4 Myths About Canada’s Legalization of Weed That the US Has Already Debunked

Will the legalization of weed bring the apocalypse, or save Canada’s economy?

Neither is likely. We’re already seeing a tremendous amount of misinformation floating around out there about both the positive effects and negative repercussions of Canada’s legalization.

The pendulum is swinging too far in both directions. All we have to do is look at the various states in the US that have legalized marijuana to see what is really most likely to happen.

Here are 4 of the most popular myths that the US has already proven to be false.

More Teens Will Smoke Weed

Will someone please think of the children?!

If you’re worried about your kids smoking weed after legalization, you should actually be more worried about your parents picking up a new habit.

Across states that legalized marijuana, teenagers were the ones who’s weed smoking increased the least. Most teenagers consumption stayed at about even par, while the usage numbers for kids in Grade 8–10 actually decreased.

However, there was one age group of troublemakers who smoked more weed when it became legal: the over 55 crowd.

So be warned. Your parents may start smoking “the pot.”

More People Will Drive High

We get the sensitivity to this issue. Driving impaired is a massive problem.

However, there is absolutely no empirical evidence that proves legalization leads to more impaired driving.

A responsibly-thinking adult is not suddenly going to start driving high, just because marijuana is now legal. People who think driving high is OK when weed is illegal will continue to do so when it’s legal, and people who know better will continue to know better.

But, studies have shown that people who drive under the influence of marijuana are more aware of their impairment than people who drive under the influence of alcohol. They’re actually more likely to drive slow and be cautious. Whereas people driving drunk are driving faster, with slower reaction times and making more reckless choices.

The Taxes Will Help the Economy

Some people seem to think we can use the money collected in marijuana taxes to give people free university and fix every pothole in Canada.

Will the taxes help? Yes, of course. Will they have much impact on Canada’s financial big picture? Meh.

Let’s use the state of Colorado for example, which has legalized cannabis. Marijuana sales were over US$1.3 billion in the state in 2016. But that’s not even a third of 1% of the state’s $333 billion GDP. The taxes collected from the sales are certainly nice to have, but not a game-changer.

It’s a Licence to Print Money for Sellers

Is there money to be made in opening a cannabis business in Canada these days? Of course there is. But no major banks are open to accepting cannabis-related businesses’ money, so it’s forcing a lot of people to run a cash-only business.

And that means you’re literally losing money to the dozens of hidden costs that come from running a cash-only business; from not being able to accept debit or credit cards, to having to invest in security guards and equipment.

This is why so many cannabis businesses are looking to cryptocurrency as an answer. It creates a cash-less alternative, that actually creates a more accountable ledger.

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