Netherlands - If Holland's coffeeshops disappear, will another place pickup the business?

[Euphoric]

So if the coffee shops in the Netherlands are shut down, or cannabis is criminalized there, will another country/state steal the drug tourism market? What do you think?

There are a number of places (Peru, Spain, Switzerland, Bangladesh) that are quite lax about pot.

Do you think the Netherlands will be the end of it, if not where is it going?

[Nature Boy]

I would write off Switzerland as of now. There's a strong conservative push going on there and laws will probably be tightened there in the near future more than likely. Perhaps Spain but decriminalisation without government regulated sale would be a more likely outcome. I don't know anything about Peru and Bangladesh. Care to shed some light on the situation?

[Euphoric]

Re: South American marijuana policies:
http://erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_law2.shtml

COLOMBIA: Possession of small quantities of all drugs legal;
permitted ``personal dose'' for marijuana is 20 grams.
PERU: Possession of small amounts legal; judges decide what
constitutes ``personal'' amount.
------
URUGUAY: Possession for personal use not penalized; law does not
specify quantity for ``personal'' amount.
------
VENEZUELA: Possession of up to 20 grams not punished; users must
go through drug treatment program.
--

Info on the other countries was there too, but it was illegal in all.

Finding info on Bangladesh was a bit tough but here's what I found:

http://www.webehigh.com/city/detail.php?CITYID=Dhaka

Legislation: Consumption of both opium and cannabis are
traditional in Bangladesh. There are no real local laws that relate to
marijuana - just some international treaties that don't mean much.

Law enforcement: No laws to be forced...

More information: Although the tolerance or lack of laws on
these substance is remarkable the country itself is actually very
unsafe and completely unstable with executions happening in the street
by the government without trial by jury. "The country continues to
suffer from extensive corruption,[15] disorder and political
violence...Obstacles to growth include frequent cyclones and floods,
inefficient state-owned enterprises, mismanaged port facilities, a
growth in the labour force that has outpaced jobs, inefficient use of
energy resources (such as natural gas), insufficient power supplies,
slow implementation of economic reforms, political infighting and
corruption. According to the World Bank's July 2005 Country Brief,
"Among Bangladesh’s most significant obstacles to growth are poor
governance and weak public institutions."[27]" "Bangladesh tops most
corrupt list (BBC)" So it's been the most corrupt country for about 4
years in a row as of 2007. Besid es the government and policemen going
around murdering anybody who is different or they don\'t like there is
widespread theft and rape and the government there is responsible for
at least part of those rapes and extortions/thefts. An average person
there may only make $2100 a year by the way so keep in mind if you are
a foreigner how desperately they will want your money if you have the
utter bravery to travel there.

[Revancheshepherd]

hopefully.

[Euphoric]

Oh also, there's apparently a place in Australia called Canberra.

http://www.webehigh.com/city/detail.php?CITYID=Canberra

Smoking tolerance level [1= very illegal 5=virtually legal]: 4.5

Legislation: Posession of Cannabis is illegal, but the posession of 25 grams of dried Cannabis for personal use has been decriminalised in the ACT, meaning that it will not warrant a criminal conviction. Similarly, anyone can grow up to two Cannabis plants without facing criminal charges - instead, the police have the discretion to issue a "Simple Cannabis Offence Notice".
or more information: http://www.afp.gov.au/act/drugs_alco...gs_and_the_law

Law Enforcement: The AFP generally tend to be pretty realistic, and focus on "real crimes" instead of Marijuana use. Don't wave your spliff in a cop's face and you'll be fine.

[Revancheshepherd]

Originally Posted by Euphoric

Oh also, there's apparently a place in Australia called Canberra.

http://www.webehigh.com/city/detail.php?CITYID=Canberra

San francisco's Hippie hill is the same way
(famous place where janis joplin shot up heroin)

you can smoke while cops go thru the park, but if they catch you attempting to distribute, you will get BUSSSSTED.

[FuBai]

Originally Posted by Euphoric

Oh also, there's apparently a place in Australia called Canberra.

I laughed when I read this! It's actually the capital of Australia...but very few people outside of Australia seem to know this. It's a massive, leafy place which looks more like a vaguely urban park than a real city.

[meep]

Dont forget, when you are a guest in another country the laws dont always apply. Swim would have thought that unless the country is regulated like Amsterdam was there will be perma bans from countrys. ('Banned from entry' sticker in passports makes for good flight lounge small talk swim supposes though)

[jkolt89]

swim doubts that will ever happen. Amsterdam gets a huge amount of money pumped into to their economy in tourism and there are too many business interests involved.

[FuBai]

Originally Posted by jkolt89

swim doubts that will ever happen. Amsterdam gets a huge amount of money pumped into to their economy in tourism and there are too many business interests involved.

Never underestimate the power of the God Squad's self-righteousness.

Reputation Comments on this post:

good point.

[D.U.M.B]

Originally Posted by FuBai

Never underestimate the power of the God Squad's self-righteousness.

So damn true. But hopefully over the coming years more places around the globe will relax a little when it comes to cannabis laws

[jkolt89]

FuBai, that's very true. I'm just trying to think positively and hope that the world will use Amsterdam as an example of why it should be legal everywhere instead of the other way around. Only time will tell I guess

[jgarlopa]

Cowboy has also been wondering the same thing. Since it is not possible to get a license to set up a new coffeeshop, and existing licenses are non-transferable, what will happen when the owner of each shop dies? Nobody lives forever, so who will continue the business afterward, assuming that there has been no change in the law?

[Nature Boy]

Denmark might also be in with a shout: http://www.drugs-forum.com/forum/sho...ght=copenhagen

[thebige]

As time progresses it might just be Los Angeles US........
If swim could imagine such madness...

[jgarlopa]

Originally Posted by thebige

As time progresses it might just be Los Angeles US........
If swim could imagine such madness...

That would be a good thing in many ways, one of which being that Cowboy lives in LA already for the last 7 years, and really loves how prevalent the medical weed scene is there. Hopes the Feds leave those dispensaries alone!!

[jgarlopa]

Actually, LA already is just like Amsterdam, only you need a medical license to buy weed there . In some ways it is better, though, because if you do have a license you are allowed to buy more (up to 8oz if the dispensary is willing to sell you that much). With nearly 1,000 medical cann dispensaries in LA County, Cowboy never has to worry about going dry. This is much better for the serious stoners out there, since Cowboy doesn't know any pothead who only smokes the measly 5 grams allowed by the Dutch authorities. Also, in California, possession and cultivation of cannabis is fully legal [for qualified patients], not just tolerated like in NL.

Cowboy is in no way trying to make NL seem inferior to CA, just trying to make those DF members who are unforunate enough to live outside of CA aware of the facts. LA will never be exactly like Amsterdam, though, because one needs a medical license, forcing the scene underground.

[sykes]

American is moving foward to legalizing it so expect business to pick up there.