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PRETTY LONG RANT

4K views 88 replies 23 participants last post by  sean4570 
#1 ·
I’m just curious if this is a local thing or is it happening across the whole country?
In September you can’t even go outside because it reeks of weed. 10 years ago, a large pot bust was 30 plants. Now they are cutting down grows of illegal weed with 10s of 1000s of plants. These things grow to over 10 feet tall and produce over 10 lbs of dried, trimmed buds each.
I first got my concealed permit about 30 years ago, so I could legally carry a loaded firearm home in my vehicle after a day of hunting. Now I am compelled to carry daily. A wrong turn in some local areas could literally cost you your life. There are Russian, Chinese, and Mexican Drug Cartels that rule large parts of Southern Oregon. Human trafficking, slave labor- the stuff you see on the local news is unreal. Greenhouses, hoop houses and large fields almost everywhere. Now there are varieties that flower year round .The rumor is that even large companies like RJ Reynolds have jumped on the Bandwagon. People busted from Dallas, Detroit, Philadelphia for transporting.
What are they doing with all this stuff? Is the whole country smoking weed from Southern Oregon and Northern California? Or is this stuff just being grown everywhere now?
Rant over
Fred
 

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#9 ·
Certainly I am an expert. I did grow up In the Rogue Valley during the 70’s.
The Point is: the quality of life here has taken a drastic turn for the worse since the legalization of marijuana.
Right after today’s COVID story, KTVL reports on the latest murder, warehouse explosion, kidnapping, et all, that is related to the drug problems here. Local sheriff have asked the governor to send in the National Guard. It has gotten bad and is getting worse…
 
#3 ·
It's pretty much legal in Missouri with a medical card and growers card so I don't think Missouri is buying Commiefornia or Oregon grass. Ten pounds a plant? Please
And no I don't partake but have friends that do it legal.
 
#10 ·
It's legal in MI for small amounts I think an ounce or two (recreational) no card needed.
A guy down the street from one of my rentals says he buys his from a person in Ohio, he says its better quality and less expensive (no tax).
So its possible others are doing the same.

The hood rats in Detroit are robbing the dope stores and killing people.

A couple examples if hood rats doing their thing.


 
#4 ·
I'm with @Sr40ken here. From a miss-spent youth, I can tell you "maybe" 1/2 pound per plant of the stuff you keep. It should be legal in all 50 states. Alcohol is an order of magnitude worse than weed. The hypocrites preach from their pulpit when they get drugs from people in white coats.

No, I no longer partake ONLY because I am subject to random and routine invasions of my privacy when they ask me to piss in a cup. It goes with my job.

The left has this one right.
 
#5 ·
yes, it is becoming a bigger deal nationwide. a plant may weigh 10lbs, but not 10 lbs of smokeable weed. I am not an authority but I know some, and I tend to keep up with laws and history just because I am kind of nerdy. I was an old hippie during the woodstock era, and I served in the Navy (submarines, Nuclear weapons) after, so not always on one side of politics. It does surprise me that the state is not taking a closer look up there, but also not surprised. There are some laws about gun ownership and weed though. can't buy a gun if you have a medical MJ card. if you have a CCW and get caught with weed, you lose it, and a prosecutor might try to say you were then "illegally" carrying a weapon too.
Reminds me of a thing that happened in the Navy in the late 70's. In the 70's in Hawaii. I would bet 80-90% smoked it while there, including officers. No drug test for it at that point. the Navy got on just after while I was in; and most guys quit. Any way I was talking to a bunch of the guys I had been in class with and they smoked weed. I did not care what they did on their own time, but not at work, is my attitude. so I warned them if I caught them smoking at sea on the sub, I would bust them. they looked at me and said "Not Cool". I said wrong, what is not cool is smoking weed working with nuclear weapons on a submarine. We did work on the weapons/Birds we called them. So they did not run around with me after work, but I did not care about that.
What is going on in your area; that would really would scare me too. the weedheads don't bother me, but the guys who grow it and the money involved can be scary people. Some normal people grow too, to be fair. But they cannot legally deposit the money in a bank and they are still required to pay the income tax on the profit. A lot of cash is laying around those people too. So if some are not paying taxes, then again, scary people.
Don't carry a dinky gun, and a 9mm might not stop some of the crazies either coming at you, they will not be a standing in one place target. carry a few clips too. What you are describing I would want a .45 with extra mags or those things for fast loading a revolver. Might need to wear suspenders to keep your pants up too.
Here is an article on it about some laws and weed:
https://leafwell.com/blog/can-you-own-a-gun-with-a-medical-marijuana-card/
 
#6 ·
I am going to get in again before this thread gets nuked. A few key points....

