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Lawsuits in New York, other states threaten to shut pot legalization

Citizens in New York and Connecticut filed lawsuits against their states.  Among the three in New York:

1. Filed in New York Supreme Court:

It attacks the state rules on medical marijuana, marijuana product labeling and marijuana advertising. It is based on federal preemption as it violates federal law to have marijuana medicine, labeling and advertising. Marijuana is a Schedule I drug and cannot be used as medicine or advertised and labeled as medicine.
2. To be Filed in the New York Supreme Court:  This suit argues preemption in that the state cannot spend state taxes on setting up marijuana stores. This practice involves marijuana trafficking and money laundering.
3. To be Filed in the New York Supreme Court: A third lawsuit will argue that there is a state constitutional right to clean air that is violated by public marijuana smoking. Marijuana smoke is more dangerous than tobacco smoke; it is carcinogenic and causes allergic reactions.  (It’s ironic to think how hard it was to get tobacco smoke out of public places, only to find the smell of marijuana ubiquitous.)

Connecticut

Residents of Stamford, Connecticut filed a lawsuit aiming to shut down pot shops throughout the state.  The Stamford Neighborhoods Coalition is seeking an injunction in Superior Court to prohibit commercial cannabis operations, not just in the city, but in all of Connecticut.     The chief argument supporting the petition is that the 2021 legalization of marijuana in the state violated the federal Controlled Substances Act and should never have happened.The lawsuit also argues that legalization is a public safety issue, saying, “Siting cannabis facilities anywhere in Stamford necessarily increases criminal  activity in Stamford, putting children at greater risk.”

The Massachusetts Lawsuit

In Massachusetts, David Boies filed a lawsuit on behalf of cannabis companies suing Merrick Garland to overturn the federal status of marijuana.    This BIG MARIJUANA case seems frivolous and greedy next to the cases brought by local citizens.

We’ve heard that citizens of other states such as Minnesota may also take action against the pot industry.

The problem is that once a state legalizes, the industry overpowers local citizens and forces pot shops on communities.

In this battle, knowledge is our strongest weapon – science, data, and evidence.

 

Marijuana advertising lies, so where’s the outrage?

Billboards across the country advertise marijuana with false health claims that would never be allowed for tobacco or alcohol.  Big, bold and high (no pun intended), these signs help to sell the drug — while being seen by thousands of children.

Seen in Massachusetts

Why can’t state regulators stop these assaults on the public that attempt to portray weed as the road to a long life and better health?

Our answer: the cannabis industry which has legions of lobbyists in state governments — routinely prevails against sensible legislation. Only the states of Vermont and Montana ban billboard advertising. Most states struggle to regulate marijuana because the industry overpowers legislators with incredible promises.

Portland, Oregon

This sampling of billboards from around the country proves that the cannabis industry gets away with “murder” in legalization states.  It also proves that the ganjapreneurs, or so-called cannabis “doctors,” make fraudulent claims.  

Las Vegas

Quack Medicine and Phony Doctors

No ethical doctor would claim that cannabis is the road to a long and healthy life.  It’s about as medical as 100-proof alcohol.  Heavy, long-term cannabis users, like smokers and heavy drinkers, shorten their lives.   Even when some choose cannabis for palliative care, the drug doesn’t do anything comparable to real medicine.  Many with cancer try cannabis and reject it. Washington state

The “medical” marijuana industry’s false advertising began when they adopted a green cross, a pharmaceutical sign used in Europe.  The gimmick continued by using the term “dispensary, ” which means a clinic, or a room where medicine is dispensed.  Marijuana is numbness, not medicine.   Chicago in 2021

The pot industry understands addiction marketing.   In Chicago, 2021, Cresco Labs ran billboards repeating the word, EVERYDAY several times.   Of course, a public outcry followed.  

Marketing sex

After public outcry, an advertisement for cannabis-infused drinks near O’Hare Airport was replaced with something less sexual.

More recently, drivers into Chicago and O’ Hare Airport were greeted with a large billboard exclaiming that cannabis-infused drinks are better than SEX.  Big bold letters and hot red on a white background were used to capture attention.

A public outcry followed, with complaints written in the Chicago newspapers.  We’re happy to see that the sign was recently replaced,  but it still advertises for cannabis-infused drinks.

In Washington state, signs of pretty young women lure people into a pot shop called “Green Lady Marijuana.”

What about the Freebies?  

In Colorado, one billboard announced Free Dabs.   

Even worse, an activist group in Washington, DC,  gave out free marijuana with COVID shots.  The program was called “Joints for Jabs.”   Washington, DC, bans pot shops but allows gifting.

Most despicable are the advertising campaigns trying to get parents, and particularly women, to use weed.   Based on the number of child abuse deaths caused by pot-using parents and the knowledge that pregnant women must not use cannabis, these promoters must be stopped.

We may hate the cannabis industry, but give them credit for being some of the biggest con artists of our era — better than Big Tobacco and the opioid industry.

Have any complaints ever worked? 

Yes, a Colorado store with a mural of Cookie Monster from Sesame Street was forced to take it down after Sesame Street sued.  

Cookie Monster with pot cookies in Colorado, 2015.  A lawsuit forced the mural to be removed.

In California, a father complained the pot shops weren’t following the promise of Prop 64 not to advertise on interstate highways. He sued and won.

Editor’s Note:  Many of these signs are no longer visible, but the article is meant to alert the public of cannabis industry tactics.

Boycott CNN and pay no attention to Dr. Sanjay Gupta

We call for a boycott of Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s program, Weed 7, to be aired August 6, 2023, on CNN.  Dr. Gupta’s weed series has always been an aggressive attempt to sell the public on marijuana, even when the medical studies don’t support him.

For years Dr. Gupta has been supporting controversial medicines, such as Vioxx and the Gardasil shot.  He’s choosing to embroil himself in controversy again and ignore the pleadings of doctors and victims who’ve been harmed by cannabis.

The Parent Action Network (PAN) calls on parents to write CNN’s editors with objections to the program.  Continue reading Boycott CNN and pay no attention to Dr. Sanjay Gupta

New York’s wild weed sales prove “Biggest Fool Theory!”

Fly-by-night pot shops operate everywhere in New York City, with little attempt to stop them. A new state legislature was elected; so can a new crop of legislators put Pandora’s evils back into the box? Can the state admit failure and undo its reckless law which legalized cannabis?

Meanwhile, Canadians who invested in cannabis stocks and companies lost $131 billion dollars.  In Colorado, on November 30, it was reported that the cannabis industry has seen the largest downturn ever.   After three years of cannabis in Illinois, sales are flat, despite the addition of new licenses

So why did New York legislators fall for a failed policy?

It’s the Bigger Fool Theory:  If you bought say a gas station on the same corner where 6 other operators had failed, why would you do the same?  They may be fools, but you were the bigger fool.  New York is the biggest fool of all!   Officials should have known that the black market expands and can’t be controlled once you legalize pot.
Continue reading New York’s wild weed sales prove “Biggest Fool Theory!”