quote:

Originally posted by ChuckWall:
One man's approach...

https://youtu.be/wxWsIXZJNgQ

Is that jungle music?

Dave's not here.

Only the government could screw up weed.

quote:

Originally posted by Strambo:
Lefties seem to be very short sighted and greedy with spending issues but play the long game on social issues.

If they were smart, they’d have set minimal barriers to entering the legal side of business so it could become well established and put the Cartels out of business (at least pot).

Then raise taxes a tad, rake them in based on volume and save a ton of tax dollars on law enforcement no longer needed.

Makes too much sense.

similar problem in Oregon

https://www.newsweek.com/orego...ng-marijuana-1660348

The state of Oregon legalized the recreational use of marijuana seven years ago, yet officials say they're grappling with an explosion of illegal marijuana farms.

Officials say there are thousands of industrial-scale illegal pot farms across the state. The industry generates billions of dollars and is often run by drug cartels and foreign criminal gangs, law enforcement said.

The cartels "have a business model: Put up more cannabis illegal grows than law enforcement can ever get. They know we're going to get some, but they know we can't get it all," Nathan sickler, the Sheriff for Jackson County told lawmakers.

The illegal farms are being put up faster than they're being taken down. Cheap greenhouses, known as Hoop Houses, are often used by farmers claiming to be growing legal hemp but are usually growing plants with illegal amounts of THC, the chemical responsible for weeds' psychological effects.

In order to help with the ongoing issue, the governor signed the "Illegal Marijuana Market Enforcement Grant Program" Tuesday which will give $25 million to help police, sheriff's office, and community organizations with the costs of stopping illegal pot farms.

"It will help," said Dave Daniel, the Josephine County Sheriff "But the issue is metastasizing statewide."

A farmer in southern Oregon—who used a creek for irrigating his crops before it ran dry because an illegal pot farm siphoned off the water, all while the West deals with a climate-change-fueled drought—blames the state for not having enough inspectors to determine which cannabis farms claiming to be hemp really are growing hemp. He spoke on the condition he not be identified because he worries the cartels could retaliate against him.

The farmer also blames landowners for selling or leasing property to bad actors.

"If somebody walks onto your property with a suitcase with $100,000 in $20 bills, you kind of know they're not on the up and up. And if you take that money and allow them to do something on your land, you should probably anticipate that they're there to break the law," he said.

"Illegal cannabis operations in southern Oregon have been using our limited water supply, abusing local workers, threatening neighbors and negatively impacting businesses run by legal marijuana growers," said Golden, who pushed to get the measure and related funding on the agenda for the one-day special session.

Golden and two other lawmakers from southern Oregon, Representative Pam Marsh, D-Ashland, and Representative Lily Morgan, R-Grants Pass, previously said in a letter to Governor Kate Brown that workers on the illegal farms are subjected to "conditions approaching slavery."

Some are also being deprived of their promised wages.

A 27-year-old Argentinian man said in an interview Wednesday that he learned last August through a WhatsApp message group that workers were needed on a pot farm in southern Oregon. At the time, he was working on a pot farm in Humboldt County, California. He then went to the location near Cave Junction, Oregon, expecting to be paid $2,500 for three weeks of work.

He did 12-hour shifts under the hot sun tending the plants and slept in a tent. When three weeks were up, he and other workers went to the farm manager to get paid.

"He didn't even look at us. He got in his pickup truck and left," the worker, who is in the U.S. on a tourist visa, said. He spoke on the condition he not be named because of federal immigration laws.

When he called the manager, there was no answer. Another worker went to the farm for the wages but had a gun aimed at him.

and Oklahoma

video at link

https://www.news9.com/story/61...of-illegal-marijuana

The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics says Oklahoma is now the number one black market supplier of illegal marijuana in the country.
There are 8,500 medical marijuana grow licenses in Oklahoma and agents say 25 percent of them are run by criminal organizations from places like China, Russia and Mexico .

People all over Green Country tell News on 6 have seen a huge increase in Asians buying land and creating huge pot operations right next to family farms.

Josh King and his family bought this historic piece of property known as Bald Knob Hill, near Henryetta. Then, a marijuana operation moved in across the road and within a matter of months, had nearly every inch of the 31 acres, covered with buildings.

He says 24-7, there's a terrible chemical smell that makes it tough to breathe, bright lights, loud generators, heavy traffic and even gunfire, some, right over Josh's house. He worries about his family’s safety and he also worries about how the workers are being treated at the site.

"We went up there and three times, they've added on to the house, a roof and a room with a dirt floor with old cafeteria seating in it and an older woman ladling soup stuff and their fed a little portion each," says Josh King, the homeowner.

He says all the workers speak Mandarin but one and whenever he asks questions, the answer is the same, we have a certificate.

He says the trash, the environmental impact, the noise, all need to be addressed and shouldn't be allowed this close to families.

"If you’re going to have something that big, OK is going to have some kind of zoning laws or some kind of something," says King.

There are now around 40 marijuana farms just in the Henryetta area.

"It has changed the landscape of our entire state. I've contacted legislators and they said, “well, you voted for it, I don't think we voted for this," says realtor Tammie Hiatt.

State Drug Agents say buyers from China, Russia, Mexico and other countries are coming here and making offers for land that's two, three, even 10 times over the asking price. They pay with cash and want a closing within 10 days.

The law says 75 percent of the operation must be owned by an Oklahoman who’s lived in the state for at least two years.

OBN agents say true ownership is often hard to determine because illegal operations use ghost owners, where an Oklahoman may be listed as the property owner for 200 farms and shell corporations are used to hide true ownership.

