Waterville and Vassalboro school boards also will vote on the policy to allow a caregiver to administer medical marijuana to students at school. Winslow, Waterville and Vassalboro schools are enacting policies to allow students to use medical marijuana in school as districts across the state move to comply with a state law passed last year that allows the practice. The Winslow School Board on Monday voted to approve a policy that allows a parent or legal guardian considered a primary caregiver under Maine's medical marijuana laws to administer marijuana on school grounds to a student certified to use the drug. [continues 611 words]
The Escondido and Poway city councils adopted rule changes this week designed to ensure that medical marijuana dispensaries and the cultivation of marijuana for such purposes won't be allowed in their jurisdictions. Both cities already had regulations banning dispensaries, but decided they needed to tighten those ordinances because of legislation passed in Sacramento late last year that established new rules for medical marijuana. The legislation allows the state to license dispensaries in cities that don't have laws that expressly prohibit them. Cities that don't have rules in place by March 1 will be subject to the state guidelines. [continues 345 words]
THE Medical Research Council (MRC) has published a policy brief acknowledging there was sufficient evidence that the medicinal use of dagga can relieve chronic pain and reduce spasticity in patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. The brief summarised the findings of Dr Penny Whiting, an American scientist who conducted a systemic review evaluating the medicinal use of dagga. The publication this week of the brief, prepared for South Africa by Professor Charles Parry, Nandi Siegfried and Bronwyn Meyers from the MRC, follows the introduction of the Medical Innovation Bill in parliament in February 2014. [continues 175 words]
Will Gizmo to Weed Out Drivers Who Take the High Road Hit a Stone Wall? IT'S ALL HAPPENING so fast. Just three years ago, marijuana was illegal for recreational use nationwide. That changed when voters in Colorado and Washington legalized it in 2012. Oregon, Alaska. and the District of Columbia passed similar legislation last year. Philadelphia has reduced possession of a small amount of marijuana to a $25 citation, and Mayorelect Jim Kenney - South Philly Mummer turned pot-friendly progressive - has said he would like to eliminate weed citations altogether. [continues 1213 words]
BURLINGTON (AP) - As more states allow for the use of medical marijuana, the University of Vermont is offering a course in the science of the drug - and the professors say they are challenged by a lack of research on what has long been a taboo topic. Other institutions have offered classes in marijuana law and policy, but the university's medical school is likely the country's first to offer a full course on medical cannabis, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. Other medical schools have touched on the topic. [continues 519 words]
The time is long overdue for marijuana to be legalized by both federal and state governments. In 1971, I was a college freshman debater, and one of the issues was whether marijuana should be legalized. As I researched the topic, the arguments were overwhelmingly in favor of legalization, and it was difficult to put together a credible case for continued criminalization. More than 40 years have gone by, and possession of marijuana remains illegal under federal law and in 46 states. Only Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington have legalized possession of small amounts of marijuana. [continues 679 words]
Chicago (AP) - The green-typeface slogan "WE'ED like to be your doctor!" - unmistakably weed-friendly - has attracted hundreds of medical marijuana patients in less than a year to Dr. Bodo Schneider's clinics in southern Illinois and suburban Chicago. In New Jersey, Dr. Anthony Anzalone has a similar following at his three clinics, marketed online with a marijuana leaf logo and a "DrMarijuanaNJ" web address. The two marijuana-friendly doctors in states with similar laws face starkly different treatment by government regulators. When it comes to oversight of boundary-pushing doctors, enforcement practices vary in the 23 states allowing medical cannabis. [continues 731 words]
A new medical marijuana dispensary aimed at seniors just jumped through another hoop in its bid for acceptance in Berkeley, California. Hopeful proprietor Sue Taylor says her business, if approved, would provide services for seniors with compatible medical strains and remedies alongside health and information classes aimed at the fast-growing retirement crowd. It would be the first, she says, in the nation. It's not like everybody will immediately start inhaling the day after they stop working, but the baby boom generation is still the pig in the python of American demographics. About 10,000 Americans turn 65 today, and about 10,000 more will be crossing that river every day for the next 19 years. That's an enormous potential market. [continues 672 words]
Jean Kennedy has a BS in biology and a master's in special education. Now, she's trying to decide what to do with her third degree: a certificate of achievement from Oaksterdam University, the Harvard Business School of marijuana. "I'm Italian," said Kennedy, 56, a retired high school biology teacher with graying hair and a heavy New York accent. "You know Italians, we grow tomatoes. Maybe I'll grow some plants." Horticulture 102 is one of the many subjects Kennedy studies at Oaksterdam, whose storefront campus is set amid the hip cafes, restaurants and cannabis dispensaries of downtown Oakland. Founded in 2007, the school sees itself as a training ground for citizen advocates in the fight to legalize marijuana. [continues 1416 words]
As medical marijuana becomes a reality in Illinois, residents should brace themselves to the problems seen in other states. Already, as reported last month, the marijuana industry is ignoring bans on advertising and launching a million-dollar marketing campaign to boost sales. Advertising highly potent edible products, such as cookies and candy, that are appealing to youth sends the wrong message and leads young people to believe marijuana is harmless. The medical marijuana cottage industry lacks consumer safety protocols and has led to an increase in marijuana-related emergency room visits in other states. [continues 225 words]
The political dysfunction in Springfield that has made it impossible to do something as basic as pass a state budget threatens to eviscerate an important pilot program for medical marijuana-even as potential patients continue to get in line. But this is one logjam that could be broken quickly, and it should be. Gov. Bruce Rauner's administration and the Legislature have shown a good-faith willingness to actually talk to each other about this one - - rare itself these days. For the sake of severely ill people suffering from chronic pain, we urge the governor and Legislature to keep on talking and reach a deal. They might even learn a thing or two about how to bridge the chasm, by giving and getting, on other more difficult issues. [continues 302 words]
