Government bureaucracies never die!!!!
The first speaker at the event was Marilinda Garcia who served a number of terms in the New Hampshire legislator.She said something like once a government bureaucracy is created it is NEVER temporary and always expands and grows like cancer.
And of course that is one reason we need to drive a stake thru the heart of the MPP initiative and kill it forever!!!
The MPP initiative will create several new government bureaucracies to regulate marijuana users. The initiative will create a new police department to arrest people involved with marijuana. The initiative will also be dolling out revenue from marijuana taxes to a number of other government agencies. And of course it will create a bunch of recreational marijuana stores which will make the owners millionaires with their government monopoly on growing and selling recreational marijuana in Arizona.
If the initiative passes, all of those government bureaucracies, government entities, government bureaucrats, and entities in the private sector will lobby to keep their horrible law alive. Not because the law is good, but because it steals money from us and gives it to their bureaucracy or entity.
And all those entities will be using money the state takes from us and gives to them to keep their evil laws in place.
It will be far more difficult to kill the new draconian marijuana laws created by the MPP initiative then it will be to kill the current evil marijuana laws.
JP Holyoak and MPP
The third speaker at the event was JP Holyoak who is involved with MPP or the Marijuana Policy Project. I think they said he is running the phoney baloney effort by MPP to legalize marijuana in Arizona.First JP Holyoak seems to have a vested financial interest in the MPP initiatve because in his talk he said he was involved in growing and selling medical marijuana.
And of course if the MPP law is passed JP Holyoak's dispensary will be grandfathered in and get one of a minimum of 85 government monopolies on growing and selling recreational marijuana. And of course that is almost certain to make JP Holyoak a millionaire.
MPP only fixes 5% of the problem.
In his talk somebody asked him a question and he said that the MPP initiative will only fix 5% of the Arizona's government "war on marijuana". Which means the remaining 95% of the problem will have to be fixed in the future.It's going to take MPP at least 2 years to pass their initiative, maybe longer.
If it takes them 2 years to fix 5% of the draconian laws on marijuana, it's going to take us the next 38 years to fix the other 95% of the problem with Arizona's draconian marijuana.
But that shouldn't bother JP Holyoak, because the law will probably allow him to make a million dollars or more during each of those 38 years the rest of us are fighting the other 95% of those laws.
The MPP initiative won't stop the black market
Somebody asked JP Holyoak how the Arizona MPP law compared to other marijuana laws.He said the Arizona MPP law is very close to the Colorado law, which I think was also passed by MPP.
He sad that in Colorado, 40% of the marijuana sales are made illegally on the black market.
And of course by saying that JP Holyoak admitted the MPP law will NOT stop all the crime caused by black market sales of marijuana.
If you ask me that is because with a measly 85 to 160 recreational marijuana stores the MPP law will allow, the stores will charge the rip off price of $300 an ounce, just like they do in Colorado and Washington, and the black market will flourish.
Both the RAD (Relegalize All Drugs) initiative and the AZfrm (Arizonans for Mindful Regulation) initiative will stop the black market cold in it's tracks.
The RAD initiative allows an unlimited number of recreational marijuana stores and the AZfrm initiative allows 1,600 stores. In both of those cases the free market will set the price of marijuana and the black market will be effectively eliminated.
JP Holyoak says you can't end the black market
JP Holyoak said something like you can end the black market for anything including alcohol.I thought that was a complete line of BS to sidestep the issued that the MPP recreational marijuana initiative will allow the black market to flourish, just like the MPP Prop 203 allows the black market to flourish for medical marijuana.
The only reason black markets exist is because government tyrants pass silly laws regulating things.
There isn't a black market for tomatoes or potatoes, and if the MPP initiative didn't tax the krap out of marijuana and limit the supply there would not be a black market for recreational marijuana.
Yes, there is a small black market for alcohol. But the only reason that black market exists is because the government makes it it illegal for teenagers to buy and consume alcohol. Completely legalize alcohol and the teenage black market will disappear.
