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Legal Marijuana Is Taking A Bite Out Of Beer Sales

Legal marijuana is taking a bite out of beer sales.

Research firm Cowen & Company analyzed beer sales in Colorado, Oregon and Washington — states where both recreational weed is legal and the craft beer movement prevalent. In those states, beer sales have “collectively underperformed” over the last two years.

“In adult-use cannabis markets, there are clear signs that cannabis is weighing on beer category trends,” according to Vivien Azer, managing director and senior research analyst for Cowen and Company. Azer also noted that  “mainstream beers are the biggest drag, while craft is also slowing. Imports look the most immune.”

Is there a direct correlation to marijuana?

“While (marijuana) retail sales opened up in these markets at different points of time, with all three of these states now having fully implemented a retail infrastructure, the underperformance of beer in these markets has worsened over the course of 2016,” Azer wrote.

“This is perhaps not surprising, given that U.S. government data for the states of CO, WA and OR all show consistent growth in cannabis incidence among 18-25 year olds,” Azer added, “coupled with declines in alcohol incidence (in terms of past month use).”

Although the sales of craft beer have slowed, the “biggest drag” is on mainstream brands, with economy beer volumes down 2.4 percent and premium domestic volumes (including Bud Light and Coors Light) down 4.4 percent.

The beer-to-bud shift is most noticeable in the Denver metropolitan area, where beer volumes dipped by 6.4 percent. Government data demonstrates that 18 to 25 year-olds have increased cannabis use while decreasing its alcohol use.

Highway is an essential source for cannabis science, how-to stories and demystifying marijuana. Want to read more? Thy these posts: One Man’s Journey In Pursuit Of The Truth Behind Marijuana ProhibitionMarijuana Myth Busting: Does Holding In Smoke Get You Higher? and A Drag Queen’s Visit To The Cannabis Store

This Is What Happens When You Do A Mannequin Challenge With Guns

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As we’ve noted, the Mannequin Challenge is a very good meme that we’ve enjoyed seeing everyone from Paul McCartney to Michelle Obama to a bunch of cute 4-year-old kids try. Also caught up in the craze were a group of gun-owning Alabamans, who shared a Facebook video of themselves doing the challenge while holding a variety of handguns in a frozen drive-by shooting pose.

The good news for the crew is that their video was a minor hit, racking up a reported 80,000 views on Facebook and most likely tens of thousands more on other social media networks. The bad news is the clip lead to an investigation by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, which ended in the arrests of two men and the seizure of weapons and marijuana.

AL.com reports that Kenneth Fennell White, 49, and Terry Brown, 23, were arrested early Tuesday morning. White has been charged with is charged with first-degree possession of marijuana and possession of a firearm by a violent felon, and Brown has been charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and loitering (once he was in jail, officers found marijuana in his clothing, so they tacked on a charge of promoting prison contraband).

“At 5:02 this morning,” Capt. Mike Salomonsky said at a press conference. “The Madison County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team, the City of Huntsville Police Department SWAT team, and also ATF were present when we executed the search warrant at that residence.”

Salomonsky also confirmed that his office began investigating after seeing the video. “You have a lot of people with firearms at one address,” he said. “And you have to ask yourself the question, ‘Why?’ and the second question you have to ask yourself: is it a public safety issue?”

It should be noted that the group’s video did not include Rae Sremmurd’s “Black Beatles,” which in addition to being one of the best songs of the year is also the unofficial soundtrack to the Mannequin Challenge. Perhaps that was the source of their bad luck.

Visualize The News: Bob Dylan Curves Nobel Prize Again, Kylie Jenner Starts War On Christmas

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Within our hyper-accelerated news culture, it can be tough to keep up with everything. But maintaining an informed populace remains vital to our culture. So for those stories that don’t quite need your undivided attention, we’re helping you digest stuff with GIFS, pics, and whatever qualifies as a quick fix. Remember: Knowing is half the battle. The other half: Laughing at funny memes. 

