the union the business behind getting high
The Union The Business Behind Getting High is one of the best documentaries every produced about the subject of marijuana legalization. The documentary follows the path of how marijuana became illegal, and also examines the rapid growth of the sales and traficking of marijuana in Canada. Adam Scorgie is the man we see on camera, but he wasn’t the director of the film. That was Brett Harvey. Throughout the film we see Adam as he covers the underground market. He interviews growers (who are not surprisingly against legalization), police officers, economists, doctors, politicians, and celebreties. The alarming thing about the film was to the extent that the underground movement had organized and exists as a completely untaxed shadow economy in almost every country on the planet. “The Union” refers to a name which is commonly used amongst growers and others involved in the illegal cultivation of marijuana. These include doctors, real estate agents, lawyers, border patrol officers, housewives (for border runs), car dealerships…the list goes on and on. As is outlined in the film, marijuana prohibition can be directly related to the rise in crime, and gang activity which spiked during alcohol prohibition. One thing I wish the documentary examined further would be how much state funding that local police districts also receive because of prohibition. This seems to be the last straw concerning whether or not marijuana will become legal. Currently the war on drugs in America is dependent upon the prohibition of cannabis. With 62% of all funding going towards enforcing marijuana laws (this doesn’t account for the millions in keeping users in jail). But perhaps “The Union” didn’t go too far into these topics because it was created in Canada where laws concerning cannabis aren’t as strict as in the US. Marc Emery is featured in the film, and of course, as we all know he is currently a prisoner of conscious in the US. Hopefully Canada doesn’t follow in America’s footsteps.
