Annabelle Dixon, spent her youth in her grandmother's kitchen. Quickly mastering the art of good ole southern food, she fell in love with helping provide delicious meals to her family on Sunday afternoons spent at grandma's house. Annabelle's menu of southern crafted goodness, which grew rapidly, included her made-from-scratch chicken and dumplings, cornbread and several other home style favorites. 

After her grandmother's passing, Annabelle made the decision to take the skills her grandmother taught her to the community of her small hometown located in the heart of Mississippi. At the age of twenty-five, Annabelle opened Mrs. May's Diner, named in honor of her grandmother. For thirty years, Mrs. May's Diner provided the community with scrumptious southern sustenance. One day the mayor, who owned most of the small town already, approached Mrs. Dixon about purchasing her diner. Frustrated that he could not control the business, he pulled strings in attempt to manipulate it in whatever way capable. Being the businessman he was, he dealt with substantial amounts of cash flow. His accounts provided the local bank with a sense of security as many loans were given through the bank using the cushion of funds his accounts provided.

He threatened to have his funds moved elsewhere. Although this idea was absurd considering said bank was the only bank in town, this idea still placed fear in the bank. Unwilling to do anything to jeopardize the insurance that came with having that money, the bank agreed to his terms; Annabelle received notice of her bank account closure the next week. Distraught by the bank's actions she was forced to close her business down for good. The Mayor was able to manipulate circumstances and control something he should not have been able to control. 

Like The Mayor, the United States Federal Government seems to believe they have the right to manipulate circumstances they cannot directly control. Although marijuana is regulated at state level, it is still considered federally illegal through the Controlled Substances Act (Americans for Safe Access). Since the use of marijuana is illegal at the federal level, banks are afraid that banking money from marijuana businesses will risk their federal insurance (Jarman). The illegalization of marijuana simply cannot be enforced by the federal government. The issue proves to be far too broad for them to control. Knowing they cannot enforce these laws it has been left up to the state legislatures to decide whether or not marijuana is legal to that state. Feeling a lack of control, the federal government continues to maintain the ruling that marijuana is illegal at their level knowing how it impacts banks. By doing this the government is able to inhibit the growth of the marijuana business. What make these tactics okay? Absolutely nothing does! If these tactics continue to be put to use the federal government will only grow greedy for more power. The Annabelles all over the nation will come into harm's way if the powers are not balanced out now. Small businesses, dispensers and otherwise, must band together to put a stop to this government bullying. 

     Last year legal marijuana sales increased by eighty percent exceeding five billion dollars. This fact makes legal marijuana the fastest growing industry in the United States today (Owen). Isn't growth in business what our nation's economy was built on? Marijuana businesses receive licenses from the state in which they operate. These licenses are not handed out without extensive effort on behalf of the dispersers. If dispensers are operating their dispensaries responsibly, safely, and legally under the state government in which they reside there should be no legal issues facing them or their businesses. Sadly this is not the case for the marijuana industry.  Nearly half of the United States allow medical marijuana today. This practice was considered taboo just over ten short years ago in 2005 when the ruling in Gonzales v. Raich claimed marijuana was not medicine and the federal government had complete authority to prohibit marijuana for all purposes (Americans for Safe Access). This one hundred eighty degree change in views shows that the government is capable of opening their eyes to a greater good yet the drug still remains strictly illegal under federal law. 

Strict governmental stance leads to governmentally regulated banks that refuse to handle money from state-approved marijuana dispensers. Banks fear they may lose the FDIC insurance the government provides them with because they may be considered breaking laws that protect against money laundering. Lack of the ability to bank means marijuana dispensers have to conduct all of their business through cash instead of check or electronic services such as credit or debit. Controversial guidelines for banks that handle marijuana money were released by the Department of Justice. It stated that regulators and prosecutors would not "actively" investigate for illegal activity with relation to marijuana banking (Owen). These guidelines might as well not even exist because they provide no comfort for banks dealing with the marijuana business; in reality all the guideline states is that banks "might not" be prosecuted for violating a law. The government therefore reserves the right to prosecute if they decide they want to.  This "might not" attitude from the government leads to a "will not" attitude in the banks because for the banks it just isn't a safe investment to deal with marijuana money. Banks do not want the risk that accompanies the marijuana business. There are no regulations with the banks welfare in mind. 

