Thursday, November 10, 2016

Part VII – Excited to be on the Verge of the Apocalypse

Ok, let’s rip the band aide off this quick. Donald Trump is going to be our next President. Gulp. That was a painful sentence to write. Fortunately Massachusetts residents will be able to self-medicate with cannabis and we can keep ourselves in a happy haze until the next election season starts.

I have never experienced an election year where words like “apocalypse” was used to describe what the aftermath of both candidates election to the presidency would look like for our country.

So how bad could a President Donald Trump be for the cannabis industry?

Here is a short history reminder: February 2003 Attorney General John Ashcroft (under the George W. Bush presidency) implemented Operation Pipe Dreams and Operation Headhunter which targeted the drug paraphernalia businesses across the country.  This was the last time the Republicans controlled the White House, Senate and House of Representatives.

Since I can’t trust or believe a single word Trump says about his stance on cannabis (or any other issue) and the current movement toward legalization, I will look closer at the people Trump has surrounded himself with and those the media believe are highly considered candidates for senior appointments in the Trump White House.

Vice President elect Mike Pence from Indiana believes marijuana is a gateway drug and has refused to sign any legislation in his home state that eased that states drug laws. There are no medical marijuana laws in Indiana despite a 73% approval for support of a medical marijuana program.

As mayor of New York City, Rudy Giuliani oversaw major crackdowns on illegal drug use, especially marijuana. He has indicated he would continue to arrest, prosecute and imprison medical marijuana patients.

Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie did sign into law medical marijuana use in his state in September 2016, but he is 100% against recreational marijuana. In July of 2015 while still running for President, Christie warned: “If you’re getting high in Colorado today, enjoy it. As of January 2017, I will enforce the federal laws.”

Former speaker of the House of Representatives, Newton “Newt” Gingrich introduced the “Drug Importer Death Penalty Act of 1996.”  The bill would have required a “sentence of death for certain importations of significant quantities of controlled substances.” It would have applied to anyone convicted more than once of carrying 100 doses — or about two ounces — or marijuana across the border. Defendants would have had a window of 18 months to file their one and only appeal.

Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama gets a grade of “F” from the NORML Congressional Scorecard. He is quoted in 2016 saying: “It is false that marijuana use doesn't lead people to more drug use. It is already causing a disturbance in the States that have made it legal.”

So there you have it. Just a few of the prohibitionist Trump may have in his ear telling him to stop the cannabis legalization movement. If I don’t have your attention yet let me lay this one out for you. By far the worst part of a Republican controlled government is the selection of a Supreme Court Justice. 
Once again the Supreme Court will have a conservative majority.

The legalization of cannabis across the Unites States has taken huge steps forward in the 2016 election, but we have no time to celebrate our victories.  HOW the laws are written to implement Massachusetts ballot question 4 are crucial to its success. WE the people must become vicious watchdogs over every single person who is involved in this process.

EVERYONE must watch over their local town governments who are now scrambling to implement new zoning regulations to keep pot shops out of their towns. Small local boards have the power to change local zoning regulations without a town-wide vote.

As a new small business owner in the cannabis industry there is a great deal of excitement over the potential prosperity in our near future. However, we must not rest on our recent success.

Congratulations to all who voted Yes on 4, changing history and America for the better.