Big Marijuana and its foolish proponents easily convinced Illinois state lawmakers that legalization would decrease black market trade and ease the burden on our criminal justice system. IFI warned them that this naive notion was contradicted by the facts, and we shared ample evidence from states that had already approved “recreational” marijuana. The evidence is clear: the black market had been thriving because of legalization.

Now we read that the California cannabis industry is in big trouble and want lawmakers to do something about it. What’s their problem? The black market is doing 73 percent of California’s marijuana business – or $8.7 billion. (Read more HERE.)

California is considered to be the largest cannabis market in the world. While 2019 is not yet over, it’s estimated that their total marijuana sales will top nearly $12 billion.

Yes, the black market is thriving on the left coast, growing by leaps and bounds, and threatening to bury a quasi-legitimate (sic) industry. So much for the influx of revenue they’re anticipating.

According to Michael Steinmetz, CEO of the marijuana company Flow Kana, they are also having to cut marijuana industry jobs. Prior to legalization, weed proponents also promised more jobs.

If it wasn’t so serious, it would be laughable. But it is no laughing matter.

Of course, the black market is thriving in California. And it will grow here in Illinois because lawmakers were foolish enough to legalize, ignoring both California and Colorado as prime examples of the serious consequences of this ill-advised policy.

The black market doesn’t pay taxes. They don’t pay a minimum wage. They don’t follow regulations. They don’t purchase licenses or pay any fees (also known as taxes). They don’t pay workman’s compensation insurance or any of the overhead associated with running a brick-and-mortar establishment. The result is cheaper, but much more potent marijuana, which is what consumers of weed want.

But with black market activity comes other serious problems. One being much more marijuana than they’re able to regulate and control. As in California and Colorado, our communities will be flooded with “legal” plus black market weed.

Chelsea Clarke is the Strategic Intelligence Unit Supervisor for the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area in Colorado. She says that law enforcement is busier now dealing with black market activity post legalization than they were beforehand.

Furthermore, policy makers have sent a dangerous message to our young people. First, we called it “medicine.” Now, we call it “recreational.” Gone are the days of “this is your brain on drugs.” Instead, we are welcoming the marijuana industry and boutique retail stores to our neighborhoods so that we can tax its use and provide a new revenue stream to bail lawmakers out of years of their overspending.

As a result, Illinois citizens will be lulled into a diminished understanding of the dangers of drug use until it affects them personally. As the perception of risk plummets, drug use (and addictions) will climb rapidly.

“It’s no big deal.” That’s Big Marijuana’s approved message and it is being taught to our children and our culture.

Why did state lawmakers choose to send such a terrible message and set this example for our children and grandchildren? Just for a puny new revenue stream?

They don’t understand that multiple studies show that when young people under 25-yrs-old regularly use today’s potent marijuana, they can lose up to 8 IQ points permanently. Some studies are available HERE, HERE and HERE. Why is it that the new Illinois law gives the green light to anyone 21 years or older to use when we know, empirically, that permanent brain damage is a legitimate risk of regular use?

It isn’t very difficult to see what problems are right around the corner as more drugs become freely (and cheaply) available.

But there’s more.

While marijuana is growing the black market, it’s also poisoning our water and land on public lands. Black Market (mostly) marijuana is found to be laced with chemical rodenticides, pesticides and other toxins used by illegal weed growers to ward off animals that eat their plants, who are then found dead mere feet from the plants, along with dead flies that have feasted on the carcasses. These chemicals then leach into the land and water. Most of the chemicals that authorities have found at these black market grow sites are banned in the U.S. and Europe because of their extreme toxicity. One eighth of a teaspoon of one such chemical, Carbofuran, will kill a 300-pound bear.

Dr. Mourad Gabriel, an expert in wildlife pathology, earned his Ph.D in Comparative Pathology at the University of California Davis. He spent time sharing with us what he regularly finds when he goes into these illegal grow sites in California, accompanied by armed guards. He also spoke about the thriving black market.

What’s the solution?

Educate yourself on the harms of high potency marijuana. Teach your children that drug use is a deadly trap. Teach them about addictions and how hard they are to break. Contact your local city council members to urge them to ban retail sales of marijuana in your community. Find a local state candidate running for office who opposes legalization and get involved in his/her campaign.

Are you aware that legalizing high potency marijuana is one of governor-elect JB Pritzker’s stated top priorities when he is sworn in as governor in January? Are you concerned about your children or grandchildren getting hooked on drugs and the anticipated increase in drugged drivers on our roads?

There is no question about the negative impact legalization of high potency marijuana is having in other states. The social costs are staggering.

Don’t believe Big Marijuana. They have one goal – to make a ton of money.

IFI has been working hard to make people aware of the dangers associated with high-potency marijuana. We have established a dedicated page to help Illinois residents better understand this issue so they will be equipped to speak out before it is too late. We encourage you to visit this page: “Resources on the Truth and Consequences of Marijuana.”

The page is organized by category so readers can easily navigate through the links. Categories cover the general effects on society; the health effects; mental health issues; marijuana-related deaths and suicides; impaired-driving accidents, including fatalities; marijuana’s effects on children, adolescents and schools; marijuana’s effects in the workplace, and marijuana’s effects on law enforcement and the medical community.

Additionally, we want to urge you to look at a series of webinars created by NoWeedIllinois.com, a coalition of organizations that are opposed to the legalization of recreational marijuana. These webinars offer troubling information that may surprise citizens. For example, Dr. Karen Randall is featured in one webinar testifying on how emergency rooms in Pueblo, Colorado have been overwhelmed with marijuana overdoses, hyperemesis (known as “scromiting”), psychosis, polysubstance use/abuse, and acute cardiac issues.

In another webinar, Dr. Ken Finn highlights marijuana’s negative effects on the heart and lungs, the increase in marijuana-related driving fatalities, and the increasing problems associated with youth use. He also dispels the myth that marijuana legalization can help cure our opioid crisis.

Perhaps the most shocking webinar features Dr. Mourad Gabriel who exposes an unfolding environmental disaster as many marijuana growers are poisoning soil and water sources and killing wildlife.

There are additional webinars on the No Weed Illinois YouTube channel and even more information on their Facebook page. We cannot stress enough the importance of learning as much as possible about what may be coming our way in the very near future.

After you watch these videos, please pray that this push for legalization will fail. Immediately thereafter, please ask your state rep and state senator to watch these videos HERE. Then, once they do, ask them to let you know how they will vote on high potency marijuana legalization.

The only way to stop this drug tsunami heading our way is if every person reading this newsletter relentlessly presses both their state rep and state senator to OPPOSE legalization.

We need a deafening hue and cry from citizens across the state to defeat this disastrous legislation.

End-of-Year Challenge

As you may know, thanks to amazingly generous Illinois Family Institute partners, we have an end-of-year matching challenge of $100,000 to help support our ongoing work to educate and activate Illinois’ Christian community.

Please consider helping us reach this goal!  Your tax-deductible contribution will help us stand strong in 2019!  To make a credit card donation over the phone, please call the IFI office at (708) 781-9328.  You can also send a gift to:

Illinois Family Institute
P.O. Box 876
Tinley Park, Illinois 60477