Dealing with marijuana money is more than just unsafe for banks though; this government policy presents marijuana dispensers with the biggest safety hazard of all. The marijuana industry not only faces unfair treatment that suppresses the success of their businesses they also face personal safety concerns. In Oregon this issue is being brought to light at the government level.  Oregon Senator, Jeff Merkley stated: "Forcing businessmen and businesswomen who are operating legally under Oregon state law to shuttle around gym bags full of cash is an invitation to crime and malfeasance. That must end" (Suneson). Imagine you had to leave your job each week with your entire paycheck in cash. Imagine having to carry a gun simply to protect yourself and your livelihood. This is the fear dispensers are forced to face each day. Last year alone the marijuana industry in America grosses $5.4 billion worth of business (Owen). The numbers are only projected to grow leading to more and more safety concerns. 

Vermont is one state that conveys a strong concern for safety issues that may accompany marijuana. As Vermont law makers debate whether or not to legalize marijuana, concerns over highway safety have surfaced. Director of the Washington State Highway Patrol Forensics Laboratory, Fiona Couper, says an analysis performed by her team shows a 33 percent growth in the positive test for THC among motorists involved in impaired driving cases since the legalization of marijuana in 2012 (Hirschfeld). Couper concluded by saying "You can see that the number of cases  ...  that had THC in their system  ...  significantly increased." She is correct in saying this but she is implying THC caused these accidents. This implication cannot stand in an argument because there's nothing to prove causation. Too many factors go into each individual impaired driver case for legalized marijuana to be marked as the culprit of the accidents. Vermont's Secretary of Transportation, Chris Cole, believes the legalization of marijuana has the capability of actually aiding in the safety of Vermont's highways. He states that 30 percent of Vermont highway fatalities involve impaired drivers and half of those test positive for THC despite the law against the use of marijuana (Hirschfeld). Obviously the laws prohibiting the use of marijuana are not effective in maintaining safety on Vermont's highways. The legalization of the substance however will produce revenue that may be used to promote tactics that do work. With more revenue more law enforcement can be allocated to resources maintaining the safety of the roads (Hirschfeld). This issue is certainly important and cannot be overlooked but if the problem is this big with the laws in place now then why argue this as a reason to keep the law in place? The problem obviously isn't solved by the illegalization.   

Highway safety is a legitimate concern but it is a controversial argument. However, the concern for the personal safety of those handling the product and profits of the marijuana businesses cannot be debated. In Antioch, California a young man working for a medical marijuana dispensary was robbed of a substantial amount of product and profit. According to police the incident took place when a medical marijuana dispensary delivery service was asked to deliver one-eighth ounce of marijuana as well as edible products to a consumer's home. Upon arrival the boy was approached by two armed robbers who escaped with $8,000 worth of product (Gartrell). This incident could have been avoiding if banks had the freedom to work with dispensers. With banking available the dispensers would have the ability to allow customers to pay via debit card transaction instead of cash. With this ability there comes less incentive for robbery and less incentive for overall criminal activity involved with the legal  (Credit: Quora 2015) (Credit: Quora 2015)marijuana business. Not being afforded the right to a bank account, dispensary owners are forced to store money in Breaking Bad style stacks of cash. This sparks obvious concerns for safety. Like the young delivery boy the dispensers are now put in serious danger just for doing their job. Having legitimate businessmen transport huge sums of money insecurely is an invitation to crime (Suneson). 

