Impact of -2018 Legalized Cannabis- For Profit, Tax & Control on Real People in Medical Cannabis World

In 2018 - In the United States of America - LEGALIZED MARIJUANA means lawyers (and the elite) create tax, fee, profit, control and punitive fees and imprisonment-asset forfeiture machines -- write law to further the desires of the elite in liquor, pharma, rehab, bureaucracies, global privateers and profiteers from all over the globe.  

   People from all nations and walks of life have been using cannabis for good reasons for 10,000 years without any need for government to keep them 'safe'.

    In 2018, medical and recreational users do not need to pay two to five or ten times more for this earth given plant, in order to further enrich the lives of the elite.

     The same elite  who created and profited greatly from 100 years of 'Evil Weed' laws and Drug Wars which have destroyed the lives of untold millions of otherwise hard working, honest cannabis growers and users.

    The folks behind the commercialization, taxation and punitive cannabis laws and their funders are the same cartels in government and various liquor; pharma; petro-chemical empires who have lied for 100 years, now own major interests in most of the land and grow locations around the state and nation, to the detriment of the families who have been supplying our needs at cost ($50 to $100 per oz, top shelf) for decades upon decades.    

    Many of the at cost, medically oriented growers made about the same average wages as Uber and Other 'independent contractor' app drivers made, being about $5 to $7 per hour, while doing agriculture work for 10 to 12 hours per day,  only because The Elite snapped up all the land and had the cash to buy their permits and start up operations but they glutted the market which unjustly dropped the price per pound below true market value and below cost. 

     From late 2016 to December 2017, cost to obtain cannabis in bulk, went from about $1,800 to $2,200 per pound (top shelf, high thc/cbd) down to $500 - $800/lb. for large sections of the marketplace (i.g. the dispensaries in the bay area) and most of the medical cannabis growers took severe losses because their great medicine had to be traded at below its real cost to grow. 

    Many medical cannabis collectives had no medicine because their long time growers were now forced into poverty because they could not recoup their growing costs for the prior year.   This means they could not pay their bills, rents, storage fees, court ordered judgements, taxes, nothing. 

   The Legalization & Commercialization of Cannabis, which mostly benefits the corporate elite and causes all people to pay many times more for the simple, naturally safe marijuana which harms the vets, elders, poor, disabled and low income people in every community, the most. 

   One person we know, about 70 years old, pays almost $1,000 per month for big pharma synthetic thc capsules, which means her taxes and our taxes pay mega bucks to the pharma industry for marijuana substitutes.

      Local San Francisco - Bay Area dispensaries charge $40-$80 per one eighth (1/8 = 3.5 grams) what our Northern California at cost growers provided us with Ounces (8/8 = 28 grams) at their true cost of between $50 to $100, safely for he past several decades.

     So, may top medical cannabis growers are leaving as many 'upscaled' commercialized, for profit operations are now selling marijuana that may have been stored in warehouses for weeks or months (since the market glut) with questionable quality, but we've heard it's not being tested right now (temporary exemptions?) so,  many are paying top inflated dollars for cannabis from commercial operators.   Many are not even from California or Northern California.  

   They work for elite major corporations who care more about profits and dollars than local growers, low income patients and our health.

# MORE TO COME #

City Hall-Sheriff Deputies Disrespect SF Cannabis Patients' Union Member-Candidate for Mayor

Well, well, well.   Public Servants of San Francisco, in uniform, in public -- once again, caught being mean spirited and disrespectful of another medical cannabis patient. 

    A well known and respected Elder and Candidate for Mayor at that who is a licensed Attorney and Barrister (United Kingdom)

    This afternoon, the honorable potential Mayoral Candidate Attorney-Barrister Karla Gottschalk (aka nickname Belle Star) went down to The Elections Office at City Hall to file Election 2015 related documents and turn in signatures collected. 

   On the way into city hall, other residents cheered her on outside and she was happy and a bit anxious to be in the running. 

    As a medical cannabis patient, she uses cannabis for anxiety and stress, so she paused outside to medicate and relax before going into City Hall. 

