âProhibition is a failed and racist policy that should be relegated to the dust bin of history,â Altieri, of NORML, said. âAn overwhelming majority of Americans from all political persuasions want to see it brought to an end. Instead of continuing the disastrous practices of the past, it is time lawmakers at all levels begin to honor the will of their constituents and support a sensible marijuana policy focused on legalization and regulation.â
Strangers pay off woman's legal fees after she was sentenced to 12 years in jail for selling US$30 of weed
âI had no idea how I was going to pay this off. I knew I was going to be sitting here for a while"
Patricia Spottedcrow's case sparked outrage from the public and justice reform advocates south of the border, leading to her release after two years of incarceration. Ali Meyer via Twitter
Patricia Spottedcrow is finally free but will never know who to thank for it.
âIt feels like I hit the lotto,â she told KFOR.
A single mother of four and 25-year-old at the time, the Oklahoma woman was sentenced to 12 years behind bars in 2011 for selling US$30 (approx. CA$40) of cannabis.
Have you heard of Patricia Spottedcrow? I started covering her case in 2011. A young mom from Kingfisher, OK, she she was charged with felony drug possession & distribution for selling a $30 bag of marijuana to a "police informant"
Spottedcrowâs case sparked outrage from the public and justice reform advocates south of the border, leading to her release after two years of incarceration.
But she wound up in jail again last weekend due to US$3,569.76 (approx. CA$4,77.30) in unpaid legal fees wracked up from court battles to win back her freedom.
âI had no idea how I was going to pay this off,â Spottedcrow told KFOR. âI knew I was going to be sitting here for a while.â
Days later, after a decade of fighting the courts, she was free thanks to strangers who paid the entire tab.
âItâs amazing,â she told KFOR. âIt feels wonderful. I donât even know what to say.â
Now a 34-year-old with six children, Spottedcrow told the Washington Post itâs time to âbe with my kids and live my life.â
The City of Kelowna in the interior of BC just got a legal pot shop this past Thursday. That is the second store to open in the well-populated Okanagan region (1/4 million). The other opened on July 01 in Vernon.
I get a kick out of people saying, "It's for medical reasons".
It's ok. It's now legal. You don't have to be ashamed to say, "I like to get stoned"
Yeah. I remember thinking medical users were just BSing everybody. Then I read more and actually started to meet some 'real patients' and eventually changed my mind.
Funny, though. Been smoking for one year shy of a half century. A couple of brushes with the law (Alberta and Morocco) and I became super careful and remain to this day super careful. Is it really legal in Canada? Are you sure that is not a fancy mirage?
I don't want anybody either seeing me or smelling me smoking weed/hashish. Dislike joints for that reason âthey are wasteful and stinky. Much prefer to use a small water pipe/bubbler.
As for all my counter-culture buds who dig good music, if they see me, that is not a problem but even there I will go far out of my way to avoid blowing smoke into the face of a non-smoker.
Prediction: Edible and sub-lingual cannabis will become extremely popular as people learn how to discipline the intake to a small or micro-dose. So popular it might create another series of problems....
The way I look at it, if the first thing that comes out of their mouth is "medical reasons" when you find out they smoke pot, well...
If you can walk into the liquor store and buy marijuana in Canada...uhmmm, ya it's legal.
Ya, joints are stinky. Plus they 'mark' your lips and fingers.
I get a kick out of people saying, "It's for medical reasons".
It's ok. It's now legal. You don't have to be ashamed to say, "I like to get stoned"
Yeah. I remember thinking medical users were just BSing everybody. Then I read more and actually started to meet some 'real patients' and eventually changed my mind.
Funny, though. Been smoking for one year shy of a half century. A couple of brushes with the law (Alberta and Morocco) and I became super careful and remain to this day super careful. Is it really legal in Canada? Are you sure that is not a fancy mirage?
I don't want anybody either seeing me or smelling me smoking weed/hashish. Dislike joints for that reason âthey are wasteful and stinky. Much prefer to use a small water pipe/bubbler.
As for all my counter-culture buds who dig good music, if they see me, that is not a problem but even there I will go far out of my way to avoid blowing smoke into the face of a non-smoker.
Prediction: Edible and sub-lingual cannabis will become extremely popular as people learn how to discipline the intake to a small or micro-dose. So popular it might create another series of problems....