The MPP marijuana police force
I asked JP Holyoak to explain how the MPP marijuana police force would work.I hoped he would tell us that the MPP created marijuana police force would be trolling the state of Arizona busting people who grow 7 plants of have 2.50001 ounces of marijuana for felony charges.
He is a very smart guy with a golden tongue and side stepped that issued.
He said something like the MPP created marijuana police would only be going after bad dispensaries or bad recreational marijuana stores.
Personally I suspect that his answer was 99% BS and that the MPP created marijuana police would be arresting marijuana users on felony charges, not the owners of the businesses that sell or grow marijuana.
But I am have not read or memorized the part of the MPP law that deals with the new marijuana police or marijuana law enforcement group so I didn't have anything to come back with.
Too bad Tom Dean wasn't there to help me debate the guy. In fact I think I mentioned Tom Dean's name when I raised the question.
JP Holyoak also admitted that the MPP initiative isn't going to stop the police for arresting people for victimless marijuana crimes.
Feel good BS about legalizing marijuana
His talk was a staged question and answer session where a woman, I think Nikki Burgess asked him pre-written questions.His talk was mostly feel good BS about legalizing marijuana.
His talk didn't address any of the issues on how the MPP law will be implemented or the details of the MPP law. It was mostly feel good reason on why marijuana should be legalized.
Any of use would have agreed with all the reasons. And we would not have disagreed with anything, because he didn't really address any of the issued on how the MPP law will be implemented.
Blamed all the flaws on POLLS!!!!!
When questions did arise about serious flaws in the MPP was were asked his standard response to the audience was toblame everything on the polls MPP takesIf you have heard Andrew Myers talk you always hear him rationalize the flaws in Prop 203 on the polls MPP takes.It hurts us in the polls
He blames the polls, which nobody can attack for all the flaws of Prop 203. The polls said the people would not vote for that ...
And of course since we don't know how these polls were taken or done we can't attack them. So the blame of the f*cked up MPP initiative are always blamed on the POLLS, not on the folks who wrote the sh*tty MPP laws.
Folks remember that. In the future when we debate, MPP, JP Holyolk and other people they are going to blame all the f*cked up stuff in their sh*tty initiative on the POLLS. So please somebody come up with a nice good argument that can sway people to our side.
JP Holyoak favors the RAD initiate?
While JP Holyoak didn't mention he said he would favor legalizing marijuana with a law that was a lot like the RAD initiative.But then he went on to say something like the voters would not pass that law at this time, and that is why we have to pass the phoney baloney MPP initiative to legalize marijuana.
At one point in his talk he said something like it's political reality vs a dreamworld.
That is true to some degree, but I suspect a huge number of people would favor a RAD type initiative.
Fighting JP Holyoak and MPP
From the talk I think we can kick the sh*t out of MPP and JP Holyoak if we attack the phoney baloney MPP initiative on how it is implements and compare it line for line to the AZfrm initiative.People are not dumb and when the details of how the MPP initiative are exposed people are quick to figure out its nothing but a government monopoly on recreational marijuana to make millionaires out of the dispensary owners.
Of course if you are doing to debate JP Holyoak and MPP, you need to be aware of the details of both laws. But if you know those details the AZfmr initiative will kick the sh*t out of the MPP initiative.
I would have loved to have 2 or 3 more people in that same room with me asking JP Holyoak pointed questions. We would have kicked his butt!!!
The opposition to MPP
In his talk JP Holyoak said most of the opposition to the MPP initiative was the right wing Christian nut jobs, and of course people like Sheila Polk.He didn't mention the fact that most of the marijuana community is against the MPP initiative.
The first time JP Holyoak used marijuana.
He gave us was sounded like a fantastic line of BS about his first time using medical marijuana.In fact he even claimed to have never used marijuana illegally.
Who knows, it could be true!!!
He said he has a medical marijuana card so that he can check out what the other medical marijuana dispensaries are doing. You know, go to their stores and spy on them pretending to be a medical marijuana customer.