They say they come to Oklahoma because our licenses and our land is cheaper here than in places like California.

Oklahoma has 8,500 licensed grow operations, California has 3,500.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sdy,

Legalization was supposed to cure a whole pile of woes, right? I’m sure all the weed grown in these “legal” grows is accounted for and being sent on to the authorized pot stores…

The, "Industry" in Alaska is now complaining about the lack of profits and competition from illegal growers. Part of that is market saturation, too many growers and they've driven the price down.

Part of the problem too is also unique to Alaska, transporting their product. The road system here is limited and many villages and towns are not accessible by road. Due to Federal regs, it can't be shipped by air or boat so what does that leave? Illegal activity.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
Legalization was supposed to cure a whole pile of woes, right?

Kinda like the State Lotto, right? What a friggin' abyss of a money pit THAT waste of time is. I haven't seen education enhanced one f***ing bit from the passing of the Lotto.

Having a hard time trying to give a shit....

No surprise - without any forethought or, consideration, CA legislature legalizes, than over-regulates what they thought would've curbed the black market and create a nice little revenue stream. Instead, they've forced those life-time growers, back to being Outlaw Growers (as they pridefully refer to themselves) and what they were doing for 20-30+ years, close-up shop because they don't want to deal with LE or, go into business at some level (never favorable) with a cartel operation. Large legal operations are poping-up and they know they can't compete with them, rumor is many of the cigarette companies have large investments into these legal grow ops as much of the security are former LEO.

If you want an idea of what growing is like and all the aspects that it entails, Netflix's Murder Mountain gave an interesting, mildly sensationalistic peak behind the curtain so-to-speak. Having done business in Humboldt & Mendocino county, and spending time in places like Garberville, working with a handful of business there...it's the wild west in a different dimension. Dreadlocks, diesel pick-ups, tie-dye, camo, logging boots and guns.


The states would've been better off modeling marijuana laws like Spain. Legal to grow and smoke it in your own home, no more than 3-plants per adult in the household, illegal to resale/distribute at any level. Home & garden shops can sell fertilizer along with all other cultivating aides; home growing seminars are perfectly fine. Cannabis clubs are allowed but, heavily regulated/licensed, principally for medicinal usage.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:


The states would've been better off modeling marijuana laws like Spain. Legal to grow and smoke it in your own home, no more than 3-plants per adult in the household, illegal to resale/distribute at any level. .....

Nope, the states wanted the tax money. When them mess in Oregon was being voted on, we were promised all kinds of perks from the sales tax revenue. By the way, there are only about 3 or 4 things in Oregon with sales tax, pot is one of them.

Note that in California, Colorado, and most other states where pot has been nominally legalized, the legalization was done by referendum, not by legislation. So the governments are both state and local levels were forced into dealing with it. But they really don't want to, so they make growing and selling pot legally a difficult, time consuming and expensive business to enter and maintain. In the mean time, the legalization spurs demand. The cartels are more then happen to fill the void.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:


The states would've been better off modeling marijuana laws like Spain. Legal to grow and smoke it in your own home, no more than 3-plants per adult in the household, illegal to resale/distribute at any level. .....

Nope, the states wanted the tax money. When them mess in Oregon was being voted on, we were promised all kinds of perks from the sales tax revenue. By the way, there are only about 3 or 4 things in Oregon with sales tax, pot is one of them.

That was the crux, a giant revenue stream that could be tap'd into for whatever 'pitched' reason was provided. What's resulted is upheaval and an entrenched black market. Naturally, legislators and policy writers don't look too far down the road or, consider the 2nd/3rd order effects but, we've got more cash from taxation!

From what I saw, when some people reached out to me about making edibles, the “tested” stuff is far from safe, as well.

(Using Benzene to extract the THC is an approved process. That’s been outlawed for food for ~100 years. It can be done safely, by an experienced and careful, sober, scientist, but it’s not worth the risk to anyone else.)

As an FYI, few to no professionals working in CBD edibles, either. The feds have pretty well prohibited that.

May or may not matter to you, but people should know that there’s an excellent chance any edible is coming from an uninspected facility, most likely, made by someone without professional experience.

(Which is fine, if people know it, and can check out the maker/insist on a private inspection)

Lots of other organic solvents other than benzene. Anybody with the slightest notion of chemistry knows this. And yes, Benzene is awesome!

Cracked me up when everyone thought that the "legal" marijuana business was going to put the illegal operations out of business. The cartels have been growing in all over CA for years.

Basic economics says “straight money” will chase out bad, but that presumes the government doesn’t push too hard on the scale.

(Eg, there isn’t much of a market for black market milk, based on cost. There is some very good black market cheese, based on good, but prohibited, techniques - and so,e bad supplies which can get people pretty sick.)

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:

If you want an idea of what growing is like and all the aspects that it entails, Netflix's Murder Mountain gave an interesting, mildly sensationalistic peak behind the curtain so-to-speak. Having done business in Humboldt & Mendocino county, and spending time in places like Garberville, working with a handful of business there...it's the wild west in a different dimension. Dreadlocks, diesel pick-ups, tie-dye, camo, logging boots and guns.

I watched Murder Mountain this last week. Interesting documentary, but I couldn't help but notice how many people were playing the part of "Victim".

They get into a business which they claim is legitimate and is really still against Federal Law last time I checked, then they can't make money, and suddenly they too are victims.

IMHO, The people who were murdered all had somewhat shady pasts. Maybe not the missing gal whose mom is from Australia and looking for her, but the others profiled all seemed to be in the illegal drug business.