THOSE SEEKING to participate in Oregon's recreational (AKA adult-use) cannabis industry are feverishly preparing license applications for January 4, 2016. Meanwhile, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) on October 22 released rules for those who wish to grow, process, and sell adult-use cannabis in 2016: 78 pages of government-crafted regulations, covering a wide range of details, and-surprise-very few people are happy. (Note: Barring a late start by Phish, I've never seen so many weed smokers so grumpy. Can't any of the world-class growers in this state create an "OLCC Kush" to deal with the effects of working with this agency?) [continues 406 words]
Denver's marijuana regulators are asking the City Council to expand rules that would bar any new players from entering the state's largest market. For two years, a city moratorium aimed at controlling industry growth has allowed only existing medical marijuana businesses to open recreational dispensaries, grow houses or edible manufacturers. That's set to expire Jan. 1, a prospect that has had eager entrepreneurs and investors lining up. But new proposals submitted Tuesday by Denver's marijuana policy office would extend the moratorium two more years. And a newly proposed moratorium would bar any new applications for medical marijuana business licenses during the same period. [continues 577 words]
Canada was recently ranked the freest country in the world, but newly installed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau isn't about to let it rest on its maple leaves. He won the October national elections after proposing something no major American presidential nominee has ever dared to endorse: legalizing marijuana. His Liberal Party argued that because of the current ban, "proceeds from the illegal drug trade support organized crime and greater threats to public safety, like human trafficking and hard drugs." Its platform called for legalizing, regulating and taxing cannabis. [continues 637 words]
Why do some strains make me paranoid and anxiety-ridden and some strains don't? - -LFM Good question. The short answer: No one really knows. We do know that the amygdala, the part of the brain that controls anxiety and fear, contains cannabis receptors and produces its own set of endocannabinoids. That's right. You create your own form of cannabis just by being human. Anyway, it's generally the THC in cannabis that can make you feel self-conscious and weird. Try to avoid anything with a super-high THC content, and maybe look for a strain that has a good amount of CBD. CBD has been shown to help with anxiety. Or just don't use cannabis. I'm kidding. Smoke weed every day. Still kidding. Be yourself. [continues 377 words]
Monday's long-awaited announcement that billionaire angel investor Sean Parker is backing a marijuana legalization effort was welcome news. It was also doubly misleading. First, as of press time, Parker is not backing the Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA), the legalization initiative unveiled this week by an environmental attorney and the former head of the California Medical Association. Despite headlines to the contrary in the Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, and elsewhere, Parker isn't putting money behind AUMA - at least not yet. [continues 823 words]
Former State Public Health Official Will Head Ballot Effort Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom Says Measure Is in Line With His Views Doctors' Group Backs Legalization; Will Evaluate Measure Donald Lyman, a retired physician and former board member at the California Medical Association, said Monday he will lead a well-funded statewide effort to legalize recreational marijuana next year. Lyman, of Sacramento, is the chief proponent for the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, the long-awaited legalization measure introduced Monday that's expected to receive funding from former Facebook president Sean Parker and be guided by veteran Democratic political consultant Gale Kaufman. [continues 855 words]
Former Facebook President Plans to Spend Millions on Legalization Effort. SACRAMENTO - A coalition that includes former Facebook President Sean Parker on Monday proposed an initiative that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana in California and place a 15% tax on retail sales of the drug. Parker, a billionaire who also co-founded the file-sharing service Napster, plans to put millions of dollars behind the proposal, intended for the November 2016 ballot, according to those in the coalition. "It's very encouraging to see a vibrant community of activists ... coming together around a sensible reform-based measure that protects children, gives law enforcement additional resources and establishes a strong regulatory framework for responsible adult use of marijuana - - one that will yield economic benefits for all Californians," Parker said in a statement. [continues 256 words]
San Francisco - The push to make California one of the states where marijuana can be sold to and legally used by adults for recreation took a major step forward on Monday as ballot language backed by Napster co-founder Sean Parker, other wealthy entrepreneurs who support pot legalization and leading advocacy groups was filed with the state. The proposed legalization initiative is one of more than a dozen that has been submitted in California for the November 2016 election. Because of the deep pockets and political connections, observers think the Adult Use of Marijuana Act is the vehicle with the greatest chance of success. [continues 77 words]
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The push to put California among the states where marijuana can be sold to and legally used by adults for recreation took a major step forward on Monday as ballot language backed by Napster co-founder Sean Parker, other wealthy entrepreneurs who support pot legalization and leading advocacy groups was filed with the state. The proposed legalization initiative is one of more than a dozen that has been submitted in California for the November 2016 election. Because of the deep pockets, political connections and professional credibility of its supporters, however, observers think the so-called Adult Use of Marijuana Act is the vehicle with the greatest chance of success. [continues 324 words]
COLUMBUS, Ohio - As a member of the International Cannabinoid Research Society, a collector of antique marijuana apothecary jars, the founder of an industrial hemp business and "a pot smoker consistently for 47 years," Don Wirtshafter, an Ohio lawyer, has fought for decades to make marijuana legal, calling it "my life's work." But when Ohio voters go to the polls Tuesday to consider a constitutional amendment to allow marijuana for both medical and personal use, Mr. Wirtshafter will vote against it. [continues 1193 words]
