“Where am I and what government agency do you work for?”
It is a strange reality for weedheads these days. I often feel overwhelmed by the current cannabis reality. It is a vortex of confusion that is overwhelming and chaotic.
On one hand, cannabis legalization is happening. Colorado and Washington passed historic measures that made cannabis legal for all adults over 21 to use. 19 jurisdictions have passed some sort of medical cannabis legalization. Dozens of states have decriminalized the use of marijuana. Dozens more have legislation pending to legalize cannabis and/or decriminalize its use.
The reality is that the world, where weed is concerned, is definitely changing.
On the other hand, there is still a large portion of our population who have drank the prohibition Kool-Aid and believe that we should continue to take people to jail for weed. I know…crazy, right? But they exist.
And the do not only exist in red states, or conservative areas. They are everywhere, and unfortunately these squeaky wheels are also very vocal and pointed in their false beliefs about cannabis. These folks bring the “what about the kids” noise, and promote the lies of yesterday at every chance they get. These dirty prohibitionists will stop at nothing to keep locking up mostly poor kids for weed. It is disgusting. I am looking at you Bishop Ron Allen and company. Quit telling your lies and fear mongering to keep getting that anti-weed funding. You are gross.
So what we have is likely the most confusing time in history to be a weed activist. Everyone is on pins and needles waiting to see where this thing goes next. Will the Feds finally give up the fight and let the states do their thing? Will the Feds, even in the face of majority acceptance, still continue their harmful and destructive war on its own people, regardless of the will of the people? Will we continue to see a barrage of wishy-washy meaningless statements that seem to support tolerance, while unjust and immoral prosecution of people happens at alarming rates? Or will Congress see the writing on the wall and pass comprehensive legislation removing cannabis from the list of banned controlled substances? Will states that have legalized weed be able to follow through with their regulatory models for retail cannabis sales? Will the Feds sue to overturn the laws? Will we continue to go down the path where questions are asked, but seldom answered; and our elected officials continue to talk in circles about the situation?
Your guess is as good as mine; but it is easy to see how the current strange reality and ambiguity of the situation is nerve-wracking.
It is confusing enough for a weedhead that just wants to smoke weed. Those of us in the weed “industry” have a far more nerve wracking situation to think about. For folks who have heavily invested in creating a world-class cannabis organization, and who are looking to evolve their model into the future, it is difficult. Planning and business development require some sense of real direction, and the current cannabis landscape makes that nearly impossible.
Medical organizations that focus on patient care are wondering where their place will be in a new legalized cannabis market. Organizations that make cannabis products for the current medical market are wondering where their product fits into a legalized scenario. Growers are wondering if there is place for them in the coming cannabis economy. The thought of licensing and regulating activities still deemed worthy of a ten-year mandatory minimum is scary for those of us who have been outlaws for so many moons.
Even lawmakers and public officials are not sure of what is next, or how to make sense of it all. With no clear direction from a do nothing Congress, a President with no desire to waste political capital on this issue, or Justice Department law enforcers as to how they will react to adult use legalization, it is just a quagmire of possibility and limitation.
And really it is bullshit.
Everyone knows weed will be legal soon. But we will do this dance for god knows how long, and confusion will rule the day. It would be easy to have an adult conversation and formulate a solution, but that is just not how our society works these days. It is a barrage of misinformation and deception. The doublespeak regarding cannabis is annoying an disappointing.
The only hope we have to end this strange reality is to educate, educate, educate. People’s positions against legalization fail miserably when put up against real logic and reason. There is no good answer as to why people oppose legalizing weed. Mostly it comes from long held beliefs based in lies and oppression. When you can spell out the facts their position crumbles. There is NO GOOD REASON left for continuing the prohibition of cannabis. Sorry.
So wander through the strange reality looking for the exit. We have come too far now to be deterred by some chaos and confusion. the end is near….