Oakland Jockeying to Tax Medical Weed
May 6th, 2009 by Russ
Oakland’s City Council is attempting to be the first municipality to profit from the sale of medical marijuana. Last week it passed a resolution to institute a 1.8% tax on future weed dispensary sales. City officials estimate that the tax could generate anywhere from $400,000 to $1 million dollars per year, and provide a huge boon to a faltering city balance sheet.
Unlike usual reactions to new taxes, this particular measure was welcomed and even sponsored by a delegation of weed providers.
Keith Stevens, director of the Purple Heart Patient Center, noted:
We wanted to further legitimize the medical-marijuana paradigm to show that we are truly willing to assist [Oakland], and to show other cities that there are social benefits to this.
And if this measure passes public muster in July, Oakland will certainly be fighting on the front lines to legitimize medical marijuana use as an acceptable and sanctioned practice.
Editorial: The Mainstream vs. Medical Marijuana
April 14th, 2009 by Aaron
If pot is hitting the mainstream, it’s safe to assume the ball began rolling in California. The Golden State has very lenient state laws regarding marijuana especially in regards to the medical kind. This liberal approach has created a cultural storm that Miss Mary Jane couldn’t be much happier about.
Weed has gotten so big and mainstream in California that you can now get a diploma at a certified cannabis university. Ain’t that something. Oaksterdam University in downtown Oakland, CA offers classes on horticulture, budtending, politics, legal issues and edible cooking.
Los Angeles is awash in marijuana dispensaries these days. It seems every day a new dispensary is opening somewhere in greater L.A. Unfortunately, it’s these shops, not the actual marijuana, that is causing some uproar among residents of certain communities. Some people feel some of these businesses are a little too brash, their storefronts displaying large marijuana leafs to entice customers.
Then again, as it always is with marijuana, the problem is the mentality and decision-making of certain individuals, and not the drug itself. It’s the guys who are too eager to cash in on the legalization of marijuana that can sometimes cause the wrong kind of stir. Residents of certain neighborhoods aren’t too excited about some marijuana growers aggressively planting hundreds of plants in their backyards and turning the neighborhood in to a full blown pot field.
But for $1.3 billion of legal tax revenue every year, California isn’t going to be outlawing the green lantern any time soon. In fact, if anything, the lawmakers in the Golden State are pushing even more legal loopholes for medical marijuana.
As I mentioned before, pot is mainstream, and it began in California. I can only see that ball continuing to roll across the United States all the way to it’s beautiful eastern shores.
[img via JesseWarren on flickr]
Dispensary Sells to Ineligible People, Gets Raided
February 26th, 2009 by PerryOakland Police Dept. raided a medical marijuana dispensary Friday, and on the premises found 16 guns and $16,000.
The department didn’t announce the raid of Lemon Drop Cafe on Telegraph Ave. until Tuesday, but the owner was arrested for selling marijuana to customers without the proper documentation.
Steven Smyrni, 36, is being held on $250,000 bail.
Police Bust Ecstasy Ring in NorCal
January 30th, 2009 by Perry
Wrapping up a series of raids Tuesday, police seized over more than 100 pounds (45 kg) of ecstacy with a street value of over $2 million. The amount of powder found in the series of labs around Northern California is thought to be enough to make 88,000 ecstasy pills.
The raids were part of a sting investigation that netted nine arrests aimed at shutting down a drug ring called “dangerous” by Attorney General Jerry Brown.
The seizures also included 23 pounds of psychedelic mushrooms and more than half a million dollars in cash, which was found in a different home. 30 pounds of marijuana said to be valued around $50,000, and what is thought to be LSD powder, was found in yet another house. The sting operation began on an anonymous tip to police about a potential drug lab, which then led to the surveillance that uncovered the drug coop.
The San Jose Mercury News also reported agents seized a .45-caliber handgun, thousands of dollars worth of chemicals, commercial-grade laboratory glassware and more than 100 gallons of toxic, poisonous and flammable liquids and solids. Hazardous chemicals and laboratory equipment filled 40 large barrels.
[img via Oakland Press]
They Finally Have a Weed College? Hooray!
September 30th, 2008 by PerryAfter years of prayer, it turns out someone was listening.
In Oakland, Ca., Oaksterdam University operates as America’s first official “Weed College” (apologies to Chico State and Humboldt).
Richard Lee, who by his own accord, has dedicated his life to the end of marijuana prohibition. He recently opened a university aimed at educated individuals on not only the legal aspects of marijuana cultivation and commerce, but also its history and movement. Described as part school and part political movement, the university is definitely something the informed smoker should know about.
