The Difference Between New Mexico and North Carolina

 

The 2018 Farm Bill that President Trump signed into law legalizes the growing of hemp and the production of hemp products -- as opposed to marijuana, though both hemp and marijuana are essentially the same thing, cannabis plants, so the distinction in the law is almost invisible to a non-expert. The law mandates that legal hemp cannot contain more than 0.3% THC, the compound that gets you higher than a laundry line on a windy day. In North Carolina CBD oil and other products are legal under the Farm Bill, but clever scientists have learned how to extract Delta-8, Delta-9, and Delta-10 from hemp -- all still legal under the Farm Bill -- and Delta-9 especially can produce a high much like the high from straight marijuana. So for all practical purposes, in North Carolina recreational drugs are legal though our General Assembly still piously refuses to legalize marijuana even for medical treatment of debilitating illnesses. 

In New Mexico, where I am currently camping, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the Cannabis Regulation Act into law in 2021. Adults are legally permitted to purchase and possess up to two ounces of marijuana and/or up to 16 grams of cannabis extract from licensed retailers. The law also permits adults to cultivate up to six mature plants for their own personal use. The personal use provisions took effect on June 29, 2021. Retail sales began in April 2022.

From all appearances, it's a thriving business, and New Mexico hasn't experienced any end-of-world after effects that are immediately apparent to the naked eye. New Mexico is decidedly blue. It voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in seven of the last eight presidential elections, including in 2020. Its state legislature has Democratic super majorities in both chambers, and all seven of its statewide executive officers including governor are Democrats.

Make of that what you will. North Carolina's law-making is firmly in the hands of some of the most conservative and self-serving politicians in the country, some of whom saw the dollar signs flashing over casino gambling but can't see any benefit in a green new deal.