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Chicago’s United Center is making a bold, controversial move by becoming the first major U.S. arena to sell hemp-derived THC beverages to consenting adults at concerts and live events, partnering with local brands Señorita and RYTHM. Fans will see these nonalcoholic, THC-infused drinks offered at several points of sale throughout the venue, a clear signal that consumer tastes are shifting and venues are responding to demand. This isn’t some back-alley experiment; it’s a mainstream venue recognizing adult choice in the marketplace.
The initial lineup will include familiar cocktail flavors and modest doses — products that contain about five milligrams of hemp-derived THC — and the rollout began with promotional sampling at early February events, though the beverages won’t be sold during Bulls or Blackhawks games. Venue executives say they’re adapting their concessions to meet changing preferences, giving patrons more ways to enjoy a night out without pushing alcohol on everyone. Responsible adults should be trusted to choose what they consume, and venues should be free to offer alternatives.
This expansion is being driven by entrepreneurs like Ben Kovler and companies such as Green Thumb Industries and Rythm, which have poured investment into developing branded hemp-derived THC beverages and licensing them into large venues. Business leaders are rightly betting that innovation and consumer choice will outlast short-term regulatory headwinds, and the private sector deserves credit for creating new revenue streams and jobs. Conservatives should cheer on small-business risk-taking instead of reflexive prohibition.
Yet the celebration comes with a cloud: a provision in recent federal legislation threatens to clamp down on hemp-derived intoxicants and could effectively ban many of these products nationwide after a one-year phase-in. That’s the sort of Washington tinkering that crushes legitimate businesses while protecting entrenched interests like Big Alcohol, which has lobbied vigorously for tighter rules. If we value free enterprise, we cannot stand by while bureaucrats and special interests rewrite the rules and wipe out an entire industry without fair, sensible regulation.
Chicago’s own politics have been a mixed bag, with the city council moving toward restrictions on intoxicating hemp products before Mayor Brandon Johnson stepped in to veto a sweeping ban, arguing instead for regulation over prohibition. That veto saved local retailers and venue partners from an abrupt shutdown and underscored the principle that local leaders should favor measured solutions that protect jobs and consumer freedoms. It’s a victory for common sense, and it shows that when politicians listen to constituents and small businesses, liberty wins.
Americans who believe in personal responsibility and free markets should push back against any federal effort to outlaw harmless consumer choices and instead demand clear, sensible rules that protect children while preserving adult liberty. Prohibition always produces unintended consequences: lost jobs, curtailed innovation, and emboldened black markets. If patriots want to defend entrepreneurship and the right of families to make their own decisions, now is the time to speak up for reasonable regulation, not a nationwide ban that rewards powerful lobbyists and punishes hardworking Americans.
