Hacker News Reader

Comment by Doubtme | Hacker News Reader

Cannabis banking came up on this 1.7 trillion dollar bill that just got passed.

It wasn't included thanks to Republicans.

I hadn't heard about that, found more info here: https://thehill.com/policy/finance/3782514-marijuana-advocat...

>It passed the House seven times — receiving a whopping 321 votes last year — and had enough GOP support to reach 60 votes in the Senate.

>But it did not have the support of McConnell, whose opposition kept it out of the spending bill.

>McConnell first blocked the SAFE Banking Act’s inclusion in the defense bill earlier this month, arguing that it would make the U.S. financial system “more sympathetic to illegal drugs.”

The pocket veto is a ridiculous thing.

I don't think it is unreasonable for them to have blocked it, for the simple reason it would allow banks to engage in businesses that are violating federal law.

The only true policy is a coherent policy- anything else is just the whims of whoever holds executive fiat.

It should just be fully legalized.

- a law that makes it legal and safe for banks to engage in business with corporate cannabis companies that are also legal as defined by the states that have passed their own recreational and medical cannabis laws -

- Should be denied because its currently not passed yet

- https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1996

- Passed House (04/19/2021)

- " It should just be fully legalized " - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrHecD8JhfY

- Then why does the government lie to its own people to push agendas ? Why is that allowed ?

- Oh right its because nobody knows how to read anymore. or educate themselves.

- Banks violate federal law on purpose pay a slap on the wrist fine and keep engaging in behavior that ruins the lives of millions around the world yet here you are FUCKING ACTING LIKE YOUR ABOVE ALL THIS BULLSHIT.

- Naw fam. Read.

- EDIT: fentanyl is a bigger priority. Yet you would probably convince yourself that somehow overdosing millions of Americans is completely fine unchecked - https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/12/22/us-life-exp...

- " The fentanyl category of opioids accounted for 53,480 preventable deaths in 2020, representing a 59% increase over the 33,725 total in 2019. "

- " Preventable drug overdose deaths increased 34.4% in 2020, from 62,172 in 2019. In 2020, 83,558 people died from preventable drug overdoses – an increase of 649% since 1999. These deaths represent 91% of the total 91,799 drug overdose deaths in the United States, which also include suicide, homicide, and undetermined intents. "

- AND BANKS CANT TAKE CASH FROM ALREADY LEGAL BUSINESSES OK DUDE. WHATEVER YOU SAY

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/apr/03/us-bank-mexico...

https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/books/article/3...

https://www.icij.org/investigations/fincen-files/global-bank...

https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/us-fines-16-major-w...

https://violationtracker.goodjobsfirst.org/industry/financia...

https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/20/investing/wells-fargo-cfpb-fo...

If a criminal has a bank account, it's insane to me that that means the bank is engaged in a criminal business.

In some cases it is. Wachovia (acquired by Wells Fargo) laundered drug money: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/apr/03/us-bank-mexico...

> Primarily, these involved deposits of traveller's cheques in euros. They had sequential numbers and deposited larger amounts of money than any innocent travelling person would need, with inadequate or no KYC [know your client] information on them and what seemed to a trained eye to be dubious signatures. "It was basic work," he says. "They didn't answer the obvious questions: 'Is the transaction real, or does it look synthetic? Does the traveller's cheque meet the protocols? Is it all there, and if not, why not?'"

I don't see how it's insane. In fact, it seems perfectly logical to me that you can't knowingly help people commit crimes.

Encouraging legal businesses to deal in cash outside of the standard Federal banking system (with its various AML/CTF protections) seems like it's a bad thing, at least if one believes bank compliance is an important goal.

They aren't legal businesses per federal law. Federal law needs to bring them into compliance (i.e. pot should be reclassified) and the issue goes away, because then you don't have to carve out mandates to banks to work with them.

We agree! But carve-outs for banking activity are [eta: more] politically feasible in the short term and full legalization (regrettably) seems to be much farther off. The question is whether it’s better to be consistent and risk more short-term criminal activity or to solve the immediate problem.

What's the saying, there's nothing more permanent than a temporary fix?

I think the correct strategic move would be to make it an issue in the months before the election, and try to force the R challenger to come out strongly against it. I would not expect any serious boat rocking right now due to where we are in the political cycle.

That is unfortunately not your fault. You see. There is no strategy.

So whenever good people try and come up with ideas about literally any subject. the republicans ie McConnell are ready to strike it down 100% of the time.

It doesn't matter that it has majority support. It doesn't matter if it helps save American lives. It does not matter what the logistics are or how much money is involved. It does not matter if it helps military veterans and minorities.

Every plan. Every thought. Every move. will be without fail. Denied. Denied. Denied.

That is their only play. and it will also be their downfall. much like a DDOS attack on a network. All we have to do is create a network stronger then the ones they have in play and they will cease to exist entirely. aka - voting. and with republicans saying don't vote - don't vote with mail in ballots - don't vote early.

They got absolutely destroyed pushing their own agenda. Its honestly amazing.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com