[mikestew]

Taxes on weed in CA are going to be very high, ~20%. This may drive black market sales.

WA’s taxes are ungodly high for weed (EDIT: w/o looking it up, more than 20%, that’s for sure). Didn’t seem to slow down things much. A new store just opened closer to the house, and I don’t know of a single store that has closed. Personally, I’m more than willing to pay the “convenience fee” to just drive down the road any time I like and score some weed. That, and let’s do what we can to encourage the legal stuff, eh? We collectively get one shot at this, let’s not screw it up.

But if WA is any indication, give it a few years of high prices, then the prices will settle down. Pot was outrageously expensive in WA when it first legal, but it’s pretty reasonable now, I think.

As for online ordering, yeah, that’s going to be a thing. Because the experience of “here’s a menu, hurry and make a selection from 200 different items while you’re in line.” doesnt work for me, either. One local shop offers online ordering, and the only reason I don’t use them exclusively is that they’re out of the way.

But you’re right, pot isn’t beer, it’s corn. The only reason I don’t grow some next to the tomato plants is because WA says I can’t. So the only barrier from me taking production in-house is legal, which seems to be a pretty thin moat with which to protect your castle.

[egypturnash]

I don't have any data on WA's black market vs white market, but I do have some anecdata: the thriving community of illicit entrepreneurs hanging out by the U District Jack in the Box has completely vanished since legalization.

(And it is quite literally a black/white thing, too - the people selling weed in shops are pretty much uniformly white, whereas the illegal market was a lot more mixed-race.)

[mynameisvlad]

Have a Heart? Their online ordering is the best, and they do essentially a constant 10% off discount if you sign up for their membership (every time you order you get a discount based on your purchase amount you can apply on your next order. I believe it's roughly equivalent to $1 for every $10 purchased.) I switched from Uncle Ike's and never looked back.

The only pro I see for the line is that the staff can help you pick out a nice strain depending on your needs and you don't have to do the research yourself. Personally, I'm in the same boat as you. I get stressed out looking at all the choices while in the store and almost exclusively use the online ordering system before I leave the house. By the time I reach the store (a few minutes away) the order is ready for pickup.

It's crazy to think of how far it's come in the few years since it got legalized. From the quasilegal delivery services or even worse going to Westlake Park or another sketch location at night to a clean, accessible system with some of the nicest people around.

[mikestew]

Have a Heart? Their online ordering is the best

I’m actually over in Redmond. Choices are a little slimmer in the ‘burbs, I notice. :-) No matter, I’ve pretty much settled on what I want, so I go to the one closer, waltz in and get it, go home. When I walk and they say, “the usual, mikestew?”, then I’ll know I need to dial back. :-)

[AndrewUnmuted]

> As for online ordering, yeah, that’s going to be a thing.

If the Darknet is any indication (and according to High Times[0], it is), you're right about this. Cannabis is the most popular product sold on the various illicit online drug marketplaces.

[0] https://hightimes.com/business/marijuana-is-the-most-popular...