1 - alcohol makes many violent. It can kill you if too much is consumed.
2 - weed makes you passive. You might smoke yourself to sleep, but you will wake up feeling great.
3 - weed stays in your body for up to a month. If you get tested like I do, you just have to quit.
4 - alcohol is gone from your body in a day. You can be a functioning alcoholic and stay under the radar.

The left has this right.
 
#12 ·
It also can be detected even longer in a hair sample doing a DNA test IF they really want to dig deeper.

I'm also and have been in the random drug testing group from my job. Retired now but do still work part time on call now and then, so still in the random testing group. Money is too good and easy to mess that up. Also easy sitting in a wheel loader all day loading trucks or moving equipment around to different sights.

Jobs are out there, but many people can't pass the drug test to get hired. Go figure....:rolleyes:
 
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#7 ·
as it has been stated, i can't answer your question but the building i work in has been sought out by a medical mary jane distribution facility ... building owner not sure if anything will become of it but you just never know ...
 
#13 ·
Just my 2 cents for what it’s worth and I live in southern Oregon, and have seen some absolutely GIANT plants.......more like trees really and it’s NOT hemp.
10 lbs per plant easily.......of quality flower.
Im talking talking stalks that are 6 inches in diameter.
No I don’t partake, but did long long ago.........in a previous lifetime.
 
#14 ·
I'm thinking at least 30% of the population smokes pot. Let's say that is 90 million people, let's say half of them smoke an ounce of weed every two weeks, the other 45 million smoke an ounce a month.

45 million ounces twice a month = 2,812,500 ounces X 2 = 5,625,000 ounces.
45 million ounce once per month = 2,812,500 ounces.
That's 8,437,500 ounces of pot consumed per month. If you divide that number by 16 ounces = 1lbs, that's 527,343.75 lbs of pot per month. Any way you look at it that is a shit load of weed. If you look at the $250.00 average price per ounce, that's a 2 plus billion dollar monthly business per month.

The unsavory people that started all this when everything was illegal is not going to leave the business now that it is becoming legal. I think you folks out there on the left coast are gong to see an ugly storm coming as the cartel moves freely into the US. It's a hell of a thing what's really going on in all areas of our country.
 
#17 ·
Thanks guys for keeping it civil so far.

@fjetson, you have my sympathy. I know more about it than I want. My wife and I led a fight (successfully) to keep grow operations out of our township. We know that legalization in Michigan is a done deal, but the grow operations don’t belong everywhere. The operations that tried to move into my township is now in an industrial park. We did not want the crime that the industry brings in our community and we wanted to be able to do things like go outside without smelling the grow operations. I also just scheduled the drug test guys to come in next week to do my Q4 random drug test for my DOT guys (and if you are not familiar with the DOT clearing house, it is one reason for the driver shortage, but that is another conversation). Point is, the OP is 100% correct in his rant, the grow operations have a drastic negative effect on the quality of life in the community they set up shop.
It is also inevitable that it will become legal. I think the biggest obstacle to that is there are reliable tests to determine usage, but not impairment and once that test is developed, full legalization will be inevitable, regardless of your personal view. So the states that have “legalized” it (not really, see federal law) have put the cart before the horse in that regard. But one thing that is feeding The OP’s rant is the municipalities and states have gotten greedy with the idea of all this tax revenue generated. Sad thing is, most places have taxes legal pot so much to try to cash in, it’s still cheaper to buy black market pot tax free, which also further fuels the crime and quality of life impacts. So OP, I feel your pain. My community fought hard to recall and replace a corrupt township board to make sure what you are seeing never can happen in my community. Surrounding communities that did not do what we did have approached us to see how we did what we did and are regretting letting the grow operations set up shop, but once they are there, it’s hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube.
 