With businessmen under constant threat of danger, local leaders are forced to make decisions to protect their communities. Over the past few months in California, leaders in cities such as Antioch where the young delivery boy was robbed have taken drastic measures to solve the crime problem: passing laws either restricting or banning all marijuana to include medical marijuana practices (Gartrell). Restricting access to marijuana does more than lower crime rates, it lowers the treatment options of patients who suffer from certain forms of cancer, lateral sclerosis, and epilepsy that experience relief from medical marijuana. In December of 2015 a study showed that 37 percent of people with treatment resistant epilepsy receiving an oil-based cannabis drug daily for 12 weeks reported having fewer seizures. Of the 162 patients in the trial 2 percent reported complete loss of seizures (Seavert). Harlow Hundley, a four years old from Golden Valley, Minnesota, suffers from Dravet Syndrome, one form of epilepsy. Her seizures began as an infant and progressed throughout her childhood. With their daughter suffering from dozens of Harlow Hundley before and after medical cannabis treatment. (Credit: Seavert)Harlow Hundley before and after medical cannabis treatment. (Credit: Seavert)seizure daily and no sign of pharmaceutical medicine helping, Harlow's parents turned to medical marijuana. "Right away we were seeing 50-80 percent reduction in daily seizures  ...  we had some days where we were 99 percent seizure free so we were pinching ourselves," said Beth Hundley, Harlow's mother (Seavert). Harlow's story is just one of many successes that medical marijuana has attributed to. In Minnesota alone there are approximately 920 people as well as close to 500 health care practitioners participating in the medical cannabis program. The Minnesota Medical Cannabis program plans to add patients with intractable pain to their program by July of 2016 (Seavert). Under laws like the ones placed in Antioch, California these patients will not be afforded the opportunity to experiences the impact cannabis treatments may have on their illnesses. While local governments are having to make decisions to protect part of their communities from criminal activity, they are being forced to overlook the struggles of community members with intractable illnesses. The federal government's policy causes turmoil so deep that it indirectly rips medicinal marijuana from the hands of those who truly in need of it. 

Turmoil brought on by the government can only be fought by the citizen in whom placed them in office. The owners of these small marijuana dispensaries cannot win the battle with the government on their own. All small businesses across the nation must band together to fight this issue. Forcing business owners to hold large sums of cash makes it much harder for them to run legitimate businesses (Johnson). Marijuana business face extreme issues from this problem. They face the risk of losing all their profits and possibly their lives by robbery. In this country small business owners play a major role in the nation's economy. If this is the case then all small business owners across the board should receive the resources needed for success. Small businesses unassociated with marijuana must join the fight to both protect the marijuana dispensers' rights and also protect their own futures. 

Oregon is one of the first states making strides in the correct direction concerning this battle. The Oregon House overwhelmingly passed House Bill 4094 that protects Oregon banks who provide financial services to state regulated marijuana businesses (Johnson). Bill 4094 makes a promise to banks that the state government will provide insurance and step in if the federal government attempts to prosecute them. The passing of this bill will hopefully spark movement at the federal level toward allowing banks to provide financial services to marijuana businesses. It only makes sense for the government to allow it since it gives them more insight concerning the revenue being acquired by these businesses thus allowing them to be properly taxed. Jason Munn, vice president of a dispensary in Colorado, says "If you can't bank and you're supposed to pay your taxes, you kind of wonder are they trying to make the system fail on the back end" (Jarman). Marijuana is much too big of an issue for the government to control with prohibition, much like alcohol proved to be. The government can however strong arm their way to possessing the ability to control the issue. 

It is proven with history that the federal government cannot reasonably enforce the prohibition of a substance. For this reason the power to regulate marijuana was given to state governments. Although it would make the most sense for the government to completely trash their laws against marijuana use so they could better reap the tax benefits of the industry, they are distraught by the loss of control. In order to maintain control the law is left in place to make life as hard as possible on the marijuana industry. Since they can no longer control they regulation of it, they bullied their way into controlling the financial security of it. If they are allowed to get away with this bullying what will stop them from progressing forward to gain more power. Small businesses must come together to protect their rights against further take over by the governments actions. 

Small business owners must band together in support of the passing of a bill that allows banks to work with legal marijuana businesses nationwide. This not only provides the marijuana industry with the financial security it rightfully deserves but it also protects the small businesses. The display of unity amongst the nation's small businesses forces the government to listen. Without the support of the businessmen and businesswomen of America, politicians have no votes, no office, and no power. If small businesses come together they can not only force the government's hand in this situation but in many other situations as well. Small businesses must protect not only these dispensers but also their future; if the government bullying doesn't stop now it never will.               


