cannabisnews.com: Cheap, Efficient: New Dope on Dope Sales Cheap, Efficient: New Dope on Dope Sales Posted by CN Staff on June 18, 2002 at 13:26:54 PT By Andrew Stevenson Source: Sydney Morning Herald Globalisation might have done you out of a job but the marijuana market has been transformed, like the Australian economy, by the drive to ever-greater efficiencies. Prices have fallen markedly in the past decade, according to research published by the Economic Research Centre at the University of Western Australia. In real terms, marijuana is 40 per cent cheaper, with the price of an ounce of heads falling more than $100 in the past decade. The saving for smokers is estimated at $1 billion a year."Our best guess is that it the price drop is the result of productivity enhancements in growing marijuana through hydroponic techniques," said Professor Ken Clements, who produced his analysis from figures compiled by the Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence."When you see a drug bust it used to be out in the bush with trip wires and shotguns but now it's houses that have their windows blanked out and they're growing marijuana indoors with lights on 24 hours a day."Sydney is the most expensive Australian city in which to buy marijuana, at $500 an ounce, double the price in Perth.Decriminalisation of small-scale possession and cultivation in some states and the ACT - or police being less assiduous in busting users - may have also affected the price, Professor Clements said.Whether growers or dealers have worn the price squeeze is hazy, but the impact is clear: marijuana users are smoking more and drinking less."We estimate consumption has risen by 15 per cent due to the price fall," Professor Clements said."Interestingly, the extra money spent on marijuana has got to come from somewhere and it comes from substitute products such as alcohol."Source: Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)Author: Andrew Stevenson Published: June 19 2002Copyright: 2002 The Sydney Morning HeraldWebsite: http://www.smh.com.au/Contact: letters smh.fairfax.com.auRelated Article:Roll Up, Roll Uphttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13101.shtmlCannabisNews - Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #8 posted by TroutMask on June 19, 2002 at 07:29:29 PT MJ as Healthy Alternative to Booze Many marijuana prohibitionists use the argument "Given the problems we have with alcohol, why would we want to make another mind-altering drug legally available?"We are right to compare the health risks between marijuana and alcohol consumption, but I think it is important to offer marijuana as a healthy ALTERNATIVE to alcohol. That is: The effects of alcohol on society will be reduced if marijuana is legalized and people start using marijuana INSTEAD of alcohol. Additionally, use of marijuana *while* drinking alcohol tends to calm the user, often reducing overall alcohol intake (and apparently making the marijuana user drive safer than on alcohol alone).If you've ever been up drinking until 2 a.m. or so and then smoked a doobie, you'll know what I mean. Often, a doobie on top of a 6-pack (or 2 or 3?) is the end of the evening. All that's left to do is maybe munch down a snack and head to bed. Meanwhile, drinkers who are not so "burdened" can stay up and continue killing their livers while working on a nice hangover. (Not to dis drinkers, as I'm one.)-TMBTW, $500/oz is probably in AU dollars. Still not cheap, but getting cheaper! [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by Dimebag on June 19, 2002 at 06:45:06 PT Oh HELL NO!!!! $500 an OZ. FUCK YOU, I pay like $85 for a good (and I mean GOOD) bag of Weed. Im talkin NO SEEDS, ALL BUDS and Lots and Lots of Red hairs and White Crystals. Those Aussies are gettin Ripped off. If Pot were $500 an Oz here, I would take up Heroin. It would be cheaper.LOLDimebag....Remember Kids: Marijuana is the Devil..... Smoke Satan! [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by kaptinemo on June 19, 2002 at 05:30:59 PT: Friends, consider this too: This is happening while cannabis prohibition is in effect. The same old quasi-Darwinian pressure from Law Enforcement organizations being exerted upon growers everywhere is causing them to become more efficient...and the price drops as a result. While quality presumably remains the same...or increases. It's a textbook case of pure low-level capitalism in operation; you'd think neo-Conservatives would be beaming with joy that 'ghetto trash' have finally taken their exhortaions to 'make something of themselves through hard work and dedication' to heart using their methods... Now imagine how far down the price would drop if there were no prohibition. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on June 18, 2002 at 20:13:19 PT News Brief from Reuters Marijuana Prices Fall, Consumption Rises June 18, 2002 9:25 am EST http://news1.iwon.com/article/id/49492|oddlyenough|06-18-2002::09:28|reuters.html PERTH, Australia (Reuters) - Better, more efficient growing techniques are slashing marijuana prices in Australia and pushing up consumption. Prices of the weed have fallen in real terms by almost 40 per cent over the past 10 years, according to a survey by the Economic Research Centre at the University of Western Australia. Marijuana remains illegal here, but smoking or possessing small amounts has been decriminalized in most Australian states. "Even though marijuana is an illegal substance in Australia it seems that the application of modern production techniques, particularly hydroponic techniques, has led to a substantial increase in supply," said Professor Ken Clements who led the research. "This, in turn, has led to the sharp fall in price we have recorded," he told Reuters on Tuesday. According to the research, an ounce of marijuana leaf in Sydney in 1990 would have cost A$438 (US$244). In 1999, the date of the research, the price had fallen to A$275. Perth had the cheapest marijuana in 1999 with an ounce costing A$250, but was one of the few places to record an increase. An ounce costs A$210 in 1990. The falling price of marijuana sparked a 15 per cent rise in consumption, the survey found. "Australians are widely recognized as big beer drinkers but what we've found is that they are also among the biggest marijuana consumers in the world," Clements said. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by CorvallisEric on June 18, 2002 at 14:57:00 PT Another gripe "Our best guess is that it the price drop is the result of productivity enhancements in growing marijuana through hydroponic techniques," said Professor Ken Clements, who produced his analysis from figures compiled by the Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence. I'll bet the price drop has very little to do with productivity and very much to do with "risk cost." [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by CorvallisEric on June 18, 2002 at 14:50:45 PT Huh? Let's assume that all the changes described took place over the "past decade." 1 - In real terms, marijuana is 40 per cent cheaper Perth? Sydney? both? doesn't really matter. 2 - marijuana users are smoking more and drinking less. OK, fair enough if he has reliable data somewhere. 3 - "We estimate consumption has risen by 15 per cent due to the price fall," Professor Clements said. If his only data source is prices, then his conclusion is questionable. 4 - "Interestingly, the extra money spent on marijuana has got to come from somewhere and it comes from substitute products such as alcohol." Whaaaaat? Prices drop 40 percent; people smoke 15 percent more; they need to make up for the nonexistent extra cost by buying less booze? Or has Australia had a big depression I wasn't aware of? I don't think he meant that people smoke 15 percent more in dollar volume. Why not just this: more people like pot better than alcohol compared with a decade ago? And have more money left over to spend elsewhere or save. Too simple? [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by darwin on June 18, 2002 at 14:46:14 PT Its all about $ This author hit upon one of the hidden truths of the drug war. Money spent on pot is money NOT spent on Annhueser Busch. if a 15% increase in consumption in pot is accompanied by a corresponding drop in alcohol sales, we are talking millions lost in Australia alone. Someone should do the math and see how much the liquor companies would lose in the US. Keep on selling those pills, booze, and prison terms, lest the markets (of those in power) should falter. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by VitaminT on June 18, 2002 at 14:05:23 PT If you can't have the real thing try alcohol it's only a "substitute product" and a poor substitute it is, but in a pinch . . . .it's just the natural order of things. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment