Cannabis's topics - tribe.net

States' Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act

2013-02-28T00:01:56Z

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?c113:./temp/~c113ITlxfB

H.R.689 -- States' Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act (Introduced in House - IH)

HR 689 IH

113th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 689
To provide for the rescheduling of marijuana and for the medical use of marijuana in accordance with the laws of the various States.

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Young Informants are Drug War’s Latest Victims

2013-02-21T19:31:33Z

"After police found drugs in her apartment, Hoffman agreed to assist Florida officers in a major undercover deal involving meeting two convicted felons alone to buy two-and-a-half ounces of cocaine, 1,500 ecstasy pills, and a semi-automatic handgun. Within days, her body was found shot five times with the gun that the police had sent her to buy."

http://www.democracynow.org/2013/2/20/throwaways_recruited_by_police_thrown_into

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Act Now: Reform Federal Marijuana Laws

2013-02-05T21:13:45Z

https://secure2.convio.net/dpa/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=927

Message
Cosponsor the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2013
Dear [Decision Maker],
In an unprecedented effort this week, Members of Congress have gotten serious about changing our nation's drug policies, and I'm writing to urge you to cosponsor their bill. The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act of 2013 would reform federal marijuana laws and allow states to set their own marijuana policy without federal interference.

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Effort building to change US pot laws

2013-02-05T20:39:45Z

http://www.denverpost.com/news/marijuana/ci_22516321/apnewsbreak-effort-building-change-us-pot-laws
APNewsBreak: Effort building to change US pot laws

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C-Span: Brooking Inst. Discusses Fed. and State MJ Laws (VIDEO)

2013-01-13T06:19:51Z

Panelists talked about conflicts between federal and state laws following the 2012 legalization of the recreational use of marijuana in Washington and Colorado. They responded to questions from members of the audience.

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/310258-1

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"The 10 Things That Led to Legalized Marijuana in Colorado" ~ Rob Kampia

2013-01-03T10:32:45Z

Ya'll read this?

"1. Presidential Election: Given that no one had ever previously legalized marijuana in the history of the world, we assumed that the election in Colorado would be close -- win or lose. So we intentionally chose to place our initiative on the ballot during a presidential election, which always attracts a larger proportion of young voters, who are more supportive.

2. Inclusive Drafting Process: The team that drafted the initiative went out of its way to solicit feedback from key lawyers, medical-marijuana industry players, other organizational leaders, and unaffiliated activists. As a result, there was almost no infighting, which allowed us to build a strong coalition of support across the state.

3. Years of Groundwork: Officially, the Colorado campaign was two years long; unofficially, it was eight years long. In 2004, MPP's grants program helped launch two non-profit advocacy organizations in Colorado, SAFER and Sensible Colorado. The executive directors of these two organizations eventually became the co-proponents of Amendment 64. SAFER focused on educating the public about the fact that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol; it did so through citywide, marijuana-related ballot initiatives in Denver in 2005 and 2007, which each garnered support from a majority of Denver voters. In 2006, SAFER coordinated a statewide ballot initiative to legalize marijuana and generated substantial debate in Colorado (while garnering 41 percent of the vote). Meanwhile, Sensible Colorado helped expand access to medical marijuana for patients. Most significantly, in 2008, Sensible Colorado spearheaded a court challenge to expand the state's medical marijuana "caregiver" provision to allow for retail sales. All of this took planning and money.

4. Early Fundraising: The campaign cost approximately $2,300,000, more than half of which was raised prior to six months before Election Day. While we continued to receive important donations leading all the way up to November 6, the "Early Money Is Like Yeast" metaphor of EMILY's List really is true."

...Etc.

Read the rest here:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rob-kampia/colorado-marijuana_b_2139163.html?utm_hp_ref=marijuana

I believe he warned Oregon not to waste their money on running a campaign in 2014.
Just save up and do the groundwork for next Pres. Election. but, maybe it was someone else.
Another billionaire donor?

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Legal Medical Marijuana States

2012-12-27T08:03:53Z

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000881

17 Legal Medical Marijuana States and DC
Laws, Fees, and Possession Limits

I. Summary Chart
II. Details by State
III. Sources

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Year of Prophecies latter days

2012-12-15T01:22:31Z

Year of Prophecies latter days
http://lunaramble.blogspot.com/2012/12/year-of-prophecies-latter-days.html

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H.R.6606 -- Respect States' and Citizens' Rights Act of 2012

2012-11-30T22:52:20Z

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:H.R.6606:

H.R.6606 -- Respect States' and Citizens' Rights Act of 2012 (Introduced in House - IH)

HR 6606 IH

112th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 6606
To amend the Controlled Substances Act to provide that Federal law shall not preempt State law.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

November 27, 2012
Ms. DEGETTE (for herself, Mr. COFFMAN of Colorado, Mr. PAUL, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. FARR, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. POLIS, Mr. COHEN, and Mr. GRIJALVA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A BILL
To amend the Controlled Substances Act to provide that Federal law shall not preempt State law.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Respect States' and Citizens' Rights Act of 2012'.

SEC. 2. IN GENERAL.

Section 708 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 903) is amended--

(1) by striking `No provision' and inserting `(a) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subsection (b), no provision'; and

(2) by adding at the end the following:

`(b) Special Rule Regarding State Marihuana Laws- In the case of any State law that pertains to marihuana, no provision of this title shall be construed as indicating an intent on the part of the Congress to occupy the field in which that provision operates, including criminal penalties, to the exclusion of State law on the same subject matter, nor shall any provision of this title be construed as preempting any such State law.'.

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Legalization is the only answer

2012-11-04T01:49:27Z

http://www.royalcityrecord.com/Legalization+only+answer/7487613/story.html

Legalization is the only answer

"For some people, life is full of suffering that they seek to escape. For some of those people, cannabis is a preferred option. Right or wrong, this won't change. Prohibition marginalizes and seeks to eliminate this sub-group in society. It borders on genocide. In some places, they kill people over drugs yet never seem to run out of people to kill. I do not condone the states use of violence upon its citizens for consuming a plant. There is a magic cure, it's "live and let live."

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Scientists' Letter to President Obama: Science Before Politics

2012-11-01T21:37:26Z

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/182/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=11842

Scientists' Letter to President Obama: Science Before Politics

The below letter, authored by "father of String Theory" Dr. John Schwarz, urges President Barack Obama to uphold his promises to put science before politics, particularly as it regards public policy toward medical marijuana. We invite scientists and researchers to join him in urging the President to place science before politics and allow medical marijuana research and access.

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recreational use of marijuan

2012-11-01T21:07:53Z

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/10/23/marijuana-legalization-ballot-proposals/1642803/
States consider moving beyond medical marijuana

William Welch
Three states will vote Nov. 6 on whether to allow recreational use of marijuana. There's still a federal prohibition, and approval would surely bring court challenges.

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The 10 Best Politicians on Pot Reform

2012-10-13T22:19:04Z

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-10-best-politicians-on-pot-20121009?goback=%2Egde_4122540_member_174647385#ixzz295qldCO9

The 10 Best Politicians on Pot Reform
From Barney Frank to Ron Paul, these elected leaders are challenging the government's pointless war on marijuana

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What If Everything You Think You Know About This Plant Is Wrong?

2012-09-09T20:05:58Z

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/laurel-dewey/marijuana-is-not-addictive_b_1739339.html
The Marijuana Myth: What If Everything You Think You Know About This Plant Is Wrong?

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cannabis and parenting

2012-09-08T12:03:20Z

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/08/opinion/how-pot-helps-parenting.html?_r=1&hpw

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Artist Uses Pot Smoke to Paint

2012-08-24T23:52:46Z

http://www.hispanicallyspeakingnews.com/notitas-de-noticias/details/brazilian-artist-uses-pot-smoke-to-paint-series-titled-blow-job-photos/17858/
Brazilian Artist Uses Pot Smoke to Paint Series Titled “Blow Job”

http://fernandodelarocque.blogspot.com/

Brazilian artist Fernando de la Rocque’s latest series of work title “Blow Job” was created in using an unlikely (and currently illegal) substance, marijuana.

Brazilian artist Fernando de la Rocque’s latest series of work title “Blow Job” was created in using an unlikely (and currently illegal) substance, marijuana.

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Healing with Raw and Heated Cannabinoids

2012-08-24T22:35:20Z

Healing with cannabis
by Alyx Kerr on Friday, August 3, 2012 at 3:18pm ·

'When you consume “raw” cannabis, that is cannabis which has not been heated, you are consuming the cannabinoid acids. THCA and/or CBDA. If you have a strain that is dominant in CBD, then the raw form is delivering CBDA. If you have a high THC strain, then this raw form will deliver THCA. Look up tetrahydrocannabinolic acid, or cannabidiolic acid. Those are the A forms of the molecules you are consuming. Almost all varieties today contain large amounts of THCA which when heated provides THC. By volume (it is reported by weight actually), there is next to no CBDA or CBD in virtually all of the strains currently available. NOT ALL STRAINS ARE THE SAME! EVEN THE SAME NAMES ARE MOST OFTEN NOT THE SAME (mis-named, different grower = different method = different end product)! Over-generalization of this marvelous plant is what is diminishing its stock and ruining the value it has to offer. We’ve done thousands of strain tests and have in-house expertise directly from The Netherlands, we are the most informed laboratory of professional scientists in the US, you can rest assured my comments are correct. Only about 2% of the strain products available today have CBD above 1 wt% in them. It is RARE! And most likely almost none of it exists in non-medical states today. Juicing is working because it provides the cannabinoid acids, which are potent anti-inflammatory compounds that help regulate the endocannabinoid system in ways not fully understood just yet. When you juice properly, you consume almost no THC or CBD, it is all THCA and CBDA! That is why you don’t receive any psychoactive effects. Juicing improperly may lead to heating the solution and causing THC to form. The only way to know exactly what you have, strain or juice wise, is to have it tested by a reliable and accurate lab (and not all of the “labs” today operate in that faction either unfortunately). Only through accurate information dissemination, more thorough understanding and improved patient care will we be able to fully free this marvelous plant! We all have to do our part! Dr. Courtney, who we maintain an excellent relationship with, is a true pioneer in the fashion and we should all aim to support him and his efforts in every way we can. Let’s be sure to get the right information out there to everyone!''

Jeffrey C. Raber, Ph.D.

http://goo.gl/fZHoF

''Five years ago, while still a regular physician, Courtney was as spooked as most doctors about pot. Then he came across an article in the December 2004 issue of Scientific American. It changed his life. It highlighted a molecule in cannabis that could do something he had never seen before: send signals not only into a nerve cell, but also back out again. The finding reversed 20 years of his understanding of how neurotransmitters work. One-way traffic was the basis for inflammation: Immune cells receive endless messages to get cracking, none to calm down. Continuous attacking can inflame otherwise healthy tissue. Two-way communication makes possible a feedback loop, encouraging a modulation, the promise of which swept over the Michigan-born microbiology major with the force of religion. "My God," he said. "It's the basis of health." Courtney keeps a framed graphic from the article on his desk. It stands beside copies of "Non-psychotropic plant cannabinoids: new therapeutic opportunities from an ancient herb," from Trends in Pharmacological Sciences -- and of course U.S. patent 6630507. ''

http://goo.gl/rL0J5

''Activation of the CB1 receptor produces effects on circulation and psyche common to cannabis ingestion, while activation of the CB2 receptor does not. CB1 receptors are mainly found on nerve cells in the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nervous system, but are also present in certain peripheral organs and tissues, among them endocrine glands, salivary glands, leukocytes, spleen, heart and parts of the reproductive, urinary and gastrointestinal tracts. Many CB1 receptors are expressed at the terminals of central and peripheral nerves and inhibit the release of other neurotransmitters. Thus, CB1 receptor activation protects the nervous system from over-activation or over-inhibition by neurotransmitters. CB1 receptors are highly expressed in regions of the brain, which are responsible for movement (basal ganglia, cerebellum), memory processing (hippocampus, cerebral cortex) and pain modulation (certain parts of the spinal cord, periaqueductal grey), while their expression in the brainstem is low, which may account for the lack of cannabis-related acute fatalities. The brainstem controls, among others, respiration and circulation. CB2 receptors occur principally in immune cells, among them leukocytes, spleen and tonsils. One of the functions of CB receptors in the immune systems is modulation of release of cytokines, which are responsible for inflammation and regulation of the immune system. Since compounds that selectively activate CB2 receptors (CB2 receptor agonists) do not cause psychological effects, they have become an increasingly investigated target for therapeutic uses of cannabinoids, among them analgesic, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer actions.''

http://goo.gl/Z3bQR

"It's a regulatory system for things like appetite, circulation, pain response and immune response. Cannabinoids seem to regulate or maintain all of these different functions ... When mice are bred not to have these receptors, a couple of very shocking studies show they die almost immediately. They suffer from failure to thrive and have no appetite at birth. If you force them to stay alive, they die of old age long before they become old. If this system doesn't work right, people don't survive."

Paul Armentano

"THC and dietary cannabis should be used concurrently but in different forms, because if you mix the two of them, THC makes it difficult to achieve the proper dosing from both of them. You can use it in the morning, and midday; still function - drive cars, there is no interference with your ability to take care of your daily issues. (On using a 12/1 CBD/THC strain) "A child who used to have hundred of seizures a day now goes days without having a seizure ... If you take two mice and give one of them 5mg/kg of CBD, and then you tie off the artery to the heart, the heart attack in the individual who's consuming 5mg/kg a day is reduced by 66%. Hemp can reduce insulin dependent diabetes by 58%.

The amount of money spent on diseases that cannabis could prevent equal the military budget.

Another patient of mine who is 2 or 3 years old had a brain stem tumor: after receiving 10 times the fatal exposure of radiation and a bone marrow transplant, she sent home from hospice care: she was consuming up to 4 - 8 oz of raw cannabis juice per day: her MRI came, not only is the tumor gone, but the radiation damage, the scar tissue has completely reabsorbed in a year and a half, and it normally takes 5 - 6 years for that to reabsorb.

