Recreational marijuana advocates are focusing on the wrong topic

[Take Your Lumps]

Forget talking about tax revenue...while people might say they care about that, Americans for the most part hate taxes to begin with. It's not a sexy topic.

You know what's sexy to Americans no matter their political affiliation?

Jobs. Real jobs.

Here's a short list of new jobs (many of them skilled jobs) being created in Colorado and Washington that are vital to that new industry. I'm sure there are more I'm not even thinking of:

-Cultivators
-Trimmers
-Biologists
-Horticulturists
-"Budtenders"
-Edibles manufacturers
-Delivery/Couriers
-Security guards
-Tourism companies
-Business management/administrative
-Farmers
-Dispensary shop owners
-Consultants
-Industry regulators

These aren't all shitty service industry jobs like most other industries are producing. These are real jobs that have the potential to change the economic landscape of many states...especially throughout the economically starved southern US.

Tax revenue and decreased costs in the legal/prison system are just the cherry on top.

[Jailblazers7]

Only problem with that is that it is easy to spin marijuana job creation in a negative direction. Label the industry employees as state sanctioned drug dealers and a lot of people will jump on that line of thought. I think it is a good thought but it'd be a tough sell for a lot of voters, even if it falls in line with the current "job creation" narrative.

[GimmeThat]

while what you said about is very true about producing jobs.

but I still wouldn't be surprised of an industry like this, licensing will be heavily regulated by government, which means the amount of jobs you can produce is still going to be minimal.

unless a state truly looks at it as a revenue stream, in which all their voters share the same idea and opinion about it.


it'd directly raise its chance of being brought to the Federal Courts attention.


I wonder how much is medicinal marijuana being prefered when patients can be provided with another type of drug.


the biggest obstacle I can think of right now in which recreational marijuana face to become effect, may be wages. which affects mostly with hourly employees.

[Take Your Lumps]

Only problem with that is that it is easy to spin marijuana job creation in a negative direction. Label the industry employees as state sanctioned drug dealers and a lot of people will jump on that line of thought. I think it is a good thought but it'd be a tough sell for a lot of voters, even if it falls in line with the current "job creation" narrative.

I don't know if you can convince people that those employees are state sanctioned drug dealers anymore than you can convince them that a pharmacist at your local drug store is. People are becoming increasingly difficult to fool on issues like this where information is so readily available online.

National polls from 6+ months ago were already over 50% in favor of legalized recreational (54% for, 44% against). That 54% was up 12 percentage points from just a year earlier.

By 2016, it's going to be 60%+ easily. I think a guy like Rand Paul (who I have many disagreements with) will make some serious inroads with young people, independents, and minorities when he does take on this issue.

He and Cory Booker are already working together (http://www.politico.com/story/2014/07/cory-booker-rand-paul-108731.html) to reform the criminal justice system. They're both young and very politically motivated individuals who see where the electorate is headed on these issues.


but I still wouldn't be surprised of an industry like this, licensing will be heavily regulated by government, which means the amount of jobs you can produce is still going to be minimal.

unless a state truly looks at it as a revenue stream, in which all their voters share the same idea and opinion about it.

It's being regulated at the state level in Colorado and business is booming. Check out this article for a snapshot of what's going on there: The Impact of Recreational Marijuana Use on a Denver Neighborhood (http://www.mainstreet.com/article/smart-spending/impact-recreational-marijuana-use-denver-neighborhood?page=1)

Some numbers to take away from Colorado:

-Last month's tax revenues from recreational MJ increased by another 10%
-Since January, $11 million in sales and excise taxes
-300 sales tax licenses issued for dispensaries
-3% usage drop among teens
-25% reduction of availability on school grounds
-Drop in traffic fatalities

Again, within the next two years it's going to be even more difficult to convince people that this is a bad idea.

And all those jobs I listed above? Guess what? They all exist already!

But they're all here in the USA underground on the black market or in cartels overseas which a) doesn't contribute in way of taxes and b) contributes to a cycle of violence and incarceration. In a few years, we'll see at least 5-10 more states bringing all of those jobs up out of the shadows.

USA ❤ $$$

[KevinNYC]

This is going to be very interesting

D.C. residents will vote in November on whether to legalize marijuana use in the nation’s capital after elections officials decided Wednesday to place the question on the ballot.

The three-member D.C. Board of Elections voted unanimously Wednesday morning to approve the ballot initiative, certifying that activists gathered the tens of thousands of voter signatures necessary to qualify for the Nov. 4 general election ballot.

Several of those activists attended Wednesday’s meeting and cheered the vote, which moves the District closer to joining Colorado and Washington as the only places in the nation where marijuana possession and cultivation are fully legal.

[Nanners]

in ~10 years marijuana is going to be legal everywhere except a handful of the dumbass states in the south and midwest

[Take Your Lumps]

This is going to be very interesting

Still wouldn't allow retail sales but it's a step in the right direction.

How ridiculous will it be when it's legal to smoke and grow marijuana for D.C. residents while being a schedule 1 drug on the federal level?

The hypocrisy will be deafening.

[gigantes]

-Cultivators
-Trimmers
-Biologists
-Horticulturists
-"Budtenders"
-Edibles manufacturers
-Delivery/Couriers
-Security guards
-Tourism companies
-Business management/administrative
-Farmers
-Dispensary shop owners
-Consultants
-Industry regulators
awesome, and there should be even more jobs across industries that use hemp / cannabis for paper, textiles, nutrition and maybe fuel. because as i understand it, in many states hemp unfortunately gets lumped in with cannabis, making it difficult to produce at volume for industry.

it's like we have one of the few miracle plants right here, right now (hello garlic, cacao, coffee) but a coalition of bullies and dumbasses have been allowed to frame it without due process.

[gigantes]

btw, remember that old saying that weed has never killed anyone? apparently it probably has (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/23/marijuana-heart-complications-cardiovascular_n_5194103.html) by way of cardiovascular complications / events.

even before reading that, one of the things i've learned not to do is to have some weed before playing sports. i mean, a small dose has helped me relax and focus better, but it also drops my blood pressure and makes my heart work harder. not a good move for someone with high genetic cholesterol.

[Nanners]

btw, remember that old saying that weed has never killed anyone? apparently it probably has (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/23/marijuana-heart-complications-cardiovascular_n_5194103.html) by way of cardiovascular complications / events.

even before reading that, one of the things i've learned not to do is to have some weed before playing sports. i mean, a small dose has helped me relax and focus better, but it also drops my blood pressure and makes my heart work harder. not a good move for someone with high genetic cholesterol.

jesus christ, did you actually read that article? that "study" doesnt show anything at all (other than showing how to use an incomplete data set to jump to a conclusion). it certainly does not show that marijuana has "probably" killed people.

[Take Your Lumps]

awesome, and there should be even more jobs across industries that use hemp / cannabis for paper, textiles, nutrition and maybe fuel. because as i understand it, in many states hemp unfortunately gets lumped in with cannabis, making it difficult to produce at volume for industry.

it's like we have one of the few miracle plants right here, right now (hello garlic, cacao, coffee) but a coalition of bullies and dumbasses have been allowed to frame it without due process.

Good point....we always forget about hemp. Huge opportunity there...especially for states with shitty economies in the south and midwest. Places like Kentucky could BOOM.

Most folks agree that the drug wars are being fought for profit (eg. private prisons) but I'm going to put my tin foil hat on for a sec and suggest another motive of why I think it has gone on this long...

