Dope Shops - How can there be so many

The Darkness said:
Most cannabis stores are operating under the section 21 medicines act (you cn read up on that), or they're operating as membership clubs. Yes, they pay tax too, and no, they're not fronting for 'dealers' - they are outletting for growers, which is a huge industry. Clearly there's a market too, hence the amount of stores. Anyway, it should be legalised as legitimate trade; if alcohol get's the green light then cannabis should definitely get it too. Either way, it makes no difference to your life.
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But the membership/subscription pathway has been closed, legally speaking, by the Cannabis for private purposes act of 2024.
 
Zellephant said:
It’s impossible to head down any high street today and not pass at least half a dozen cannabis related stores. How do they do business/survive in the current regulatory environment.

(I am not wondering about how they survive in terms of demand for the product…. It’s pretty obvious how high the demand is)

I know it’s been de-criminalised for a good long time now. But that only governs private use and possession. Sale of cannabis is still not legal. Foodstuffs containing cannabis were allowed for a while, then banned by the department of health completely, and now they are apparently allowed again (but pending an outcome on new legislation specifically related to cannabis in the food industry)

And medical or health related sale of products containing cannabis is considered complimentary medicine and the sale thereoff required licensing.

But these majority of these “dope” shops aren’t exactly coffee shops like you find in the Netherlands. The bulk seem to be shops selling paraphernalia for using cannabis, or they are branding themselves as health stores/pharmacies, but surely they can’t all be licensed as pharmacies, since that’s a pretty stringent thing in terms of licensing, and it’s not exactly like South Africa has an oversupply of qualified pharmacists.

I don’t want this to become a debate around the whether or not it should be legal, or the health issues for or against its use. That’s not what I’m asking. I want to understand how under current legislation, there seems to be such a boom in dope shops opening, even though the sale of dope is still illegal, or very highly regulated.

Are they just openly defying the legislation while the police don’t enforce the laws around sale, since the decriminalisation on use, or what’s the story?

I tried to do some reading, but that left me even more confused, since it seems the current legal position is that even the 420 social clubs that everyone was opening a while ago to get around the laws regarding “selling” are outright banned under current law.
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They don't sell you weed,

You join as member and technically sponsor them as farmers who grow on your behalf, so that you may consume at your home.
 
Zellephant said:
But the membership/subscription pathway has been closed, legally speaking, by the Cannabis for private purposes act of 2024.
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Sure, but it's not being enforced. Really, it makes no difference to anyones life if there's a shop in your community. If you want to buy then do so, otherwise don't. It will never be criminalised again.
 
SauRoNZA said:
Piracy is illegal and so is speeding…yet that has never stopped anyone.

Same same.
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Except, piracy seems to be somewhat policed as of late in South Africa, and people have recently been sent to prison for it.

Also, even though I do speed from time to time, when I get caught, and they do regularly catch people for speeding, you have to pay a fine, or you may even be arrested. The same for drinking and driving. I was stopped on the way home from dinner on Saturday night, and was tested for alcohol (I was under the limit though, luckily). So these things are policed.

These marijuana shops are opening on every corner, and are obviously not being policed much at all. You can buy THC containing products at them (sometimes they even false label it as containing CBD only, coz face it, who’s going to check).

The_ONE said:
They don't sell you weed,

You join as member and technically sponsor them as farmers who grow on your behalf, so that you may consume at your home.
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I know exactly how the model works. That’s not the point. The point is the Canabis for private use act clearly categorises this as a form of trade, which is illegal, according to the act.
 
Zellephant said:
I know exactly how the model works. That’s not the point. The point is the Canabis for private use act clearly categorises this as a form of trade, which is illegal, according to the act.
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How does this affect you? What's your agenda here?
 
Benedict A55h0le not said:
CBD in food stuffs was banned and now allowed again. The sale of anything with THC in has always been banned. These shops don`t sell any THC products. This is SA, and there are multiple convenient ways to buy weed because SAPS is useless. And this is what is creating demand for these shops.
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They definitely do sell THC products and I'm talking about one of the large stores here and not some back alley place.
 
Zellephant said:
I know exactly how the model works. That’s not the point. The point is the Canabis for private use act clearly categorises this as a form of trade, which is illegal, according to the act.
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Guess we won't know exactly until you apply for the permits and licenses.
 
as somebody who has the same question @Zellephant
and especially since I have never Used even once anything with CBD or THC or anything like that ever in my life,

not even cigarettes or Booze, been super curious but too chickensh!t to actually try something out of fear I will get hooked and addicted and spend the rest of my life shackled to Cannabis or illegal stuff

my question is to try it once, will it kill me? or will it be the beginning of something I will never be able to disconnect from ever again.
 
The Darkness said:
Sure, but it's not being enforced. Really, it makes no difference to anyones life if there's a shop in your community. If you want to buy then do so, otherwise don't. It will never be criminalised again.
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Why do you feel the need to make this point? That’s not what the discussion is about. I even agreed with decriminalisation in my opening post.