Bob Dylan Friend Zones Nobel Prize

Watching the Nobel Prize committee’s continued courting of Bob Dylan, you wish they’d realized they were in the friend zone. But they have not and Dylan keeps teasing the prestigious award committee, leaving little breadcrumbs that maybe, alternately, possibly he’ll bestow them with his presence, and give them the honor they deserve.

The latest: Dylan still will not attend the ceremony, but has now submitted a speech to be read as his acceptance.

Sigh. You’re better than this, Nobel Prize committee. In addition, Patti Smith will now perform a special arrangement of Dylan’s 1963 record “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall.” The arrangement will fill also feature Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with Swedish conductor Hans Ek.

However, we at The Fresh Toast would like to share an exclusive excerpt of Dylan’s acceptance speech. A high-placed source sent this to us by underwater walrus mail. Here is a small sampling of what Dylan prepared for the Nobel Prize committee.


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Kyle Jenner Declares War on Christmas

Now this is an example of our prestigious literal journalism here at Visualize The News. We bring you the story other outlets who have much better things to do won’t. Like how much Kylie Jenner hates Christmas.

We know, we know. It’s a slight on humanity what she did there. Don’t worry, the internet rose up and did what it always does: aggressively target microscopic causes against celebrities who don’t care about them.

A normal investigative enterprise team would stop there, but Visualize The News doesn’t stop there. Move over, Spotlight. Your time in the—(don’t let him say spotlight, don’t let him say spotlight)—limelight is over.

Because what we discovered here at VTN was that Kylie Jenner’s war on Christmas started long ago on an underground program called Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Don’t believe us? Look at these clips.


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You can’t see him, but off-screen is Billy Bob Thornton. But Kylie can only see him as his Bad Santa character. Which means Kylie only sees a drunk, shitty Santa Claus that she wants to punch in the throat.

Case in point: Kylie Jenner hates Santa Claus.


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In the above clip, she’s looking at Christmas trees, fantasizing about burning all the evergreens in the planet.


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As everyone knows Pinkberry is the catnip for elves. The callous carelessness with which she treats such an elvish delicacy—to steal the words from her mouth—is literally repulsive. If only she knew the damage she was doing to the elves with such a sentiment. Stop attacking Christmas, Kylie. Hasn’t your family done enough?

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Donald Trump and the No Good, Very Bad, Windy Day

Unless it isn’t clear, Donald Trump has taped—as in like Scotch tape—his tie together. Maybe that explains his hair.

 

The most essential daily news, entertainment, pop culture, and culture coverage. Want more? Check out “A Look Inside J.K. Rowling’s ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ ”8 Current-Day Life Lessons From ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer’ ” and “Here’s Why I Don’t Think The Gilmore Girls Actually Drank Coffee On The Show

Let’s Talk About Florida’s $1 Billion Medical Marijuana Market

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Florida is destined to become one of leading medical marijuana markets in the United States, generating more than $1 billion in sales within the next three years, according to the latest report from New Frontier Data and Arcview Market Research.

The latest portrait of the U.S. cannabis industry shows the Sunshine State will easily grow to the second largest medical marijuana state by 2020. This means of all the cannabis being sold in the 28 states that have legalized it for therapeutic use, Florida alone will hold a whopping 14 percent of the market share.

Interestingly, the rapid pulse of the marketplace, estimated to swell by 140 percent once medical marijuana is finally available, is largely due to Florida being home to the largest percentage of senior citizens (65 and older) in the nation, a prime demographic with respect to individuals living with health conditions for which marijuana can provide relief.

When voters approved United for Care’s Amendment 2 in the November election, legalizing a full-scale medical marijuana program, it created enormous opportunity for the cannabis industry. The language of the law allows the participation of patients with a wide variety of health issues, ranging from cancer to just about any other condition, as long as a licensed physician believes the herb could do some good.

