Goodbye to the DEA, Hello to the EPA

After the media beyond the Redwood Curtain sunk their sharp teeth into the What’s After Pot story, a swarm of articles began appearing  in a smorgasbord of magazines, newspapers, online zines etc.  The angles tended to focus on the hypocrisy of growers wanting marijuana to stay illegal.

Few (the recent LA Times piece being nearly the sole exception) grasp that cannabis producers are merely grappling with a new economic reality.  The story isn’t that some growers are opposed to legalization (though some are). The story is that both pro legalization and anti legalization growers know that a change in marijuana’s status is going to change their economic model and they need to know how to respond in order to survive.

But, also, it must be acknowledged, beyond economics is the fear of their culture disappearing–their daring romantic lifestyle being replaced with paperwork and their alternative society being  devoured by the mainstream.

Capital Press Agriculture News in a recent editorial snickers a little at the growers’ plight but there is a underlying sense of sympathy

What now-illicit growers really fear is the regulation and taxation that comes with legalization. They’ll need water rights; the state will monitor their fertilizer, insecticide and herbicide use; the health inspector might pay a call; they’ll have to follow labor laws; their scales will have to be certified; and the taxman will want to see their books. Suddenly, a relatively straight-forward and care-free business will get a lot more complicated, and a lot less fun.

What farmer can’t sympathize with that problem?

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Ganja Farma
Guest
13 years ago

“But, also, it must be acknowledged, beyond economics is the fear of their (the growers) culture disappearing–their daring romantic lifestyle being replaced with paperwork and their alternative society being devoured by the mainstream.”

Excellent……. You put the Emerald Triangle Farmers main fear into afew short words….

Good Job Kym. Excellent Article.

Purple Vibe
Guest
Purple Vibe
13 years ago

not everyone grows grapes in napa, not everyone makes chocolate in switzerland and not everyone will grow good weed. And lets face it, good weed stands out. It will sell itself. Legalization means more acceptance and more smokers . More retail locations and methods of sale. I.E. something to do with all that shake. lol Relax, humboldt is blessed with something they cant absorb into the machine. REAL PEOPLE WITH THINKING MINDS, persevere people.

Purple Vibe
Guest
Purple Vibe
13 years ago

not everyone grows grapes in napa, not everyone makes chocolate in switzerland and not everyone will grow good weed. And lets face it, good weed stands out. It will sell itself. Legalization means more acceptance and more smokers . More retail locations and methods of sale. I.E. something to do with all that shake. lol Relax, humboldt is blessed with something they cant absorb into the machine. REAL PEOPLE WITH THINKING MINDS, persevere people.

Rose
Guest
13 years ago

Just like everyone else. Fair is fair.

Rose
Guest
13 years ago

Just like everyone else. Fair is fair.

Tulip
Guest
Tulip
13 years ago

your right rose, when i get bent over backwards and fucked by the government the first thing i think is Gee, i wish everyone else was getting fucked hard just like, me fair is fair. if im gonna be dumb enough to put up with getting fucked shouldnt everyone else have to be dumb like me, good logic rose.

Tulip
Guest
Tulip
13 years ago

your right rose, when i get bent over backwards and fucked by the government the first thing i think is Gee, i wish everyone else was getting fucked hard just like, me fair is fair. if im gonna be dumb enough to put up with getting fucked shouldnt everyone else have to be dumb like me, good logic rose.

humboldtkids
Guest
humboldtkids
13 years ago

Fiance here:

In all these discussions that I have been reading I”ve yet to see anyone that is acknowledging one minor fact. No matter what California as a state legalizes, it is and will still be against federal law. The DEA isn’t going anywhere any time soon! Pardon my pun but you guys will not be out of the “weeds” yet. Does anyone but me wonder why you guys just got a new federal magistrate and a new FBI office? You have hundreds if not thousands of people up there making tons of money and not paying taxes, going on welfare and lord only knows what else. That kind of stuff really pisses those guys off, do you think that after all these years they are just going to go away and say never mind, we’re sorry we bothered you ?
I really don’t think that is going to happen. WIth prohibition they took them down with tax evasion and then repealed. Think about it. You spend years violating federal laws and thumbing you collective noses at them and now you actually think it’s all going to be fine because California is passing laws that are in direct conflict with federal laws. I just don’t see it…………

Another thing you might consider is the difficulty that large agri. farms will have trying to produce large quantities of quality product. They would either have to hire migrants to come in and do their harvests and have to have a hell of a security network in place to do that or they will have to spend a ton on those new trimming machines and still have to hire a big staff to run them.

It seems to me that the large agri-farms will and would be more interested in hemp and hemp by products than cannibis, with hemp you pretty much don’t have to worry about separating male and female, especially if you are trying to generate seeds for oils and such. Its such a great cash crop and so good for the land that it just seems more realistic to think that those guys would prefer hemp to premium bud. It is much cheaper to grow and will be much easier to control, leaving the “specialty” cannibis strains to the smaller farms and growers. If I was NORMAL or MPP or any of those other organizations, or a grower in the hills of SoHum I would be pushing for federal legalization of HEMP. Hemp has to be imported as a fabric now so all those hemp clothing and hemp product dollars go to China or some other country. Baby steps…Hemp first, cannibis later……….