My question is about the legalities involved in the trade. The fact that these shops are popping up everywhere even though they have no legal method of selling the primary product the industry is based on, and how they are able to fly under the radar blatantly out in the open.

But there’s a few other issue to unpack in your post. Firstly, people should care about what happens in their communities, including what kind of businesses are opening in their communities. It’s precisely because people don’t care what happens in their communities that the world is as upside down as it currently is.

(And just to make it clear for the hundredth time, I am not against the decriminalisation of cannabis. At the same times I’m not sure I agree that it’s trade ought to be legalised. One can support both these arguments)
 
I've found a few places selling pre-rolled joints that are actually K2/Spice/fake-weed (without disclosure).

Way worse IMO.
 
Jet-Fighter7700 said:
as somebody who has the same question @Zellephant
and especially since I have never Used even once anything with CBD or THC or anything like that ever in my life,

not even cigarettes or Booze, been super curious but too chickensh!t to actually try something out of fear I will get hooked and addicted and spend the rest of my life shackled to Cannabis or illegal stuff

my question is to try it once, will it kill me? or will it be the beginning of something I will never be able to disconnect from ever again.
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You might become mentally rather than physically addicted. I would say you should try to smoke a good joint for the taste and relaxation. You might want to smoke again after that simply because it was enjoyable. It is not nearly as addictive and damaging as alcohol or nicotine.
 
The Darkness said:
How does this affect you? What's your agenda here?
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Why do you assume I have an agenda? I have an opinion just like everyone else, but that doesnt mean I have an agenda. I have asked a question regarding a phenomenon that I have noticed, which does not make sense to me, hoping to get some answers or new insight.

If you want my opinion, I will give it again. I support decriminalisation, but I don’t support legalisation of trade. I do occasionally partake in cannabis use, but I also don’t think stoner “culture” should be promoted openly in mixed communities. But these are just my opinions, and have nothing to do with the questions I have asked.
The_ONE said:
Guess we won't know exactly until you apply for the permits and licenses.
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I don’t think I’m going to bother to apply for permits just to find out, but I have read the act, and it’s pretty clear. Hence my original question.
 
Benedict A55h0le not said:
You might become mentally rather than physically addicted. I would say you should try to smoke a good joint for the taste and relaxation. You might want to smoke again after that simply because it was enjoyable. It is not nearly as addictive and damaging as alcohol or nicotine.
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that's my main fear, getting addicted to something like Booze or Tobacco is something I have avoided
to never have to worry about any drug test/random screenings,

but was always curious about many things, Shrooms being another, always wanted to know the abuse potential of these drugs,
as right now not addicted to anything, really clean as a whistle,

and thats what worries me, is one of these becomes a gateway drug to something worse.
I mean it is a slippery slide, even if you try it once and only once, what happens.
 
Benedict A55h0le not said:
You might become mentally rather than physically addicted. I would say you should try to smoke a good joint for the taste and relaxation. You might want to smoke again after that simply because it was enjoyable. It is not nearly as addictive and damaging as alcohol or nicotine.
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I know he asked the question, so I shouldn’t really be calling you out for going off topic here, but I feel I have to as a responsible member of society point out that your are giving dangerous advice.

Although it’s not dangerous for most people in small quantities, there is solid scientific evidence showing extremes risks related to cannabis usage, especially high THC “designer” cannabis, in persons with certain mental health conditions, including irreversible changes to neural pathways after even a single use. So a blanket “it’s not nearly as dangerous as alcohol or tobacco” statement is very irresponsible.
 
Jet-Fighter7700 said:
that's my main fear, getting addicted to something like Booze or Tobacco is something I have avoided
to never have to worry about any drug test/random screenings,

but was always curious about many things, Shrooms being another, always wanted to know the abuse potential of these drugs,
as right now not addicted to anything, really clean as a whistle,

and thats what worries me, is one of these becomes a gateway drug to something worse.
I mean it is a slippery slide, even if you try it once and only once, what happens.
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You definitely won`t get instantly addicted to weed. I tried shrooms but there was nothing great about it to me. Weed is probably the nicest tasting thing that can be consumed. There is nothing better than a good hash joint.
 
Zellephant said:
I know he asked the question, so I shouldn’t really be calling you out for going off topic here, but I feel I have to as a responsible member of society point out that your are giving dangerous advice.

Although it’s not dangerous for most people in small quantities, there is solid scientific evidence showing extremes risks related to cannabis usage, especially high THC “designer” cannabis, in persons with certain mental health conditions, including irreversible changes to neural pathways after even a single use. So a blanket “it’s not nearly as dangerous as alcohol or tobacco” statement is very irresponsible.
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:ROFL: Yeah, it is still much safer than panado or alcohol. In fact, chances are that it will be beneficial.
 
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