As hunter and gatherers we notice - 'Wow', as this plant ages it changes character - it suddenly has a psychoactive effect. When you [make this complex highly concentrated medicinal juice, we ask that you please] do not heat it, because when you heat it, you decarbolate those 600mg of THCA into THC, 600 mg of THC taken with CBD - you'd be unconcious for probably the better part of the week. Why would you deprive a child of the possibility of preventing tumors, or the possibility of preventing diabetes''

Dr. William Courtney

http://goo.gl/mQ2uM

''Cannabinoids, terpenes and flavinoids have numerous functions, but play a central role in modulating the immune system. They have been shown to be effective as anti-oxidants, analgesics, and as an anti-inflammatory; they are anxiolytic, effective in treating OCD, are active in cellular glucose metabolism, and appear to inhibit aggressive tumor cell growth. The terpenes are known to act synergistically as allosteric modulators at the CB2 receptor. Abnormal function of the ECS can arise from a Clinical Endocannabinoid Deficiency (CECD), from an as yet unidentified Endogenous Terpene Deficiency, as well as from structural / functional deficits in the synthetic, import and degradative enzymes. Aberrant ECS modulation ranges from over activity to under activity.''

Kristen Courtney, Encannin Labs, Mendocino, CA 95460, USA

http://goo.gl/SNRXd

The endogenous cannabinoid system puts your biological systems in a normal range by up regulating or down regulating all 210 types of cells. Cells have a clock in them that cannabinoids reset to tell healthy cells to pause aging and begins aptosis in cancerous cells. If you have not saturated your body with phytocannabinoids, ingesting too much THC, a CB-2 receptor agonist may cause an imbalance leading to dysphoria because you do not have anti-psychotic CB-2 receptor agonists to balance your ECS. Cannabis clinicians recommend 1 - 6 gm daily of cannbinoid acids and 10mg THC. CBD, the heated form of CBDA is a more powerful antioxidant than vitamins C or E. When you heat cannabis 90% of the 488 cannabis constituents - 66 of which are cannabinoids - are evaporated, and consumption is limited by THC to your tolerance of being high. Canninabinoids build up in the lipid tissue; once the body is saturated it reaches an optimum level of regeneration, and in order to increase the amount of cannabinoids quickly a form of raw cannabis, which could be dried leaf a cold extract of cannabis, or a heated form of cannabis from a plant that is low in THC should be ingested, in order to allow you to ingest as much as you need without having to stop at the onset of high once you have taken as much as you need. The body has the highest concentration of canninabinoids in breast milk because they are essential to health. The body forms endogenous cannabinoids using Essential Fatty Acids: hemp seed, olives, coconuts, and avocados are excellent sources. Leaves furthest from flowers have less psycho-active effects than a raw flower: they posses a varying level of psycho-activity depending on the trace amounts of THC in each trichome from chemical processes. All species of cannabis have trichomes covering thier flowers and leaves, including male, hermaphrodite and hemp strains. Raw Cannabis contains primarily CB-2 receptor agonists, balanced EFA's, and a complete essential protien profile. Phytocannabinoid acids are found in (cold pressed) hemp seed oil and hemp sprouts. Customs allow hemp seeds to be imported, such as from http://tiny.cc/mlw3iw or in feed stores labeled bird seed. Sprouted hemp forms trichomes to protect itself after a week of growth. It is possible to bury hundreds of seeds in a small amount of soil, water daily till a sprout emerges and uproot each hemp seedling after it's seventh day. Terpenes, polyphenols and some enzyme-inhibitors like MAOI increase ECS effectiveness, from herbs such as cinnamon, saffron, rosemary flowers, coca and hops. If you are prescibed Marinol, it may contain the carcinogen Titanium Dioxide.

http://www.ccohs.ca/headlines/text186.html

http://www.bluelight.ru/vb/threads/543218-Specific-boiling-points-and-roles-of-cannabinoids

http://cannabination.com/2010/07/12/scientists-find-new-sources-of-plant-cannabinoids/

http://www.theweedblog.com/jamaican-study-of-pregnant-mothers-shows-that-marijuana-doesnt-harm-newborns/

http://youtu.be/qa0nLdVJiIg

http://blog.imva.info/medicine/diabetes-cannabinoid-therapy-magnesium

testpledge.com/answers.htm

https://store.nutiva.com/cold-pressed-hemp-oil/

http://www.hemping.com/hemp-seed-whole-1-kg

http://goo.gl/h8be3

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10 Worst Cases of Cruel and Unusual Punishment

2012-06-28T21:04:26Z

http://www.alternet.org/drugs/156061/life_without_parole_for_pot_10_worst_cases_of_cruel_and_unusual_punishment_/?page=entire
Life Without Parole for Pot? 10 Worst Cases of Cruel and Unusual Punishment
Our government spends more than $7 billion annually to enforce marijuana prohibition in shockingly cruel ways, but the efforts have not deterred marijuana use.

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Uruguay’s bold move

2012-06-27T05:37:14Z

Some sense at last in the war on drugsBy Richard Branson - Jun 24, 2012http://www.virgin.com/richard-branson/blog/some-sense-at-last-in-the-war-on-drugs At last. Some sense is beginning to prevail in the war on drugs. The President of Uruguay has called for legal regulation of marijuana in his country.

Uruguay would be the first country in the world to legally supply marijuana, and the revenue generated from this would be used to fund treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts.

The Global Commission on Drug Policy had asked countries to experiment with different approaches to win the war on drugs, so we welcome the bold approach taken by Uruguay.

This proposed law would see the state sell marijuana directly to its citizens in government-authorized locations. There would be a national registry of consumers; sales would only be legal for adults over 18 years; there would be a maximum amount available per month per consumer; and strict quality controls would be ensured.

We applaud Uruguayan President José Mujica for his forward thinking, and this proposal could see drug trafficking and crime really being tackled at the source of the issues.

There is a growing trend in Latin America for more sensible drug policy reform, and this is a great move in the right direction. Let’s hope the proposal becomes law and more countries follow Uruguay’s bold move.
ay’s bold move.

By Richard Branson. Founder of Virgin Group

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Profit From Illegal Drugs

2012-06-27T05:36:23Z

http://truth-out.org/news/item/9937-how-the-us-government-banks-prison-industrial-complex-corrupt-officials-businesses-law-enforcement-racists-and-the-cia-benefit-from-illegal-drugs
How the US Government, Banks, Prison-Industrial Complex, Corrupt Officials, Businesses, Law Enforcement, Racists and the CIA Profit From Illegal Drugs

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Did you guys catch that exchange between the Colorado congressman and the DEA gal?

2012-06-26T06:40:49Z

POLIS: Is crack worse for a person than marijuana?

LEONHART: I believe all the illegal drugs –

POLIS: Is methamphetamine worse for somebody’s health than marijuana?

LEONHART: I don’t think any illegal drug –

POLIS: Is heroin worse for someone’s health than marijuana?

LEONHART: Again, all the drugs –

POLIS: I mean, either ‘yes, no, or I don’t know’. I mean, if you don’t know, you can look this up. You should know this as the chief administrator for the Drug Enforcement Agency (sic). I’m asking you a very straightforward question. Is heroin worse for someone’s health than marijuana?

LEONHART: All the illegal drugs are bad.

POLIS: Does this mean you don’t know?

LEONHART: Heroin causes an addiction that causes many problems, that’s very hard to kick.

POLIS: Does that mean that the health impact is worse than marijuana, is that what you’re telling me?

LEONHART: I think that you are asking a subjective question.

VIDEO:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7N0i3l0TZL4&feature=player_embedded

ARTICLE:
http://coloradoindependent.com/122969/video-polis-mixes-it-up-with-the-dea-over-marijuana

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Resolutions in Support of Medical Marijuana and Industrial Hemp

2012-06-20T05:01:06Z

http://asanational.org/north-carolina-democratic-party-passes-resolutions-in-support-of-medical-marijuana-and-industrial-hemp/
North Carolina Democratic Party Passes Resolutions in Support of Medical Marijuana and Industrial Hemp

Hot on the heels of the Texas Democratic Party’sendorsement of marijuana decriminalization, theNorth Carolina Democratic Party endorsed two resolutions in support of marijuana law reform of their own. On Saturday, June 16th, the party held their state convention in Raleigh, NC. During this meeting they passed two reform minded resolutions, one calling for the legalization of medical marijuana and one for the industrial cultivation of hemp.

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Spend 6 days at FUKUSHIMA and take TIME 4 HEMP - LIVE!

2012-05-25T05:37:48Z

For immediate release: 05/24/12
A nicely hyperlinked version of this press release is found at:
http://today.time4hemp.com/2012/05/24/spend-6-days-at-fukushima-and-take-time-4-hemp.aspx

Click on http://www.time4hemp.biz/podcast/today/046-Time-4-A-Hemp-Answer.mp3 to listen to a short promo

SPEND 6 DAYS AT FUKUSHIMA WHILE TAKING TIME 4 HEMP!

On May 25, 2012 'Time 4 Hemp - LIVE!' launches an every Friday segment for 6-weeks focused on the disaster at Fukushima with Maj. Gen. Albert N. Stubblebine III (US Army, Ret.) as the first expert guest airing globally on http://www.AmericanFreedomRadio.com 10-11a.m. (PST) and on AM/FM stations across the USA.

The World Health Organization recently stated that the radiation affecting residents in Japan's Fukushima prefecture since the nuclear plant disaster started is below the reference level for public exposure in all but two areas and the world is safe from any danger once thought to be looming from the area - yet, many experts in the field strongly disagree.

Japanese Ambassador Murata is among those that have joined the growing chorus which include US Senators who are warning the problems at Fukushima nuclear reactor 4 is now the single greatest short-term threat to humanity and has the potential to destroy our world and civilization as we know it. Dr. Michio Kaku, nuclear physicist and professor of physics at the City University of New York states; "the whole world is being exposed to the radiation from Fukushima. The still-ongoing catastrophe at the six-reactor Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan has caused radioactivity to be circulating around the entire Earth.”

After visiting Fukushima, Senator Ron Wyden warned that the situation was worse than reported and has encouraged Japan to accept international help. Currently, an international coalition of nuclear scientists and non-profit groups are calling on the U.N. to coordinate a multinational effort to stabilize the fuel pools.

Evacuations are underway in Japan according to the BBC. Other reliable news sources report that the fall out from 'black dust' could result in health complications and perhaps death for millions of people in Japan and around the world.

This topic might seem to be 'outside the box' for a M-F radio show that is focused on ending marijuana/hemp prohibition; yet current research - along with Human History - indicate that industrial hemp could very well be one of the most important aspects in solving the many different problems that continue grow from a nightmare that began with a tsunami.

Hosting this presentation is Casper Leitch along with Joint-Host, Michale Krawitz. For those who miss the live broadcast, each segment of the series is archived and free to download and share at:
http://www.americanfreedomradio.com/Time_4_Hemp_12.html

Please share this information with everyone you feel would enjoy knowing about it.

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Home Grown Disaster

2012-05-23T22:28:03Z

http://www.eastbayexpress.com/ebx/home-grown-disaster/Content?oid=3192052
Home Grown Disaster
How European "cannabis" became Mexican "marijuana" in Isaac Campos' indispensable new book Home Grown.

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Bill Hicks - Positive Drug Story

2012-05-17T15:31:46Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX1CvW38cHA
Bill Hicks - Positive Drug Story

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

Joe Rogan podcast, meh, not a big fan, but this was mildly entertaining

2012-05-17T10:03:57Z

http://vimeo.com/37638436

JRE #189 (PART ONE) - B-Real, Brian Redban

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

Maurice Hinchey Vows To Fight Medical Marijuana Raids

2012-05-16T20:32:24Z

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/14/maurice-hinchey-to-fight-medical-marijuana-raids_n_1515446.html
Maurice Hinchey Vows To Fight Medical Marijuana Raids After House Defeats Defunding Bill

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Gary Johnson for Truth in Power

2012-05-14T03:01:43Z

http://www.gq.com/news-politics/politics/201111/gary-johnson-republican-candidate-debate-interview?printable=true

Is This the Sanest Man Running for President?

Voters will tell you that the reason Johnson got reelected (and might still be in office if there hadn't been term limits) was that he managed to improve the state while slashing the budget. He vetoed 750 spending bills, knew how to strong-arm the Democratic-controlled state house and senate, and reinvented the state agencies. He also signed a bill to let New Mexicans drive seventy-five miles per hour on highways, and another one to let them buy beer on Sundays. ("Why not? That's a stupid rule. People can make their own decisions about what day of the week they want a beer.") And when litter became a problem on the highways, he organized a bike race from one end of the state to the other in which, in his Pearl Izumi spandex, he led a flotilla of New Mexicans to collect the garbage.

http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/12073671-libertarian-party-comes-of-age-with-johnsongray-ticket-in-2012

Libertarian Party comes of age with Johnson-Gray ticket in 2012

Johnson understands that he is a long shot, so he has embraced what many are calling “The 15 Percent Strategy.” If Johnson can consistently poll at 15 percent or above in reputable national polls leading up to the fall presidential debates, he will earn a spot on stage with Obama and Romney. The last time this happened was 1992, when Texas billionaire H. Ross Perot was polling in the high teens against incumbent president George H.W. Bush and then-Gov. Bill Clinton, his Democratic challenger.
So if you find yourself unsatisfied with the choice between Obama and Romney and you happen to be contacted by a pollster, consider telling the voice on the other end you support Gary Johnson. You may or may not end up voting for him, but you absolutely deserve to hear what he has to say.

http://www.garyjohnson2012.com/a-day-with-gov-gary-johnson

A Day with Presidential Candidate Gary Johnson

Prior to meeting him in person, I agreed with many, but not all, of Johnson’s political positions. I admire his moral courage in publicly treating Pagans as fellow humans worthy of respect, and I came to like him as a person. He’s funny, sincere, kind, doesn’t try too hard to make you like him, and is intelligent. By the end of the evening, I would choose him to be my friend.