COLUMBUS, Ohio - As a member of the International Cannabinoid Research Society, a collector of antique marijuana apothecary jars, the founder of an industrial hemp business and "a pot smoker consistently for 47 years," Don Wirtshafter, an Ohio lawyer, has fought for decades to make marijuana legal, calling it "my life's work." But when Ohio voters go to the polls Tuesday to consider a constitutional amendment to allow marijuana for both medical and personal use, Wirtshafter will vote against it. Issue 3, as the proposed amendment is known, is bankrolled by wealthy investors spending nearly $25 million to put it on the ballot and sell it to voters. If it passes, they would have exclusive rights to growing commercial marijuana in Ohio. [continues 1049 words]
Looser PTSD Rules Boost Prescriptions The number of New Mexicans licensed to buy medical marijuana surged by almost 50 percent this year, in part because of a court ruling in April that eased some qualifications required to get a license, a state official said. About 18,780 people are now licensed by the state Department of Health to buy medical pot, up 48 percent from 12,647 on Jan. 1, said Andrea Sundberg, director of the agency's medical cannabis program. An advocate for the state's medical cannabis law said the spike in licensed patients also reflects a growing acceptance of medical marijuana among patients and physicians. [continues 399 words]
Pop Singer and Select Ohioans Will See Green If Initiative Passes Two things you probably haven't been paying a lot of a attention to lately: Election Day in Ohio. (It's not 2016 yet.) Former boy-band star a and reality TV spouse Nick L Lachey. (It's not 2003 anymore.) m Well, settle in, be because you have some catching up to do. On Tuesday, Ohio residents go to the polls to decide whether marijuana should be legal. If they vote yes, the Cincinnati native and long-ago leading man of "Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica" will automatically become one of the top weed kingpins of the Buckeye State. [continues 1226 words]
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - New York state will require physicians to complete an educational course before they can authorize medical marijuana for patients - an unusual mandate not applied to other new drugs or seen in other states with medical marijuana programs. State officials say the 4-1/2-hour, $250 online course will inform doctors about a complex drug treatment not covered in medical school. But while the investment of time and money is modest, some patient advocates worry the inconvenience could discourage physicians from participating, ultimately limiting patient access. [continues 634 words]
Big donors, led by former Facebook president Sean Parker, are lining up to fund a 2016 California initiative to legalize marijuana for recreational use. But behind the scenes, legalization efforts are splitting California marijuana advocates with national drug-policy groups over such things as including initiative language to protect marijuana users from job discrimination or over how tightly to restrict pot cultivation or cannabis industry operations. With billionaires now readying to fund legalization efforts, some cannabis activists fear they will be left on the sidelines on an issue they pioneered and elevated to political relevance. [continues 1376 words]
Here's a prediction: Marijuana will be legal New Jersey in three years. All that needs to happen is for a reasonable human being to assume the governor's throne, as our current fearless leader, Chris Christie, has repeatedly said he'd never allow anyone to legally blaze a joint in the Garden State. As such, he has vowed to never sign a legalization bill. And there are bills, for the record. Bills that would seek to either decriminalize or fully legalize marijuana are waiting to be heard. [continues 520 words]
Support for cannabis legalization is at record highs in the U.S. according to Gallup poll, while new research shows marijuana use has doubled among U.S. adults in past decade A record number of Americans think marijuana use should be legal, according to a new poll released Wednesday by international pollster Gallup. And government surveys published Wednesday offered further indications that marijuana is moving into the mainstream nationally, nearly three years after Colorado voters legalized recreational pot. Marijuana use among U.S. adults doubled over the past decade, rising to more than 22 million mostly recreational users, the surveys show. [continues 619 words]
Marijuana's Economic Importance Will Come Through Loud and Clear in Race for President. As Republican presidential candidates prepare to debate economic issues in Boulder, the sweet smell of success for the state's legally sold marijuana industry seems impossible to overlook. Nationally the legal industry brought in about $3 billion in 2014 but is projected to grow to more than $8 billion by 2018, if current politics stay the course, according to the Marijuana Industry Factbook. Colorado racked up $70 million in sales of recreational and medical pot last year - nearly $700,000 in tax revenue, plus $13 million in licenses and fees. The industry is expected top $1 billion this year. [continues 729 words]
More Tech Industry Leaders Take Investment Roles and Support Legalization of Marijuana SAN FRANCISCO - A simmering battle among California's marijuana legalization advocates is getting new focus as Gov. Jerry Brown considers three laws laying the groundwork for legal recreational pot next year. It's a topic that's previously attracted the financial backing of some of tech's best known and wealthiest founders, such as Napster co-founder and Facebook investor Sean Parker, and they're expected to jump into the ring this time, too. [continues 587 words]
With legal sales of medical cannabis in California approaching $2 billion, it's hard to understand how and why nobody in the marijuana legalization movement has any money. But it's true. Legalization's money troubles were evident earlier this week when Reform CA - a coalition of NORML and Americans for Safe Access, the state's marijuana activist groups; industry lobbyists representing dispensaries and growers; and the state NAACP - filed with the Attorney General its proposed language for a Nov. 2016 cannabis legalization voter initiative. [continues 709 words]
