Weed to End Wars – Did Vladimir Putin underestimate over a billion people using cannabis in the last decade?

A funny thing happened en route to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a country they expected would take control with little combat and, some predicted, in less than 72 hours. The world responded with a massive anti-war message. Social media was brightening up, networks were ablaze with live, streaming and on-the-spot reporting. The most famous incident was the attack by a Russian warship on Snake Island, in which the Ukrainian soldiers guarding a remote islet off the coast of Ukraine ordered the Russian warship to beep when signaled to surrender position and lay down arms .

game, set, war.

Thanks to the wonders of instant live streaming, the world fell in love with the Ukrainian spirit, whether it was the soldiers on Snake Island or the tik-toc dancing military unit awaiting the arrival of the Russian army. To be clear, don’t joke about the invasions, thousands are being slaughtered and the latest updates show that Russia is bombing civilians, young, old and even children.

So, wait, what does cannabis have to do with all of this? For the practical question of how the Ukrainian invasion will affect the cannabis industry, read this article entitled “How the war in Ukraine will affect the European cannabis industry” by Marguerite Arnold. In a broader, global sense, is cannabis playing a part in human evolution right now and how do we see needless killing over rocks in the ground or easier access to an ocean?

You bet!

Cannabis culture is worldwide

What began with the anti-war movements of the 1960s and 70s with flower children and Woodstock has expanded into a global peace movement, if you will. In the 1960s and 1970s, cannabis use was limited to a small percentage of the population because cannabis was dangerous to obtain and access to the plant was very limited. Thus, the hippies of the 1970s and flower children of the 1960s were a segment of society, but a small one, and looked down upon by most of the masses.

The hippie culture fueled by cannabis use was about peace and love, not war anymore, and as Cheech and Chong would say, “Heyyyyyyy man, why can’t we all get along?”.

Fast forward to 2022 and now you have a worldwide cannabis legalization movement, moving at different speeds around the world but from state-to-state legalization in America to country-level recreational legalization as in Canada and soon afterwards In Germany, the peaceful plant makes its gentle and anti-war mood noticeable.

wait what

The combination of live streaming technology pulling us in and creating empathy and emotional connection with Ukrainians, combined with a developing worldwide humanity now consistently using cannabis, has I dare say a “global hippie” movement created. Well, there are constant threats and areas of human rights violations in China and Africa on a daily basis, yes. Is human trafficking and the abuse of children, whether through forced labor or sexual exploitation, a big problem, yes. The world is not fully Kumbaya right now, but the movement towards a softer perspective on things like violence, competition and life has begun. The COVID pandemic has kept the world at home and reflecting on life for over 2 years, and the version of stoned, empathetic people that is emerging has a whole new take on society.

The big resignation? You bet. Is life more important than the endless hamster wheel? You bet. People in their 40s and 50s who are out of COVID are realizing that life is more precious than ever and they have, at best, half of it left. Competing and working endlessly only to end up dying with most stuff now seems like an archaic view of life. Fighting wars over liquids in the ground and having a glimpse of the sea seems silly when it comes at the cost of so many lives.

While cannabis smokers inhale and see poor 19 year olds being forced to fight other impoverished 19 year olds where none of the invading soldiers know why they are fighting or why they are being asked to shoot people. The mind also wonders: “What are we doing, what has become of humanity, when we see civilians being bombed from their homes and shot in the streets?”.

Like it or not, cannabis is leading the world towards a more empathetic and sympathetic view of one another. As they say, be gentle, everyone is on a journey and you have no idea what the other person is going through. An interesting thought is that alcohol has been available to the masses for hundreds of years and we have seen thousands of wars. Cannabis came onto the global stage at most 10 years ago and while it is still very restricted, we see a resounding “NO” to aggression and war when we put it in front of our eyes on social media and streaming services.

While countries have to be careful because of the US and Russian nuclear arsenals, citizens are joining in support of the peace as if they were countries. Despite being a very rich and unique person, Elon Musk is sending cutting-edge internet space technology to Ukraine to support the Ukrainian government. Elon is not an aid country, he is a super rich guy who smokes weed. Polish versions of Costco and BJ’s have sold out as Polish civilians spend their own money buying groceries and diapers, and drive to the border in their private cars to distribute supplies and offer help.

Dusty where you are?

These are not counties, but humanity responding to other people’s desperate pleas. It’s not your war? It is sure, it is a war against human principles and decency. It is designed to protect the innocent, regardless of what flag flies in their skies or how close they are geographically to the United States. Shouldn’t the US get involved? Russia now has supersonic nuclear missiles that the US can read in minutes. You bet it’s our war. Throw in all the space weapons currently controlled over us by China and Russia and you can bet this is our war. To bury your head in the sand and say that this is a war between the Soviet Union and countries that were once part of the Soviet Union is very naïve. There will be 8,000 US soldiers as part of the official UN army, which is what happens when 2,000 Americans come back in body bags for a Russian dictator who will stop at nothing to rebuild the 1982 Soviet Union before Regan and Gorbachev “tore down that wall.” “.

There is a meme that says, “If everyone smoked cannabis, there would be no more wars”. Well, not everyone smokes cannabis per se, but the cusp of cannabis consumption has now reached a point where wars over rock and earth just don’t make sense anymore, millions and millions of people around the world are protesting the war, including in Russia itself. Even the Taliban have issued a statement declaring the invasion unethical. Think about it, the Taliban even say, “What the hell bro?” and they have some of the finest opium and landrace strains in the world. The same Taliban who see a lucrative market for their marijuana cultivation and may or may not be in talks with Canadian companies about supplying cannabis strains to them as part of broader economic goals.

Cannabis use may not have stopped WW3, but it has already turned a united world and Europe against this Russian invasion and the killing of so many innocent people. While Putin hates weed and is a relic of the prehistoric Cold War era, the rest of the world stepped forward, broadened their horizons, tried and legalized cannabis. Ironically, Thailand, home of the toughest drug laws in the world regardless of your nationality, is positioning itself as a marijuana tourism destination with a full medical and recreational industry.

How on earth, no pun intended, have we gotten to the point where the Taliban and Thailand are telling Russia to relax? Moreover, even North Korea issued a statement against the Russian invasion. Although publicly opposed to marijuana, North Korea is one of the largest hemp and marijuana producing countries on earth, and the plants are providing the country with much-needed cash as they are blacklisted around the world as a result of their dictatorship.

Would we be here if the US legalized cannabis 10 years ago and the UN removed cannabis from all of their drug treaties? That would have allowed a global market for cannabis to reach the billions of people who actually use and have access to the plant today. Are the Taliban, Thailand and North Korea all saying it’s wrong if we don’t have legal cannabis in the world today?

When Thailand, home of the secret drug police force that used to shoot local dealers and users, the Taliban, the most notorious “get your head off on TV” terrorist group, and North Korea, home of Kim Il Jong, can all begin their attitude towards cannabis change, why can not Russia? Because their leader and his 12 closest advisers are all 70-year-old War on Drugs fans? Putin has underestimated social media since he banned most open platforms and freedom of expression in Russia years ago. He also underestimated the power of the peaceful plant cannabis and how people who use cannabis evolve and change their desire for aggression and material gain.

As Tommy Chong would say to Putin, “Heyyyyyyyyy man, why can’t we all get along?”

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