By Elliott Wave International
In the 1973 song “The Joker,” the Steve Miller Band sang:
“I’m a joker. I’m a smoker. I’m a midnight toker.”
Of course, “midnight toker” referred to pot smoking. Back then, there were plenty of midnight tokers, but most of them feared getting “busted.”
Thirty years later, in 2003, the Elliott Wave Theorist predicted:
“Eventually, possession and sale of recreational drugs will be decriminalized.”
Then, in July 2009, The Socionomist (the monthly publication of the Socionomics Institute, a sister organization of Elliott Wave International) published a study titled “The Coming Collapse of Modern Prohibition,” which reviewed the repeal of Prohibition during the bear market psychology of the early 1930s.
This study also shed insight as to why the Socionomics Institute’s analysts were predicting greater acceptance toward marijuana use. Here’s an excerpt:
“Social mood influences people’s actions and their social judgments. In times of positive mood, people have the resources to enforce their social desires. They can afford to express the black and white moral issues preferred during bull markets, and drug abuse is a favorite target.
During times of negative mood, on the other hand, society’s priorities change. People have other, bigger worries and begin to view recreational drugs as less dangerous, if not innocuous in offering stress relief, pain reduction and the ability to cope with the pressures of negative social mood.
Over the past 100 years, governmental activities have manifested these changing attitudes. During periods of rising mood, policymakers stepped up regulation of cannabis. During periods of falling mood, they eased those same stances.
Keep in mind that when the July 2009 Socionomist published, society had just experienced its worst “falling mood” period since the ’30s.
So, analysts at the Socionomics Institute were not at all surprised by what happened in 2012. That was the year that Colorado and Washington became the first states where citizens voted to legalize marijuana for recreational use. Even though pot remains illegal at the federal level, since 2012, other states have also legalized pot for recreational or medical use.
In 2019, the investing public can choose from a number of cannabis stocks.
There are no shortage of stories like this one from U.S. News & World Report (March 1, 2019):
6 Best Cannabis Stocks to Buy on U.S. Exchanges
On the other hand, a March 20 Forbes headline reads:
Cannabis Stocks Are Full Of Hot Air
So, are cannabis stocks a good investment idea or not?
Well, from the Socionomics Institute’s perspective, there’s not an across the board “yes,” or “no” answer. However, according to our analysis, there is opportunity.
Indeed, EWI has just published a special report titled “The Golden Age of Cannabis,” which consists of 7 pages and 21 charts.
You will find analysis of the largest marijuana stocks by market capitalization in the United States, Australia, Canada and the UK.
Sign up today and get instant access to an excerpt from this “must read” special report — 100% FREE.