Billings City Council Brings Government Repression to the Local Level

 First we have the federal government repressing research on cannabis while patenting one of its active ingredients,  CBD. The feds continue to be very protective of their “ace the hole” – marijuana prohibition – to lock up nonviolent, ordinary citizens, as needed. In Montana, they’ve busted down doors and pointed guns at children to protect exactly who from what?

At the state level, we have a legislature willing to pass a law riddled with unconstitutional provisions that override the will of Montana citizens. Why? Because they thought it was a good law that made sense that brought regulations and safety to cannabis patient-consumers and businesses? No. They voted against the will of the people because they were afraid not to participate in the lie just in case the lie had more believers than the truth. (It doesn’t.) Montana needed regulations. What we got was unconstitutional, unworkable, childish policies that wouldn’t cut it in a high school government class. 

Now, in Billings, this complete and utter disrespect for voters and citizens has been brought to the local level. In two or three months, the city council would have objective information about how the members of their community feel about the new medical marijuana law based on whether or not signatures could be collected there which suspends the law and puts it on the 2012 ballot. The Billings city council knows the signature gathering is just starting but moved to squash access now, before it’s clear that their community members don’t like getting squashed. Squash now, ask questions never. Squash now, before the people they’re supposed to represent make it clear they’re opposed to being squashed. The Billings city council is arrogantly and overtly refusing to take the will of the community into consideration by waiting to see what they think in quantifiable terms. They are just pawns of an agenda. Not impressive.

Safe Kids, Safe Communities, a ridiculous cannabis prohibition group, is encouraging all city councils to act quickly to ban medical marijuana dispensing centers before it becomes clear that the voters do not support the unconstitutional, absurd, de facto repeal bill passed by the Montana legislature.

And the Billings city council hears and obeys.

Who are these elected officials who have become so far removed from the people?  With no skills in governing, they can’t regulate. The only terms they can think in are yes/no, but not “how?” And, the only way to justify the “no” is to reiterate crazy, silly, decades-old lies that the public at large knows aren’t true.

Polls in Montana show over and over that prohibition forces are the minority. Statistics from the Department of Justice show crime is down, teen use of cannabis is down. Chief of the Narcotics Bureau stated on the stand, under the oath, that there are no traffic fatalities in Montana where cannabis alone was involved. 

Only leaders can facilitate in figuring out something that hasn’t been figured out before. This country, this state, and the Billings city council, apparently, are sorely lacking in leaders.

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