Tag-Archive for » pot «
Check this out. If California’s Proposition 19, the ballot initiative to legalize marijuana passes it would cause the price of primo pot to plunge to $38 an ounce, the Rand Corp. estimates.
Users might also enjoy the irony that they could end up paying the government more for their weed than they pay to growers; taxes as high as $50 an ounce have been discussed as one of the drivers for legalization. That would put the grand total in the neighborhood of $88 an ounce, an 80% drop from a current high of about $450, notes the Los Angeles Times.
The Rand report couldn’t estimate the tax benefits however, but it noted legalization in California would cause the price of pot to drop across the nation, stimulate “marijuana tourism” in Cali, and disrupt smuggling from Mexico.
AP-CNBC Poll: Most Don’t Want to Legalize Marijuana. Most Americans still oppose legalizing marijuana but larger majorities believe pot has medical benefits and the government should allow its use for that purpose, according to an Associated Press-CNBC poll released Tuesday. Respondents were skeptical that crime would spike if marijuana is decriminalized or that it would lead more people to harder drugs like heroin or cocaine. There also was a nearly even split on whether government spends too much or the right amount enforcing marijuana laws. Almost no one thinks too little is spent. Marijuana use – medically and recreationally – is getting more attention in the political arena. California voters will decide in November whether to legalize the drug, and South Dakota will vote this fall on whether to allow medical uses. California and 13 other states already permit such use. The balloting comes against the backdrop of the Obama administration saying it won’t target marijuana dispensaries if they comply with state laws, a departure from the policy of the Bush administration, which sought to more stringently enforce the federal ban on marijuana use for any purpose.
The marijuana found south of Los Angeles was packed in around 160 bales and had an estimated street value of $3.6 million, border patrol agents told CBS Los Angeles.
“Shortly before noon on Sunday, May 20, maritime law enforcement authorities received a tip about suspicious bales floating in the water off the coast of Orange County, near Dana Point,” border patrol agent supervisor Michael Jimenez said in a statement.
The haul reportedly totaled 7,263 pounds.
Three Harbor Patrol ships and a Coast Guard cutter were sent to recover the marijuana from the water.
“At other events, they’ve dumped the bales to get rid of weight if they’re being chased,” he said. “Generally in these cases we’re aware they’re being dumped. What’s more unusual is that the bales were floating with no boat in sight.”
No suspects or vessel have been identified in connection to an ongoing investigation, the Register reported.
The incident was out of the ordinary, Jimenez told the Register.