This is what I want in a President: someone I trust to tell me the truth, even when I won’t like it. Someone who does his or her best to act on convictions, rather than serving special interests. Someone who sees people as people: not as black people and as rich people and as gay people and as Muslim people. Someone who has courage to match his intelligence. Someone so ethical and kind that you’re proud of that friendship. That’s the type of person I want for president.

http://digitaljournal.com/article/323441

Gary Johnson: More Conservative and More Progressive

Earlier this year, the American Civil Liberties Union awarded Johnson the highest rating in a contest between all the GOP candidates and the President. Johnson's humane immigration policy, his positions against torture, indefinite detention, and illegal surveillance, and his defense of gay marriage and reproductive choice have earned him a much higher score than Obama, who by signing the NDAA has abandoned human rights, heretofore a defining value of the Democratic party.

http://www.garyjohnson2012.com/issues

GARY'S TRACK RECORD SPEAKS VOLUMES.

He has been an outspoken advocate for efficient government, lower taxes, winning the war on drug abuse, protection of civil liberties, revitalization of the economy and promoting entrepreneurship and privatization.
As Governor of New Mexico, Johnson was known for his common-sense business approach to governing. He eliminated New Mexico's budget deficit, cut the rate of growth in state government in half and privatized half of the state prisons.

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

Stupid/Fake Erowid 'Experiences'

2012-04-07T15:41:25Z

I thought they filtered these things?
Haven't been there in years. Apparently, it's been going downhill for 'awhile'.

http://www.erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=43466

A shame as I was curious what the combo would be like, on a reasonably 'aware' and spiritually motivated person.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Canada, U.S., Mexico will work together in attempt to curb war

2012-04-04T22:37:43Z

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Defence+ministers+turn+their+guns+drug+cartels/6370697/story.html
Defence ministers turn their guns on drug cartels

Canada, U.S., Mexico will work together in attempt to curb war

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

that Pat Robertson

2012-03-08T23:42:15Z

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/pat-robertson-marijuana-should-be-treated-like-alcohol-says-war-on-drugs-has-failed/2012/03/08/gIQARikHzR_story.html

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Pot legalization efforts

2012-02-02T03:19:36Z

http://news.yahoo.com/pot-legalization-efforts-forge-ahead-key-u-states-175321189.html
Pot legalization efforts forge ahead in key states
By Alex Dobuzinskis | Reuters – Tue, Jan 31, 2012

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

20-year study: Pot doesn't harm lung function

2012-01-11T07:44:33Z

"Marijuana doesn't harm lung function, study found"

http://news.yahoo.com/marijuana-doesnt-harm-lung-function-study-found-210146886.html

CHICAGO (AP) — Smoking a joint once a week or a bit more apparently doesn't harm the lungs, suggests a 20-year study that bolsters evidence that marijuana doesn't do the kind of damage tobacco does.
The results, from one of the largest and longest studies on the health effects of marijuana, are hazier for heavy users — those who smoke two or more joints daily for several years. The data suggest that using marijuana that often might cause a decline in lung function, but there weren't enough heavy users among the 5,000 young adults in the study to draw firm conclusions.

Still, the authors recommended "caution and moderation when marijuana use is considered."
Marijuana is an illegal drug under federal law although some states allow its use for medical purposes.
The study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham was released Tuesday by the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The findings echo results in some smaller studies that showed while marijuana contains some of the same toxic chemicals as tobacco, it does not carry the same risks for lung disease.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Raid Homes Based on Drug-Sniffing Dog, Mebee...

2012-01-09T09:03:45Z

http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/01/scotus-dog-sniffing-case/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Pot for PTSD

2011-12-29T21:01:38Z

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/11/pot-for-ptsd/
Vet to Feds: Enough Stonewalling, Give Us Pot for PTSD

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Drug doggerel by Jaiia Earthschild

2011-12-15T18:18:22Z

http://www.mauiwritersblog.com/the-doggerel-house.html

Drug doggerel

Dear President Obama

Were you to remove the

orange pajamas

of the wheelers, dealers,

tokers and farmers

of marijuana,

We would instantly have lost

A giant multifaceted cost

from prisons overcrowded to kids and families traumatized, Boss!

In many ancient cultures

leaders, priests and kings

Used sacramental substances that were mind altering.

Rituals were constructed to contain the medicine force

as a man builds a corral to hold a mighty horse.

Denied a healthy place, these forces have gone wild

Marginal, illegal. Sacred substances defiled

Bloodshed. War. Ruin. Fortunes lost and made

and everywhere bodies, minds and souls enslaved

All medicines are poisons depending on the dose

but not all poisons are medicines so this I propose:

Invest in unbiased research on the healing use of 'drugs'

Give the users some respect - not all of them are thugs.

It's such a big part of our world economy.

like war and prostitution - a shadow institution.

Accept it or reject it, it's not about to disappear

yet we glorify our military and revile the rest in fear.

Make the drug world legal - shine the light of day

on an underworld of darkness, corruption and decay.

Imagine if the world were to pay Afghanistan

to grow the finest and best medicines it can...

Struggling countries would flourish. Fewer kids would die or fail

on battle fields, in gang wars, from needles or in jail.

Education is the key - how we do what, where and when.

get a license, pass a test, hire a teacher and then...

A drug becomes a sacrament - define it give it shape

Like the difference between marriage, flirting and rape

Between borrowing, investing and stealing we would hope

although that has become something of a Wall Street dirty joke.

The culture itself has chosen to define

A part of life's great learning as a crime.

We once banned alcohol.

Only rich white men could vote.

We changed. (Oh yes, you noticed)

You're still reading this I hope....?

So why did I write these outrageous thoughts

in doggerelish rhyme?

Why?

To trick your subconscious

into listening to mine!

Jaiia Earthschild
PS...http://dotsub.com/media/fc4e051a-1709-4e63-8a2c-912b09486c9f/e/m

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

who was it??

2011-12-15T00:53:47Z

Some time ago someone was looking for someone to like in the mountains and care for a grow. A friend of mine has become available and would be perfect. Are you still looking?

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Prosecute Wall Street, Not Patients

2011-12-13T13:11:51Z

Prosecute Wall Street, Not Patients
http://act.rootsaction.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=5142

Federal prosecutors are wasting precious resources on medical marijuana while ignoring real crimes.

While the number of Wall Street banksters prosecuted for the massive fraud that crashed the global economy remains at exactly zero, the U.S. Department of Justice has just raided scores of marijuana growers and dispensaries in states where medical marijuana is legal. Some of the raids even targeted those regarded by local officials as "law-abiding models."

California's attorney general and the governors of Washington and Rhode Island are pushing back, and so can we.

Breaking a campaign promise, President Obama has allowed his Department of Justice to target these regulated, tax-paying businesses that are in compliance with state law and whose work helps to ease the pain of patients with cancer, AIDS, and a range of other ailments.

By contrast, Obama’s Justice Department is protecting or ignoring:
• The Wall Street thieves who brought down the real economy.
• The war criminals, torturers, and warrantless spies who advertise their crimes on book tours.
• The mayors and police forces violating our First Amendment rights and brutalizing us.

Tell the Justice Department and the White House to get their priorities straight.

In an era of federal budget-cutting, we can win this – and stop the feds from persecuting and prosecuting the medical marijuana community.

Dear President Obama and Attorney General Holder,

It makes no sense to prosecute people for helping provide medical marijuana in states where medical marijuana is perfectly legal. This is especially true at a time when you seem to be ignoring or protecting fraudsters on Wall Street, those who authorized torture, and police departments that violate the First Amendment rights of protesters. Please get your priorities straight, and please focus your limited resources on real crimes.

Sincerely,

President Barack Obama

Phone:(202) 456-1111
Fax:(202) 456-2461

Please share this with your friends. Thanks for all you do.

------------------------------------

Federal prosecutors are focused on pot while ignoring high crimes.

While the number of Wall Street banksters prosecuted for the massive fraud that crashed the global economy remains at exactly zero, the U.S. Department of Justice has just raided scores of marijuana growers and dispensaries that, in some cases, are regarded by local officials as "law-abiding models."

California's attorney general and the governors of Washington and Rhode Island are pushing back, and so can we.

Tell the Justice Department to prosecute Wall Street fraudsters, not pot dispensers or growers.

Breaking yet another campaign promise, President Obama has allowed his Department of Justice to target regulated, tax-paying businesses in compliance with state law that ease the pain of medical patients.

By contrast, Obama’s Justice Department is protecting or ignoring:
The Wall Street thieves who brought down the real economy.
The war criminals, torturers, and warrantless spies who advertise their crimes on book tours.
The mayors and police forces violating our First Amendment rights and brutalizing us.

Tell the Justice Department and the White House to get their priorities straight.

And please forward this email far and wide.

In an era of federal budget-cutting, we can win this – and stop the feds from persecuting and prosecuting the medical marijuana community.

Thanks,
Aimee, David, Sarah and the RootsAction team

P.S. Our small staff is supported by contributions from people like you; your donations are greatly appreciated.

Resources:

Medical Marijuana Industry Is Unnerved by U.S. Crackdown

Kamala Harris Defends Medical Marijuana: California Attorney General Asks Federal Government To Ease Enforcement

2 Governors Asking U.S. to Ease Rules on Marijuana to Allow for Its Medical Use

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

Governors Asking U.S. to Ease Rules on Marijuana

2011-12-09T21:27:10Z

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/01/us/federal-marijuana-classification-should-change-gregoire-and-chafee-say.html?_r=1

2 Governors Asking U.S. to Ease Rules on Marijuana to Allow for Its Medical Use

By MICHAEL COOPER
Published: November 30, 2011

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Weed Wars

2011-12-05T02:34:14Z

Have you seen the Discovery Channel MedPot dispensary reality show?
http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/weed-wars/

Weed Wars : Discovery Channel

Weed Wars takes an up close and personal look at the reality of running a controversial medicinal cannabis business. Watch Weed Wars on Discovery Channel!

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

harmful drugs that can be replaced with marijuana

2011-12-05T01:07:26Z

http://www.activistpost.com/2011/12/5-popular-but-harmful-drugs-that-can-be.html
5 popular but harmful drugs that can be replaced with marijuana

This article is dedicated to anyone that struggles with prescription drugs on this list because they are afraid of consuming a plant deemed illegal by the State.

Activist Post

The notion that any authority can determine what a sovereign human being can and cannot ingest into their own body is the very essence of control. Banning any substance from responsible adult consumption no matter how harmful should simply not be permitted in a free society.

However, certain substances are deemed so harmful by "experts" that they claim to adversely affect society as a whole and thus they're banned from the population. Of course, force of laws with guns and jails have never been able to eliminate their use throughout history. So, as a practical matter, banning any substance from society always tends to do more harm than good.

The utter failure that is the war on drugs seems to have ulterior motives besides protecting society, as evidenced by the countless harmful chemicals that are legal to consume. Marijuana is the most obvious example of a substance that remains illegal not because of health threats, or because it's a danger to society, but rather because its benefits threaten entire industries, especially Big Pharma.

If you need a fix to ease pain, depression, anxiety, sleep disorders and a host of other ailments, then a legal drug dealer is happy to sell you a chemical concoction with endless side effects. Recent studies show huge spikes in psychiatric drug use, as well as addiction to prescription pain pills, yet they remain legal and doctors get incentives to push them.

In nearly every case, marijuana is a safer alternative and just as effective. When eaten or vaporized, cannabis has proven entirely beneficial as a natural alternative. Here are 5 popular but dangerous drugs that could, in most cases, be replaced by cannabis.

1. Painkillers: Vicodin, Demerol, Oxycontin, or Percodan are used to treat moderate or severe pain. They're all highly addictive and come with side effects that vary widely from stomach problems, dizziness, depression, pain and spasms, to even death. Marijuana is a proven pain reliever that takes the edge off even the most severe pain. It is not physically addictive, has very few side effects by comparison, and has never caused a single death in 5000 years of recorded use.

2. Tranquilizers: Valium, Xanax, and Ambien are examples of popular anti-anxiety drugs. All Americans will likely know someone close to them who are dependent on these drugs to cope with daily life. The side effects are similar to anti-depressants and painkillers; stomach and liver problems, depression or suicidal thoughts, dizziness and confusion, etc. Marijuana is an excellent substitute for these temporary anxiety relievers, again with far fewer negative effects.

3. Alcohol: Alcohol is the most commonly used and accepted substance for self-regulated stress relief. It's used by countless Americans to take the edge off a long work day, and also by many soldiers seeking to relieve Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Alcohol is highly addictive and causes many long-term problems like high blood pressure and liver failure. Marijuana has proven to be far safer and more effective in reducing stress, especially among PTSD sufferers.

4. Anti-depressants: Prozac, Zoloft, Elavil, or Paxil are popular anti-depressants that a huge portion of the population are now dependent on. Side effects like nausea and sexual dysfunction are common, while suicidal tendencies are also increased tremendously, which seems to negate their very purpose. These selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) reduce the body's ability to produce natural serotonin and can be difficult for people to find a healthy balance once they rid the drug from their system. Marijuana, although a temporary anti-depressant, is far less dangerous and may result in instant happiness bordering on silliness.

5. Aspirin and Tylenol: These commonly-used over-the-counter drugs for minor aches and pains cause stomach problems like ulcers, liver damage, and even death. That's right, Tylenol causes about 450 deaths a year and Aspirin causes a whopping 13,000 deaths per year from sudden bleeding. Many natural alternatives can be used for the symptoms that these drugs ease, and marijuana is just one of the safer options -- with none of the damaging side effects.

As you can see, marijuana, which can be easily grown in nearly every climate, is a huge threat to these billion-dollar-a-year drugs. And this list represents a tiny fraction of the harmful pharmaceuticals that can be replaced by cannabis. To claim that cannabis is more dangerous than any of these popular legal substances is blatantly false, thus there's no reason for its prohibition other than the threat of competition to Big Pharma.

