Pot proponents see momentum

[DonViejo]

Voters in as many as nine states will get to decide whether to liberalize laws involving marijuana this year in a rush of ballot measures that pro-pot activists see as a critical tipping point in the fight over legalization.

Five states — Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada — will decide whether to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes. Four other states, including Arkansas, Florida, Montana and Missouri, will decide whether to allow doctors to prescribe marijuana for medicinal use.

Collectively, the ballot measures mean more voters will be weighing in on marijuana issues than in any other year in American history. They come as the marijuana industry finds itself on something of a winning streak, after voters in several states loosened restrictions on the drug.
In the last four years, four states — Washington, Colorado, Alaska and Oregon — and the District of Columbia have passed ballot measures legalizing marijuana for recreational use by adults over the age of 21. A similar measure has only failed once, in Ohio in 2015, though pro-pot activists are quick to distance themselves from a campaign they did not fully support.

Twenty-one other states allow marijuana to be prescribed for medicinal use. Twelve of those states have legalized medical marijuana since 2010.

-snip-

http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/290258-pot-proponents-see-momentum

[ChoppinBroccoli]

1. The Ohio Bill Failed Because It Was Poorly Written

The bill here in Ohio would have legalized marijuana, but only for a small handful of "preferred" growers. So, essentially, it would have granted a monopoly to just a few "pot barons." I actually voted AGAINST the Ohio bill, even though I'm a big proponent of legalization. The monopoly stuff was just too much for me to handle. I was also told that a "pure" legalization bill was going to be on the ballot in 2016, but that doesn't look like it's going to materialize.

[Warren DeMontague]

4. Exactly. The Ohio proposal was a turd. When Willie Nelson opposes your pot legalization law

you need to find a better one.

Unfortunately, my take is that the farther East you go the more uptight about it people are and the longer it's going to take. The West is going to lead the way. I think Prop. 64 in CA has an excellent chance of passing, at which point the entire coast will be legal.

[womanofthehills]

7. Out here in NM we just have medical - probably until Suzanna Martinez is out

16,000 patients last year to 60,000 patients middle of this year - projection probably over 100,000 patients by end of year and will keep climbing.

Dept of Health was taken to court for their slow processing, and had to add staff to cover all the applications/renewals. We now have 35 companies/groups running dispensaries - most have multiple dispensaries.

In fact, our local sheriff's term just ended and instead of running again he and his son opened up a dispensary in Albuquerque.

[Warren DeMontague]

8. Fortunately our state government is sane and progressive, and to boot they were watching tax money

go North over the Washington-Oregon border.

So they were incentivized to get recreational pot up and running quickly. As an interim until the full program is implemented they have allowed limited recreational sales from what were previously medical dispensaries.


http://www.oregon.gov/olcc/marijuana/pages/default.aspx

[Wednesdays]

2. Marijuana Industry?

I mean yeah, there probably is one...but there are few industries one can easily circumvent by growing one's own at home!

[Warren DeMontague]

3. Well, fact of the matter is, people can brew beer at home, too.

And some people get quite good at it. But not everyone wants to go to the trouble.

I support legalization laws like Oregon's, which allow a certain amount of home grown plants per household. It's 4, here.

[FrodosPet]

9. I take it you've never been to a fully functioning pot grow?

You need lights. Good lights that put out as much of the proper spectrum (red, blue, and UV) as is practically possible. And make sure they are safe, as electrical fires are bad for your crop (and the rest of the house).

Oh yeah, BTW, your electric bill is about to soar through the roof.

Are you giving them the right mixes at the right time? If you are growing hydroponically, are you flushing the plants with plain water for two weeks before harvest? Mice and rats and aphids and mold and mildew: how do you deal with them without poisoning your plants?

Don't forget to sex your plants early! A few stray grains of pollen with turn your beautiful kush crop into a useless seed factory in no time flat.

Rag weed, ditch weed, seed weed? Yes, those are easy to grow. But the good stuff? That is a LOT more work than most people are willing to do.

[TeamPooka]

5. Prohibition is a failed public policy, again.

[Warren DeMontague]

6. KICK AND REC