One of the latest snippets of research from the New York University School of Medicine indicates the older generation, specifically Baby Boomers, could be one of the largest customer bases for the medical marijuana industry. The study, which was published earlier this week in the journal Addiction, finds that people 50 and older are increasingly more apt to embrace the use of marijuana for its medicinal properties.

Although Florida’s Amendment 2 is set to become law at the beginning of 2017, it is expected to be at least another year before the state is prepared to launch the program.

Let’s face it – state officials do not exactly have a reputation for being expeditious in these types of situations. It took them well over a year to get the regulatory affairs in order just to roll out a simple low-THC program for patients with cancer and epilepsy.

Nevertheless, once the program does finally get up and running, it will undoubtedly bring about the creation of thousands of new jobs and vastly contribute to the state’s over economic foundation – a benefit that many other states with legal marijuana are set to experience, as well.

The report predicts the entire scope of the national marijuana market will be worth more than $21 billion by 2020, as long as President-elect Donald Trump’s selection for U.S. Attorney General doesn’t stop the cultivation and sale of cannabis dead in its tracks.

So, Chris Pratt Possibly Ate Off Your Plate When He Was A Server

Andy Dwyer didn’t happen overnight. In fact, Chris Pratt was so broke and hungry when he moved to Hollywood that, like most struggling actors, he waited tables for extra cash. And along with waiting tables ultimately came eating scraps off of other people’s plates.

On a recent episode of  “The Graham Norton Show,” Mr. Anna Farris described the day a woman came in for lunch and how he sweet talked her into ordering a big Porterhouse, because he knew she wouldn’t be able to eat the entire thing. He was right, but he couldn’t have predicted the stunning turn of events that led him to an early Christmas.

Consume is an essential source for food and beverage news, trends, tips, original recipes and everything in between. Want to read more? Try these posts: Cheese Lattes Are Now A Thing,                9 Of The Best Pumpkin Beers In America, and What I Ate Today: Coquine’s Katy Millard.

Grammy Nominations 2017: Reactions, Surprises, Snubs

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The 59th Grammy’s announced their nominees Tuesday morning, pleasing everyone with their unanimous selections, as usual. Just kidding. While the Grammy’s did surprise with their choices this year, there were also snubs. Here’s a quick breakdown of the possibilities and disappointments with this year’s awards.

The Leaders

Beyoncé led all artists with nine nominations, while Drake, Kanye West, and Rihanna tied with eight nominations each. Those choices ring very indicative of pop music in 2016, because those artists commanded our collective attention, in surprisingly various ways. Though each of the nominees carry radio hits, each of them retreated within their musical worlds, demanding audiences find them, instead of the other way around. (Drake is the lone exception with hits-chasing VIEWS.)

Drake vs. D.R.A.M.

Speaking of Drake, that was a neat paperwork trick he pulled by including “Hotline Bling” to VIEWS. Reportedly, it was a big behind-the-scenes controversy last year when Drake didn’t receive a nomination for “Hotline Bling.” Apparently, the blame lays with a paperwork mishap (someone didn’t file the necessary paperwork), but now “Hotline Bling” for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Performance. The latter category includes D.R.A.M.’s “Broccoli” with a Lil Yachty assist as competition. Drake’s “Hotline Bling” possibly/maybe/definitely remixed D.R.A.M.’s “Cha Cha,” without giving D.R.A.M. any credit whatsoever. This category could feature some serious karmic payback. Also, Lil Yachty is officially a Grammy-nominated rapper. Put some respek on his name.

The Revolution Will Be Streamed

A big discussion preceding the Grammy’s included whether streaming-only albums/mixtapes would qualify to be nominated. The poster child for this movement was Chance the Rapper and his mixtape Coloring Book, who helped push the committee to adapt its rules to our new music environment. His reward for his efforts? Seven nominations, four for Coloring Book and three for his work on Kanye’s Life of Pablo.

Rihanna’s ANTI isn’t recognized fully

What felt so revolutionary about Rihanna’s ANTI was that it demanded we consume her music within a body of work, instead of our previous manner of three-minute monster singles. And while RiRi did receive a high number of noms for her work work work work, ANTI only received recognition in Best Urban Contemporary Album. It should be up for Album of The Year.