Thankfully, you're not a criminal in over a dozen states if you use marijuana in place of them. And surely, it's only a matter of time before it's obvious to everyone that marijuana users should not be labeled criminals no matter what they use it for.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

In drug policy, pragmatism is the only moral approach

2011-11-25T22:43:51Z

http://www.battleofideas.org.uk/index.php/2011/battles/6571/
Battle in Print: In drug policy, pragmatism is the only moral approach
Roger Howard & Leo Barasi, 24 October 2011

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Breaking the Just Say No Addiction

2011-09-27T22:17:23Z

http://www.religiondispatches.org/archive/science/4771/high_on_drugs:_breaking_the_just_say_no_addiction/

High on Drugs: Breaking the Just Say No Addiction By GARY LADERMAN

Forget the war on drugs. As Jimmy Carter recently argued in the New York Times, it is time to call off this wasted effort, heed the recommendations of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, and create more reasonable, empirically-based, economically beneficial rules and regulations. It is time to shift policies, attitudes, and responses in the face of a rampant hunger for drugs across all sectors of society. Let’s face facts: despite the vacuous sloganeering for the last few decades, Americans continue to just say yes to drugs; and while they may be dangerous, they can also be positively transformative and, dare I say it, sacred.

Scientific evidence may help confirm what many religious cultures from around the world have known for centuries: certain substances can be spiritually powerful and life-enhancing. Just last week, the Health section of Time magazine included a story on psilocybin research from Johns Hopkins with the delicious title, “Magic Mushrooms Can Improve Psychological Health Long Term.” What the title doesn’t convey is front and center in the first sentence: “The psychedelic drug in magic mushrooms may have lasting medical and spiritual benefits...”

Spiritual benefits? You can read the details yourself in Time or this Mother Jones piece, but bottom line is that the drug can induce transcendental, mystical experiences in volunteers who feel better and more fulfilled over time, with relatives and close friends claiming the individual also became “calmer, happier, and kinder.” Yes, it’s a rather limited study but the explicitly religious language suggests that this drug isn’t just medicine in the conventional sense, but a potentially sacred source for enhancing and enriching the mind, body, and spirit. Perhaps they need more volunteers for future studies?

In a more serious and less explicitly religious vein is the excitement surrounding MDMA, the key ingredient in what is commonly known as Ecstasy. AlterNet recently ran a piece by Scott Thill on scientific research suggesting that the drug holds a great deal of therapeutic promise for veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. While Thill unpacks the politics of this research, he also links to another recent article on MDMA in O, The Oprah Magazine with the more sacred-sounding title “Can a Single Pill Change Your Life?” The reportedly transformative and life-altering affects from scientific studies, as well as anecdotal accounts from raves, suggests we should take seriously claims that the drug may have medicinal and spiritual value.

The linkage between drug ingestion and religious experience—medicinal therapies and sacred realities—is a common feature of social life in many cultures. Drugs of all kinds, initially drawn from the plant world in the form of mushrooms or tobacco, jimsonweed or soma, have been considered powerful and invaluable because they combine medicinal and spiritual goods, are embedded in meaningful, socially vital rituals and myths, and heal by way of cosmic revelation. Sacred medicine isn’t restricted to the pursuit of a healthy individual body but can have, in some cultural settings, powers not associated with modern medicines: divination and recovery of lost objects, enlightenment and transportation to the world of the dead, ecstasy and communication with the spirits and ancestors, transformation and social revitalization.

It is certainly the case that good medicine in one society is a scourge in another; what one society labels unhealthy addiction can be, in different cultural circumstances, a ritually religious way to provide community members with spiritual illumination and mystical transportation, as well as psychological well-being. Yet one fact is clear: drugs have been used by humans throughout history for religious intoxication, leading some to argue that, like survival or sex, aggression or music, these experiences are also part and parcel of a primal, biological human drive. Sacred, intoxicating, illuminating medicines are a proven, reliable channel to worlds of meaning and experience relevant to truths about the here and now, as well as those beyond space and time.

But of course the historical and anthropological arguments about the sacred values of certain drugs are too subtle and complicated for those largely social conservative voices that have dominated the public debate and only see such matters in simplistic and narrow terms: Just Say No. Perhaps a surge in scientific investigations of substances like psilocybin, MDMA, cannabis, and LSD would help to win and finally shut down this costly, misguided, and futile war. Even better, maybe we can convince a leading political figure on the scene, like Rick Santorum, or Sarah Palin (or hell, why not even recently disgraced former Representative Anthony Weiner?) to volunteer as an experimental subject to test the long-term spiritual effects of magic mushrooms.

© Religion Dispatches 2011.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

NORML Petition to Obama.

2011-09-27T11:03:10Z

Weed the People: Over 35,000 Strong for Marijuana Legalization
Mon, 26 Sep 2011 16:33:57 By: Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Coordinator

It was just last Thursday that the White House launched their petition website, “We the People.” That morning, NORML submitted a petition calling for the legalization of marijuana. In just four short days the petition has received over 35,000 signatures, making it the most signed petition on the website by nearly 15,000 names. Thousands of Americans are calling upon President Obama to end marijuana prohibition and more are joining in every minute.

https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions#!/petition/legalize-and-regulate-marijuana-manner-similar-alcohol/y8l45gb1

---------------------------------------

Just in case anyone still comes here anymore.
=/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Moderator needed for "Medical Marijuana Tribe"

2011-09-25T14:40:25Z

http://mmj.tribe.net/thread/ca89f662-e8d0-4d8c-a05b-77a5855e6e92?newpostingid=20f4221a-ed68-4da0-9243-9edec5145d5b#20f4221a-ed68-4da0-9243-9edec5145d5b

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

"Obama Cracks Down On Medical Marijuana"

2011-09-01T05:03:33Z

Well, there's their opinion they took 2.5 years to present.
Didn't he run on a campaign to stop the persecution of med mj in states that had legalized it?

http://www.npr.org/2011/07/12/137791944/obama-cracks-down-on-medical-marijuana

posted in Cannabis - 10 replies

Top Trending Bill

2011-08-20T00:23:52Z

http://www.popvox.com/blog/

Top Trending Bill
The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act (HR 2306) limits the application of Federal laws to the distribution and consumption of marijuana

https://www.popvox.com/about/whyitworks

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Roche Pharm. to map Cannabis genome

2011-08-18T15:14:44Z

http://www.4-traders.com/ROCHE-HOLDING-69170/news/ROCHE-Medicinal-Genomics-Sequences-the-Cannabis-Genome-Using-Roche-s-GS-FLX-System-13760436/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

From Neurons to Nirvana

2011-07-25T23:46:09Z

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/903099816/from-neurons-to-nirvana-the-great-medicines

From Neurons to Nirvana: The Great Medicines
A Documentary project in Vancouver, Canada by Oliver Hockenhull

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Peter Lewis

2011-07-18T08:29:46Z

of Progressive Insurance apparently is working to legalize

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

So, um, apparently CT just decriminalized small amounts...

2011-07-17T12:28:06Z

http://www.mapinc.org/newsnorml/v11/n387/a10.html

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

AG Eric Holder says he will soon clarify DOJ position on medical marijuana

2011-07-02T01:00:51Z

>>>>U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced Thursday that he will soon “clarify” his agency’s position on medical marijuana. He didn’t say when such clarification would come.

From The Sacramento Bee:

“We’re going to bring clarity so that people understand what this policy means and how this policy will be implemented,” Holder said during a visit to a Providence, R.I., institute that specializes in nonviolence.

Holder didn’t go into detail about plans for clarification. But he said the department was wary of medical marijuana dispensaries being seen as a form of de facto marijuana legalization.

The Department of Justice has recently sent several states, including Colorado, letters warning that the Department reserves the right to enforce federal marijuana laws even when those laws are in conflict with more liberal state laws.

The State of Arizona this week filed suit against the DOJ, seeking a judicial ruling on the question of whether Arizona can legally implement its own medical marijuana laws.

Holder’s office did not quickly return a phone call and an email seeking more information.<<<<

http://washingtonindependent.com/110470/ag-eric-holder-says-he-will-soon-clarify-doj-position-on-medical-marijuana

06 /03/ 2011

posted in Cannabis - 7 replies

Ron Paul / Barney Frank want to get the federal government out of the marijuana regulation business. June 22 2011

2011-06-23T20:10:31Z

>>>>>States should make their own rules concerning the leafy green stuff, and regulate it themselves, the pair propose in legislation that will be introduced Thursday.

The bill would allow the Feds to continue enforcing cross-border or inter-state smuggling, but states would set their own laws, and people could grow and sell marijuana in places that choose to make it legal.

The bill is, of course, a longshot. But making it a law isn't the whole point, according to Morgan Fox, communications manager at the Marijuana Policy Project.

"A bill like this is going to get talked about quite a bit," Fox said. "I think it will spark a strong debate in the media, and we hope to get some [House] floor time for it."<<<<<<

http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/22/news/economy/legalize_pot/?section=money_latest

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

Petition on The “War on Drugs”

2011-06-18T04:04:00Z

http://ibw21.org/initiatives_projects_programs/petition-on-the-war-on-drugs
Petition on The “War on Drugs”
The Institute of the Black World 21st Century Declares War
On The “War on Drugs”

A Petition to Recruit an Army of Advocates and Organizers
To End a Failed Strategy and Create Just and Humane Alternatives

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Philosophers stoned

2011-06-18T00:04:36Z

http://www.philosophypress.co.uk/?p=1886

Philosophers stoned
WRITTEN BY: DALE JACQUETTE

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Time 4 The DEA 2 Surrender!

2011-06-13T00:10:33Z

Time 4 the DEA's Surrender!

On the eve of the World Class '2011 Treating Yourself Hemp EXPO'
the 'Global Commission On Drugs' met and declared the War On Drugs
TO BE A WORLD-WIDE FAILURE that is destroying the lives
of everyone alive today and of those who shall be born tomorrow
and echoes the message we've been shouting for years:
It really is TIME 4 HEMP!

Featured in this segment:

Paul Stanford, Host of 'Cannabis Common Sense'

Ethan Nadelmann, Exc. Dir. of the Drug Policy Alliance

Juan Carlos Hidalgo, Project Coordinator for Latin America at the Cato Institute

Music artists featured: Curtis Mayfield - Andras Jones

This segment is free to download at http://www.Time4Hemp.com
or by clicking this URL:
http://www.time4hemp.biz/podcast/today/028-Time-4-Surrender.mp3

This segment has been posted in slide-show format at YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS6WPT6Jhxg

This week's free music download is: 'Legalize It' by The Yonder Mountain String Band.
http://www.time4hemp.biz/podcast/music/Yonder-Mt-String-Band-Legalize-It.mp3

You can read the findings of The Global Commission On Drugs at:
http://www.globalcommissionondrugs.org/Report

Please share this with everyone who you feel would enjoy knowing about this information.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

here, here

2011-06-07T23:55:47Z

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43248071/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

The Silver Bullet & The System

2011-06-06T19:28:09Z

First, the Silver Bullet. I looked for a silver bullet when first starting to grow and I have found that this is a big question for new growers especially. Many people want to know what they can do to make their weed special. The real answer is that there is no silver bullet save perhaps starting with outstanding genetics with either in seed or clone. What the greatest grower in the world does is a pittance compared to the starting genetics - or, as an old fellow once told me, “You can’t make chicken salad out a chicken shit, boy”.

If you can afford effectively to add CO2 to your indoor garden, this is a kind of silver bullet. Plenty of literature on internet from high tech to brewing beer in the grow room which releases a lot of CO2. The poor man’s silver bullet would be simply airflow, I’d say. The girls love lots of air but they don’t like a fan blowing right on them 24/7 so make sure you use rotating fan/s. Lots of fresh air will bring in also CO2 from the outside and this is really crucial with an indoor grow if you are not artificially providing CO2. Even in a relatively large grow room, ambient CO2 could be totally used up in as little as an hour. This is their go juice. No juice, no go. Got to think that if one can afford to grow at all, one could afford a fan. I used insulated duct and cut a whole through the wall to vent light heat and bring in fresh air. One of the issues you get into with CO2 is that in order for it to be used efficient, you have to turn off fans, including exhaust intake and out take. This is no big deal to do with relatively inexpensive digital timers, but the problem is heat. If you are running a marginally heat controlled indoor grow then start turning off fans in order to deliver CO2 for a period of say 15 to 30 minutes, then the system could really overheat. It is said that CO2 allows you to grow at considerably higher temps but if your garden is already running 90 degrees and you start turning off exhaust, it could shot up over a hundred easily and CO2 isn’t going to help all that much. (If I were providing CO2, I’d want temps no higher than 85 degrees.

Temperate could be said to be another silver bullet of sorts and I have put a lot of emphasis on this in the last couple years. I keep the plants at no higher than 75 degrees throughout flowering period - grow phase can and I believe should run higher, 80 degrees. By dropping it 5 degrees when you hit the lights, send another signal familiar to the girls as temperatures typically will drop as dark period reaches twelve hours and the sunlight shifts from a bluer to redder hue shifting lower in the sky. Heat is a bummer for the girls just take that to the bank. It may not kill them outright but it will impact the quality negatively for sure and possibly the yield, depending upon strain and how the rest of “the system” works. I think heat goes hand in hand with airflow and that there is whole lot of bang for your buck in this arena, way more than in the rabbit hole of nutrients, for instance. I’ve even used large Tupperware containers of block ice placed in my grow cabinet about mid day so I didn’t have to run the air conditioner.

Also, if you can control the humidity - a reptile aquarium humidifier run by a small fish bubbler works great for a relatively small area insofar as adding humidity - growing plants like a lot more humidity like maybe 70 to 75 percent. (Clones first started crank those babies to 100 percent by tenting even with saran wrap and balsa wood - whatever you have to do to keep that humidity up with the clones. Lots of video on cloning all I would add is use a gel cloning agent rather than a liquid - Clonex has been very good to me.) Humidity is a great signal like temp and the twelve hour photo manipulation process. With sativa strains this signaling can be crucial in flowering while with most hybrid strains, it will only help make them happier and healthier all around, not totally necessary. I like to go from around 75 percent during flowering - remember, I’m providing lots of airflow and also I reduce deep water hydroponics solution to 55 degrees with a chiller so I don’t have trouble with molds - then drop it to 65 at start of flowering then down to 55 during the last weeks of flowering.