Just my perspective

humboldtkids
Guest
humboldtkids
13 years ago

Fiance here:

In all these discussions that I have been reading I”ve yet to see anyone that is acknowledging one minor fact. No matter what California as a state legalizes, it is and will still be against federal law. The DEA isn’t going anywhere any time soon! Pardon my pun but you guys will not be out of the “weeds” yet. Does anyone but me wonder why you guys just got a new federal magistrate and a new FBI office? You have hundreds if not thousands of people up there making tons of money and not paying taxes, going on welfare and lord only knows what else. That kind of stuff really pisses those guys off, do you think that after all these years they are just going to go away and say never mind, we’re sorry we bothered you ?
I really don’t think that is going to happen. WIth prohibition they took them down with tax evasion and then repealed. Think about it. You spend years violating federal laws and thumbing you collective noses at them and now you actually think it’s all going to be fine because California is passing laws that are in direct conflict with federal laws. I just don’t see it…………

Another thing you might consider is the difficulty that large agri. farms will have trying to produce large quantities of quality product. They would either have to hire migrants to come in and do their harvests and have to have a hell of a security network in place to do that or they will have to spend a ton on those new trimming machines and still have to hire a big staff to run them.

It seems to me that the large agri-farms will and would be more interested in hemp and hemp by products than cannibis, with hemp you pretty much don’t have to worry about separating male and female, especially if you are trying to generate seeds for oils and such. Its such a great cash crop and so good for the land that it just seems more realistic to think that those guys would prefer hemp to premium bud. It is much cheaper to grow and will be much easier to control, leaving the “specialty” cannibis strains to the smaller farms and growers. If I was NORMAL or MPP or any of those other organizations, or a grower in the hills of SoHum I would be pushing for federal legalization of HEMP. Hemp has to be imported as a fabric now so all those hemp clothing and hemp product dollars go to China or some other country. Baby steps…Hemp first, cannibis later……….

Just my perspective

Black Flag
Guest
13 years ago

Just think how much will be grown by the corporations that have PATENTS on the genetics. There will be no “mainstream” for common folk who won’t be allowed to profit from someone’s property. Monsanto comes to mind and there numerous patents on plants.

Anyone not working for them will feel the full weight of the corp-gov taking them down, and stealing their wealth. Legal, unregulated weed is the only way- you don’t have to report your lettuce garden to government slime and pay a tax- why support that with weed?

Only the stupid and weak need government telling them how to live…

seek prosperity not bureaucracy

humboldtkids
Guest
humboldtkids
13 years ago
Reply to  Black Flag

Fiance here:

It would be impossible for any corporation to get patents on all of the strains. There are literally thousands of different strains, people mixing and matching all the time. If you live in Humboldt you should know that. I can grow a few plants and give them a name and who is going to argue with me. I can go to the dispensary down the street and see at least nine or ten choices. One week I can get some “purple erkle” and save a little, get some more “purple erkle” next week and its two different things. Most of those different strains look almost the same, the smell is different on some but for the most part joe blow on the street is not going to have a clue. Corporations would have to spen millions on going in to peoples houses and taking cuttings then testing genetics, not going to happen. Its not cost effective. Just call yours “Black Flag” patent the name and do it that way.

If your selling your lettuse from you garden you should be paying taxes on it. If you are growing for personal use and not for profit then you don’t. CAN YOU SEE THE DIFFERENCE? I can. Paying taxes is not stealing their wealth. You can’t pick and choose which laws you want to enforce and which you don’t. You, regarddless of if you want to admit it or not use the government services that my taxes pay for. Why should I work pay taxes and you not just because you grow weed. If you are breaking the law at some point the law is going to come in and take their cut, one way or the other.

It is that attitude, that the growers in Humboldt are somehow special and should have a different set of rules to live by becaue they grow and illegal product that gets to me the most. My stepdaughter and all her friends think that since their parents grow that they are special so therefore should just get what they want when they want. No laws apply to them and their friends and families. Why should they, apparently their parents can just spread a little of that tax free cash around and their indiecretions get overlooked by the law and the community.

Black Flag
Guest
13 years ago

Just think how much will be grown by the corporations that have PATENTS on the genetics. There will be no “mainstream” for common folk who won’t be allowed to profit from someone’s property. Monsanto comes to mind and there numerous patents on plants.

Anyone not working for them will feel the full weight of the corp-gov taking them down, and stealing their wealth. Legal, unregulated weed is the only way- you don’t have to report your lettuce garden to government slime and pay a tax- why support that with weed?

Only the stupid and weak need government telling them how to live…

seek prosperity not bureaucracy

humboldtkids
Guest
humboldtkids
13 years ago
Reply to  Black Flag

Fiance here:

It would be impossible for any corporation to get patents on all of the strains. There are literally thousands of different strains, people mixing and matching all the time. If you live in Humboldt you should know that. I can grow a few plants and give them a name and who is going to argue with me. I can go to the dispensary down the street and see at least nine or ten choices. One week I can get some “purple erkle” and save a little, get some more “purple erkle” next week and its two different things. Most of those different strains look almost the same, the smell is different on some but for the most part joe blow on the street is not going to have a clue. Corporations would have to spen millions on going in to peoples houses and taking cuttings then testing genetics, not going to happen. Its not cost effective. Just call yours “Black Flag” patent the name and do it that way.

If your selling your lettuse from you garden you should be paying taxes on it. If you are growing for personal use and not for profit then you don’t. CAN YOU SEE THE DIFFERENCE? I can. Paying taxes is not stealing their wealth. You can’t pick and choose which laws you want to enforce and which you don’t. You, regarddless of if you want to admit it or not use the government services that my taxes pay for. Why should I work pay taxes and you not just because you grow weed. If you are breaking the law at some point the law is going to come in and take their cut, one way or the other.

It is that attitude, that the growers in Humboldt are somehow special and should have a different set of rules to live by becaue they grow and illegal product that gets to me the most. My stepdaughter and all her friends think that since their parents grow that they are special so therefore should just get what they want when they want. No laws apply to them and their friends and families. Why should they, apparently their parents can just spread a little of that tax free cash around and their indiecretions get overlooked by the law and the community.