05-31-2008, 03:39 AM
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Machiavelli Incarnate
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Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Merrimack, NH
Posts: 4,408
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The Next Big Thing: POT
Quote:
Legitimizing Marijuana
By DAN MITCHELL
Published: May 31, 2008
JANE WELLS of CNBC keeps a blog called Funny Business, but her recent reports on California’s medical marijuana industry are about a business that is increasingly being taken seriously. They amount to a short primer on how the business works and how the operators of the state’s estimated 500 dispensaries deal with the high risks and high costs of working in a legal gray area (cnbc.com).
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Alex Eben Meyer
Medical marijuana is legal in California, but federal law still bans sales. Amid the uncertainty that this creates — including the occasional raid by federal agents — a full-fledged industry has blossomed, taking in about $2 billion a year and generating $100 million in state sales taxes, CNBC reported.
Setting up a clinic “can cost as much as a hundred grand,” Ms. Wells reports. The equipment, the cuttings from which plants are grown and office space all tend to be expensive. And from there, the costs only grow, mostly in the form of legal fees. Many clinics keep lawyers on retainer.
Nonetheless, “this is the business model of the future,” says JoAnna La Force of Farmacy, an herbal remedy shop in Southern California. Ms. LaForce says her business is close to breaking even (medicalmarijuanafarmacy.com).
A slew of ancillary businesses has grown up around medical marijuana. Bill Britt, identified on the Web site as a patient, has found a new career as an expert witness in cases brought against dispensaries and patients, earning $250 to $350 a case.
He gained his expert knowledge by attending Oaksterdam University, a trade school in Oakland, Calif. At Oaksterdam (oaksterdamuniversity.com), students learn everything from “The Politics of Cannabis” to botany to business operations.
Getting into the quasi-legitimate marijuana business is a challenge, says Jeff Jones, chancellor of Oaksterdam’s Los Angeles campus. But, he adds, “The investment is well worth it, except for the federal risk.”
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-- http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/31/te.../31online.html
So, even with the Bush administration trying to implement Soviet style command economy in California, et at, it seems the local officials are helping the black market grow enough to be collecting a $100M in tax revenue.
All the more reason I want NH to start selling pot along with booze in the State Liquor store conveniently located for each access to people from out of state.
And job opportunities for pot growers would be a boost for the economy.
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