With difficult to flower sativa strain - often what “stash seeds” are, Mexican sativa - you bare down on them with every signal there is and you make it dramatic - grow at 100 percent humidity then make the drop at 12 hours dark down to like 60 percent and then about seven or eight weeks into flowering drop it down to 35 percent. Just hit them over the head with it, not necessary to ease it down over a period of time, same with 12 hour light manipulation. Bring your hydroponics water up to 65 degrees during grow, drop to 55 at start of flowering and take it down to 50 at the end. The sativa are keying off of other signals because they are common to equatorial regions where the dark/light cycle may be only vary from 12 to 12 ½ hours. They are looking at things like temperature and humidity changes. Also, changing to a very low nitrogen feed is crucial even more so with a pure sativa strain. (Too much nitrogen in flowering will fuck them but good and can seriously delay flowering - any of the dedicated cannabis based feds is fine in my opinion, organic during flowering, plenty to choose from and relatively inexpensive. I tend to use Ionic Bloom and Ionic Flower - also, I use organic but forgive me hippies freinds so long as you are doing a long flush at the end as I think you should anyway, really doesn‘t matter - there, I said it. But organic feed is very good now and relatively inexpensive so I don‘t see any reason not to use it - not being petroleum based is important in the big scale of things!) A two to three week distilled water flush with no nutrients at all is usually what I do and in soil would flush with clear water then cut way back on water the last couple weeks, not so much to kill them just enough again to make a signal to them - hey girls, it’s getting cooler, ground temp is getting cooler, humidity is lessening, water is drying up, light period is lessening … must be time to bud out, now.

Twice grew clones in same cabinet side by side but with separate DWH containers, one with all organics, one all inorganic. I could tell no difference nor could friends in an informal blind taste test. Also, I think the girls speak to us plenty if we but listen to them closely with our eyes and in neither case did the flowers seem to have any complaints?

I find that often peoples’ beliefs about growing are pure theory and that plants evidently don’t go much for the theoretical. So if you want to bring down light at flowering in 15 minute increments over a two week period, that’s fine if it makes you feel better but those girls don’t much care and your yield will be reduced with less light so I keep them maxed out at 24 hours light until going to 12 hours dark and once again, the girls not only don’t seem to mind a 24 hour light period, they LOVE it. Also, a sudden shift in light like this will really spark flowering in most strains, usually pre-flowering within two to three days for me. I think of the Matanuska valley in Alaska with their giant vegetables and legendary “Matanuska Thunderfuck”. I know it is a common belief that the plants must have six hours darkness, just don’t buy it. These auto flowering strains particularly are fantastic fit for an indoor grow especially when ones light might not be up to snuff as you can run these girls 24 hours light for their entire cycle from start to finish. This is a humongous difference pouring on literally double the normal light - pure energy for the girls - over what they would get if they needed a 12 hour dark period - and we’re talking the longest part of the grow when quick cycling so two months or more of doubling light input and that is a pretty big deal, I think. I recommend these auto flowering for not only beginners but for outdoor or patio mid summer grows where they will be getting lots of light but yet flowering at the same time, such that one could have full harvests even outdoors as early as June in some areas, I imagine. The more light the better for these girls so best to start them so they run outdoors along with the longest days of light during the summer. I use the auto flowering strains when starting up growing. At the same time I run the non auto flowering typically with a three to five week grow period, depending if I want to take clones or not, and by the time my regular seeds are pre-flowering, the auto flowering strain will only three or four weeks away from harvest. While auto flowering stains would not be my first choice, they have a place in my system - and ultimately my system as a whole is the only real silver bullet I have, man.

So far as the autoflowering strains are concerned, I've just found the ones I have grown to have a fantastic smoke, man, and that's good enough for me

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Decrim Reason

2011-06-04T21:27:44Z

A voluntary collaborative project
in which no one gets paid
in intangibles like money

Decrim Reason

It's not like the docs 'n' pharms
who decree symptoms
like daily newspaper horoscopes
to insist you NEED --
more than food or friends or life itself
(look at the fine print where death is
a minor possible side effect) --
their potions, pills, remedies
that only promise relief
while unleashing vast armies
intent on destroying
in unanticipated sorties.
No, not like legal dependence,
when all the right people
with license, degrees that buy
belief -- but of course, your say is paramount;
how could I ever doubt.
You've assured me that my mind lies --
undermining natural order defense and supply.
Reason demands responsible choice,
to not let the preachers drown out your own voice.
Reason demands self-education, alert valuation,
an end to the crying shame.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

WAR ON DRUGS REPORT OF THE GLOBAL COMMISSION ON DRUG POLICY

2011-06-02T20:21:10Z

http://www.globalcommissionondrugs.org/Report

from WAR ON DRUGS REPORT OF THE GLOBAL COMMISSION ON DRUG POLICY
JUNE 2011

To learn more about the Commission, visit:
www.globalcommissionondrugs.org
Or email: declaration@globalcommissionondrugs.org

The global war on drugs has failed, with
devastating consequences for individuals
and societies around the world.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

72 hours to End the War on Drugs

2011-06-01T05:14:04Z

http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_drugs/?cl=1089750075&v=9261

72 hours to End the War on Drugs

Update June 1 2011
Amazing! In just a few days, we blew past our goal of 500,000 voices calling for an end to the war on drugs. Our message will be hand-delivered to the UN Secretary-General and world leaders on Friday, June 3 at a press conference in New York. The event will feature a live counter of petition signatures, so every one of us counts -- let's keep spreading the word and building this campaign!

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Is NYC the Marijuana Arrest Capital of the World?

2011-05-31T20:07:45Z

http://www.alternet.org/newsandviews/article/600637/is_nyc_the_marijuana_arrest_capital_of_the_world/#paragraph4

Is NYC the Marijuana Arrest Capital of the World?

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

It's Time 4 Treating Yourself Right at Time 4 Hemp!

2011-05-31T19:36:09Z

Marco Renda is hosting the 2nd ANNUAL TREATING YOURSELF EXPO this June 3rd - 5th at the Metro Toronto Convention Center featuring a stellar list of speakers and performers!
It truly is the place to spend your vacation if you are wanting to enjoy Life while taking Time 4 Hemp.

Musical artists featured in this segment:

Jet Baker - Andy Salge - The BreezeWay - Northern Lights
Kevin Leitch - Killin' Time Band - Paul Bullock - Los Marijuanaos
Machette King - Sahra Indio - DJ Slim - HannaH's Field

This segment is free to download at http:www.Time4Hemp.com or you can click on the link below:

http://www.time4hemp.biz/podcast/music/021-Time-4-Toronto.mp3

This week's free music download is:
'Hippie Girl' by The Killin' Time Band.
You can download it by clicking the link below.

http://www.time4hemp.biz/podcast/music/Hippie-Girl.mp3

Please share this with everyone who you feel would enjoy knowing about this information.

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The War on Consciousness

2011-05-29T00:44:06Z

http://www.realitysandwich.com/war_consciousness
The War on Consciousness
Graham Hancock

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Please remember the POW's in this War On Drugs!!

2011-05-27T18:43:01Z

A SPECIAL 2-PART PRESENTATION:
The POW's in the War On Drugs

In the news that surrounds the War On Drugs,
often times the POW's are over-looked and forgotten.

Dr. Mollie Fry and Dale Schafer, attorney at law,
have now started their 5-year sentence behind bars
for helping people get medical marijuana.

Ken Unger, who was wounded while serving in the United States Navy,
is soon to start an expensive trial to defend his use of medical marijuana.

These amazing marijuana activists face their frustrations
with the United States Justice System as they chat with
Joint Host, Paul Stanford, and host, Casper Leitch,
and take 'Time 4 Hemp'.

Musical artists featured:
Red Dirt - The Tall Brothers
Ben Scales - Green Fever

Click on the URL's below to enjoy this
special 2-part segment on Youtube.

The POW's in the War On Drugs - Pt ONE on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_XFCnAXRQE

The POW's in the War On Drugs - Pt TWO on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C0I9RRCSpA

You can subscribe to 'THE BEST OF TIME 4 HEMP - LIVE'
RSS feed by clicking on the URL below:
http://best-of-time-4-hemp-live.time4hemp.com/podcasts-only/rss2.aspx

Please share this information with those you know would enjoy knowing about it.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

right now on C-SPAN2

2011-05-27T11:59:21Z

Senate debating "Patriot Act"

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

sign the petition to end the drug war

2011-05-26T04:33:59Z

http://www.avaaz.org/en/end_the_war_on_drugs/?rc=fb&pv=25

In days an eminent group of world leaders will call on the UN to end the devastating and failed war on drugs. Only a massive citizens movement will turn their appeal into urgent action. Sign the urgent petition now!

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Life in Prison - that'll teach us

2011-05-24T11:09:17Z

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3096434/#42961538

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

)mad magicks( Emerging Visions #20 has emerged

2011-05-22T05:22:28Z

Modern Mania Demands

)mad magicks(

Emerging Visions visionary art 'zine #20

http://emergingvisions.blogspot.com

Let Loose
revel in release
Enjoy
and Share

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

sativa lovers out there

2011-05-21T18:47:34Z

http://www.cannabis-seeds-bank.co.uk/world-of-seeds/world-of-seeds-landraces/world-of-seeds-landraces-south-african-kwazulu/prod_893.html

would someone please grow this and tell me how great it is?

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

Supreme Court OKs More Warrantless Searches

2011-05-18T14:40:05Z

http://www.npr.org/2011/05/16/136368744/in-warrantless-search-case-top-court-rules-for-police?ps=cprs

Supreme Court OKs More Warrantless Searches
by NINA TOTENBERG

May 16, 2011
The U.S. Supreme Court has made it significantly easier for police to force their way into a home without a warrant. On Monday, the court, by an 8-1 vote, upheld the warrantless search of an apartment after police smelled marijuana and feared that those inside were destroying incriminating evidence.

posted in Cannabis - 2 replies

FYI - Anyone notice enforcement in their neighborhood?

2011-05-15T12:17:20Z

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/08/us/08marijuana.html?_r=1&scp=3&sq=medical%20marijuana&st=cse

keep in mind this is under the auspices of the supposedly ultra liberal Obama administration? Who said he wouldn't do this.

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

Time 4 Hemp and AIDS research!

2011-05-08T08:38:14Z

Host, Casper Leitch and JOINT-host, Ray Cristl chat with Dr Richard DeAndrea about the major breakthroughs he is making in AIDS research.

Time 4 Hemp and AIDS - Pt.1
On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4_DoLFY3Gk

Time 4 Hemp and AIDS - Pt. 2
On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R35wxlljMTA

On the NEW 'Best Of Time 4 Hemp - LIVE' RSS feed:
http://best-of-time-4-hemp-live.time4hemp.com/podcasts-only/rss2.aspx

Please share this with your friends!

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Canada's Marijuana Law

2011-04-27T12:12:32Z

http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2011/apr/13/ontario_court_overturns_canadas

Ontario Court Overturns Canada's Marijuana Law

http://whyprohibition.ca/blogs/jacob-hunter/canada-election-2011-who-vote

Canada Election 2011 - Who to Vote for!

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

Mexican drug war revolt

2011-04-08T02:37:22Z

http://narcosphere.narconews.com/thefield/4372/and-what-history-looks-mexico
And This Is What History Looks Like in Mexico

Yesterday, multitudes took to the streets in more than 40 Mexican cities - and in protests by Mexicans and their friends at consulates and embassies in Europe, North America and South America - to demand an end to the violence wrought by the US-imposed "war on drugs."

http://chillychilango.wordpress.com/2011/04/05/javier-sicilias-letter-to-politicians-criminals-english/

Javier Sicilia’s Open Letter to Mexico’s Politicians and Criminals

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

happy Spring

2011-03-21T00:23:50Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRi-NZtqQhk
http://the-beatles.posterous.com/i-am-the-walrus-illustrated-lyrics

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Cannabis Fiction - The Professor and the Doctor

2011-03-20T17:31:38Z

(From "Entheogenic Literature Series, by David Sky, normalizing the radical, radicalizing the normal)

(Thinly disguised autobiographical fiction feel like I have my own voice here, finally, like searching for the real self in a hall of mirrors, hopefully some tangental benefit from emotional work particular on blockages and ego boundaries?)

Buenos Diaz, comes the Professors measured but relaxed voice, the musicians voice often betraying their talent no matter what that may be, in the Professor‘s case, a self described Voodoo Drummer of some depth and talent.

Good morning, the Dr. says, nasal, as if try as he cannot quite relax the muscles in his larynx and neck and even down in his chest. Professor, how are you?
Dr. asks with some urgency, can I talk to you about my cannabis thesis today?

O yes, the Professor brightens noticeably, a very good day for advice. I can make time for your consultation immediately. Come on over by all means.

The Dr. also brightens - talk about your contagious memes. I’ll be there around lunch, Professor, thanks - thought that I could go without advice for a while but my philosophical concerns on this matter have taken on, if not exactly an unexpected turn, then certainly a turn into urgency.

Certainly, the Professor acknowledges, I am a professor of cannabisology, after all. I understand your concerns at their deepest, most tangled philosophical roots somewhere in the human soul itself, good Dr. - My professorial services await you, he added graciously, and Dr. - shall I assume the same prescription as always for myself?

Yes. Rasta down on that Lambsbread. Professor - it is my considered opinion both as your doctor and your friend that your continued good health may well depend upon it.

Click.

** ** **

Physician heal thyself, the Dr. thought with a self deprecatingly irony that he wore like a mask, running long, bony fingers through his thinning white hair. This Lambsbread is medicine worth driving for, he reminded himself, although such a drive was no hardship so outstanding winding through alpine beauty or through Canyonlands of sculptured red rock spires and cactus country and down to the edge of Rio Grande river. He pushed himself up with some effort from his couch wondering which route to take out and which to take back. Decisions, decisions. It had taken a while but his decisions were down, really, to such as these. He had only one key on his key chain - a certain sign of the simplicity of his new life.