#25 ·
Thanks guys for keeping it civil so far.

@fjetson, you have my sympathy. I know more about it than I want. My wife and I led a fight (successfully) to keep grow operations out of our township. We know that legalization in Michigan is a done deal, but the grow operations don’t belong everywhere. The operations that tried to move into my township is now in an industrial park. We did not want the crime that the industry brings in our community and we wanted to be able to do things like go outside without smelling the grow operations. I also just scheduled the drug test guys to come in next week to do my Q4 random drug test for my DOT guys (and if you are not familiar with the DOT clearing house, it is one reason for the driver shortage, but that is another conversation). Point is, the OP is 100% correct in his rant, the grow operations have a drastic negative effect on the quality of life in the community they set up shop.
It is also inevitable that it will become legal. I think the biggest obstacle to that is there are reliable tests to determine usage, but not impairment and once that test is developed, full legalization will be inevitable, regardless of your personal view. So the states that have “legalized” it (not really, see federal law) have put the cart before the horse in that regard. But one thing that is feeding The OP’s rant is the municipalities and states have gotten greedy with the idea of all this tax revenue generated. Sad thing is, most places have taxes legal pot so much to try to cash in, it’s still cheaper to buy black market pot tax free, which also further fuels the crime and quality of life impacts. So OP, I feel your pain. My community fought hard to recall and replace a corrupt township board to make sure what you are seeing never can happen in my community. Surrounding communities that did not do what we did have approached us to see how we did what we did and are regretting letting the grow operations set up shop, but once they are there, it’s hard to put the toothpaste back in the tube.
In Virginia, they legalized possesion of less than an oz, & will let you raise up to 4 plants for personal use. Full legalization is supposed to happen in 2024. You are so tight about what has to be done before legalization. Drug test limits, driving limits, & the list goes on.
 
#18 ·
Part of the reason the weed industry brings crime with it, is that they have limited ways to handle the money. I would no more want to live near a grow operation than a distillery. It needs to be zoned properly. We also need to quit wrecking lives throwing people in jail over it and re-task the Police to find and fight real crime.

To a certain extent, I feel the same way about opioids. When the government cracked down on prescription pain meds, fentanyl sprang up. So we go from a drug with predictable effects to a game of Russian roulette with the illegal street drugs that filled the void. Drug use/abuse is a social problem and not a legal one.

Just like prohibition, the war on drugs is doomed to fail.
 
#20 ·
Regarding The Cartels and weed operations and crime, etc.
Yes, there are organized groups (cartels if you will, some gangs) doing large scale illegal grows in Oregon. But a VAST majority of their product is shipped out of state, mainly east. Marijuana here in Oregon is just plain CHEAP! $2 grams and $50 ounces.

Compare that to early 80s prices of $300-400/ounce...........factor in inflation, etc over the last 40 years..........and its plain to see that at least on the West Coast, the market has eroded to the point that MANY long tome growers, especially in the golden triangle area of NorCal and many parts of Oregon have simply thrown in the towel. It’s too hard to make a profit.

What is driving the weed growing market, and it’s something that worries me, is the market for super strong smokeable and edible THC, whether it’s oil, or “shatter”, or highly potent hash, or other new stuff I don’t even know about.
That concerns me, because it’s too strong imho.
It’s one thing to take a few hits off a joint of 12% THC weed.
It’s something entirely different to eat some 20% THC edible and chase it with 5 bong rips of 25% THC weed.
I’ve seen and know folks who use strong weed products regularly. They say marijuana is not addictive.
Eh.........I beg to differ. Chronic users are “hooked”............. maybe not like a meth or heroin addict, but still need that weed in order to function in the manner they like. If they don’t get it, they are grumpy, moody, bitchy, short tempered, irritable, etc.
just my opinions of course...
 
#21 ·
@Scswolf

Weed is not physically addictive like other drugs and alcohol. You do not suffer physical withdrawal symptoms. You are correct though, you can become psychologically dependent on it to an extent. In this regard, it is safer than alcohol.

High potency weed is not new. I know a guy....yeah, that's it......that grew a couple plants indoors for his own use. He got very good at it.

The edibles are a little different. The guy I know, has no experience with them.
 