Evidently the same thing has happened in California as well because the legislature has overtaxed the legal stuff. The black market for weed will likely continue for one more generation and then go away as the old timers die off and the newer generations will simply accept the commercial product and say oh well, not having known anything different their entire lives. There will always be hobbyists who will grow their own the same as those who brew their own beer at home, but it will not impact the commercial market the way the present black market does.
Also, the farther we as a society move away from cash, that will kill the black market leaving it with only crypto currency available for transactions.
In some ways not surprising. British Columbia is often referred to as "British California" and with some reason. California has eased back on some taxes and other restrictions.
These local network/grey markets will likely survive intact for decades. But yes, a few more years and the legal market will be so large, few will comment on the "black market".
Here in Colorado it's very reasonably priced & great quality....um, or so I'm told.
It's OK. No need to be ashamed, anymore.
Being ashamed has nothing to do with it.
There are still legal considerations. I have to be careful about what and how I say things in public, on the record such as here. I have a state issued professional medical license. My state is unique in that it is one of the few states where the legislature, not the voters, legalized medical mj. As a cancer patient, I called my state board to find out how it would affect my license. As the board is regulated by the same state legislature that legalized it, the board cannot conflict with state laws. They told me that as long as I had a medical use license, that I would not be in conflict with the laws and rules they are governed by. It would then come down to an employer based issue. If however, use was detected without having a medical license, I could lose my professional license and my ability to work in my profession. And I also have a commercial driver's license, a CDL.
In my state, license holders are then reported and registered in the national pharmacy board data base of people using controlled substances. This data base is shared across at least 25 states based on my last inquiry several years ago. I am not yet willing to take that step even though I would certainly qualify for a medical use license in my state.
Until it is legalized federally, one must act accordingly. You only get one chance to test dirty on the record.
For 55 years, I have never ever been ashamed, just very very careful.
Price has jumped most in New Brunswick and least in B.C.
——————————-
My comment:
British Columbia is a tobacco/alcohol province despite the impression the media and the in-your-face pot protesters might give. Nevertheless, the black/grey market for cannabis is well established and as most of you on these fora can easily guess, it primarily consists of decentralized production and distribution networks.
Given the obstacles that BC social conservatives placed in the path of cannabis legalization, it is absolutely no surprise that the black market continues to flourish.
Here in Colorado it's very reasonably priced & great quality....um, or so I'm told.
Price has jumped most in New Brunswick and least in B.C.
——————————-
My comment:
British Columbia is a tobacco/alcohol province despite the impression the media and the in-your-face pot protesters might give. Nevertheless, the black/grey market for cannabis is well established and as most of you on these fora can easily guess, it primarily consists of decentralized production and distribution networks.
Given the obstacles that BC social conservatives placed in the path of cannabis legalization, it is absolutely no surprise that the black market continues to flourish.
Evidently the same thing has happened in California as well because the legislature has overtaxed the legal stuff. The black market for weed will likely continue for one more generation and then go away as the old timers die off and the newer generations will simply accept the commercial product and say oh well, not having known anything different their entire lives. There will always be hobbyists who will grow their own the same as those who brew their own beer at home, but it will not impact the commercial market the way the present black market does.
Also, the farther we as a society move away from cash, that will kill the black market leaving it with only crypto currency available for transactions.
Price has jumped most in New Brunswick and least in B.C.
ââââââââââ-
My comment:
British Columbia is a tobacco/alcohol province despite the impression the media and the in-your-face pot protesters might give. Nevertheless, the black/grey market for cannabis is well established and as most of you on these fora can easily guess, it primarily consists of decentralized production and distribution networks.
Given the obstacles that BC social conservatives placed in the path of cannabis legalization, it is absolutely no surprise that the black market continues to flourish.
That may be the case for you, but here in the southeast US where it is still mostly illegal, the price has plummeted to less than half price and the quality has gone up as the supply of high grade legal is flooding the black market. For the past 3 or 4 years it is has been happy days for the old wallet!
Price has jumped most in New Brunswick and least in B.C.
ââââââââââ-
My comment:
British Columbia is a tobacco/alcohol province despite the impression the media and the in-your-face pot protesters might give. Nevertheless, the black/grey market for cannabis is well established and as most of you on these fora can easily guess, it primarily consists of decentralized production and distribution networks.
Given the obstacles that BC social conservatives placed in the path of cannabis legalization, it is absolutely no surprise that the black market continues to flourish.
