Why did California Proposition 19, the initiative to legalize cannabis, not pass? There are several reasons reasons I can think of. Some from news reports, some from personal experience. The first reason, and most obvious, is the fact that pot still has a stigma about it with the older Californians. The people that grew up with the old guard feeding their heads with stories of madness and murder, believing that it's passage would signal the beginning of the end. Even the hippies from the 60's who smoked pot and believed in peace and love have turned conservative with the disinformation of the era they grew up in. That it would lead to an increase in overall drug use as it is known to be a "gateway" drug and our children would be more susceptible to becoming addicts.
Second, and at the opposite end of the age spectrum, is the youth vote, the 18-25 crowd. Even though news polls had the young voters agreeing with legalization, they failed to turn out on election day. This baffled me. Why would you not come out and vote for something you agree with? The most simple reason could be that young stoners were too stoned and forgot what day it was or just got lazy and thought it would pass without them. But I think it's a little more complex than that. Based on multiple conversations I've had with friends and news articles I've read, I think it's a mixture of a lot of people growing up in homes with rampant drug use and wanting nothing more than to rid the world of the thing that caused them so much pain. It's also because young people are afraid it would make marijuana more expensive to buy through overtaxing, much like cigarettes are today. But more importantly, I think it's business; a big portion of dealers happen to be between the ages of 18-25. Legalization and subsequent regulation would make them obsolete. Dealers can be unreliable; why would you want to call up "your connect" to score and have him tell you he's out and have to call another guy and so forth and so on when you can go to your corner shop or store and pick it up? And while you're out get some Ho-Ho's!
Now the fun part; conspiracy! Having read and watched news reports and blogs, a majority of growers are in opposition of Prop. 19's passage because, as mentioned above, it's bad for business. Regulation would make them have to change the way they grow their wares. They would have to become a legitimate business, subject to rules and regulations, inspections, taxes and fines. The latter two dipping into their incomes. Many growers in the "Emerald Triangle" make a lot of money but don't claim it in their taxes because it's illegal and they would be shut down in a heartbeat. The result is untaxed income and they don't want to change that. Related to this is the foreign aspect, more specifically the Mexican cartels. They could've stood to lose out on some profit. With it still being as difficult to transport over the border as it is, I can see how their U.S. distributors would be less likely to continue doing business with them. But, on the other hand, I can also see how the cartels would just make a little bit of a switch and buy, if not create, and run growing operations here making profit loss a moot point. I also think there's a trickle down effect relating to both the local growers and the cartels to send word down the chain to their respective dealers to vote no.
In a way, it can be viewed that Prop. 19 was a success. It was the first time, I believe, that such an initiative was taken so seriously that it actually became a ballot measure (many would argue that Prop. 215 was first, but that measure is restricted to those with medical ailments). It has brought the subject to the forefront again and I don't see the conversation ending soon. I'm sure we'll see more initiatives like this in 2012, in more states and with better a chance of passing. As long as we can get you lazy stoners off the couch.
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