Dear Editor,
I recently heard Sen. Gaetz state that the problems with the Charlotte’s Web bill being stalled is greed; however, I think it is much simpler than that and a rudimentary understanding of economics would make that clear to our legislators. It is, in fact, pure market dynamics that determine competitive means.
There are three basic market structures: a free market, a black market, and a regulated market. Free markets compete on the basis of price and quality because they must appeal to their consumer’s preferences and choices. Simply put, they must earn business. A black market, being limited by legal constraints and high-levels of risk in supplying a good, operates most generally on intimidation and violence due to the marginalization of available suppliers inherent to black markets.
Competition in regulated markets is done in two primary places: courts and legislatures. Seeing that there are significant profits to be had in a heavily regulated market (due to near monopoly pricing and reduced competition) and the strong future prospects of legalized medicinal marijuana, it should come as no surprise that potential suppliers that have been excluded from the Charlotte’s Web market are fighting to get in. If they are excluded now, they will likely be forever and they will also probably be left out of the cash crop of tomorrow (medicinal marijuana). To think it is mere greed is naïve or misleading. Furthermore, perhaps we should be wondering what kind of legislative greed inspired the producers to be constrained to just a few.
Warren Mills
Milton
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Greed is not the only problem with current bill