Last night, the following tweet by KFOR scrolled across my iPhone screen:
What's that you say? Medical marijuana is banned on OU and OSU campuses?! That's weird, because I clearly remember hearing that stoner philosophy majors would be allowed to grow 12-lbs of Bruce Banner in their dorm room closet at Walker Tower. It was one of the signature talking points of the Anti-SQ 788 Reefer Madness TV commercials. Remember that?
Wow. Hard to believe, huh? The same people who lied to Oklahomans about the cause of Oklahoma's man-made earthquakes also lied about the implications of medical marijuana. It kind of makes you wonder what other lies they're telling us.
That wasn't the only blatant bit of SQ 788 misinformation peddled to the Oklahoma people. Remember this?
That also ended up being total bullshit. Thanks to emergency rules passed by the Board of Health and signed into law by Mary Fallin, medical marijuana is subject to the laws and regulations of the Smoking in Public Places Act. That being said, if you find a restaurant that lets you light up a joint, let me know. I'd love to check it out.
I would call for SQ 788 is Not Medical – The OKC Chamber-backed group that spent $1.2-million to try and defeat the initiative – to issue a full retraction on the misinformation and lies (a.k.a. Fake News) they helped spread to hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans, but the group has gone AWOL. Weird, isn't it? If medical marijuana was so awful and bad for Oklahoma, you would think grassroots organizers would still be out there trying to fight it. It's almost like "SQ 788 is Not Medical" had no legitimate public support or enthusiasm, and that it was basically just a front for the Oklahoma Ruling Class to try and, once again, impose its will on the Oklahoma people.
That, by that way, is something the local ruling class is still doing. This time around, though, instead of wasting $1.2-million to lie to citizens via tv commercials, they're going the political route, using their power, influence and friends in government to muddy the rollout of SQ 788 and paint a negative light on the medical marijuana industry. As that happens, they can use their pals at The Oklahoman and News 9 to build a narrative that SQ 788 needs to be overhauled in the next legislative session, and then use their bought and paid for lawmakers to overhaul the law to their liking. Just like the lies peddled in their ads, let's hope the Oklahoma people aren't dumb enough to fall for it.
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