A pot shop is a phrase we use to define the obvious. That is, most if not all of the medical marijuana dispensaries we have seen, operate as retail storefronts – selling highly potent strains of marijuana to people who have an enormous incentive to feign ’sicknesses’. Unfortunately, and no surprise, significant abuses of the well-intentioned law have been uncovered.

Evidence of abuse? The most glaring is that the range of ’sicknesses’ seem to be plaguing young adult men – as, from all observers accounts, are over 95% of the clientele that visit these drug dealers. There are hundreds of such ’sicknesses’ one can use to get these drugs ‘legally’. Isn’t that amazing – the statistical percentage these young men represent who have this wide range of illnesses and that believe marijuana is the temporary remedy? Are women much more healthy or, do statistically large numbers believe marijuana isn’t the answer? Not likely.

What bridge does someone have to cross to convince themselves to feign such an illness? Just state one is ill, go through a cursory exam (some ‘doctors’ with dispensaries will even use Internet-based pre-screening questionnaires to speed up the process), get an ID card and walk into any of these retail stores and buy their drugs. If one is too ’sick’ the ‘co-op retailers’ will deliver it right to one’s home. The reason drug users will elect to purport illness is significant. Why risk a drug-possession arrest if one can buy drugs by misrepresenting the truth about their ‘illness’?

What’s needed is a community that will not be swayed by illusions of images of sick people being denied medical remedies. These people will see what’s really going on is they are being quietly manipulated by drug dealing opportunists – who have enormously significant incentives to risk prison themselves.  The community’s remedy? Clearly defined laws and stronger enforcement on a city, county, state and Federal level.

Our goal is to keep you informed of these abuses and give you ways to make a difference.