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This morning agents from both the Drug Enforcement Agency and the Internal Revenue Service raided Oaksterdam University, one of California’s most famous medical marijuana institutions. From NBC Bay Area:
Oakland’s Oaksterdam University was taken over by federal officials Monday morning.
Officers wearing U.S. Marshals, IRS and DEA jackets swarmed the Oakland medical marijuana facility on Broadway before 8 a.m. Investigators put yellow crime tape around the entire building.
Just after 9 a.m. agents brought out trash bags of unknown materials to a waiting van.
The presence of the IRS in addition to the DEA at this raid should be concerning to people involved in medical marijuana. The IRS recently contended that federal law prevents medical marijuana businesses from qualifying for standard business tax deductions that all other companies take, such as rent and payroll.
Based on this ruling last year the IRS went after Harborside Health Center, another of California’s most prominent medical marijuana businesses, claiming it owed $2.5 million in back taxes. If the IRS starts aggressively enforcing this position, it could become financially impossible for medical marijuana businesses to operate; it means those currently in business could owe huge amounts in back taxes.
This raid likely represents yet the latest escalation in the Obama administration’s multi-agency war on medical marijuana. Oaksterdam University was founded by Richard Lee, the main sponsor of the failed 2010 marijuana legalization ballot measure, Proposition 19. Richard Lee and Steve DeAngelo, the chief executive of Harborside, are probably two of the most high profile individuals in California’s medical marijuana community.
Update II. The LA Times also reports that authorities searched the home of Richard Lee in conjunction with this action.
Update I: The video below was taken shortly after the raids.
33 Comments
As of mid-December 2011, over 2,500 well paying jobs had been lost because of the success that the DEA, DOJ, and IRS have had in eliminating Calif’s Medical Marijuana Clinics.
Who is being damaged? Well, I pick up my local gazette, and note that much of the news print is now devoted to poetry and famous quotes. The places where the clinics would advertise are replaced by the above.
Also, the medical clinics were offering more than 125 millions of dollars to the state of California. With other millions of tax dollars going to the Counties where the activities occurred.
Obama’s Tim Geithner told Schwartzennegger that he could not approve a damn loan to the people of the California -as it would add to the nation’s deficit. But yet our nation has the money to criminalize people who merely want to have their Multiple Sclerosis tremors subsist?
In the years before before the Prop 215 took effect, Calif.’s jails were filled with people in wheelchairs, costing the state at least 35K a year. And now I guess we will go back to that standard of care.
But wait -here’s one more news byte of more hypocrisy – readers of the newspaper the “Press Democrat” have been told not to worry about running out of medical marijuana – it will soon be available to those with a prescription.
They will be able to order it though some Big Pharmaceutical company. And the source of the marijuana? Great Britain!!
Way to go Obama! Don’t expect me to vote for your sorry, bought out corrupt ass! I will vote third party -even if it means writing in my own damn name!
Fuck Obama. And fuck everyone who supports Obama.
Sorry but that’s where I am. I’ve had enough.
In the fdl tradition of EPU:
Fuck you, Obama
Fuck you, Eric Holder
Can’t have legal medical mj in the U.S. It would interfere with the U.S. war on drugs and the ability of the U.S. military to occupy several countries south of the border.
Part of the U.S.-must-have-hegemony-over-every-country-in-the-world policy.
We can only imagine how many Banksters would be wearing orange jumpsuits if the Feds were this diligent on Wall St.
The DEA is finally protecting us from the dangerous menace of middle age activist in wheelchairs.
Narco nazis
Interesting. In the list of “follow the money” culprits I’d considered for the reasoning behind the continuation of the increasingly unpopular and ruinously expensive “war on drugs,” I never even thought about the pretext that it affords us to colonize our southern neighbors!
Obama was telling us the truth about one thing, at least. He said he didn’t care whether he’s re-elected to a 2nd term or not. With this ploy he’s likely to lose the West Coast: California, Oregon and Washington. His lawyering doesn’t extend to the iniative process or medical necessity rights. What Constitution does he carry in his pocket? I’m sure he’ll prop his daughters up before the camera,” We must protect the vulnerable “. I’d like to see a backdrop of lifeless Iraq and Afghan children, bombed by drones or blown up whatever, to keep some perspective on this.
Should read, if I may add ;Part of the U.S.-must-have-hegemony-over-every-country-and-person-in-the-world policy.
OPD was forced to protect the DEA from those middle-aged activists in wheelchairs while in East Oakland at exactly that same time, a school shooting left six people dead and at least three wounded. Obama is the most dangerous menace I can think of at the moment.
Its not just O..
Diane Can Make A Difference Feinstein was the Dem front against prop 19, Jerry Brown remains an archaic imitation of his former self..and so on down the Democrat roster in California..
This kind of thing could swing just enough voters against O to lose California.
If Mitts handlers have any sense they will have him support State Determination on pot.