Our govt participates in a lot of black ops, military engagements, secretive projects...what better way to fund those projects off the books than by selling (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_drug_trafficking) drugs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_production_in_Afghanistan) in (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/13/afghan-opium-production_n_4264634.html) bulk (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA_and_Contras_cocaine_trafficking_in_the_US)? :pimp:

[gigantes]

jesus christ, did you actually read that article? that "study" doesnt show anything at all (other than showing how to use an incomplete data set to jump to a conclusion). it certainly does not show that marijuana has "probably" killed people.
well, i'm sure i don't have your skillset in interpreting study summaries, but it's easy enough to see a pattern based on the multiple articles on the subject.

not to mention, given what's already known about the effects of cannabis on the cardiovascular system, it seems like a pretty safe guess that it has contributed to some deaths... likely for those already at risk, but still.

i mean, hey... almost everything in existence has the potential to be abused and lead to death one way or another. as an advocate of legal weed, i'd like to see it be used responsibly. for example, i would not want the other side to get cheap ammunition because someone with a heart problem treated it like candy or wahtever.

[gigantes]

Good point....we always forget about hemp. Huge opportunity there...especially for states with shitty economies in the south and midwest. Places like Kentucky could BOOM.

Most folks agree that the drug wars are being fought for profit (eg. private prisons) but I'm going to put my tin foil hat on for a sec and suggest another motive of why I think it has gone on this long...

Our govt participates in a lot of black ops, military engagements, secretive projects...what better way to fund those projects off the books than by selling (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allegations_of_CIA_drug_trafficking) drugs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_production_in_Afghanistan) in (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/13/afghan-opium-production_n_4264634.html) bulk (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA_and_Contras_cocaine_trafficking_in_the_US)? :pimp:
okay, but is there a connection between cannabis and opium in this way? AFAIK opium is vital for producing high-level pain meds, which is why we have to have it one way or the other.


i hadn't heard about the private prison thing. from what i've read, it's just as much other industries (for example, dupont and big pharma) who lobby hard to keep weed illegal.

[Nanners]

well, i'm sure i don't have your skillset in interpreting study summaries, but it's easy enough to see a pattern based on the multiple articles on the subject.

It doesnt really take any special skillset to know that 35 is too small of a sample size for any human health study.



not to mention, given what's already known about the effects of cannabis on the cardiovascular system, it seems like a pretty safe guess that it has contributed to some deaths... likely for those already at risk, but still.


to my knowledge there is no evidence that links cannabis to any cardiovascular problems other than perhaps slightly elevated blood pressure.

[gigantes]

@nanners,
as i said, i was referring to the body of studies on the subject.


and judging by some of the abstracts, there are more interactions of concern besides just the blood pressure rise.

[Nanners]

@nanners,
as i said, i was referring to the body of studies on the subject.


and judging by some of the abstracts, there are more interactions of concern besides just the blood pressure rise.

as far as i can tell, the body of studies on the subject is that nobody really knows if there is even a connection between the two.

[gigantes]

the two what? there are multiple interactions at issue.

anyway, i agree that so far the findings have been preliminary. but in the era of criminal classification, you have to admit it's been pretty difficult to create well-controlled studies.

aside from that, what is so terrible about weed having some contraindications? sounds like you really don't wanna hear it for whatever reason.

[Nanners]

the two what? there are multiple interactions at issue.
as far as i can tell, the body of studies on the subject is that nobody really knows if there is even a connection between marijuana use and cardiovascular problems.



anyway, i agree that so far the findings have been preliminary. but in the era of criminal classification, you have to admit it's been pretty difficult to create well-controlled studies.
yeah it is difficult to do a good study, but that doesnt mean we should pay attention to the bad studies.


aside from that, what is so terrible about weed having some contraindications? sounds like you really don't wanna hear it for whatever reason.

there is nothing wrong with weed having negative side effects. I just dont like seeing people getting tricked by bad science, and that article you linked is some horrible science.

[gigantes]

okay, i wouldn't really know if it was a bad study or not. not to mention, one with an agenda.


but overall it seems pretty reasonable to entertain that 1) if you regularly take a substance via the smoking route and 2) it causes your heart to have to work somewhat harder for example and 3) you are in an at-risk group... then you would run a significant risk of degrading quality of life / expiring early.

not to mention if you're a knucklehead like i was and took it before exercise for a few months.