gotten more innocent cannabis consumers knocked out of the running for a job more than any other drug on the controlled substances list. At a certain point we have to ask, “What is the point?”.

Most commonly, drug tests for employers will test for cannabis, cocaine, phencyclidine, amphetamines and opiates. Now obviously if you have a prescription from your doctor for opiates you’re off the hook, but what about people with prescriptions for cannabis? And a better question, what about those that don’t?

Drug Tests Shouldn’t Include Cannabis

At this point it’s a no brainer. In the United States currently, there are only 10 states out of 50 that haven’t decriminalized or legalized cannabis in some form. With more than half the country having medical cannabis laws on the books, how is it that people can still miss out on job opportunity for cannabis use?

People who take prescribed painkillers that are prone to abuse don’t miss out on job opportunities. Even alcoholics don’t miss out on job opportunities as long as they can cover it up on the job. Yet if you used cannabis once in the last two weeks, with a medical card granted by the state you live in, the job you are applying to can still say no if you show positive on their drug tests.

Now I may not be an expert on fairness, but I think it’s safe to say that just isn’t fair. And it’s even worse for recreational cannabis consumers.

Legal States and Drug Tests

This has been an even hotter topic than medical cannabis users and drug tests as of late. Cannabis is now fully legal in 11 states. A lot of these states passed laws that are meant to regulate cannabis just like alcohol.

So, if cannabis is supposed to be regulated like alcohol, why do cannabis users lose out on job opportunities even in these states, while alcohol consumers have nothing to worry about? People who choose to use cannabis over alcohol, which by all standards is the safer option of the two, are now suffering because of it.

Some states like Nevada have passed laws that prohibit employers from firing employees or not hiring potential employees for testing positive for cannabis on drug tests, and that’s a great start. But it only starts to address the problem. If cannabis is still on the drug test, and potential hire tests positive, the employer legally can’t reject them for that reason. But that doesn’t mean the employer can’t see that information and just decide that the potential hire isn’t right for the position for “some other reason”.

This is why cannabis needs to be removed from cannabis completely, at least in legal and medical cannabis states.

It’s Time for Change

Here’s the bottom line. Nobody should be excluded from job opportunity for the medicine they choose to use legally. Nobody should be excluded from job opportunity based on what they decide to do in their free time in a legal cannabis state.

It’s that simple. If it were any other pharmaceutical drug that was FDA approved and legal on the state level, it wouldn’t be a question. It wouldn’t be on a drug test. Yet cannabis still is. I understand there’s still states that have cannabis completely illegal and states that only have it decriminalized, and people who work in those states need to be aware of their laws.

But if you live in a medical cannabis state or a legal cannabis state, and you lose out on a job because you tested positive for cannabis, that’s just not right, and you should consider taking action.

What Are Cannabinoids?

by Travis C | Jul 4, 2019 | 420, Blog, Broscience Mythbusters, Culture, Science & Technology

It is what gets you baked, heals your pain and everything in between. But what is a cannabinoid?

A cannabinoid is a chemical compound produced by the cannabis plant. These chemicals are then secreted from the plant or extracted for their psychoactive and medicinal effects.

The human body specifically has cannabinoid receptors in the brain that are designed to break down these compounds. In a way, humans were either designed, or evolved to develop these receptors. In other words, we were made to consume cannabinoids.

What is a Cannabinoid?

That’s a good question, and one that still a ton of answers yet to be found. We’ve already established that a cannabinoid is a chemical compound. That means THC and CBD are both cannabinoids.

But there are many more cannabinoids, like CBG, CBN, CBC, and CBL just to name a few.

So far, over 113 different cannabinoids have been isolated from the cannabis plant. It starts to make you wonder if it’s really just THC and CBD making cannabis so special. But what is really special, is how our brains and bodies were design to interact with cannabis and cannabinoids in a very specific way.

Cannabinoid Receptors

Prior to the 1980s, it was thought that cannabis just interacted with cell membranes throughout the body to produce its psychoactive effects. In the 80s the first cannabinoid receptor was discovered, putting that theory to rest. And it isn’t just us humans.

Cannabinoid receptors have been found in many mammals, birds, fish and reptiles. In the field of science, cannabinoid receptors are still relatively new, and so as of now there are two known types of receptors. But there is already evidence that there are likely more.

CB1 receptors (Cannabiniod Receptor 1) are mostly in the brain. Now if there hasn’t been enough already, here comes some more science jargon. The CB1 receptors are found primarily in the limbic system, which includes the hippocampus. These receptors are also found in the cerebellum, as well as both male and female reproductive systems.

CB2 receptors are mostly found in the immune system, with the greatest density in the spleen. These receptors are thought to be responsible for the anti-inflammatory and other therapeutic effects gained from cannabis.

All of the different cannabinoid compounds in cannabis interact with these receptors in different ways to produce what is called the Entourage Effect.

The Entourage Effect

There is a growing theory that all of the cannabinoids in cannabis are what are responsible for the different effects we get from different cannabis cultivars. This is known as the Entourage Effect.

This theory implies that THC alone isn’t what gets you high, but the combination of THC with CBD, CBG, CBN and other cannabinoids. People who have consumed isolated THC have noted the difference in effect compared to consuming whole flower. This why many people now prefer “whole plant extracts” that use the entire plant as opposed to just a couple extracted cannabinoids like THC distillate.

It will still be some time before we truly know what every cannabinoid does within our bodies. This is in part due to the federal laws holding back scientific studies that could dive into each compound individually to discover its effects.

It is on the state’s shoulders for now to research cannabis for its different cannabinoid properties, and for us as consumers to decide which strains give us the best effect, and in today’s industry that may not always include a high THC potency. We still have a lot to learn about cannabinoids and how our bodies interact with cannabis, but it is pretty safe to say that humans and cannabis were literally a match made in heaven.

