When weed was illegal, it was sold under the purview of local cops * and military. It's the same reason why prostitution and gambling are still illegal in Thailand - if both industries were legalized, then local military and police would lose a major cash cow.
That's why all Muay Thai matches in Thailand happen at stadiums owned by the Thai Military, all enforcement of prostitution and drugs falls under the military and interior security, and Thailand has their conscripts do menial bullshit labor instead of professional soldiering.
In addition, the culture in TH is also much more conservative. Once you leave expat world, you have extremely socially conservative norms comparable to South Korea.
* Don't blame beat cops alone though. They have to pay for their uniform, gun, gas, etc out of pocket, and they need to pay a bribe to even get the job in TH.
I visit Thailand every few years, and it was interesting seeing all the new cannabis businesses there on my most recent trip. The distribution was interesting: lots of stores in touristy areas, but very few (basically none) in less touristy areas. And I’m not even talking rural, there’s plenty of very dense areas in Bangkok without a dispensary for miles.
Despite the legalization, locals weren’t indulging broadly. You could theorize that it’s prohibitively expensive compared to average wages. But retail sales are quite strong in Thailand. People are more than willing to spend their disposable income at extravagant malls, on cosmetics, designer brands, etc. I think it’s maybe more that the average Thai citizen just doesn’t care too much about cannabis.
Still a shame to see a policy shift to criminalize nonviolent activity.
"New Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew has announced that cannabis extracts containing more than 0.2 percent of the active ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, will be classified as narcotics."
Seems like a reasonable idea to realize that ultra processed MJ is more harmful.
> New Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew has announced that cannabis extracts containing more than 0.2 percent of the active ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, will be classified as narcotics.
If my math is correct (100 / 0.2 * 5 / 1000), 2.5 grams (if you're an imperial person, a gram bag is a 1 inch by 1 inch bag) of that cannabis extract will get you as high as a regular joint (which has 5mg of THC).
So that sounds conservative, but still permissive.
If I look at the 3.5g bags I'm familiar with, I can't imagine smoking so much in one go. That would almost require the use of those novelty oversized RAW cones.
They mentioned extracts, so I'm imagining oil or powder in this scenario (also smoke is bad for you). 2.5G of oil or powder isn't a lot at all. The term "gram bag" is used for powder.
Would you say the same in regards to caffeine, alcohol?
There are genuine use cases for cannabis, one such example is enabling sufferers of chronic pain to have access to a far less dangerous method of pain relief compared to commonly prescribed opiates.
Legalisation of cannabis also ensures recreational users to contribute to the economy and have access to safely produced plants, this in itself acts as harm reduction.
Bad at what? Typically when a compound is considered a "drug" it's - by definition - because it has an effect on the body/mind.
Like the old joke says: why do people use drugs? Because they work!
If I take an ibuprofen and it doesn't diminish my headache, then I'd consider it "bad". If I am nauseous or insomniac and take a capsule containing cannabinoids which settles my stomach or relaxes me to sleep, then I'd consider it "good".
What I imagine you're saying is that "ingesting drugs for some things is good, but ingesting them to relax, wake up, or otherwise feel differently than you currently do is bad".
78% of our atmosphere is nitrogen, a known narcotic that has cost thousands of lives by inducing mental impairment in situations already fraught with hazard.
When weed was illegal, it was sold under the purview of local cops * and military. It's the same reason why prostitution and gambling are still illegal in Thailand - if both industries were legalized, then local military and police would lose a major cash cow.
That's why all Muay Thai matches in Thailand happen at stadiums owned by the Thai Military, all enforcement of prostitution and drugs falls under the military and interior security, and Thailand has their conscripts do menial bullshit labor instead of professional soldiering.
In addition, the culture in TH is also much more conservative. Once you leave expat world, you have extremely socially conservative norms comparable to South Korea.
* Don't blame beat cops alone though. They have to pay for their uniform, gun, gas, etc out of pocket, and they need to pay a bribe to even get the job in TH.