That sounded like a line of BS because I thought you had to be SICK to get a medical marijuana card.
He gave us this fantastic story about how when he was playing cowboy he accidentally ate some medical marijuana brownies and liked them. Of course it wasn't illegal because he has that medical marijuana card.
He then said he tried smoking medical marijuana and couldn't handle the smoke. So he switched to a vaporizer and uses that all the time.
Maybe it's true. But I sure am skeptical.
Comments from Møther Bud on Facebook!!!
I don't know if this is a real comment on Facebook or somebody that just created an bogus ID and left it to muddle things up.On Facebook Møther Bud posted some comments that follow.
Here is a question I asked Møther Bud.
If Møther Bud's comments are true then JP Holyoak certainly either mislead me about the marijuana police force that the MPP initiative wants to create or side stepped the question and didn't fully answer it!!!!
Møther Bud - Are you saying those are PROPOSED laws for ARS 36-2854 under the phoney baloney MPP initiative to legalize marijuana?If that's true it's another damn good reason to tell the folks that are pushing the MPP initiative and shove it!!!!And if they are PROPOSED laws, then this new Arizona Marijuana Police Department will be arresting people who use marijuana for victimless marijuana crime???
Here are the comments that Møther Bud left. They were pictures rather then text.
E. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ENFORCE THE LAWS AND RULES RELATING TO THE PRODUCTION, MANUFACTURE, TRANSPORTATION, SALE, STORAGE, DISTRIBUTION AND TESTING OF MARIJUANA AND MARIJUANA PRODUCTS AND SHALL CONDUCT INVESTIGATIONS OF COMPLIANCE WITH THIS CHAPTER, INCLUDING THE INSPECTION OF MARIJUANA ESTABLISHMENTS AND THE EXAMINATION OF BOOKS, RECORDS AND PAPERS OF ANY MARIJUANA ESTABLISHMENT AS NECESSARY TO ENFORCE THIS CHAPTER OR RULES ADOPTED PURSUANT TO THIS CHAPTER. ANY ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT WHO IS DESIGNATED BY THE DIRECTOR SHALL, FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES, HAVE CREDENTIALS SIGNED BY THE DIRECTOR AND COUNTERSIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR AND, WHEN BEARING THESE CREDENTIALS, HAS THE POWER AND DUTIES OF A PEACE OFFICER. THE DEPARTMENT SHALL TAKE STEPS NECESSARY TO MAINTAIN EFFECTIVE LIAISON WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND ALL LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES IN THE ENFORCEMENT OF THIS CHAPTER.
F. THE DIRECTOR SHALL ESTABLISH WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT AN INVESTIGATIONS UNIT WHICH HAS AS ITS RESPONSIBILITY THE INVESTIGATION OF COMPLIANCE WITH THIS CHAPTER INCLUDING THE INVESTIGATION OF LICENSEES ALLEGED TO HAVE SOLD OR DISTRIBUTED MARIJUANA OR MARIJUANA PRODUCTS TO A PERSON WHO IS UNDER TWENTY-ONE YEARS OF AGE AND INVESTIGATIONS OF UNLICENSED PERSONS WHEN THERE IS PROBABLE CAUSE TO BELIEVE THAT THE PERSON SOLD OR OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED MARIJUANA OR MARIJUANA PRODUCTS IN EXCHANGE FOR ANYTHING OF VALUE, ADVERTISED OR PROMOTED THE SALE OR TRANSFER OF MARIJUANA OR MARIJUANA PRODUCTS OR SOLD OR OTHERWISE TRANSFERRED MARIJUANA OR MARIJUANA PRODUCTS WHERE THE TRANSACTION IS SUBJECT TO PUBLIC VIEW WITHOUT THE USE OF BINOCULARS, AIRCRAFT OR OTHER OPTICAL AIDS. INVESTIGATIONS CONDUCTED BY THIS UNIT MAY INCLUDE COVERT UNDERCOVER INVESTIGATIONS.