Stay tuned for Pt 2 of What are Cannabinoids? We’ll dive into phyto and endo cannabinoids, and what the difference is between the two.

What is Green Greed?

by Chip Baker | Jun 29, 2019 | 420, Blog, Broscience Mythbusters, Business, Culture

Green greed! It has plagued the cannabis industry for years. But today it doesn’t mean what it used to.

In our current legal cannabis industry, I have run across so many contractors and vendors that attempt to charge cannabis people more money than their “normal “clients. Maybe this is because they were overcharged for a not-so-great sack years ago. Maybe they’re just greedy.

I’ve been quoted $6,000 for a $1,000 job. I’ve been quoted $3,800 for a $900 job. Now, the joke is on both of those assholes because they didn’t get my money. But for someone not as skilled as me in construction and operating a business, you might get taken advantage of by some dubious contractors.

Here are signs that you might be dealing with a green greedy asshole.

Signs of Green Greed

1. If you tell a contractor you’re in the cannabis business and they clap their hands and say, “You guys must make really good money”…

2. Or they put on a greedy smile and say, “This is going to be expensive, but you can afford it”…

3. They tell you that working with cannabis businesses is too risky, and that they have to charge more to account for the risk.

The reality is that these people are probably all just jealous. We all choose our own lines of work, and they chose theirs. Remember, we’ll only work with them if we get fair rates and quality work.

Countering Green Greed

If you are in the cannabis industry and you get the slightest psychic vibe that you’re getting a high quote from a contractor, immediately tell them, “No, that’s too much, I can’t afford that.“

Immediately asked them for a discount when they give you their quote. Upon meeting these contractors, call out other green greed that you have already had to deal with to show them you won’t be tricked into overpaying. Demand that you get the best price and the best service.

The cannabis industry makes a lot of money, but the people who try to take advantage from the outside don’t know where all that money actually goes. Operating costs, testing, licensing. There isn’t that much left over. Make that clear too.

It started as growers in the private market’s green greed driving up prices in tough times. Now that it’s legal, everybody can try and take a cut. Which is why it’s so important to be mindful as a cannabis business owner.

Next time you’re talking to a contractor and you hear a number that sounds a little high, don’t be afraid to call it out. As long as people get away with taking advantage of new cannabis businesses, they’ll keep taking advantage. Be cautious, be mindful and always get a second quote.

Illinois Legalization: Illinois becomes 11th state to legalize cannabis

by Travis C | Jun 26, 2019 | 420, 420 News, Blog, Cannabis Law, Culture

Illinois residents can soon enjoy cannabis freely in their home state, they just have to wait a while.

Illinois has become the 11th state in the U.S. to legalize cannabis for recreational use after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a bill that will allow the licensed growth, sales, possession and consumption of cannabis for adults 21 and older. One of Pritzker’s campaign promises, the bill also implements the nation’s first comprehensive statewide cannabis marketplace designed by legislators.

Suffice to say the governor was excited to sign the bill into law, and said that it was long overdue in the state. However Illinoisans will still need to wait a while to start working in the cannabis industry in the state.

Illinois Legalization

With this new bill comes a few big steps for the state of Illinois. The bill will allow the licensed growth, sales, possession and consumption of cannabis for adults 21 and older, allowing possession of up to an ounce for residents, and 15 grams for non residents.

Illinois is also the first state to fully legalize commercial sales of cannabis through the legislature, rather than through referendum. But one aspect of this bill that will start impacting individuals immediately, is the expungement clause.

Pritzker emphasized that the law provides for automatic expungement of arrests for marijuana possession under 30 grams, and that he will pardon those with convictions for possession up to 30 grams. Individuals and prosecutors may go to court to seek expungement of cases involving up to 500 grams.

“Today we are giving hundreds of thousands of people the chance at a better life,” Pritzker said.

Once the market grows to maturity, the program is estimated to generate $500 million a year in taxes. That would come from a 10% tax on products with up to 35% THC, the component of the plant that gets users high; 20% for cannabis-infused products such as edibles; and 25% for THC concentrations of more than 35% — plus local sales taxes.

In a concession to law enforcement, an earlier provision to allow adults to grow five plants each at home was eliminated. Instead, only certified medical marijuana patients would be allowed to grow up to five plants each at home.

Now What?

While the bill has been signed into law, Illinois won’t be selling recreational cannabis to its citizens anytime soon. The permits the sale of legal cannabis products starting in January of 2019. So while not that far away, Illinoisans still have over 6 months to wait before they can purchase or grow their own cannabis.

The governor emphasized that 25% of the revenue from marijuana taxes will go to marijuana business ownership in black and brown communities that were disproportionately affected by the war on drugs. In addition, 20% will go to substance abuse treatment and prevention and mental health care, with additional funds going to pay the state’s bills, law enforcement and public education on marijuana health issues.

To address concerns that cannabis retail shops will end up concentrated in minority neighborhoods, state Rep. Kelly Cassidy, a co-sponsor of the bill, said there are minimum distances between shops to avoid a “liquor store on every corner“ phenomenon.

Local governments can still ban marijuana businesses or set rules to determine where they are allowed. While municipalities cannot prohibit people from possessing marijuana, landlords can still keep it off their property and employers can prohibit use by their employees.

It’s going to be an intense 6 months in the Illinois legislature as application processes begin and citizens start applying en masse. The state will need to establish how many applications it approve, and how many licenses will be given out to commercial growers, processors and retailers.

Stay tuned on The Real Dirt for updates about Illinois legalization and what’s happening with the cannabis industry development in the state.