Authorities in Germany's Bavaria say they want to restrict the use of cannabis at festivals and beer gardens. Germany legalized recreational marijuana earlier this month, a move opposed by the Bavaria-based CSU.
I am all for cannabis legalisation, and have fought for it for years,even though I don’t like to consume it (only makes me sick…)
BUT:
I have been a medic on the Oktoberfest for a decade and while these times are long gone, I absolutely support the ban there.
Here’s why: First Alcohol and THC do not mix well. At all. In more than 20 years of emergency medicine I saw two THC overdoses - which were easy to handle. But high dose alcohol AND THC is a massive problem and will lead to people getting admitted to ICU for monitoring purpose as it is beyond what the (very advanced) medical services at the Oktoberfest can handle themselves. And ICU beds are in absolute short supply. So while alcohol is a problem and I wish the local government would put more pressure on the waiters to force them to refuse to deliver “the final Maß”(last beer) that pushes people over the edge, my former colleagues can easily handle that. But mixed-agent intoxication is a totally different beast.
Don’t get me wrong, Alcohol will be the main nox in these cases - but the combination is the problem.
Furthermore the Oktoberfest is crowded as hell. And there is literally zero chance that one is able to smoke without interfering with someone else - staff, other visitors, etc.
And just like nicotine letting someone else co-consume without asking them for approval is inconsiderate as fuck - especially as there are drugs that do not mix well with THC, even more so even alcohol comes into play.
I am all for cannabis legalisation, and have fought for it for years,even though I don’t like to consume it (only makes me sick…)
BUT: I have been a medic on the Oktoberfest for a decade and while these times are long gone, I absolutely support the ban there.
Here’s why: First Alcohol and THC do not mix well. At all. In more than 20 years of emergency medicine I saw two THC overdoses - which were easy to handle. But high dose alcohol AND THC is a massive problem and will lead to people getting admitted to ICU for monitoring purpose as it is beyond what the (very advanced) medical services at the Oktoberfest can handle themselves. And ICU beds are in absolute short supply. So while alcohol is a problem and I wish the local government would put more pressure on the waiters to force them to refuse to deliver “the final Maß”(last beer) that pushes people over the edge, my former colleagues can easily handle that. But mixed-agent intoxication is a totally different beast. Don’t get me wrong, Alcohol will be the main nox in these cases - but the combination is the problem.
Furthermore the Oktoberfest is crowded as hell. And there is literally zero chance that one is able to smoke without interfering with someone else - staff, other visitors, etc. And just like nicotine letting someone else co-consume without asking them for approval is inconsiderate as fuck - especially as there are drugs that do not mix well with THC, even more so even alcohol comes into play.
I’ve seen (and been) enough instances of someone going from “very drunk” to “completely fucked” as soon as they smoke weed that I’m inclined to agree.
They can go nicely together in reasonable doses, but if you get shit-faced drunk, weed is almost always going to make that worse.
Save the weed for the hangover.