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First-time nominees

The Best New Artist category indicates a hotly contested field, and also includes first-time nominees Chance the Rapper and Anderson .Paak. It feels like both have been around too long to be deemed Best New Artist, but they aren’t the most surprising first-time nominees. That would be Blink-182 and hit-maker Mike Will Made-It. Yes, the punky rock group, now without co-founder Tom DeLonge, hasn’t received a Grammy Nomination until this year’s California Best Rock Album nod. Meanwhile, Mike Will Made-It, who just earned a No. 1 record with Rae Sreummurd’s “Black Beatles,” gets his nomination through Beyoncé’s “Formation.”

 

The most essential daily news, entertainment, pop culture, and culture coverage. Want more? Check out “A Look Inside J.K. Rowling’s ‘Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them’ ”8 Current-Day Life Lessons From ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer’ ” and “Here’s Why I Don’t Think The Gilmore Girls Actually Drank Coffee On The Show

Which Company Just Donated $1 Million To Fight Marijuana Prohibition?

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Like most cannabis entrepreneurs, Adam Bierman was elated with last month’s string of Election Day victories for marijuana reform. 

But Adam Bierman, CEO of MedMen, a California-based marijuana consulting and management firm, is not resting. Despite election victories in eight states, Bierman knows the battle to end prohibition is just beginning. 

“The fight is not over, and it is important for us to remember how we got here. This would not have happened without the tireless work of anti-prohibition advocates, fighting to reform our broken drug laws.” 

Last month, Medmen launched a national campaign to fuel marijuana policy reform with revenue raised by the marijuana industry. 

The first-of-its-kind Pledge 4 Growth campaign asks marijuana businesses to commit 0.420 percent of their annual gross revenue to supporting the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), the nation’s largest marijuana policy reform organization. MedMen will be a founding donor to Pledge 4 Growth.

“MedMen has been a huge supporter of MPP’s work since our inception and we want to ensure that the progress made by MPP is able to continue,” Bierman said. “There is a dire need for a national campaign that brings together both the advocacy and business sides of the industry, and Pledge 4 Growth will do just that.”  

During the cannabis industry’s largest business conference of the year in Las Vegas last month, MedMen presented MPP with a check for $1 million to aid in the group’s ongoing advocacy against Prohibition. MPP led the recent campaigns in Massachusetts and Maine, co-led the Nevada campaign, and helped pass measures in California, Florida and North Dakota.

 “MedMen is really stepping up here, and we hope other members of the marijuana industry will join them,” said MPP co-founder and executive director Rob Kampia. “With the support of the broader marijuana business community, we can end prohibition in a dozen more states by 2019.”

Highway is an essential source for cannabis science, how-to stories and demystifying marijuana. Want to read more? Thy these posts: One Man’s Journey In Pursuit Of The Truth Behind Marijuana ProhibitionMarijuana Myth Busting: Does Holding In Smoke Get You Higher? and A Drag Queen’s Visit To The Cannabis Store.  

Florida Man Strikes Again, Breaks Into Home To Pet A Cat

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Florida Man gets a bad rap. He seems to always be off riding manatees, stabbing the wait staff, humping innocent trees or doing… whatever you would call this.

This is bizarre behavior, but it’s not another one of those stories. This Florida Man just saw a cute cat and did what most of us would do in the situation: Try to pet it. The only problem was, the cat was inside of someone’s locked house. And it was 3:30 a.m.

Jasper Fiorenza broke into Brittney Cline’s Petersburg home; She woke up to him standing at the foot of her bed, where her cat was.

Cline told ABC Action News:

“When I opened my eyes I could see the shadow of a man standing at the end of my bed. He was standing perfectly still, I said ‘hello’ and when I said hello he dropped very slowly down to the ground. And as soon as I saw the shadow move down to the ground I knew somebody was there.”

