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When the weed-wagon comes to your state, ask them what they did to California


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The Washington Examiner

Washington Examiner

September 18, 2022

Since the marijuana legalization era began in 2012, the federal government has operated under an unwritten understanding that it would not enforce marijuana laws in states where the drug is legal.

So, how is that working out?

The Los Angeles Times looked for answers in rural California and published the results in a new series this month. California legalized the recreational use of marijuana by referendum in 2016. Proponents promised that a taxable and orderly marijuana trade would be the result, a clear improvement over the violent black market trade that had preceded legalization. They promised that the legal marijuana trade would squeeze the illegal trade out of business.

The exact opposite is now happening.

In short, the consequences of federal nonenforcement and reduced state penalties for marijuana offenses are not pretty. The emergence of a regulated marijuana trade has not reduced crime in California — rather, it has spread crime out into the rural areas and turned local politics across the state into a morass of corruption.

Local politicians now take and demand huge bribes in exchange for growing licenses and legislative support for expanding the industry. According to one source quoted by the Los Angeles Times, bribe requests are typically in the low six-figures. Federal law enforcement authorities have at least been somewhat involved in running sting operations and prosecuting corrupt officials. But for every rock they turn over, there have to be dozens they miss.

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The Bright Side of Cannabis?

John Hinderaker

September 18, 2022

In my opinion, of all the policy disasters to which the Left has subjected us in recent years, the legalization of marijuana is near the top of the list. This is one area where I part company with doctrinaire libertarians. Wherever cannabis has been legalized, the results have been bad, and are getting worse.

People are beginning to notice–in this case, the London Times, on California: “The dark side of California’s cannabis boom.” In my opinion, there is no bright side.

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*Cannabis has always been a gateway drug. If you legalize marijuana, you can be sure that a tidal wave of meth, heroin and so on will follow. And guess what: people prefer not to live in a state that is bedeviled by drugs and gang violence:

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The drug trade is fuelling homicides and violent crime, both of which are on the rise in California. That, in turn, has led to an exodus from the Democrat-controlled state. California lost more than 352,000 people between April 2020 and January this year, according to official figures.

The problem is acute in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Nationally the cities are ranked first and second, respectively, for the number of residents leaving, according to a report from the property website Redfin.

Legalizing marijuana means enabling illegal marijuana, and encouraging the sale and use of hard drugs. The inevitable result is violent crime. It will be a long time before we can fully evaluate the consequences of the improvident legalization of marijuana.

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* Speaking from personal experience, (for me) it was a short journey from Tokeing up a Joint to Diming up grams of Coke. 

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