A cannabis plant growing in northern California. (Photo: King Dragon, via Shutterstock)The headlines were attention-grabbing; some were scary: “What will your mother say when she finds your corpse?” “The weed with roots in hell.” “Assassin of Youth.” They were, of course, all about marijuana. Movie producers discovered they could sell more tickets if their advertisements promised audiences lots of dissolute youth.
An indoor cannabis farm in California. (Photo: Mitch M., via Shutterstock)OPINION: California’s legal cannabis industry is in a state of disarray. The market is chaotic, the regulatory landscape is in a constant state of flux, and at the same time, the black market continues to flourish. Consumers find themselves with limited access to quality and safe products as businesses struggle to stay afloat and keep up with a moving target.
In this Oct. 17 photo, Marcos Morales, co-founder of the cannabis company Legion of Bloom, stands on the ruins of a state-of-the-art drying shed in Glen Ellen, Calif., where 1,600 pounds of ready-to-ship cannabis were destroyed in a fire. (Associated Press/Paul Elias)It’s being called the Wine Country Fire, but the fatal October fires that blackened nearly 200,000 acres across Northern California might also be called the Cannabis Country Fire. While most of the coverage has focused on damage to the losses of homes, business structures and the wine industry, marijuana growers were also hit hard.
Californians who thought Tuesday’s election would mark a dramatic change in the state’s culture and social fabric were right – half right. Anti-death penalty forces believed Election Day would be a game-changer. Nope. Marijuana advocates thought the same. Yep.
Photo illustration: Thomas Pajot, via Shutterstock.PPIC: Majorities of California’s likely voters strongly support three of four key ballot measures on Nov. 8, including marijuana legalization, a tax increase extension and a new tax on tobacco, according to a new survey by the Public Policy Institute of California. Support for the fourth measure surveyed, a $9 billion borrowing for school construction, was far more narrow and within the survey’s margin of error.