There is no shortage of drama in the wild world of weed. Why should today be any different?
Yesterday I got a message from a cannabis activist who claimed she had worked for an organization that was collecting donations for an inmate in prison. She claimed that she had evidence that this group had collected donations in this person’s name and had not given him as much as they had taken in. I was presented with some loose figures, surrounded by ominous language about reporting people to the Department of Revenue and IRS. To me the tone seemed very vindictive, and not necessarily a call for help for the person who was in jail.
But I take these things seriously, as I would not want to be getting fucked over if I were sitting in Federal prison for weed. So I forwarded the info on to some associates in the area to see if I could track down some truth.
Here is the kicker…..I tell the lady making the accusations that I am going to write the inmate to see what his take on it was. She warned me to “Be careful not to upset him” and that she had tried to tell him but that “he was in denial.” HUGE RED FLAG.
Talk about scruples….
I am now presented with an accusation that these folks are stealing from this inmate, but a warning not to upset the inmate and that he may be in denial because they are the only ones giving him money. Apparently just not enough money. But the claims that his denial is based on his “dependency” on the alleged thieves is odd. If these folks are so evil then why are they the only ones putting money on his books, even if it is not as much as you think they should?
Come to find out this broad is an ex-employee of the organization and used her access to their books for what seems on the surface as a vindictive effort. If a lot of this apparently happened in 2011, and you worked there during the whole deal, but now want to make these disparaging claims AFTER you are no longer receiving your paycheck from the organization, that also raises a HUGE RED FLAG.
If the actual person who you are saying is being taken advantage of does not believe that and trusts the folks who you are accusing to the point of you having to say he is “embarrassed” and “in denial” then maybe it is you who should be embarrassed or who is in denial. Who knows?
I bring up this point because I have seen a lot of this type of vendetta going around, and it disgusts me. In case some of y’all have not noticed, we are actually fighting a real war with real enemies that want to put us all in prison.
My gut on this tells me that it is more of a personal issue than a true-to-life bleeding-heart effort to support this inmate. But for shits and giggles, let’s assume that this person is on the up and up, and that I am just way off on this one. It is rare, but it happens.
Let us take for granted that this is actually happening and that there is an organization collecting donations for an inmate and then keeping a large majority of said donations for themselves. Just that statement reminds me of every large charity organization out there because that is what they all do, really. But in this context it is obviously different. We are talking about funds targeted for a certain individual…and individual sitting in prison helpless.
Any person or organization of people who would perpetrate such a fraud are certainly evil. There is no questioning that. Obviously we all know that the world is full of evil folks, and while I am not convinced that the people in question in this case are those evil people, I do know that evil people do exist in this movement; and that people have raised money for folks who had no intention of giving it to them. So let’s speak directly to that issue.
Sitting in prison is likely one of the worst experiences a human can have. It is demoralizing and depressing. There is no light at the end of the tunnel. Every day is a terrible one and the only ray of light you have are the few people on the outside who still give a shit about you. It is a vulnerable and often lonely place to be.
For a person, or group of people, to use a tragedy like this to solicit funds for personal gain is unspeakable. It is a crime against human nature that cannot be fathomed by any person who has an ounce of morality. The people who would put forth such a ruse are the lowest scum of the earth and do not deserve to walk on the same planet as the rest of us. They are the lowest common denominator and this is just not something I could ever do. It saddens me to think that there are people that would.
From the situation that was presented to me yesterday, I have taken away some valuable lessons.
One is that people are fucked up. Either the person trying to destroy another’s reputation by making unfounded accusations, or the ones being accused, are fucked up people. Regardless, the world is full of fucked up people.
Another lesson is that trust is difficult. Finding people who you can put your faith in that will do the right thing, even when no one is looking or after they are gone, is terribly hard. Depending on people and having them disappoint you is incredibly frustrating.
The final lesson is that I am not the morality cop of the weed industry. At least not any more. If people want to be unethical and immoral that is their prerogative. I do not have the energy or time to try and police all of the bullshit that goes on around here any longer. It is not good for my soul. People are going to be people. If they cross my path, we can deal with those realities as they come, but please leave me out of your fucking drama from here on out. Thanks.
And do the right fucking thing for once. It might feel good even….