Homeless in Arizona

A Plea Deal, For MPP.

July 8, 2015 at 4:53pm

The following is an email from Heather Azzi, credited with being the final author of the 2016 Tax & Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol campaign's Arizona draft, or in short, the "recreational use" marijuana law currently being pushed in your state. Please read the contents carefully, they are very telling.

"Hello everyone,

I waited as long as I could for feedback from the Legislative Council’s office (in the Arizona government) for their feedback on the initiative draft they reviewed for us. Unfortunately, they missed their deadline and I am still waiting. They have indicated that we will have their suggested edits to us by the end of the week, so in order to keep us on schedule, I went ahead and edited our last draft to incorporate the changes that were agreed to just over two weeks ago. It is attached.

Most basically, the initiative will:

- Allow individuals to consume, purchase, and cultivate a limited amount of marijuana [Why the f*ck do you want people in Arizona to only be able to consume, purchase, and cultivate a LIMITED amount of marijuana??? If we are going to legalize marijuana lets make it UNLIMITED amounts. What's the problem with you idiots at MPP? Don't you want to really legalize marijuana? Nope, I bet you want to create a monopoly for the few stores that are granted licenses to grow and sell marijuana so you can make them into millionaires!!!]

- Provide for regulation of the market by a new Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control, modeled after the Department of Liquor Licenses and Control [Why the f*ck do you want to create a government bureaucracy to regulate marijuana??? I though we were talking about LEGALIZING marijuana???]

- Establish a new tax on retail marijuana sales of 15% and direct the revenue for construction, maintenance, and operation of public schools [Why the f*ck do you want to tax the krap out of marijuana users? A 15% tax is outrageous!!!!]

- Limit the number of marijuana retailers to 10% of the number of class 9 liquor licenses [What the f*ck do you want to limit the number of marijuana stores??? I bet you want to create a government monopoly that will make millionaires out of the 160 stores that will get pot licenses? ]

- Provide for preferential treatment for existing medical marijuana businesses based on their experience complying with Arizona’s medical marijuana law while maintaining some opportunity for new small businesses to enter the market. [So you want to limit the number of recreational marijuana stores to the current stores that sell medical marijuana. I bet that is so the existing medical marijuana stores will also have a monopoly on selling recreational marijuana]

Over the last several months, MPP has made several amendments to this initiative at the request of the medical marijuana businesses in Arizona(1). While we do not believe that all of them were the best policy or the best politics for Arizona,(2) the changes were made in the spirit of compromise and we have done our best to make all the various policy changes consistent with our agreements.(3)

If you catch any mistakes or have any feedback for us, please direct it to Carlos Alfaro (Calfaro@mpp.org) by the end of the day on Friday and we will be sure to consider it over the weekend. Note that this draft has not been reviewed by a proofreader and may contain a few typos. Please excuse any that you see.

Also, there are 5 remaining edits that Kurt and JP requested we make to the initiate that we did not agree about a few weeks ago.(4) Kurt and I agreed to discuss the issues further with our colleagues and revisit them. I have not made any edits to the initiative to address these issues yet and we should be sure to discuss them soon. The 5 issues are:

1. Prohibiting home cultivation until January 1, 2018 [I bet the intent of that is to make millionaires out of the people that will be granted recreational marijuana monopolies. You want to force people to buy from the stores that sell recreational pot, and throw them in prison if they cut into your profits by growing their own!!!]

2. Providing the Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control with authority to have AZ-POST certified employees [AZ POST is a big word for letting the police be involved with your phoney baloney attempt to legalize marijuana. AZ POST stands for Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training. I think this is the part where the MPP initiative creates a special police force to arrest people for marijuana crimes. Are you guys at MPP f*cking NUTS!!!!! I though you wanted to LEGALIZE marijuana]

3. Expressly authorizing co-branding and co-mingling of medical marijuana businesses and adult-use businesses

4. A “death penalty” in addition to the mandamus action and the local licensing back up that will allow medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling products to the adult-use market if businesses are not licensed before January 1, 2019

5. Allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to apply for licenses 60 days before competitors to give them extra protection during the licensing process [Again I think this is about giving a government monopoly on growing and selling recreational marijuana to the existing medical marijuana dispensaries which will bankroll the phoney baloney MPP initiative to legalize marijuana. Man you folks at MPP seem to be punching below the belt!!!!]

MPP does still intend to follow through with tour schedule. I plan to review and incorporate any edits suggested by the Legislative Council over the weekend (and to have it proofread) and to file the initiative with the Secretary of State sometime next week.

Thank you all for your work on this,

Heather Azzi

Marijuana Policy Project

So, what have we learned from this email?

(1) "at the request of the medical marijuana businesses in Arizona" the current mmj dispensaries didn't like what MPP was bringing with them and wanted changes.

