“Cannabis is in a league of its own with people who are quick to cannibalize each other for a slice of a pie that’s stale. Let’s be honest.They’re not angry because others are succeeding.They’re angry because no one is succeeding. The industry is stagnated, over regulated and captured by corporate interests. We’re all fighting over crumbs while pretending there’s a feast.” – Madicyn Marinaro.
Lots of us are wondering why the cannabis world seems to be on a bad path. Why are we losing our sense of community and degenerating into a mess of bad behavior including bulling, fear mongering, lies, and power plays? Why are so many posts on LinkedIn from people in the cannabis world filled with disturbing, angry, and nasty comments? I don’t care how this comes off or who it offends. It’s time to speak out. Instead of building our businesses, collaborating, and lifting each other up, we’ve got people bullying, tattling, spreading fear, and lobbying for restrictions that only serve their own interests.
There are folks out here claiming the very products they sell are dangerous. They are constantly demonizing THC, publicly defaming others and cheering for product bans and tighter regulations. I want to ask these people, “Aren’t you embarrassed? This is supposed to be a professional platform — yet some of you are acting childish at best, unethical at worst. Do you see people in other industries behaving like this? Because I sure don’t. And keep in mind this isn’t just a bad look. This is permanent. Whatever you post online will follow you around forever. So no matter how much we tear each other down, that won’t change — until we learn to actually work together. There are ways to call out systemic problems without constantly attacking each other. We need to learn to advocate without hate and to compete without cannibalizing an entire industry. It’s time to grow up. It’s time to be a professional and its time to have some integrity.
Madicyn Marinaro is an investigative journalist who has been turning her critical eye onto the cannabis industry. You can follow her on LinkedIn and MEDIUM – https://medium.com/@madicyn.marinaro/fear-for-profit-and-how-i-quantified-it-92689f10413a.