     In fact, we recall when hundreds of cannabis patients of all ages would be cruising in and out of city hall to attend our former Medical Cannabis Task Force Meetings.

 Historical Note:  The SF MCTF went down in flames due to bad influences of big money interests trying to tax, fine, fee, burden, exploit and destroy our individual and collective rights to access cannabis freely, at cost no matter what others do. 

  Scores of patients and advocates went to City Hallon a regular basis to represent the hundreds of thousands of cannabis patients here and all over northern california that come and go here, for generations.

     So, check this out.  She goes in and one deputy (at security checkpoint) makes a 'big deal' because she smelled like cannabis and started some ridiculous 'law and order' crap and then other deputies joined in - making exaggerated, rude, demeaning remarks drawing lots of attention to her which causes harm.  It makes her feel more anxiety and stress for being singled out for harassment by the deputies. 

   By contrast, my peers and I have gone through the checkpoints recently and in larger groups way back when we attended regular Task Force meetings. 

   We recall those Deputies (a few years ago) being a lot more adult, human, discreet and kind whenever we passed through their security checkpoint.  They were 'mature' about cannabis or smells of cannabis. No big deal.   We never felt 'weird' or experienced being treated 'different;y' or negatively by deputies in the past.  They  treated us with full dignity and respect.

  So, what's up with these adolescent, out of touch with 2015, make a big deal out of nothing, disrespectful types of deputies who think they are Superior to a 'pot smoker' or user of cannabis and 'get highly offended' like a New York Dandy about the smell of cannabis ?  

   We don't know but we don't Deputies on payroll who are any but 100% Mature, Discreet & Professional when dealing with any resident, elder, disabled person or cannabis patient AND give be MORE professional and polite to folks running for office because the last thing they need is some 'acting out' and judgemental bias in public by pubic servants whose salaries are paid for by our taxes.

   We want mature, professional adults in uniform with guns, not rude, out of control, condescending egotists which is what was witnessed here at City Hall today.

  If those Deputies wish to Explain themselves publicly, they are free to post their comments below, if they have the backbone and stomach to be 'honest' about why they mistreat folks using cannabis 'differently' and 'negatively' as their conduct and speech bears out in this incident.

  If Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi or a Chief of Deputies wishes to explain 'policy of deputy conduct' to do with the general public or specifically 'cannabis patients' who come to City Hall is, that would be even better.

  Bottom Line is that Cannabis Is Medicine and We Are Patients using cannabis instead of Big Pharma, Narcotics and Alcohol. 

    If Deputies and Society & Media keep treating us wrongly and making such a big deal out of a plant from nature that causes no harm and heals, then perhaps there's a bigger message they're sending us.   Statistics say Seven out of Ten Americans abuse or use narcotics and big pharma drugs, which include folks who are public servants as well as all our other residents.

   So, in essence, folks who abuse power, liquor, pharma and narcotics want us to Join Them.

  Maybe they demonize Cannabis because consciously or subconsciously they want us to Stop Using Cannabis and go spend $500 a month on Big Pharma, Narcotics and Liquor which we know causes violence, increased costs and loss of life for us all.  

    No thanks. We'll stick to reducing stress, living longer and thinking more by continuing our 10,000+ year old tradition and natural right to keep using cannabis freely and at cost and reject efforts to keep us down another 80+ years by intimidation, public ridicule and incentives to exploit cannabis for mega profits or get trapped into man made drugs, liquor and big pharma crap that harms us all.

  Cheers!

 s/J.Leonard, Co-Founder SF Cannabis Patients' Union

P.S. KUDOS to SFPD Mission Station Officer Petuya who stopped by on his Walking Beat to exchange apologies of sorts between himself, Karla Gottschalk (the mayoral candidate/cannabis patient in this story) and myself about Sit-Lie and Cannabis Issues.

   Open, honest conflict often leads to better understanding amongst our perceived adversaries and less division between 'groups' being pitted against each in other in intolerant or negative ways (i.g. the story above).