FREE THE WEED 124
A Column by John Sinclair
Hi everybody and welcome to the November edition of FREE THE WEED. Since my last column I celebrated my 80th birthday on October 2nd and had a spectacular time at the Genesee County Compassion Club in Flint, where lots of family and friends came to wish me highest birthday greetings.
My biggest gift came from Senator jeff Irwin, who drove up from Ann Arbor to present your correspondent with a “Special Tribute” from the State Legislature and Governor’s Office of Michigan, who confess:
“it is a distinct privilege to honor the work and life of John Sinclair, [who] will be forever remembered for his music, poetry, and political activism in Michigan…. As an artist and activist, John Sinclair stood up against racism and militarism and played a leading role in the effort to legalize cannabis….”
The tribute is signed by Ann Arbor State Representative Yousef Rabbi, Senator Irwin, Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist II and Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and concludes:
“We applaud his many accomplishments throughout his life and thank him for the years spent devoting his time and efforts to make our community and the world a better place.”
Well, you’re very welcome! A lot of people don’t know that the marijuana legalization community threw its support to Ms. Whitmer early on in the last governor’s race and also helped elect Attorney General Dana Nessel, both of whom have formally acknowledged our support.
I had a chance to hang out with the Attorney General at a fundraiser at my pal Bob Baldori’s home in Okemos not too long ago and really enjoyed meeting this dynamic law enforcement chieftan who shares many of our beliefs.
Let’s start this month’s column by going from the sublime to the ridiculous:
One of my favorite news sources, DutchNews.nl, recently reported that “Drugs crime costs Dutch society up to €4.1 billion a year.” They go on to say that “Drugs-related crime costs Dutch society between €3.2 billion and €4.1 billion a year,’ including the costs to the legal system as well as the medical, social and economic costs of drugs crime.”
“Drugs crime” is simply the production, distribution and sales of various recreational drugs, sadly including marijuana, which remains illegal in The Netherlands except for the “grey area’ where over-the-counter sales of 5 grams or less are permitted in the country’s coffeeehshops.
“In total,” DutchNews.nl concludes, “combating illegal drugs costs the police some €1.1 billion to €1.6 billion a year, while court cases and prisons add almost a billion more to the total bill. Research suggests that 20% of all people spending time in prison have a link to the drugs trade.”
The report adds that “Addiction costs society a further €250 million a year, while €520 million is spent on unemployment and other benefits for people unable to work because of their drugs use. The economic aspects are also considerable, with banks spending €550 million on stamping out money laundering.
“The Netherlands is the ideal location for the international drugs trade,” the report concludes. “The government has pledged to spend an extra €500 million to tackle the impact of organized crime, particularly the infiltration of drugs gangs into legitimate companies and institutions.”
One hates to say “I told you so,” but any idiot can add up the costs of pursuing the ridiculous War On Drugs in The Netherlands and any fool can tell that legalization of drugs—they’re mostly referring to cannabis, which is semi-legally sold over the counter in the country’s 500 or so remaining coffeeshops—would not only eradicate these costs but would direct many billions more into the government’ s coffers.
Governmental authorities of all stripes have gobbled up billions of dollars in the course of the War On Drugs by telling the Big Lie over and over again, as Herman Goering taught them during the Nazi regime: “Drugs are bad. Marijuana is dangerous. Persons using these substances should be persecuted, prosecuted, and sent to prison. There is no other effective course of action against drug users.”
During the 80 years of the War On Drugs the public has gradually pulled its head out of its ass and begun to reject the false teachings and vicious practice of the drug warriors. As we all know, many states, counties and municipalities in the United States have legalized marijuana despite the federal government’s idiotic and relentless opposition to this change in the laws.
Now NORML reports the results of a survey which found that “A plurality of Americans prefer to reside where cannabis use is ‘fully legal.’
In a survey of new movers compiled by the real estate brokerage firm Redfin, 46 percent of respondents said that they would either “prefer” to live in a jurisdiction where cannabis was legal or that they would “only” live in a legalization state. Twenty-two percent of respondents did not want to reside in a legal state. Thirty-two percent of respondents had no opinion.”
Real estate studies have previously reported that cannabis legalization is correlated with increased property values, and the Redfin survey concluded that “[T]here is strong evidence that legalization drives higher property values—particularly in areas that allow recreational marijuana and welcome retail dispensaries. … These investments can improve quality of life in communities across the nation while attracting tourism and new residents who drive real estate demand.”
The report concludes that “Separate data have shown that states experienced spikes in tourism following adult-use legalization.”
A related issue is the question of growing at home, which is drawing a lot of attention for different reasons. For one example, Pat Goggins reports in Leafly that New Jersey passed a medical marijuana law in 2010 without allowing for homegrowing, and state legislators passed a legalization law in 2021, also without a provision that would allow homegrow.
A huge roadblock to allowing homegrow in New Jersey, Goggins says, and we know exists throughout the country, is that many legislators lack an understanding of cannabis and subscribe to the myths and lies propagated by the drug warriors for so many years: “Fears that homegrowers are going to use up all the state’s electricity, that growers will burn down buildings by using too many grow lights, and that everyone in the densely populated state will start growing their own weed—truly, a garden state.”
But, Goggins says, the real political issues of blocking homegrowing come to light when you follow the money. “The state has some powerful lobbyists from sectors that you wouldn’t think care about home gardening at all. In New Jersey there’s a very powerful real estate and insurance sector and those guys have been cagey about homegrow because they would have to alter all their existing rules and regulations and insurance coverage to adapt. They are a powerful lobby amongst legislators, and if they get a little bit cagey, all of a sudden things slow down.”
Goggins adds that “Large multi-state operators also share some of the blame. Some cannabis producers are already set up in neighboring states or medical markets, and officials at some companies believe keeping homegrow illegal could allow them to set up a near-monopoly.”
As a medical marijuana patient in Michigan since 2009, I am happy to report that the voter-mandated homegrow caregiver law, which is certainly not perfect, is still the best and most advanced legal set-up in the United States and by all means the best I’ve seen in my 80 years as an American. If they invalidate the voters’ ballots and outlaw or severely reduce homegrow for caregivers, it will be a sad day indeed and another vivid warning sign that our democracy is on shaky ground. FREE THE WEED!
—Detroit
October 22, 2021
© 2021 John Sinclair. Alll Rights Reserved.