But, Mitt and SENSE are not compatible..
Obama is the president and the Department of Justice answers to him, not Dianne Feinstein. This is 100% Obama. Please stop making excuses for him. He is an asshole. A lying backstabbing fucking asshole. I guess some campaign promises really don’t matter, like the ones Obama made to the Left. I hope Romney is smart enough to outflank Obama from the Left on this: Obama deserves it for his rank duplicity and abject betrayal.
Jon,
The DEA is protecting its turf (jobs). Cops don’t want grass legal because if it’s illegal they get overtime and cool cop toys to play with…But the cops are the small potatoes, not the decision makers in keeping grass illegal. Look at it this way, there was a better profit margin in booze during Prohibition. Regards.
If you think romney will do better on this issue than obama better think again. At the same time, I declared long ago that if the medical marijuana situation in California isn’t handled positively for the people I will not vote for obama. Period. Obama did mj I’ve been told, so he knows the nature of it. He knows what he is doing and why. I spend time and money for his benefit, until I know of a change in his approach he’ll get neither again from me. Hey obama, put some of those fuck sticks who ruined our economy in jail, until you do you’re nothing but a corrupt hack. Do I need to put all this in caps?
Agree.
Today’s outrage again proves the operative truism.
If you wouldn’t sit on a jury and vote to imprison a medical marijuana patient, then you have no business voting for Barack Obama. Because it is the exact same thing.
And he admitted doing rails of coke and If he brought an eight ball of coke, 3 1/2 grams, possession of one gram that’s Felony possession for the 99%ers.
My statement had no excuse for Obama. Including the other Democratic A-Hos who could have supported reform for decades does not exonerate Obama, and Excluding them does not support the truth. I’m no supporter of Obama.
“When the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.”
– Richard M. Nixon
Christ on a cracker, what a little distance we’ve come.
These rogue agencies need to feel the firm backhand of AG Eric Holder and Treasury Secretary Timmy. Absent a reprimand from both of them, we must presume they operate with permission.
Question: Does Obama approve? Hopey-changey young people deserve to know.
Agreed. Sorry if I’m a bit hot under the collar about this. But I’ve really had it this time. I realize the Democrats going back to the 90s have been lurid drug warriors as bad as the Republicans (Biden is one of the worst) but Obama EXPLICITLY PROMISED not to go after state-approved medical marijuana. And Team Obama has the nerve to call Romney a liar? (Romney is a liar, of course, but still … Kettle meet pot (so to speak).)
Obama doesn’t even deign to explain himself to the Left. He simply can’t be bothered. Why? Because we’re a bunch of fucking retards who are going to vote for him anyway. Those without self-respect are seldom respected by others. And when it comes to cowardly bullies like Obama, never. The only people Obama respects are those he fears, which is just about everyone EXECPT the Left.
Trayvon Martin was assassinated for this stupid policy.
If he wasn’t suspended for fucking residue, for ten days, he wouldn’t have been mown down.
Sleep tight tonight O accessory to murder , through this dead end law.
Hey, I worked on CMI 72.. Imagine how that feels.. It took women until the 20th century to even get the vote.. such is the power of prejudice enshrined in law.. it really sux..
These are not rogue agencies. The raids are being conducted with the full knowledge and approval of the president.
This is an outrage. Oaksterdam University is a respected community member. The Oakland authorities must not stand for this.
If that is true (and I believe it is, thus my snarky characterization of them as rogue) then Obama must be asked about it. Everywhere. If we had a media in this country, it would be Topic One wherever he went.
And simultaneously in another part of Oakland, six students shot on campus at a Christian College. While Police resources are used to arrest law abiding business owners and harass students and staff at yet another campus, Oaksterdam U. Oakland Police are providing protection from the crowds and cover for the Feds, while a mass shooting occurs somewhere else on their watch. If there’s not a public outcry over this perversion of “law enforcement”, I’ll be very dissapointed.
Somebody remind me again of why I *have* to vote for Obama?
Yes We Cannabis! Roseanne Barr 2012
political pandering aside, i wouldn’t want to associate myself with the types of leaders who withold medicine from the sick : http://acmeartscollective.com/thedemise/2012/04/02/verbatim-number-36-6/
you have an army of us.
we better wrest smeagles ring from him and throw it in the fire, we are
in the same boat fighting the same fight. same as it always is, fighting the forces of darkness
do they ask us if it is okay to spy on us, kill us, jail us, no habeus corpus, and throw the key in the Marianas(sp?) trench
we were asked to vote on this, we did, and it passed.
I loves me some ‘merican freedom.
And your@22 no way am I ever voting for this …puppet
Fuck you o and fuck your rules, you don’t listen to us, so turn about is fair play.
And your suck ass weed..well we grow the shit worth smokin’ hee hee.
r crumb
http://youtu.be/mm4Gkz-bu_Q
a little levity or my version of it never hurt anyone