One key away from paradise, he thought, amused. A novel blossomed suddenly like a mushroom cloud and complete then faded quickly away: “One Key Away from Paradise”, about an idiot savant - so called in the 1050’s, anyway. He works with his uncle who is chief engineer for an enormous residential high rise in Manhattan. On either side of his jean overhauls, Willie has a brass ring about twelve inches in diameter and each has at least two hundred separate keys dangling from it, weighing in at many pounds. And when Willie walks down the long, dimly lit hallways of the gigantic apartment house, the keys make a terrible racket. Only his uncle doesn’t mind it, “Willie?” says his uncle standing before one of a hundreds of locked doors or apartments or maintenance cabinets found throughout the basement and along each floor. Willie instantly pulls the proper key and hips up next to the lock, popping open the door.

Your welcome, uncle Steve, Willie says - their little joke. Willie’s only joke - Your welcome.

And on and on “these people” have so much to say and he tried to keep up but now must discern from these people‘s stories that seem to blow in on the winds - there was just too much, too much. Even writing a lot. Even well. He could not begin to keep up. The future history had caught up and overtaken his own timeline and was moving on past as a ripple in time will do so fast that it was barely noticed as it distorted everything in its path, most of all the Dr. himself, perhaps.

What do you want, he had asked one young girl who blew in literally on a north wind - why do you want me to write it down so badly? No one reads it, really -

You do, she says. You read it.

And though it is no answer, it is quite literally true, he realizes. I read what these “others” have written. I do not write it but read it as I write it just as anyone else might read it. My conscious intent in the writing various greatly but to be sure, it is not from me, this automatic form. My own voice I must stamp through the clutter with difficulty trying to form some cutting edges with ego boundaries that are all round and curved and made of smoke. Like hacking at a real concrete wall with a psychic hammer? the Dr. struggled for a moment then pulled away like emotionally withdrawing from an entangled relationship.

Willie, he says out loud, on the way to brush his teeth in the bathroom, I’ll have to find a way to tell my story and all your stories at once. He could leave them as their voices appeared mostly on paper after not so much hearing anything at all as feeling something and then always the same, a single thought, sometimes very odd, even violent or grizzly, that seemed to explode in his mind into many thoughts, into whole lives, multiples of lives interacting, going on and on in more detail than he could possibly hold his breath to capture.

Willie, now, a fascinating nearly emotional foil reflecting a world of relationships around him. Because he is dumb, it is as if Willie does not exist. Hmm, a great narrator, perhaps? After all, they were mostly the same stories at heart. Stories of pain, loss, loneliness, brutality and hopelessness … stories maybe of all the lives lost like his own literally on the winds … certainly all can be brought together into one river which is itself around every bend? He felt as if he were almost ready to write his own story, finally, maybe the one that he did not have to read?

He just wouldn’t think of it, was all. And not thinking of it, he stuffed both camera lenses, binoculars and his gun along with some ammo - stop in the forest and plink around, maybe? - into a Mountainsmith fanny pack along with a couple blood oranges and a bottle of water. He checked to make sure the dogs had water. Decided to leave the back door open to their 1/8th acre fenced area and the Dr. was out the door. Outside it was late morning and about sixty degrees under an electric blue new sky and even though large patches of snow still lingered close to the north side of the cabin in the sun temperatures probably would rise quickly into the mid seventies. He stretched luxuriously grateful for the newness of being comfortable outside then grabbed a gas can for the backup generator to the solar system and set it in the backseat. Once in the car, he placed a bottle of water and the zoon lens for the camera in the cup holders, the gun on the seat along with the camera with its 18 -55 MM lens. Elk, he thought, trying to picture elk. He would like to get a shot of them heading back up to the high country - the largest mammal out there had eluded him so far this year. Intention for elk, as he turned the ignition key.

The true excitement of a road trip filled him, though it be only to Taos, had a tinge of that cross-country-trip-feel to it? His world had become quite small but this had been anticipated and at least it had become small exactly where he wanted to be in it. The little Honda started and rattled down their long driveway, bumpy but passable just easy it does it … how thoughtful that phrase was in so many instances, bumping along, horses grazing in the early spring in the open pastures, across the tablelands just to the east, a few houses sitting in picturesque splendor with Truchas Peak still snow covered at 13,101 feet rising in a wall of alpine rock and tundra as a backdrop - southern end of the American rocky mountains, the American Alps. It seemed that particular visual pattern when filtered through his optic nerve was consistently interpreted by his brain as a stimulant for Heart-Happiness: wasn’t a lot of this kind of good shit going around, the Dr. said nodding admiringly of the view - it was something that he had noticed, having kept an eye out for this kind of good SHIT for half a century now.

Easy does it, pulling finally out onto the paved highway, the little Honda seemed to sigh with relief as it climb up onto the smooth pavement of civilization. The Dr. passed a sign warning motorist to beware of elk, another of sharp turns, another for steep grades - he thought of high school government class with Mr. Korchovski, maybe his most brilliant teacher. Korchovski, always a black suit with a black bow tie, pale face, genuinely piercing and slightly insane blue eyes, tall guy maybe 6’3”, full head of steel-white hair maybe late fifties. Beyond animated, he was theatrical in his teaching. He had immense personal, energy and poor social skills and few high school kids were prepared to in any way like the man but he had thought the world of Korchovski, even though the old man had slammed him by not signing at recommendation for advanced placement classes the next year - the only one of his teachers not to sign on.

“Well, you did participate in class. And you did get an A on my final demonstrating to me that you do understand the material quite well. However, you came to class stoned almost every day and you rarely if ever turned in any of my assignments and you only received a B for a final grade and frankly, you did no extra work at all. None of that merits advanced placement and teaching such a class myself, I do not feel that you possess the self discipline at this time to handle it. You seem to feel that life is some kind of cosmic joke but I assure that is not so”.

What the hell could he have said to that? A sixteen year old kid who actually did kind of feel like life was a cosmic joke, now that he suddenly had the words? Fucking Korchovski, man, pale blue eyes, always bright, moistly glistening, looked right into his young ass soul and spoke to the core that he did not even know that he had. Old bastard looking you right in the eyes as he says this, just straight up calm as he can be like the voice of god almighty.

But the young Dr. couldn’t really disagree with what Korchovski had said about the self discipline. He was just coming to his own conclusions about government; about his American government. And his conclusions bore no relationship to anything Korchovski had said during the whole damn year. It was as if they had been speaking of some children’s fairy tale about this magic world wherein the people practiced something called democracy believing in a religion based like all religions upon pure faith called, Free Market Capitalism. Mythical forefathers had set them free with sword and pen.

Korchovski final exam consisted of a crude pencil drawing obvious that he had drawn it himself of a highway wets sets of lines for the outside and lines inside dividing it into two lanes and a speed limit sign and that was it: Essay, it read, below drawing, “How does this drawing relate to the constitution of the United States of America”.

How indeed, the Dr. put that thought aside as gravel and dust fly, pulling the hoopty car of onto this overlook a little harder than he had intended. It was only a short walk to a photo op here of Ojo Sarco with the Truchas Massif behind. He wrapped the binoculars and camera around his neck, stuffed the long lens in a jacket pocket it. It was almost T shirt time except for a mild but steady breeze from the southwest. He left the cane and the gun in the open car and made his way over to the best spot. First he glasses the lower alpine fields where they were lined up with their south sides facing, snow melted, slowly moving along with the ten power always a little shaky in his MS hands. Nothing up there. He almost fell then glassing south facing rocky cliffs above that, a little dizzy - didn’t see any big horn sheep but there was a veritable sea of craggy rocks up above ten thousand feet and they could be up there anyway, not a whole hell of a lot of em to start with, he figured.

A little disappointed, the Dr. shot some obligatory tourist shots. Spring was only a few days away and the weather had finally broke after a long winter. He was still getting off on the natural high of being outside without feeling under assault by the cold. What is it about seeing wildlife that is so cool, he wondered, squinting back up at the distant alpine fields? Getting back into the car, breaking the silence with its engine whine and the attending rattles that rose up from all around him as if when running the whole Honda was at a tinkering boil, he only knew that it was a good prescription for health, seeing wildlife, being out here in the wilderness - and what more did a Dr. have to know?

** ** **

In Taos the Dr. picked up a self prescribed cup of Sumatra coffee from the coffee house and then hobbled into the hippie store for some hummus, tabouli, dolmas, olives and a bag of organic blue corn chips. He stopped to check out their community board, by far the largest that he had ever seen, maybe ten feet high by twenty feet long. The Taos Hustle, a unique sub group of the Great American Hustle. Taos massages and psychics and healers and nutritionists and musicians and house sitters and gurus and handy men and anyone would trade anything for something else. Civilization, he thought, has it advantages for sure. It could be amusing as all hell for one - but then, it could suddenly turn like a lion in a circus and chomp your head off with one quick bite. Just got keep an eye on it, you know, like having a wild animal in your house since birth and even though it cuddles and purrs, you know that you always have to keep in mind that it is a WILD animal, after all. Just don’t get too comfortable, right? Always know where the gun is at. You don’t want to wake up from a stupor some morning with your toes chewed off.

** ** **

Taos, NM. What a scene this place is? The Professor is a true native - not an Indian, mind you, but a true native of the town of Taos. His father arrived here in the early seventies after first showing up on the doorstop of the Buddhist center in the nearby mountains - a distinctly Taoan story of arrival in this great country if there ever was one. Sorry, the monk had told him, but we do not allow drugs, kids or dogs and you have all three, my brother.

Dad, a philosophy major, an ex military officer, riding the true zeitgeist of his age, mind blown by a new age cocktail of hallucinogens, radical politics, radical music and religious and spiritual practices of a most eclectic mix but with a strong eastern, mystical base, had found a place that felt like home for his family.

The Dr. pulls into the parking lot of the Professors adobe apartments. He finds the place depressing. Tiny apartments barely big enough for one filled mostly with recently down and outs, divorces, break ups. losses and hard luck stories each as different as it was the same. Interim housing. Interim lives. Filled with pain, heartache and that almost unbearable uncertainty of unwanted change. He felt the vibes come off the place always when he drove up. One of the many times that the Dr. thought with self deprecation that if he were worth a damn, he would figure out how to turn off these vibes once and for all. He had seen enough already and longed maybe most of all to just be able to leave them all alone behind their curtains, behind their heavily tinted car windows, the trenchments that rose sometimes as subtle as a well trimmed hedge - leave them for a few moments anyway where they peered out from behind their eyes - where they were the other and not part of the same river as himself.

Before he could pull himself out of the car, the Professor was standing above him, opening the door with one hand and shielding his pale blue eyes from the bright New Mexico sun with the other.

Welcome Dr., the professor said fondly. He took the bag of hippy food while the Dr. grabbed his cane and walked with the Professor to his modest apartment with its 24” thick adobe walls. Gravel crunched underfoot and the mid day sun down here felt positively tropical.

I believe that you will be pleased with today’s cannabis discourse, Dr.

I have no doubt about it, the Dr. laughed.

Are you hungry, the Professor asked?

Not yet, the Dr. said, seating himself outside while the professor went inside to put the food in the fridge. Two small bubblers were set up on the porch outside of the Professors apartment on a low table next to a couch and a chair. Only in Taos could you sit out daily like this and smoke openly on your public, front porch - neighbors occasionally wandering back and forth, coming in or out or doing their laundry in the shared laundry room, hell, maybe stepping over to hit on a bowl and shoot the shit a few moments. Maybe joining the Professor on his professorial couch for a while. Cannabis, it appears, truly is endemic here? You just had to dig the scene. It’s like here, in 2011, there is some pocket universe wherein Nixon did not win the 60’s. Where maybe Jerry Brown won the presidency.

The Professor came out with a salad bowl filled with a salad of popcorn bud - a “medhead” special, given to him by generous grower friends who must sell the prettiest buds to pay their mortgages and by their brown rice but who seemed to feel that the Professor was a kind of neighborhood project.

The Professor served as one of many hubs around which a cannabis culture turned here in this beautiful, quirky town.

Lambsbread, he smiled, offering it up for a deep heady smell.

Wow! the Dr. exclaimed, inhaling deeply - ah, heavenly. Good for what ails you. They smoked a bowl from their respective bubblers, the Dr.’s already set out loaded, the Professor ever the consummate cannabis host.

I’m still sore from working on the road three days ago, the Dr. complained. Two bucket loads of rocks picked up on the side of the road. Plenty of rocks there to fix it up right, shouldn’t need to buy anymore stone. If the work doesn’t kill me.

Now you’re catching on to the New Mexico ways, Dr. Good for you.

Hell yeah, the Dr. said proudly, picked up some big, flat stones from the side of the road the other day going up through the badlands above Embudo. I’m gonna use those to build up the steps you put in last summer -

You still have those cinderblocks for steps?

And built a 8 x 8 mudroom around them but I think the rocks will look good have plenty of mortar left and plenty of stone, for that matter. Eventually, have to get you up there to help me stucco the place, Professor?

We’ll do it, havta wait until the dancers take a break for a couple months and then I won’t have to be worried about getting back here for practices and performances.

Can’t wait to get past that stuff and this electrical fiasco so I can get to something fun like building greenhouses and she wants a casita down in that northeast corner next to the big alligator cedar tree.

I guess you’ve made some changes since I was up there last, the Professor said.

It’s been eight months, Professor. I plug away it, anyway.

The Professor got up for a glass of water, the walk to the tiny kitchen literally a half dozen steps. Then, as the Professor came back into the small living, sleeping area, he suddenly began skipping toward his narrow bed against the wall, in so far as one could be said to skip in such a small space, flinging his arms wildly, glass and water flying into wall, tumbling across floor and he is looking at the Dr. the entire time and he is babbling baby talk in a most peculiar high, pitched voice. The Professor plops on his twin bed and appears to fall instantly to sleep. Then, after a few “what the fuck” moments for the Dr., he pops up to a sitting position suddenly and stares right at the Dr. with a huge, goofy, childish grin, as if to say, “I SEE YOU” and then he pitches straight back and sleeps.

