Monday, October 17
To my friends and colleagues in the medical cannabis industry:
I believe the time has come for us to form a state-wide trade association of cannabis collectives, and lend my voice to others calling for its formation.
The events of early October have made it clear that the Obama administration has decided to specifically target Californias medical cannabis industry, and comes on the heels of similar attacks in Montana and Michigan. With several federal government agenciesIRS, Treasury, ATF, DOJinvolved in launching coordinated attacks, our industry has never faced such challenging times. The entire amazing system of legal, regulated cannabis distribution that we have developed is under threat, along with all the jobs and tax revenue we have extracted from the illegal market. Licensed dispensaries, laboratory tested medicine, cbd-rich medicine, local and state tax revenues, family farms, and thousands and thousands of jobs are all at stake.
It is a time to come together; a time to pool our assets; to assemble our brightest minds; and to carefully develop and deploy a winning strategy. Clearly, we cannot do that on our own, one dispensary at a time. Our only hope lies in coming together.
Over the years, we have seen several previous efforts to create a broad based trade association, but none has been successful so far. In my view, the main stumbling block has been suspicion of competitors, and the existence of several smaller, more local trade associations. If we could ever afford that type of division, the time has surely passed. With our very survival at stake, we must call on our better selves, assume good intention on the part of our fellow activists and businesspeople, reach across whatever divides us, and come together now.
I stand ready to support such an organization in any way I can.
Regards,
Steve DeAngelo
Executive Director