#24 ·
I'm pretty much a libertarian.
Personally, I think once people reach the age of majority, they should be free to eat/take/smoke whatever they want.
We are supposed to be a free people, right?

Alcohol, Marijuana, whatever, even fentanyl,
if they want to kill themselves, I believe they have that right.

One thing I do find interesting is that the war on tobacco was basically waged due to inhaling a carcinogen,
but smoking marijuana apparently is carcinogen free.
 
#26 ·
It's no telling how much money was invested this year in Virginia to grow "personal pot". I've heard guys talkin about ordering special dirt online, special pots to grow it in, & the list goes on, & most of these people have never grown anything in their life. So far it seems that the guys selling the supplies are doin pretty good, LOL.
 
#28 ·
I’m just curious if this is a local thing or is it happening across the whole country?
The rumor is that even large companies like RJ Reynolds have jumped on the Bandwagon.
What are they doing with all this stuff? Is the whole country smoking weed from Southern Oregon and Northern California? Or is this stuff just being grown everywhere now?
Well, I'm sorry, it looks like this thread has provided some of the answers to your questions.

Big tech has been suppressing stories about the numbers of people who have had adverse reactions to professionally produced cannabis, in the name of a falsely claimed greater good. The science does not validate the greater good that they're citing as the rationale for suppressing stories of adverse reactions.

It's not surprising that big tech would choose to suppress this information. Big tech has performed market research for the purpose of making internet "news" and forums as addictive as possible. Because of this intention, big tech executives do not allow their own children unsupervised access to the internet.
 
#30 ·
It's everywhere. Of course I live in The People's Socialist Republic of Kalifornia and my comrades have legalized it here as the opiate of the masses. So while they're high, they won't care about all their rights being taken away. I hate the smell of it. I can't even go out in my backyard in the evenings without smelling it!
 
#33 ·
95000 die from alcohol each year. 28% of traffic fatalities are from alcohol. And who knows how many families members live in torture because of it. But some have to pick pot for thier fight. Highly selective I would suggest.
 
#35 ·
We understand that you're not using evil as a justification for even greater evils.

Since you're evidently advocating prohibition of something that's always been part of civilization, and has become a constitutional issue, I'll have to cite text, history, and tradition. The last time prohibition was tried, it was used as a diversionary tactic, as an excuse to attack the Second Amendment.

Text, history, and tradition are not the only relevant contexts. Also of relevance are the subjects on which big tech has been suppressing stories about the numbers of people who have had adverse reactions, in the name of a falsely claimed greater good. The science does not validate the greater good that they're citing as the rationale for suppressing stories of adverse reactions.

It's not surprising that big tech would choose to practice selective suppression of adverse events, since it allows them to get anything they want via apples-and-oranges comparisons.

The smokescreen big tech maintains on the subject of causation diverts attention away from market-researched engineering of their "news" and forum platforms to be as addictive as possible. Yet big tech executives do not allow their own children unsupervised use of their "essential" platforms.
 
#36 ·
I think bottom line is, people drank booze during prohibition, & it created a lot of millionaires , & didn't stop people from drinking, that wanted to. People have smoked pot every since it has been illegal, & this has also created a lot of millionaires. Money being spent to stop or slow down the illegal pot business is money pretty much money pissed away.
 
#37 ·
Both weed and alcohol affect people in negative ways, positive ways, and some in destructive ways to themselves or others. Weed perhaps should be legalized, taxed, regulated to the same level as alcohol, cigarettes. It should also have the same laws pertaining to where it can be consumed, activities that can be performed while under its influence, or potential. If you can smoke weed while walking down the street, so should you be allowed to drink.

In most states not only is it illegal to drive while intoxicated, it is also illegal to have an open container, or to drink while driving. The same should exist for weed or any other mind altering (temporary or otherwise) substance.

If you go to work intoxicated by alcohol your company can and should take action. Go to work smelling of weed or every other word is “Dude”, the same actions should apply.

Second hand smoke from cigarettes is a medical issue, social issue and so is second hand weed smoke (Both are disgusting habits). Never heard of second hand beer drinking being a problem (other than perhaps obnoxious behavior).

It is still a worthwhile task for border patrol, coast guard, etc to slow the never ending flow of drugs from entering the country.

my 2 cents.
 
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