State House Working Group Sifts Through Claims. The papers and opinions on medical marijuana kept coming across Rep. Aaron Kaufer's desk. Advocates and opponents wanted their chance to convince him. ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Young marijuana plants stand under grow lamps at the Pioneer Production and Processing marijuana growing facility in Washington state. A total of 23 states and the District of Columbia allow medical marijuana programs, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Mr. Kaufer, R-Kingston, was a member of a bi-partisan working group in the state House of Representatives looking at the issue of medical marijuana. After months of research and meetings, the group sent its conclusions to House Majority Leader Dave Reed in September. The conclusions gave guidelines for how a potential medical marijuana program could be implemented. [continues 1701 words]
There's plenty of speculation about our upcoming federal election, much of it frankly negative. Politics is tough, especially when you weigh up the leaders and realize that finding someone who reflects all your values is almost impossible. When the haranguing and arguing gets me down, I simply flip on a U.S. news channel, and take a good look at what our friends to the south are dealing with. It's like they're trying to elect a new village idiot, with a surfeit of contenders - by comparison, the Canadian election is a Care Bear Countdown. [continues 846 words]
A week ago Friday, lawyers for Richard Kirk, a Denver man who is charged with the murder of his wife after eating a cannabis edible during a domestic disturbance in April 2014, changed his original plea from not guilty to not guilty by reason of insanity. The pot made him do it. Had he not ingested a marijuana edible, he wouldn't have murdered his wife, Kristine, who was on the phone with 911 when she was shot. It's a horrible story. Police reports indicate that the incident took place at home while their three sons were present. According to a police affidavit for a search warrant, Richard Kirk bought a Bubba Kush joint and a 100-milligram piece of Karma Kandy Orange Ginger taffy at a store on South Colorado Boulevard. He apparently ate some or all of the candy, came home, began arguing with his wife and acting irrationally, cutting his legs on broken glass, before unlocking the gun safe and shooting his wife in the head. [continues 602 words]
Don't hesitate to medicate," call the spruikers in their white coats on Hollywood Boulevard and Venice Beach, California, where doctors licensed to prescribe medical marijuana do a brisk trade. Walk-ins merely have to turn up and describe some vague pain or high level of stress to bag their weed. The rest of the world seems to be trying to ignore it, but slowly and surely the United States of America, until recently leading the charge in the war on drugs, is legalising marijuana possession. Twenty states, from Alaska to Vermont, have already decriminalised adult cultivation and use of cannabis. [continues 506 words]
Anne Arundel County Executive Steve Schuh's position on medical cannabis is both disappointing and baffling. And it cannot be permitted to stand. Under Mr. Schuh's proposal, medical cannabis facilities, essentially the pharmacies to distribute medication to suffering patients, and all matters of manufacturing and distribution of this medication, would be made illegal in Anne Arundel County. As a member of the House of Delegates, Mr. Schuh voted against medical marijuana and to continue making possession of small amounts of marijuana an offense punishable by months in jail. In combination with his current stance, if Mr. Schuh has his way, citizens of Anne Arundel County, and across our state with debilitating diseases such as cancer, AIDS and glaucoma would continue to be forced to choose between obtaining helpful medication and being a criminal. [continues 578 words]
Marijuana Dispenser Feels Villainized, Victimized by Justice System The man who ran Winnipeg's only medical marijuana dispensary before being arrested earlier this month made his first court appearance Thursday and said police have seized "everything I had." Your Medical Cannabis Services owner Glenn Price made a brief appearance without legal representation in a Winnipeg courtroom Thursday afternoon and, outside the Law Courts building, told reporters his best intentions of helping Winnipeggers has resulted in the justice system labelling him a villain. [continues 389 words]
Storefront filled need, advocate says DELTA 9 Bio-Tech, the only federally licensed medical-marijuana operation in Manitoba, says it has room for 200 new patients this month. Others will turn to their own stash of pot. And as a last resort, there's always the street. Police shut down Winnipeg's only storefront medical-pot dispensary, Your Medical Cannabis Headquarters, in a raid Tuesday. Owner Glenn Price faces drug charges. The reality for many medical-marijuana users is that the options are limited, despite the optimistic rhetoric, one vocal advocate said. [continues 647 words]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. Certain chemicals in marijuana may kill cancer cells, shrink tumors and prevent the formation of blood vessels that feed tumors. That's the National Cancer Institute reporting findings from preclinical trials - the kind of research that typically leads to more in-depth testing. But nearly a half-century ago the folks who write the checks for the cancer institute - the U.S. government - proclaimed marijuana a stoner-only drug and stamped it Schedule I, lumping it with heroin and LSD. That early war-on-drugs salvo cut the world's biggest funder out of medical marijuana research. [continues 1082 words]
Yeah, it's a cure-all. My buddy Jonah broke his elbow one time. He just smoked some weed. It still clicks, but it's cool. -Ben Stone in the film Knocked Up. Maybe Ben Stone and his friend Jonah were onto something. A study by Israeli scientists recently published in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research found broken bones healed faster and stronger in lab rats injected with cannabidiol (CBD), one of the non-psychoactive compounds found in marijuana. In the study, Tel Aviv University researchers injected CBD into rats with mid-femoral fractures and found the CBD made the bones stronger during and after healing. The study found the treatment was far less effective, however, when the rats were injected with a combination of CBD and THC, marijuana's psychoactive ingredient. Sorry, Ben. [continues 447 words]
