Spurring Innovation

California Proposition 19 would have allowed for personal possession of up to one ounce of marijuana and a personal grow space of 25 square feet (5 foot x 5 foot square or equivalent).

This makes sense. I would much rather see the regulations set up to support small-scale personal growing as opposed to industrial production and distribution through traditional retail means, let alone the cut-throat, 97% profit margin, risk-premium-inflated black market that exists today.

If people are limited in the amount of space allowed for growing, they will find ingenious ways to maximize the amount produced per unit area. It will get people thinking, building, and doing instead of working at a job (that they often hate) to obtain paper, walking to a store, plopping down the paper in exchange for the marijuana, and then vegetating on the couch in front of the TV after they consume it. They will do research, build stuff, take care of the plants, then chill out or do whatever they do after they consume cannabis.

Consider the FCC Part 15 radio regulations which allow for AM broadcast-band radio broadcasting by anyone without a license: 100 milliwatts of power into the final radio transmitter amplifier stage, 3 meter antenna, and no interference. Satisfy those criteria and broadcast whatever you want! People are doing all kinds of creative things, most of the antennas are made from plumbing parts available at hardware stores, and some people even build their own transmitters.

Anything that will break the vacuum and get people to understand how the world around them works should be welcome with open arms. We worry about formal "jobs" for people despite the fact that most of these jobs perpetuate the vacuum of knowledge and maintain people in a "Work", "Buy", "Consume", and "Die" life cycle.

I know you know how none of it works! That's okay, just give me your Money (life) and it will all be taken care of!

CREATED/WRITTEN: 2010-11-30 11:14