She credits the cat for alerting her to the intruder, when it jumped from her bed and woke her up. When she panicked, he calmly said, “Hey,” and then left.

He came back two weeks later and repeated the creeping, before cops found his fingerprints on a baby gate and connected his new rash of break-ins with a database of past charges.

Messy breakups, deranged antics, pets gone wild. The Internet car-crash you can’t turn away from. Want more? Check out “Kanye West Released From Hospital, But Reportedly Living Apart From Kim Kardashian,” “Why Is Chris Pratt Cropping Jennifer Lawrence Out Of His IG Posts?,” “Here’s Why I Don’t Think The Gilmore Girls Actually Drank Coffee On The Show

Father Christmas Hands Out Dick-Shaped Bracelets To Children

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South West England is the picture of Christmas cheer. The charming markets, the pudding, the cobblestone streets—and of course, Santa handing out elastic bracelets shaped like dicks.

Described as a “cock up” by those closest to the incident, the fated night started with a Santa’s Workshop grotto put on by the Salvation Army. It wasn’t long before parents realized that the bands—which lose their shape when wearing them but form images when they’re off the wrist—were especially well-endowed. Father Christmas really dicked them over on this year’s presents.

Salvation Army Officer Nicholas Ward wrote an apology, according to the Bristol Post:

“It has come to our attention that some children received inappropriate toys from Father Christmas at tonight’s ‘Santa’s Grotto.’ We are very sorry for this and will take this issue up with the Christmas Lights committee, who provide the toys for Father Christmas to distribute. That said, we would like to thank Santa for his time and for all the families who shared in our Winter Wonderland. We hope you had a good night and please accept our apologies for any offense these toys might have caused you and your children.”

Most parents were calm and collected about the mix-up, taking the chance to make penis puns while accepting the apology. One delivered this sick burn: “Don’t worry, if the kids are old enough to recognize what they are, they are too old to be visiting Santa anyway. No harm done :-).”

Next time, hopefully Saint Nick will leave the holly berries and branches at home.

Messy breakups, deranged antics, pets gone wild. The Internet car-crash you can’t turn away from. Want more? Check out “Bad Santa: 9 Super-Sketchy St. Nicks That Have No Jolly,” “Duh Files: Teen Busted For Doing Donuts In Police Station’s Parking Lot,” “Foul-Mouthed Parrot May Testify At Michigan Murder Trail” 

8 Ways To Have More Sex

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No, but really — how does a person have have better sex or a better relationship? The Fresh Toast has enlisted Rachel Krantz, a sex writer and proud canna-enthusiast, to help readers out with some answers as its sex columnist. 

This column is all about 8 ways to have more sex!

Q: I’m in a happy relationship. We’ve been together for four years now, and while we’re still in love, the sex has definitely slowed down. It’s not that we don’t want to anymore — it’s that we’re so busy. It seems like by the time we both think to do it we’re too exhausted at the end of the night. I’m wondering if you have any tips for getting us back on track so we can have sex more than just once a week.

A: I love this question, because it is so relatable for me! I’ve been with my partner two years now, and while we both love each other and love to get down, I know firsthand that if you don’t prioritize sex in a sometimes less-than-romantic way, you can find yourself not having as much sex as you’d like. Here are some tips I’d recommend for ensuring you keep things frequent and fun.

Schedule A Date To Do It


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It sounds really unromantic, I know — but it’s actually kind of fun to schedule sex dates. We have the idea that sex always has to be spontaneous to be exciting or authentic, but that’s just not the case. You can make a date to have sex a few days or even a week in advance, and it will help take the pressure off wondering whether you’re going to get around to it.

I did this the other night – and just making the date for the next day got me so unexpectedly excited that I ended up initiating sex five minutes later, even though we’d originally both thought we were too sleepy.

