Commercial weed boycotts budding across Richland County: number of townships banning doubles to 8

RICHLAND COUNTY — Despite the federal government’s reclassifying of marijuana, there is no denying the adverse effects of cannabis can be seen locally. As a result, elected officials across Richland County are ‘going against the grain,’ and prohibiting the commercial use of cannabis. The number of townships with cannabis bans have now doubled to eight. One lead pastor who oversees a local addiction ministry, believes the leadership of these township trustees is helping fill the vacuum created in Washington D.C.

“Prohibiting commercial cannabis in a jurisdiction is the only tool communities legally have to help prevent the downward spiral of marijuana addiction,” says Pastor William Cole. “Whether it is the the border issue, the bathroom issue, or the cannabis issue, this (Biden) Administration appears hellbent in destroying our country. The vision and courage we are seeing by our local trustee boards with these prohibition resolutions is a breath of fresh air.”

This past month Plymouth Township joined seven other townships in the county to approve a resolution to prohibit adult-use cannabis operators and medical marijuana cultivators, processors, and retail dispensaries with the township. According to Chapter 3780.25 of the Ohio Revised Code, townships are authorized to prohibit, or limit the number of adult use cannabis operators within the unincorporated area of their townships.

According to the resolution, “the Board of Township Trustees finds it to be in the best interest of the township to prohibit adult use cannabis operators.” Plymouth now joins several recent townships of Weller, Springfield, and Franklin, along with Monroe, Washington, Madison and Bloomingrove.

With the First Family dealing with substance abuse first-hand, it is no surprise the Biden Administration will be reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule 3 controlled substance. Last year cocaine was found in the West Wing near the Situation Room. With the Secret Service unable to come up with any evidence in one of the most secured and monitored buildings in the world, critics believe the so-called investigation dovetailed the Administration’s policies favoring the drug culture.

Prior to the Biden Administration, Barak Obama’s Drug Czar cited a 2013 study finding that marijuana is the drug most often linked to crime in the United States. Gil Kerlikowske, the former White House Director of National Drug-Control policy, reported findings showing eighty-percent of adult males arrested in 2012 for crimes in Sacramento, California tested positive for at least one illegal drug. Marijuana was the most common drug, found in 54% of those arrested. The same study found similar results in New York City, Denver, Atlanta, and Chicago. The study included over 1,700 drug tests and 1,900 interviews.

“Re-imagining marijuana” by the Drug Enforcement Agency, will include dropping the drug to a Schedule 3 drug, which is defined as a class of drugs with moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence. Presently the CDC, estimates three in ten people who use marijuana have marijuana use disorder.

Ironically, when marijuana was first listed as a Schedule 1 narcotic in 1970 with high potential for abuse, THC levels averaged only 1-3%. THC is the psychoactive component that causes addiction. The more potent the drug is, the stronger the possibility of addiction. Today marijuana has become much more potent, with average THC levels in marijuana plant material skyrocketing to between 18-23%. In 2017, THC concentrates had an average THC potency of 55.7%.

Pastor Cole believes the marijuana reclassification is predicated more on money instead of public health and safety. “The federal government is ‘deep in the weeds’ on this issue. The well being of people are more important than the wealth of a few. The Bible says righteousness exalts a nation, not money. Truth be told, people who will do anything for money cannot be trusted.

“Marijuana is showing up in gummy bears, cookies, candies, and lollipops. This normalization of weed must stop,” the Mansfield Pastor warns. “We cannot beat around the bush, we have to let our local leaders know that they cannot take their marching orders from Washington D.C.”

The Bottom Line:

The Bible says in Proverbs Eleven, “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.”

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