Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Sober DUI Bill Dies in Sacramento; Alcoholics Go Untreated
Wed, Apr 30, 2014 at 9:22 AM
Medical cannabis advocates and others with common sense defeated a bill Tuesday from Antioch Assemblyman Jim Frazier that would have made it a crime to drive sober.
It’s already a crime in California to drive under the influence of any drug, but Frazier’s AB 2500 wanted to fast-track citizens' path to prison by specifying that “under the influence” means 2 nanograms of tetrahydrocannbinol (THC) — the active ingredient in cannabis — per milliliter of whole blood.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Pot Eases Pain of Multiple Sclerosis, the Journal Neurology Concedes
Tue, Apr 29, 2014 at 2:00 PM
The roughly 2.5 million people in the world who suffer from multiple sclerosis — an inflammatory disease of the nerves — might be surprised to learn the hippies were right: Cannabis treats symptoms of multiple sclerosis, the journal Neurology concluded Monday.
Cannabis — which the federal government calls “marijuana” — is “effective” “for reducing patient-centered measures” of spasticity in M.S. sufferers.
LA Con: Deputies Planted Guns in Dispensary, Prosecutors Say
Tue, Apr 29, 2014 at 10:11 AM
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Sober DUIs for Pot Are 'Absurd,' Arizona Supreme Court Affirms
Wed, Apr 23, 2014 at 10:10 AM
The Arizona Supreme Court slapped down a dumb law that criminalized driving while sober in the medical marijuana state.
Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Cops and Politicians Play Doctor With California Patients
Tue, Apr 22, 2014 at 9:48 AM
Politicians and cops continued to play doctor with California’s estimated one million medical cannabis patients on Monday, advancing a bill that shows how little they know about science or medicine.
State Senator Lou Correa’s SB 1262 passed a senate committee hearing with some amendments Monday and while the legislation is much-improved from its original version, SB 1262 still puts politicians in the role of physician — telling patients what type of marijuana they can and can’t have.
Friday, April 18, 2014
Future of Pot is E-Cigs and Hash, Says UCLA Prof Mark Kleiman — and Whoopi Goldberg
Fri, Apr 18, 2014 at 11:49 AM
California police who want to ban doctors from recommending concentrated marijuana might want to talk to UCLA Professor Mark Kleiman, or mega-celebrity and cohost of The View, Whoopi Goldberg. This week, both offered resounding endorsements of portable micro-vaporizers combined with concentrated cannabis oil (wax, BHO) whether for recreational or medical use.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Martinez Bans Outdoor Medical Cannabis Cultivation
Thu, Apr 17, 2014 at 10:54 AM
Last year we said bans on any and all medical marijuana cultivation were going to be a defining trend of 2014.
That trend continued last night when the five city councilmembers of the East Bay city of Martinez unanimously voted to ban medical marijuana patients from growing even a single pot plant in their backyard, KTVU reports.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Martinez To Ban Outdoor Medical Marijuana Growing This Week
Mon, Apr 14, 2014 at 10:08 AM
Patients are mobilizing to stop the East Bay city of Martinez from banning outdoor cultivation of medical cannabis this Wednesday at a city council meeting that is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 525 Henrietta Street, Martinez.
The ban would shred California’s Prop 215, which voters passed in 1996. Prop 215's stated goal was “to ensure that seriously ill Californians have the right to obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use is deemed appropriate”
State law finds that qualified patients can grow as many plants as is medically necessary, though state guidelines call for no more than six mature or 12 immature plants per patient.
But Martinez is planning to ban all outdoor growing, based on a California Supreme Court ruling from 2013, which found that cities can ban dispensaries. That ruling is now being applied to the cultivation of even a single pot plant in places like Fresno. Such cultivation bans are being challenged in court.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Grand Closing: America’s Pot Farmers Are Putting Mexican Cartels Out of Business
Thu, Apr 10, 2014 at 11:13 AM
For the first time in generations, farmers in central Mexico have stopped planting marijuana.
Due to ample supplies up north, courtesy of medical and recreational cannabis legalization, cartel farmers can’t make any money off pot anymore, they told the Washington Post this week. The price for a pound of Mexican marijuana has plummeted 75 percent from $100 per kilogram to less than $25.
"'It’s not worth it anymore,'" said 50 year-old Rodrigo Silla, a lifelong cannabis farmer. He also told the Post he couldn’t remember the last time his family and others stopped growing mota. “'I wish the Americans would stop with this legalization.'”
Monday, April 7, 2014
Marijuana Legalization Scrambles Political Compasses of Republicans, Democrats
Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 10:28 AM
Republicans and Democrats don't stand for anything other than keeping their jobs — and if you're looking for the clearest example of that, look toward cannabis legalization where you'll find Democrats supporting the prison-industrial complex and modern Jim Crow; and you'll also find "small government" Republicans ready to analyze your urine for marijuana metabolites. (That's small!)
The Wall Street Journal today takes a national look at how cannabis law reform has scrambled the political compasses of Republicans and Democrats alike.