Damn, the Dr. thinks, haven’t been seeing the Professor that often lately, never seen this before? WTF? The Dr. takes a writing tablet from the Professors table and he jots down the time then brief description of what he had witnessed happening. The Professors face completely changed. All the muscles relaxed, his face became rounder, the eyes wider and glistening with wonder - his face had changed into a child’s face, the Dr. wondered, really had changed, physically had changed and that kind of thing would take a neurological storm …

When the Professor was only a six year old child, camping in the Black Forest with his father and a band of German and American tokers and jokers and smokers, he had climbed up onto the kitchen table of their Airstream to retrieve a small plastic bag full of powdered Grape Kool-Aid that he had just witnessed the adults, each one licking their finger then dipping it in the bag and licking the moistened grape powder off with some relish. When they pulled their fingers away, the tips were stained dark purple. He thought that was grand and he thought that it was the best thing ever as he devoured the whole bag. A while later someone discovered the empty baggie, licked clean. Then they discovered the little Professor playing happily near the fire pit, covered in Grape Kool Aid. One dose of the mescaline was one finger dipped in and the boy had eaten the whole bag?

A terrible panic set in to the small tribe of hippies but Dad reasoned that the little Professors brain would not be affected as was their own - Don’t’ you see, he explained patiently to the others, to his wife, the little Professors mother - all this stuff does anyway is make us like him - his little mind is already blown. I don’t think that he will even notice it. And Dad played with the little Professor for hours there in the dirt next to the fire pit. And sure enough, the little Professor did not freak out in any visible manner. In fact, he seemed perfectly normal.

Until about twenty years later when after some bizarre behavior, the Professor discovered a massive tumor the size of a baseball in the center of his brain - actually, he discovered nothing, having descended into coma by the time neurologist discovered the tumor. The neurological surgeon excised eighty percent of his right temporal lobe in order to get to the tumor and remove it safely. The neurosurgeon did not expect much from the Professor in the way of recovery. At best, the Professor would be alive, maybe live out some kind of life in a nursing home, little better than a vegetative state if he were lucky? But the Professor surprised everyone by waking up with full conscious awareness and like some wunderkind even walked and talked. The neurosurgeon was stunned and presented the case to various medical bodies at conferences around the globe for years to come. He even had the wisdom to not take much credit for it all, calling it a true mystery of the mind.

After a pretty quiet twenty minute “nap”, the Professor stirred. The Dr. wrote down the time and tossed the notebook back onto the table.

How you feeling? The Dr. asked.

The Professor yawned and stretched hugely, sitting up in the bed. His face had returned to normal. Refreshed, the Professor said, getting up to get some water.

The Dr. did not think that the Professor knew what had happened to him a few minutes before. He wondered if this had been happening for some time? Would the Professors other friends even notice that this was odd behavior? He wondered.

The Professor came back into the room with a glass of water and sat down again in front of his little bubbler. He picked up the notebook and read what the Dr. had written.

When he finished, the Dr. asked, any of that ring a bell?

Nada, the Professor shook his head. His face did not reveal anything at all. As if perhaps he had not understood what he had just read?

You know, the Dr. said, strangely feeling some need to underplay the whole thing, the greatest actor in the world cannot change their facial muscles like that?

The Professor looked up from filling his little bubbler with the same almost blank expression.

Uncomfortably, the Dr. continued - point is, Professor, talking like neurological storms here, you know, only possible explanation and quite understandable in your case. The Professor suffered from constant brain seizures controlled best, as it turned out, by the cannabis that he smoked almost constantly. This is why so many people would just lay weed on the guy. I did. Others did constantly like some kind of tithing to keep the Professors brain from shorting out once and for all.

The Professor showed no interest still. He looked at the doctor dispassionately as he sucked on the little bubbler, deep blue smoke rising in tight curls and diffusing and swirling through the water pipe and into the Professors grateful lungs.

When’s the last time you saw your neurologist?

Maybe six months or a year, the Professor said, as if he truly could not recall.

Well, look, Professor, I got to get going back to the ranch, still a bit of a way and through cops and assholes of all sorts, before I rest. If you can dig that.

I can dig it, the Professor laughed. He gave the Dr. a small bag from his enormous salad bowl of Lambsbread much still remaining to clean - a true labor of love for the Professor.

Listen, the Dr. said, I’d like to refer you to your neurologist, Professor - let him know what’s going on … it’s probably just tolerance to meds, maybe he’ll tweak em a little or something.

I’ll get it, the Professor said, betraying fairly rare annoyance. I’ll take care of it, seriously, Dr. My problem.

The Dr. left feeling no assurance that anything would be taken care of at all. Everything that ever was, ever will be or is right now, is perfect, he had to remind himself, pulling away from the sad adobe apartments under the warm spring sun.

Everything that ever was, ever will be, or is right now, is perfect - it was his prayer-of-last-resort. The Dr. found himself saying it an awful lot lately. It was true enough in the way of an affirmation although a lot easier for the wolf who is eating the cariboo alive than the cariboo who the wolf is eating alive. It was a bare bones hard prayer easily compressed in its much simply form: "aw, fuck".

** ** **

He has the window down and the heat on, driving the one hour scenic drive from Taos to home. He is alone. He is always alone. At 9,000 feet, he can feel the cool breezes coming down off of the melting snow pack from alpine fields a couple thousand feet above. The local ski areas run full tilt taking advantage of their elevations and extreme northern exposures but these views now, here winding through the heart of the Sangre de Cristos mountains, these views are not of ski areas or man made anything at all only the one quarter million acre Pecos Wilderness set like the jewel that it is within the larger setting of the Santa Fe National Forest. A faint smell of gasoline come to him from the back in spite of the windows being down. He had deliberately spilled it on the gas can when filling up before leaving town so that the smell would cover the cannabis if a cop pulled him over. A trace of the delicious Lambsbread came then through the sweet, sickening smell of the gasoline.

Sure enough, a state trooper pulls in behind him but he pulls over to an overlook, jumps out with cane and camera and shoots a scene to the west looking back down into the sunshine valley and to the high, snow covered peaks above Taos. Tourist shoot, to be sure, but nice. Beautiful. A fucking blind man could shoot great out here, he thinks. The cop finishes running his plates finding that there are no priors, no problems, and within seconds the squad car’s lights come on and it zips off after a speeder. He gets into his car then and hurries to drive past the cop while he is ticketing the speeder. Unnecessary since he is legal with medical marijuana but old habits die hard - especially old habits that had kept him out of prison for decades of dalliances’ with the law and society at large over his love of this simple plant that grew naturally out of the ground.

He hits a high spot and tries the AM radio, finding what he was looking for - "A radioactive plume is scheduled to hit the north coast of north america by this weekend" the radio announced. He turned it off, choking back sudden sobs. Helplessness, hopelessness and anger. Jesus Christ, a radioactive plume. He thinks of the brave men dying in that hell of our own creation. Their own family dead. The bravery and horror of it all sitting like a black pool somewhere inside of him where it could not be reached or even understood. His heart felt like bursting and he wanted to take Japan and all of it, all of it up into his arms and rock it gently, lovingly, protecting it ... but hell, he thought, I cannot even protect myself?

He was careful to drive the speed limit even though it was unlikely that another trooper would be anywhere else around out here in this thinly traveled wilderness? He looked down at his gun on the seat - not concealed, so legal.

Protection, he thought. Like the old habits that kick in when moving even small amounts of marijuana. More to the point, this line of reasoning led off on something of a tangent, a behavioral coping mechanism exactly, in its way, like the shield that so long guarded his heart. The coping mechanism remains attempting to provide the protection for which it was originally created in childhood but now, now he did not need to protect his heart rather to open it. So many things in life once done are so difficult to undo, he wondered. He felt then how his life for so many years now had been struggle to “undo” in so many ways and he felt a weariness deep down in his bones from the struggle to free himself from so many binding wires holding him down like Gulliver - spider web lines easily broken by themselves but these lines, these lines were never by themselves and the more he fought to tear them away, the more they clung and tangled but he just couldn’t quit yet. Not yet.

He didn’t feel like he was on the wrong path at all. He was certain that this was the mushroom path because now he knew that this path only existed in the map of the world that he carried within his mind, not in the world itself. He was weary tired of the path. The bravado o the newness, that energy, then the reality of what opening the heart actually entailed? He was lonely and beaten down and weak and he was bent, man, bent too far over for any form of comfort. I am the fucking cariboo today, he thought bleakly.

Out loud, he said to no one, “just because something’s broken, don’t mean it’s useless.” It was part of his healing odyssey, this assertion. “God, do you hear what I am saying” continuing out loud, words lost on the wind and searing fresh scent of the high altitude air, “not useless, god dammit. I am not going to crawl into a condo somewhere and wait to die. I'll show you what I mean just as soon as I can get up off the floor".

After all, he was only born a little over four years ago and this resurrection from spiritual death still worked its magic holding him up all this time like some spiritual exoskeleton and if the Dr. vowed nothing else, it ws that God himself would have to pry his new life from his cold dead hands - he wasn't going to give it away, this time.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

"Fringe" with Walter the stoned genius

2011-03-12T23:41:51Z

http://www.fox.com/fringe/full-episodes/822714907001/os

awesome fringe Walter the stoned, brain excised genius saves two worlds

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

top marijuana victories of 2010

2011-01-05T23:07:35Z

courtesy of www.mpp.org:

Top 10 Marijuana Victories in 2010 (in no particular order)

1. NEW JERSEY LEGALIZES MEDICAL MARIJUANA

2010 started with a bang when New Jersey's outgoing Democratic governor signed a bill that made New Jersey the 14th state to legalize medical marijuana. (Unfortunately, the new Republican governor has conspired with his state health department to delay and subvert the new law from taking effect and -- now one year later -- patients still do not have legal access to medical marijuana.)

2. WASHINGTON, D.C. LEGALIZES MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Voters in our nation's capital passed a medical marijuana initiative with 69% of the vote in November 1998. After Congress blocked that law from taking effect 11 years in a row, Congress finally removed the federal ban in the fall of 2009, and in 2010 the D.C. City Council passed legislation to implement the local law. While the D.C. law is more restrictive than we'd like, five medical marijuana dispensaries will be opening up within a short cab ride of Capitol Hill by the middle of 2011.

3. ARIZONA LEGALIZES MEDICAL MARIJUANA

By a mere 50.13% to 49.87% margin, Arizona voters passed MPP's medical marijuana initiative in November, making Arizona the 15th state to legalize medical marijuana. As a result, approximately 125 dispensaries will open up around the state by mid-2011. This campaign was successful despite severely limited resources, with MPP spending only $0.10 for each Arizona resident.

4. CALIFORNIA INITIATIVE DEMONSTRATES RECORD SUPPORT FOR LEGALIZATION

While Prop. 19 failed at the polls on Election Day, this ballot initiative still represents significant progress for our movement. First, the initiative received the highest level of support (46.54%) of any of the eight legalization initiatives ever to be placed on a statewide ballot. Second, the initiative received support from mainstream political institutions, such as the California affiliates of the NAACP and SEIU, the Latino Voters League, the National Latino Officers Association, and the National Black Police Association. Third, the initiative generated gobs of in-state and national news coverage, making marijuana legalization a respectable topic of political debate. Fourth, the campaign inspired the local governments and voters of three cities to pass laws that will automatically tax marijuana sales once they are legal under state law.

5. MARIJUANA-FRIENDLY GOVERNORS ELECTED IN THREE STATES

For the first time in memory, three gubernatorial candidates who are well known to be supportive of decriminalizing marijuana and legalizing medical marijuana were elected on the same day -- Neil Abercrombie (D-HI), Dan Malloy (D-CT), and Peter Shumlin (D-VT). As a result, all three states are likely to pass favorable legislation in 2011.

6. THREE STATES REGULATE/EXPAND MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAWS

While state governments sometimes tweak their existing medical marijuana laws, Colorado's government did much more than that in 2010 when it passed a new law for issuing approximately 2,000 licenses to medical marijuana retailers, growers, and kitchens; as a result, medical marijuana businesses are now scattered around the state like pharmacies. Also, Maine's health department issued regulations to establish eight medical marijuana dispensaries, building on the MPP-authored ballot initiative that Mainers passed with nearly 59% of the vote in November 2009. And, to close out 2010, New Mexico's health department increased the number of dispensaries in the state to 25.

7. LOCAL INITIATIVE VICTORIES IN FOUR STATES

In Massachusetts, voters in nine legislative districts passed initiatives recommending that medical marijuana be legalized on the state level; in another nine legislative districts, Massachusetts voters recommended that marijuana be legalized entirely. In Wisconsin, voters in two local jurisdictions urged their state legislature to legalize medical marijuana. In California, voters in two cities blocked dispensaries from being banned. And in Colorado, voters in 8 cities and counties voted to allow dispensaries (this overt support is significant, even though voters in another 34 Colorado municipalities decided to ban dispensaries).

8. VETERANS AFFAIRS RECOGNIZES MEDICAL MARIJUANA

For the first time since 1978, a federal agency recognized marijuana's therapeutic value when the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs issued a new policy in 2010, stating that veterans who use medical marijuana legally under state law would no longer be denied other prescription medications or treatments.

9. TWO GOOD COURT DECISIONS IN CALIFORNIA

In the "Anaheim" case, a California appellate court found that federal law doesn't prevent cities and counties from licensing medical marijuana dispensaries. And in a separate case, a California superior court blocked an L.A. City Council ordinance that would have wiped out most dispensaries in the second largest city in the U.S. (Neither case has reached its final conclusion yet, however.)

10. CALIFORNIA IMPROVES EXISTING DECRIMINALIZATION LAW

In 1975, California decriminalized marijuana, meaning that people who were apprehended with up to an ounce of marijuana could not face jail time. In 2010, the California government improved this law by changing marijuana possession from a criminal misdemeanor to a civil infraction, meaning that -- in addition to not facing jail time -- small-time marijuana offenders will no longer have to appear before a judge, pay court costs or hire a lawyer, or get stuck with a criminal record.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

How Weed Won the West

2010-11-20T00:20:19Z

http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/how-weed-won-the-west/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Medical Cannabis in the U.K. / Europe

2010-11-18T21:10:28Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLlhA09Q6SM

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

the man behind proposition 19

2010-10-21T22:41:10Z

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2010/10/the-man-behind-prop-19-richard-lee-on-marijuanas-chances/64759/
Few non-criminals can accurately be described as "marijuana entrepreneurs," but that's what Richard Lee is.

