Since November, I’ve had some issues turning in this column every week. It’s not writer’s block, nor is it because there isn’t anything happening in the world of cannabis. In fact, most weeks I get more daily press releases and updates about new cannabis products, events, legislative activity, and research than I can keep track of.
No, it’s based more on feelings that many of you may share—that things in this country are on a very bad path for many of our neighbors and friends, and it makes writing about cannabis feel somewhat... futile. Example? Reading about heartbreaking ICE raids and subsequent deportation of DREAMers, and then trying to muster excitement over reviewing a new strain.
This has led me to think about the role cannabis has historically played in the resistance, and what it may be able to do as we move forward.
(First: Let’s agree that while consuming cannabis has been an anti-establishment action for years, it needs to be paired with action. So doing dab hits while pontificating “how things need to change, man, like, seriously” while not taking any action other than prepping your next dab is about as radical and revolutionary as stuffing your face with Arby’s. And no, taking action does not include posting “sign this petition!” on Facebook, or commenting with a :( on something upsetting you read. The revolution will not be televised, nor will it be live-streamed. To quote the Godfather of Soul, “Get up, get into it, get involved.”)