*Modern-day political voice, cultural and legal expert, Dr. Christopher Metzler looks to inform and educate people on the actual effects and uses for the cannabis plant in a talk hosted at WeWorks’ shared workspaces located inside the MOCA Pacific Design Center.
The cannabis plant has moved from useful tool to life-destroying menace, to health aid and now has become a cash crop as many around the nation look to cash in on the legalization of medical and recreational cannabis. Dr. Metzler has positioned himself and his practice as an expert on the subject.
Dr. Metzler obtained a Ph.D. in International Legal Philosophy from The University of Aberdeen. A deep thinker, Dr. Metzler is the self-proclaimed ‘Catalyst in Chief’ who promotes to “Make America Nice Again” as a slogan.
This slogan adequately combines the two major philosophies behind Dr. Metzler’s movement: national politics and cannabis.
For those not understanding cannabis culture in the United States, “Nice Cream” was the weed dealing ice cream truck from early Cheech and Chong Movies, and ‘Make America Great Again is President Trump’s campaign slogan. The blending of the two really helps illustrate how cannabis has risen to become a national issue.
The event was hosted by Black Hollywood LIVE Executive Producer and Reelz Channel Television Host Derrial Christon who peppered Dr. Metzler with questions pertaining to the laws surrounding running a cannabis business including labeling, regulations and the limitations of the existing laws. Following the interview, Dr. Metzler too questions from the audience.
Whose decision was it to make the cannabis plant illegal? Who are the brave souls that fought to bring it to everyone? Do you know if you live in one of the 30 states that have legalized some form of cannabis use? Are you in one of the 8 states that have legalized its recreational use?
If you live in a state bordering California, just drive on down to the store with the green plus sign. Inside you will find the answers you seek in the form of cookies, oils, and a multitude of leafy green plants, all with funny names. But what is next? How do you tell one product from another and how do you know what effects these products will have on you?
With products ranging from what looks like handmade brownies, candy packages that resemble common store-bought candies and going into prescription bottles topped with eye dropper applicators, and even air filtering systems, the cannabis dispensary is often confusing for the first time users. So many new to the cannabis scene return with horror stories from over-consuming some cannabis products. In most claims, the vague language used in the labeling was a factor in their experience.
An example would be a consumer who buys a cookie to go to the zoo with her family on vacation. The label says 1/25th of the cookie is a serving, but we all know how to eat a big delicious cookie with chocolate frosting on it! Soon, her family is asking what is wrong with her, and she doesn’t seem to know.
One such person has taken up the cause of righting the problems with the legalization of cannabis. Dr. Metzler has dedicated himself to bringing cannabis to the consumer just like lettuce or an apple inside your local grocery store. Riding the hills of Cannabis legalization in over 30 states including California, Nevada, and Oregon, Dr. Metzler’s efforts are met with skepticism in the urban markets as these areas have seen many would be cannabis entrepreneurs barred from being granted a license while simultaneously the companies that have sprouted up in every neighborhood have gone virtually unchecked warranting new restrictions that further limit the amount of cannabis plant given free as well as the content, intensity and long-term effects of the THC infused food products known as edibles.
What’s worse, the people who went to jail for selling weed to make money to feed their families, now are barred from selling it, now that it is legal. Should they be granted leniency? Does not the legalization of an activity means that the former laws against it were wrong? Although this topic was not addressed in the talk, an upcoming bill was.
“The bill essentially will treat cannabis as an agricultural product,” claims Dr. Metzler. “So cannabis will be the same as lettuce from the standpoint of federal law. Therefore, the Justice Department will have no jurisdiction to come in with any kind of regulation.”
The talk also revolved around the laws governing how to grow cannabis.
“What is the part that people are missing?” asks Dr. Metzler. “The science says don’t treat it with pesticides. When you start doing that, then that completely reverts back to where we are. So that is a critical component that folks have got to understand and look at that from now, rather than later.”
“Your finding that many companies are buying up, through cryptocurrency, a number of dispensaries,” said Dr. Metzler. “As much as Big Pharma is buying up all of this Cannabis stuff, what they are not telling you, is in fact through shell companies Big Pharma is actually in the same game. They understand that it’s going to happen.”
“There’s an oversaturation of dispensaries and what you are going to see is regulation. The regulation is going to be around quality control. And that’s the issue, quality control. Allot of people who are doing it, are not doing it as they should.”
Regulation is inevitable, according to Dr. Metzer. It basically boils down to this. A product bought at Company A should be equivalent to a product bought at Company B. The label should say, in clear language, what the consumer is getting and what the expected effects will be. Currently, there is a lot of guesswork involved in comparing two or more products.
The problem with edibles and regulation is that the labeling system is meaningless to the average consumer and just plainly ignored like white noise by the first time user. I mean, what’s the difference between 10 grams and 250 grams inside an edible cookie? After all, everyone knows how to eat a cookie! And that translation of “How will this affect me?” into “I can’t do over “this” much,” is what inherently makes cannabis edibles and other food-imitating products dangerous. Currently, companies are required to list the amount of THC in their product. This information is meaningless if you don’t know your own personal tolerance levels. More research is necessary to get to the bottom of this issue.
Theoretically, improving the labeling system, and the number of overdoses will lower. Now try organizing the many businessmen scampering to open up a cannabis business of some type, and organize a rating system that works.
Before a truly effective law can be placed on the ballot, an understanding of the effects of THC and TCB, a few of the active ingredients in cannabis, need to be obtained. Could a simple swab of cheek cells and saliva be the next step to gaining this understanding?
The MelixGX Company is a DNA testing facility that claims that inside your DNA is the description of your high, and all they need are four samples to tell. That inside your DNA are the signs that will tell their genetic engineers what types and amounts of cannabis would be effective on you to solve many problems including stress, anxiety, pain management and sleep disorders.
Some gathered questioned the true intentions of the company as DNA stands as the next frontier of science. After all, your DNA can tell so much about a person and should be protected like your identity or your fingerprints. The extrapolated thought is that if they can tell what kind of chemicals can affect me, why can’t they find out other things about me? Could this information be used for nefarious purposes? Are they being compiled and sold later like our phone numbers are sold to creditors, scam artist and worse?
Stu Campbell, a representative of MelixGX, insists that only 35 of the millions of DNA markers are examined during their analysis, and the four separate Q-tips used are just in case one or more of the samples gets contaminated. The rest of the information, including reject, unused or contaminated samples are destroyed.
For more information on Dr. Christopher Metzler go to http://drchristophermetzler.com/
Learn How Your Body Responds To Cannabis With The Help Of MelixMJ, go to https://www.melixgx.com/.
For more information about others who have cannabis-related companies go to https://www.eurweb.com/?s=cannabis.
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