Sext More


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You don’t have to be an expert sexter to build the anticipation. You also don’t even have to be that dirty. I define a sext as anything from, “You looked so hot this morning, I keep thinking about you today and wanting you,” to, “Your dick looked a little hard in those sweats this morning. As soon as I get home, I want you to take them off and use it to f*ck me over our couch.” See? Lots of range. You can send sweet Bitmojis, or elicit photos. It really doesn’t matter how dirty you get — just that you state your intention and build the romantic anticipation. Check out this list of example sexting ideas for more inspiration.

Embrace “Slorny Sex”


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One of the biggest obstacles to having sex when you’re in a long-term relationship isn’t necessarily being bored of each other — it’s just having lots of sh*t to do! Maybe you have kids, or you’re building a home, or are just exhausted from work. That’s why I think it’s important to also embrace sleepy, lazy sex — or as I like to call it, “Slorny Sex.” That’s sleepy+horny, and I’m guessing you know the feeling well.

When slorniness strikes, just be honest about it. Say you’re slorny but don’t expect them to spend any energy on foreplay — instead, start touching yourself with your hand or favorite vibrator. Whatever your personal hack is, break it out, and have sex spooning, or whatever else is sleepiest. It’s not lame. In fact, it can be kind hot and liberating to realize it doesn’t always have to be a cinematic production.

When You Netflix & Chill, Make It Sexy


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Another problem people have is that they watch more TV than they have sex. I get it, but if you’re going to Netflix & Chill, you shouldn’t forget the chill part. Pick a foreign film or anything else in the “steamy romantic” category — go for that softcore porn that slips through the cracks. Here’s a list of some of the hottest stuff you can find on Netflix.

You can even up the ante by reaching over in a heated moment and groping them through their clothes. You’ll feel like horny teenagers all over again.

Be Naked More

Being naked has a host of health and mental benefits, and one of the greatest ones is that the more you’re naked, the more you’ll remember to have sex. Watch TV naked. Show up to dinner naked. Do yoga naked. Sleep naked. Whatever it is, even if you’re insecure at first, you’ll love your body more and more, and your partner will be in a constant state of sexy. You don’t need to look like the woman above for it to be hot. Promise.

Have A Standing Date Night Where You Stay In


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While going out is fun, I always feel most romantic when my partner and I just make the time to roll a J, put on some music, and hang out all night talking. If you make a standing date to do just that, not only is it a cheap way to make quality time for each other, but you’ll be more likely to have sex at the end of the night. You’re already home! Again, you can put it on the calendar if you’re worried about accountability.

Have An Honest Conversation About Your Ideal Frequency


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Another problem people in longterm relationships have is that they think they have to be having as much sex as they were in the first few months. (Guilty!) It’s just not realistic. If we kept having sex at that rate for years, we’d never have time to do all the other important couple things. That said, sex should always be a top priority — it is crucial for most couples to stay in love and bonded.

Get stoned one night, put on your mutually-favorite music, and start an honest conversation about what both of your ideal amount of sex at this point in your life and relationship would be. If it’s incompatible, talk about how you might meet in the middle. If you settle on an amount, challenge each other to see if you can meet that goal for the next month — and maybe even set those Google calendar alerts for sex dates to remind you. It feels silly, but if you have a sense of humor about it, it can be a lot of fun.

Keep The Quality/Quantity Ratio Flexible


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If you want to have only high-quality, spontaneous, uber-romantic sex, you’re probably going to have to compromise on frequency. If you’d just like to be having more sex, you can embrace the idea of having occasional romps that are more about just getting it done and involve minimal effort and maximum pleasure hacking.

For me, since I like to hit it at least two or three times a week, I’m cool with the reality that one or more of those times will likely be more of a slorny quickie, and that maybe the longer, more romantic sesh will happen on a weekend. It’s OK to keep adjusting the quality/quantity ratio that feels right for your relationship, and to take a holistic approach to all this. A relationship is always changing, which means your sex drive will too. That’s OK! So if you set a goal and it just doesn’t feel right or brews fights, have another honest conversation and reevaluate an amount that will feel like fun rather than pressure. Sex is supposed to be fun — never forget that.

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