COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) A marijuana giveaway for veterans attracted about 1,000 people to a Colorado hotel. The "Grow 4 Vets" giveaway in Colorado Springs aimed to bring cannabis-based treatments to veterans with service-related conditions as an alternative to pain medications. The Gazette reports that veterans were given a bag of items that included cannabis oil, an edible chocolate bar and seeds to grow plants. Marijuana activists have tried unsuccessfully to have post-traumatic stress disorder added to the Colorado list of medical conditions that qualify for joining the medical marijuana registry. Now that pot is legal for all adults over 21, organizers are free to give away marijuana. A similar event was held last weekend in Denver. [end]
Two States Expect $811 Million From Taxes on Marijuana Sales If a pair of new government forecasts prove true, Washington and Colorado would see more than $800 million in extra revenue over the next few years thanks to marijuana sales. At the least. The estimates, both released in recent days, differ greatly in what they predict and over what time period. But together they show that the plant, now legal to purchase in both states, could generate at least $811.2 million for the trailblazing states before 2020. Washington can expect $637 million by 2019, while Colorado can expect $174.5 million through the fiscal year that ends in 2017, according to state estimates. [continues 302 words]
For perhaps the first time since Nevada finally got serious about implementing its medical marijuana laws, a state regulation makes sense. The state's Division of Public and Behavioral Health announced it would not invoke its discretionary authority to limit the amount of marijuana grown in Nevada to between 650,000 and 1 million square feet. That's the right call: The entrepreneurs who set up marijuana growing and dispensing businesses should be the ones making the decisions about how much they need, based on their best estimate of what the market demands. Sellers note that some products - such as lotions infused with marijuana - require more of the drug to manufacture. [continues 559 words]
OUT in the fields and talking with farmers it is glaringly obvious Tasmania is missing out on a huge opportunity from one of the oldest sustainable industries on the planet: industrial hemp. Tasmania stands on the brink of a bold new industry with hemp. However, despite having many regulatory regimes to develop models for production of industrial hemp, we are going nowhere. Industrial hemp is not a drug: it has virtually has no THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana. It seems to get confused with medicinal cannabis. [continues 318 words]
To the editor: District Attorney Charles Branson said in an article on Sept. 7, that the real problem with selling marijuana in Lawrence is the armed invasion of the homes of people who sell marijuana. He said that in the last two years there have been 25 drug-related home invasions, and if you go back five years, three deaths occurred in these robberies. Of course this is worrisome, but the root cause of these crimes is the prohibition of marijuana, not marijuana use itself. As a law enforcement official, violent crime is bound to be the district attorney's focus, but a look at the prohibition of alcohol shows that the social costs of prohibition far outweigh the costs of legalization. The armed robberies of bootleggers and speakeasys are things of the past precisely because the prohibition of alcohol was repealed. [continues 60 words]
UNLV's most impactful recruit this year might be nowhere near the basketball court. Nevada's state and federal lawmakers have been working to bring medical marijuana researcher Dr. Sue Sisley to the university to conduct a pilot study on the safety and efficacy of marijuana on veterans with chronic and treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress disorder. While the study would be financially supported by sponsors and not receive any federal money, it has received all the federal approvals, said Sisley, who has been working on securing the study since 2011. She is hoping the university will provide the research space. [continues 1258 words]
COLORADO SPRINGS (AP) - A marijuana giveaway for veterans attracted about 1,000 people to a Colorado hotel. The Operation Grow 4 Vets giveaway in Colorado Springs aimed to bring cannabis-based treatments to veterans with service-related conditions as an alternative to pain medications. The veterans were given a bag of items that included cannabis oil, an edible-marijuana chocolate bar, and seeds to grow plants. Marijuana activists have tried unsuccessfully to have post-traumatic stress disorder added to the Colorado list of medical conditions that qualify for joining the medical marijuana registry. Now that pot is legal for all adults over 21, organizers are free to give away marijuana. [continues 77 words]
More Data Needed to Determine Effectiveness, Pain-Treatment Specialist Says At least a dozen physicians raised their hands at a pain conference in Halifax on Friday when asked if they have prescribed medical marijuana for their patients. More physicians in Canada are becoming familiar with medical marijuana but more education and research is needed, said Mark Ware, a renowned pain specialist at McGill University in Montreal. "We need more data, yes, but we also need better mechanisms to get that data, that we do have, out to the hands of people that need to know it." [continues 517 words]
Big Year for Drug/Gang Fighting Cops Members of the Edmonton Drug and Gang Enforcement unit (EDGE) have had a record-breaking year for seizures of marijuana, buffing agent and cash. So far this year, police have seized 200 kg of marijuana, 27 kg of buffing agent and nearly $1.4 million in cash. The unit seized $1.3 million cash for the entire year last year and had 6.3 kg of marijuana at this time last year. According to EDGE Staff Sgt. Carlos Cardoso, the increase in marijuana is due to a record-breaking seizure of 440 pounds last April. Prior to that, the last big marijuana seizure was approximately 160 pounds. [continues 395 words]
Former NRP investigator says cocaine flowing over border For every shipment that gets caught, there are probably another 20 that get through." Joe Maggiolo, retired Niagara Regional Police staff sergeant The local border between Canada and the U. S. is looked at by those in drug trade as an express lane according to a former Niagara cop. "Around the world we're becoming known as an easy place to get in," said Joe Maggiolo, a retired Niagara Regional Police staff sergeant who spent much of his 37-year policing career investigating drugs and organized crime. "For every shipment that gets caught, there are probably another 20 that get through." [continues 476 words]