Pubdate: Thu, 28 Aug 2014
Source: Boulder Weekly (CO)
Copyright: 2014 Boulder Weekly
Contact:  http://www.boulderweekly.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/57
Author: Leland Rucker

BOULDER BACKS OFF ON 'LAB RAT' CAMPAIGN

I reported last week that the Boulder Valley School District, which I 
wouldn't call a pro-cannabis organization, announced after careful 
consideration that it wouldn't support Gov. John Hickenlooper's 
"Don't Be a Lab Rat" campaign to scare teenagers into not using 
cannabis and wouldn't allow the slick, ad-agency rat cages to be 
placed on school property.

The city of Boulder announced Friday that it was set to erect one of 
the life-sized lab-rat cages near the corner of 13th Street and 
Arapahoe Avenue, right across the street from Boulder High School 
property. Thankfully, on Tuesday, after Councilman Macon Cowles 
brought the issue up on the city email hotline, the city quickly 
backtracked and announced it would not participate in the campaign, 
either. Better late than never.

What I still find crazy about the whole thing is that the campaign 
assumes high school students are all stupid. Let's assume that most 
Boulder High School students are already aware of the campaign, which 
kicked off with saturation coverage across television, newspapers and 
social media. I'm guessing the students already know what it's about 
and that it's aimed at them, and they are also aware that the school 
district has decided not to participate because officials called it 
an inappropriate way to encounter students about marijuana use and abuse.

Skillfully designed and executed though the cages are (the large 
bottle was an especially "edgy" touch), the cages and the messages 
are little more than slick, sophisticated advertising. Do we really 
believe high schoolers won't, or don't already see through this "campaign"?

Let's hope that other towns and school districts think through this 
stupid campaign as thoughtfully as BVSD. I hear that "rat cage 
selfies" are already the rage on Instagram and Facebook.

Denver lawyer Robert Corry lost a round last week in his legal 
attempt to end Colorado state taxes on cannabis. Corry and several 
plaintiffs Friday were seeking a temporary injunction from Denver 
District Judge John Madden that would stop all retail cannabis taxes, 
arguing that by paying them, owners of marijuana businesses are 
acknowledging they are breaking federal law, which violates their 
Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

It's an interesting argument that exposes the continuing disparity 
between state and federal cannabis laws. Under federal statutes, 
cannabis is illegal. In Colorado, it's legal to be sold to adults. 
And many licensed cannabis businesses also pay federal taxes.

(Even though the federal government considers it illegal, it still 
wants your tax dollars.)

He filed the lawsuit June 9 against Gov. John Hickenlooper, the 
Colorado Department of Revenue, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and the 
Denver Treasury Division. "Marijuana-specific taxes require 
plaintiffs and any other person paying said taxes to incriminate 
themselves as committing multiple violations of federal law, 
including but not limited to, participating in, aiding and abetting, 
or conspiring to commit a 'continuing criminal enterprise' and 'money 
laundering,'" Corry wrote. "These illegally collected taxes are 
ultimately laundered by the State of Colorado through J.P. Morgan 
Chase Bank, which also participates knowingly in the continuing 
criminal enterprise."

Corry told me earlier this week that his point is that, under 
Amendment 64, marijuana should be treated like alcohol.

"In Colorado, alcohol is taxed at a reasonable rate," he said. "I 
don't support taxes with the risk of prosecution. I want the industry 
to succeed. As long as it's taxed higher than any product in the 
state's history, the underground will win. Put a 40 percent tax on 
anything and you're going to have a black market, in particular here, 
which already has a black market that has existed for decades."

After lengthy testimony, Judge Madden ruled against the injunction, 
saying that the plaintiffs hadn't proven an overriding need for an 
immediate halt to sales taxes. Corry said that the judge will next 
rule on motions to dismiss and, sometime in the next year, the case 
will go to court.

Finally, if you're somewhere and you feel like you're too stoned to 
drive between now and the end of the year, Uber, the ride-share taxi 
alternative, which is launching in Boulder today, has partnered with 
Weedmaps and Denver's The Clinic dispensaries for a promotion that 
allows anyone to call Uber for a ride home. By typing the code 
"cliniccms" into a cell phone, the company will donate $5 to the 
National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

In Colorado the legal limit for intoxication is five nanograms per 
milliliter of blood. Since THC can reside in the body for a long 
period of time, many regular or even some occasional cannabis users 
could easily test higher than that even if they hadn't ingested that 
day and aren't intoxicated. And if you've consumed cannabis and find 
yourself drinking in a public establishment, a "transportation 
network company" like Uber or Lyft could come in handy.

The promotion's kick-off was tied to the Clinic Charity Classic, a 
golf tournament held earlier this month to raise money for MS, one of 
those diseases that current research suggests cannabis can help. It's 
sponsored by Weedmaps, the online community app that allows users to 
rate strains and dispensaries.

This is one of those win-win situations. Getting cannabis, which has 
been demonized for so long, into the mainstream is going to take 
time, and promotions like this are part of that long process.

"It's crucial because the culture war still isn't over," says 
Weedmaps CEO Justin Hartfield. "Selling to the responsible side of 
the community is a good face to put forward."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom