Former Microsoft exec Jamen Shivley sparked a bit of controversy yesterday when he expressed his intention to invest $100 million over a three year period in the non-existent recreational marijuana industry, saying “Yes, we are Big Marijuana.” Shivley has already begun buying up medical marijuana dispensaries in pot-legal Washington and Colorado, as well as California, and is aiming to build a nationally-recognized brand of marijuana outlets.
Despite the fact that Washington and Colorado expect to begin allowing marijuana sales to adults over 21 next year, the distribution and use of weed is still illegal by federal law. Shivley noted in a press conference yesterday, alongside former Mexican president Vincente Fox, that this needs to change for the benefit of the both the U.S. and Mexico, and for business in general.
“It’s a giant market in search of a brand,” Shively said of the marijuana industry. “We would be happy if we get 40 percent of it worldwide.”
An article by Reuters cites a United Nations report that estimates the global marijuana trade to be valued at $142 billion, which is where Fox and drug-ravaged Mexico come into play. Not only does Shivley intend to create thousands of jobs at Diego Pellicer, the brand name for his proposed company, but dealing in weed with Mexico could bolster international relations and tap into the hundred billion dollar market.
As well as being illegal under federal jurisdiction, the trade and use of marijuana violates international policies, something Shivley notes is a major obstacle.
“I don’t know how exactly that would be done, but I know it’s been done in other industries,” he told the Seattle Times.
Earlier this week Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signed historic legislation in order to lay the groundwork for a legalized recreational marijuana market in his state. No such frames have been undertaken in Washington yet, though its only a matter of time. Currently in Massachusetts, medical marijuana is legalized under heavy restrictions and possession is decriminalized up to an ounce.
The marijuana landscape is changing fast as more and more states are beginning to recognize the potential of pot in both the medical and finance industries, with 18 already legalizing the use of the stickiest of the icky.
What do you all think of this hot button topic? Do you feel that marijuana is dangerous and ought to remain illegal? Do you think that it should be legalized on the federal level or is it a states’ rights issue? Will more states follow the lead of Washington and Colorado?