(2) "While we do not believe that all of them were the best policy or the best politics for Arizona, " MPP doesn't agree with the changes but

(3) "the changes were made in the spirit of compromise and we have done our best to make all the various policy changes consistent with our agreements" MPP bent over regardless of their own beliefs and drafted in what the businesses here were asking for

(4) "Also, there are 5 remaining edits that Kurt and JP requested we make to the initiate that we did not agree about a few weeks ago." Here you have the 'big-dogs' of the industry JP and Kurt requesting more changes (generally meaning they are paying more than everyone else to be able to speak up about anything additional outside the aforementioned "businesses")

Let's look at these requests very closely people, very closely;

1. Prohibiting home cultivation until January 1, 2018.

-Ask yourselves why would they care if you grew your own before they got a chance to start selling theirs to you? Remember they will also gain control of the medical program under this new law. [I know both of the Jasons have said the MPP initiative allows the recreational marijuana stores to take over the medical marijuana program and modify Prop 203. I bet the is about that!!!!]

2. Providing the Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control with authority to have AZ-POST certified employees. [Again AZ POST means getting the POLICE involved. AZ POST stands for Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training. Remember the POLICE are the PROBLEM. The police LOVE the "War on Drugs" and the "War on Marijuana" because it is a jobs program for cops!!!!!]

-Ok, an AZ-POST certified employee, what is that exactly? Look here for your answer... https://post.az.gov/ [AZ POST stands for Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training]

"Created by an act of the 28th Arizona legislature on July 1, 1968 The Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board stands to foster public trust and confidence by establishing and maintaining standards of integrity, competence, and professionalism for Arizona peace officers and correctional officers. We are committed to producing and maintaining the most professional law enforcement officers in America. " or in short "the most professional law enforcement officers in America". [I suspect that is 100% BS. I think this is an attempt to get the POLICE to vote for the law, because it means the POLICE will still get to arrest people for victimless marijuana crimes. And arresting people for victimless marijuana crimes is the BREAD and BUTTER of police work!!!]

Authority of law and law enforcement officers ladies and gentlemen. Ask yourselves, based on the track record of these same individuals petitioning the media and police to go out and raid and incarcerate any perceived competition they had under the AMMA, is this what you want to happen in 2016?

3. Expressly authorizing co-branding and co-mingling of medical marijuana businesses and adult-use businesses

- I have no problem with this and could care less

4. A “death penalty” in addition to the mandamus action and the local licensing back up that will allow medical marijuana dispensaries to begin selling products to the adult-use market if businesses are not licensed before January 1, 2019

Another preference for the MMJ dispensaries that would allow them to lawfully operate regardless of any legal challenge pending in a court room as a result of the new law, similar to what we saw in 2010 with the AMMA. [Because of this verbage I suspect they know much of the phoney baloney MPP law to legalize marijuana in Arizona is UNCONSTITUTIONAL]

5. Allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to apply for licenses 60 days before competitors to give them extra protection during the licensing process.

Not really a big deal, and they should get some kind of "dibs" simply because they have an established supply capability, but what are the "extra protection" options already on top of is what you should be asking.

I put this info out there to accomplish two things; first to establish once and for all just who the "bad guys" are and are not.

MPP clearly planned on coming to AZ as part of their "tour" for 2016 with or without the dispensaries, and then the dispensaries essentially hi-jacked the initiative that MPP was bringing during the initial negotiations over the "few months" mentioned by Azzi in her email. Then on top of whatever compromises were made on behalf of MPP, these few wanted additional sections drafted in that would not strengthen their current monopoly, it would forever engrave it into Arizona's future. You see, under the new initiative the AZMLC they seek to form would not only have AZ-POST certified professionals at their disposal, not only would they have the power to alter the AMMA rules and regulations without question or opportunity for redress, not only would it accomplish those tasks but it would give them the ability to determine if additional marijuana businesses were ever "necessary" or needed.

After hearing their intent above in Heather's email, after seeing it with your own eyes Arizona, is there any question as to whether or not this new absolute power would be corrupt? That it would eventually corrupt absolutely? Do you really think the three kings with the keys to the castle vault are ever going to open the doors for anyone else? Ever?! History tells us the answer to that as well.

RAMMP does not and will not support the current version of MPP's initiative, as they themselves have told us we shouldn't. RAMMP would rather you contact MPP and ask them to withdraw their current initiative or as an option offer their support in minimal fashion the the AZFMR campaign which severely resembles the MPP initiative minus the oligarchy protections and potential for consumer felonies and it adds a few more consumer protections and opens the market up for more industries to emerge and thrive, while still maintaining respect for those in the MMJ industry looking to also enter the adult use industry here in Arizona.

Write Rob Kampia a message and tell him you want MPP's support in Arizona but NOT for an initiative that even they don't think is the best thing for Arizona! https://www.facebook.com/rob.kampia

While you're at it, you might want to stop shopping at: https://www.facebook.com/arizonanaturalselections?fref=ts

That little butterfly is a slap in the face to you AZ, start connecting the dots before you get burried under them and can't dig your way out with all the advocacy in the world.

Anyone remember how we the community would oust a dealer with questionable buds on the block?? You would tell your friends or they would tell you, hey don't buy from that guy. If the intent of someone is not aligned with yours, why support them?!

well...

what are you waiting for?

Bill Hayes