Since California legalized medical marijuana in 1996, he's become something of a cannabis commerce don in Oakland, opening up legitimate (depending on whom you ask) businesses around the activity of weed smoking: in 1999 he opened the Bulldog Coffeeshop, which has doubled as a medical-marijuana vendor to card carriers, and in 2007 he founded Oaksterdam University, a college that will teach you how to grow and sell marijuana at campuses in Oakland, Sebastopol (an hour to the North), Los Angeles, and Flint, Michigan.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Hemp Is the Far Bigger Economic Issue Hiding Behind Legal Marijuana

2010-10-21T18:26:02Z

http://www.alternet.org/drugs/148560/hemp_is_the_far_bigger_economic_issue_hiding_behind_legal_marijuana/?page=entire

AlterNet / By Harvey Wasserman
Hemp Is the Far Bigger Economic Issue Hiding Behind Legal Marijuana
Prop 19 will open up California to hemp, a multi-billion-dollar crop that has been a staple of human agriculture for thousands of years.
October 19, 2010 |

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

marijuana, inc.

2010-09-28T14:51:28Z

http://janalerner.newsvine.com/_news/2009/03/10/2524308-al-roker-reporting-marijuana-inc
By Jana Lerner

Al Roker with general manager, Bill Leahy at a dispensary in Westwood, CA

Marijuana: It's the most popular illicit drug in America, and a multi-billion dollar industry. Could it be growing in your neighborhood? Al Roker reports on this illegal phenomenon and its implications and also takes a close look at California, one of the 13 states that has decriminalized marijuana for medical use.

posted in Cannabis - 6 replies

CITIZENS OUTSPENDING COPS ON PROP 19 (CA. TAX & REGULATE NEWS)

2010-09-28T14:48:49Z

http://www.mapinc.org/newsnorml/v10/n647/a02.html

Among other things this interesting article says:

"A new national campaign to legalize adult use of cannabis launched last week, called "Just Say Now." The DC-based group intends to turn out the youth vote this November in states where marijuana is an issue, including California. 2010 is a midterm election, meaning a significant drop-off in the liberal voters who elected Obama in 2008, but Just Say Now aims to counter that trend by unleashing the group Students for Sensible Drug Policy on college campuses.

Weed may be a wedge issue that turns out youth voters in states where it matters, says This Is Your Country on Drugs author Ryan Grim on the Huffington Post. Additionally, Congressman Barney Frank told The New York Times that national decriminalization/legalization is less than five years away. "

posted in Cannabis - 6 replies

drug wars/culture wars

2010-09-27T02:52:37Z

http://www.salon.com/life/drugs/index.html?story=/opinion/feature/2010/09/24/sirota_marijuana_legalization

http://www.veryimportantpotheads.com/site/marijmuslim.htm

http://foolocracy.com/2010/09/californians-prepared-to-pass-marijuana-legalization-or-not-depending-on-the-poll/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-koehler/stoned-on-righteousness_b_736820.html

http://the420times.com/2010/08/cannabis-religion-part-one/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=cannabis-religion-part-one

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

DEA is doing Medical Marijuana Raids in Secret.......Yawn, Ho Hum, There Goes Our Hard Fought Progress, Oh Well.

2010-09-24T04:04:15Z

Not that anyone cares or anything.

"" Speak no evil: DEA, DOJ stay mum on medical marijuana raids
By Mike Riggs – The Daily Caller

Despite campaign promises to the contrary, the Department of Justice under President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder hasn’t stopped raiding marijuana dispensaries operating in states where sale of the drug is legal for medical purposes. But the DOJ has demonstrated one marked change now that it’s under Democratic control: The department has stopped publicizing medical marijuana raids, both by requesting that more cases be sealed under court order and by refusing to distribute press releases.

Late last week, DEA and FBI agents raided five medical marijuana dispensaries in Nevada. In July, DEA agents raided the home of 65-year-old Mendocino County, California, grower Joy Greenfield and confiscated plants, money, and her computer. Also in July, DEA agents raided the home of a couple in Michigan who were licensed by the state to use marijuana, as well as three medical marijuana dispensaries in San Diego. In January and February of this year, the DEA raided two medical marijuana research labs in Colorado...........""

http://www.denvermarijuana.net/2010/09/14/dea-is-doing-medical-marijuana-raids-in-secret/

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

drug 'czar' Gil Kerlikowske talking shit on medical cannabis

2010-09-18T00:53:26Z

http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2010/09/17-3

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

'Unlikely' supporters of decriminalization. (NORML)

2010-08-16T16:29:02Z

Unlikely to some I guess, though I was surprised by a few.

Starts the list with:
"8. Glenn Beck
Not only is Glenn Beck one of Fox News’ more (in)famous anchors, he is also a leading figure of the burgeoning Tea Party movement, a renowned linguist and vocal thespian as well. Yet in a recent show, Beck declared, “I think it’s about time we legalize marijuana.” He added, “We have to make a choice in this country. We either put people who are smoking marijuana, behind bars, or we legalize it…[banning cannabis] is not helping us, it’s not helping Mexico, and it is causing massive damage on our southern border.” In that episode, he also interviewed Andres Rozenthal, a former Deputy Foreign Minister of Mexico, and expert on the drug violence down south. Rozenthal determined that around 60% of the Mexican cartels’ profits come from trafficking cannabis to the United States. Legalizing marijuana would then greatly undermine one of their revenue streams...."

And I loved this quote >>> “There are two sure ways to end this (drug) war swiftly:
Milton’s way and Mao’s way. Mao Zedong’s communists killed users and suppliers alike,
as social parasites. Milton Friedman’s way is to decriminalize drugs and call off the war.” <<<<

...by Pat Buchanan of all people.

Oops, LINK:
http://norml.org/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Marijuana vs Meth Cartoon

2010-08-16T16:23:44Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsVu8RttL4Q&feature=fvw
Relatively funny.

posted in Cannabis - 7 replies

Beginning to see the light - by Judge Jim Gray

2010-08-15T18:37:59Z

http://judgejamesgray.blogspot.com/

Beginning to see the light - by Judge Jim Gray

News flash! On June 22, the Chicago Sun-Times published an editorial recommending a radical change in our nation's drug policy. The editorial began by saying: "When will we accept that America's war on drugs is over – we lost – and it's time to get real about our drug laws?" Then the editorial continued: "Medical marijuana should be legalized. Pot more generally should be decriminalized. And the carnage in our streets and in Mexico begs that we rethink our nation's approach to the sale and use of more serious drugs as well."

People around the world and institutions like the Sun-Times are beginning to see the light, because the evidence of the failure of our policy of drug prohibition is all around us. Another of those institutions is the NAACP, whose president announced on this past June 29 that: "We are joining a growing number of medical professionals, labor organizations, law enforcement authorities, local municipalities, and approximately 56% of the public in saying that it is time to decriminalize the use of marijuana."

Why is all of this happening? Well, among other things more people are beginning to understand that many of the problems with youth gangs, such as shootings, drug sales, and even the recruitment of young people to that dead-end lifestyle, are directly traced to drug prohibition. Police can disrupt the drug trafficking of gangs only to a limited degree, but, they like Al Capone and other such thugs in the alcohol distribution business before them, can only really be put out of that lucrative business by a pronounced change in policy.

Prison overcrowding? We have filled our prisons with young men and women who have committed drug-related crimes – which the Sun-Times rightfully calls "a shameful waste of human potential and the taxpayers' money" – but, just like holding a bucket under a waterfall fills up lots of buckets with water, that act can do nothing to shut off the flow.

Foreign policy? In Mexico, where President Calderon has been waging his own war on drugs, the killing and corruption still continue to increase. The Sun-Times addresses those realities and cites the concern of many that Mexico is in danger of becoming a failed state because of them. Only the repeal of drug prohibition has the chance of saving our neighbor to the south from that fate.

So if all of these facts are becoming clear, why has this failed policy been allowed to continue? Because traditionally many people have harbored the idea that this policy, "for all of its defects," will keep drugs away from our children. But the bitter truth is that drug prohibition has made drugs stronger, cheaper and more available to our kids than any other system ever would have.

In addition to these other self-inflicted wounds, prohibition has materially increased cases of accidental drug overdose, unregulated drug poisoning, gang shootings, the killing of police and innocent victims caught in the crossfire, and AIDS infections and hepatitis contracted from dirty needles. And since we will never run out of people who are willing to take risks for selling small quantities of drugs for large amounts of money, the most effective way we can bring peace back to our streets, neighborhoods, and schools is to repeal the fundamental cause of the disruption, which is drug prohibition.

Furthermore, there are only so many resources allocated to the criminal justice system, so the "tougher" we get on drug crimes, literally the "softer" we get on the prosecution of everything else. Thus with a change away from drug prohibition, our law enforcement agencies will be able to divert scarce resources back to the underfunded investigation and prosecution of other crimes like robbery, rape, murder and fraud.

But there is even more! Today our country exports more cash to other countries because of the sales of illicit drugs than anything else, except oil. Forget all of our purchases of Toyota automobiles and Sony television sets, the bigger cash outflow is brought about by illegal drugs. And by the way, think of the reduced violence the repeal of drug prohibition will bring to countries like Colombia, Afghanistan, Thailand, Bolivia, Mexico and Nigeria, as well as the accompanying loss of profits and power to the drug lords and cartels there that today are thriving under our present policy!

Finally, the laws of drug prohibition have also resulted in a virtual prohibition of medical research on addiction and related problems. But with the recent liberalization of attitudes, medical science has begun to learn more about the properties of many of these presently illicit drugs. For example, in addition to its other perceived benefits, there is some indication that medical marijuana can also be helpful for autistic children. (For more information, please visit http://www.UF4A.org.)

You can help in this inevitable movement by supporting the "Tax and Regulate Cannabis Act of 2010," which will be on the November ballot and which would treat marijuana like alcohol for adults. Its most effective result will be to make marijuana less available for children than it is today by tightening the laws against selling or furnishing marijuana to people under the age of 21. (Of course today the illegal marijuana dealers don't ask for I.D.) And this measure expressly will not affect existing laws about driving under the influence or behavior in the workplace. Of course, it will also have the side benefit of taxing our state's largest cash crop, which will help our state's balance of payments problems.

Ironically, my generation of the 1960s has supported the punishment of our children's youthful drug indiscretions that takes away their freedoms, dignity, reputations, hope, Pell grants and otherwise bright futures for doing the very same thing that many of them did at the same age! Ask yourselves, do you think that incarceration would have helped the lives and careers of Presidents Bill Clinton or Barack Obama – or the Olympic career of swimmer Michael Phelps? No, although marijuana certainly has its harms, the most harmful thing connected to marijuana today is jail. You can help us in November to reduce many of those harms.

JAMES P. GRAY is a retired judge of the Orange County Superior Court, the author of "A Voter's Handbook: Effective Solutions to America's Problems" (The Forum Press, 2010). He can be contacted at JimPGray@sbcglobal.net, or through his website at http://www.JudgeJimGray.com.
POSTED BY JUDGE JIM GRAY

posted in Cannabis - 1 reply

Cannabis Minister Roger Christie Refused Bail in Religious Freedom Case

2010-08-11T13:45:29Z

"Two weeks ago, fourteen people on the Big Island of Hawaii were apprehended in a series of raids, including Roger Christie, founding director of The Hawaii Cannabis (THC) Ministry. Thirteen have been released on bail; Christie is still sitting in a cell."

http://mensnewsdaily.com/2010/07/23/cannabis-minister-roger-christie-refused-bail-in-religious-freedom-case/comment-page-1/

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

oregon cannabis tax act 2010

2010-08-11T13:44:07Z

http://www.cannabistaxact.org/
Oregon Cannabis Tax Act - Ballot Title
Submitted by octa2010 on Sun, 04/25/2010 - 03:43

* Oregon Cannabis Tax Act

The certified ballot title is as follows:

Permits personal marijuana, hemp cultivation/use without license; commission to regulate commercial marijuana cultivation/sale

Result of "Yes" Vote: "Yes" vote permits state-licensed marijuana (cannabis) cultivation/sale to adults through state stores; permits unlicensed adult personal cultivation/use; prohibits restrictions on hemp (defined).

Result of a "No" Vote: "No" vote retains existing civil and criminal laws prohibiting cultivation, possession and delivery of marijuana; retains current statues that permit regulated use of medical marijuana.

Summary: Currently, marijuana cultivation, possession and delivery are prohibited; regulated medical marijuana use permitted. Measure replaces state, local marijuana laws except medical marijuana and driving under the influence laws; distinguishes "hemp" from "marijuana"; prohibits regulation of hemp. Creates agency to license marijuana cultivation by qualified persons and to purchase entire crop. Agency sells marijuana at cost to pharmacies, medical research facilities, and to qualified adults for profit through state stores. Ninety percent of net proceeds goes to state general fund, remainder to drug education, treatment, hemp promotion. Bans sales to, possession by minors. Bans public consumption except where signs permit, minors barred. Agency to regulate use, set prices, other duties; Attorney General to defend against federal challenges/prosecution. Provides penalties. Effective January 1, 2011; other provisions.

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

Starry Desires Emerging Visions visionary art 'zine #18

2010-08-10T02:43:02Z

In Honour of Nagasaki Day's 65th
Retire War mentality;
Celebrate beauty
with *Starry Desires* Emerging Visions visionary art 'zine. #18.

http://emergingvisions.blogspot.com

*

Enjoy and Share

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Five Ways the Drug War Hurts Kids: A Conversation with Neill Franklin of LEAP

2010-08-04T20:15:03Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzOHQdKRANA&feature=player_embedded#!

Found this on Boing Boing

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

Curb Your Enthusiasm MM Scenes

2010-08-04T15:06:36Z

Buys Weed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcf2CO65lf4

Shares w/ Dad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUNlYL6NB90&feature=related
(poor quality, but funny)

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

The Flower (sorry if you've already seen this) Video

2010-08-04T15:00:23Z

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMM_T_PJ0Rs&feature=player_embedded

If California does this (before the Republicans eventually take over again) it'll be monumental.
Seriously, almost nowhere in the civilized world is this poor little ol' plant still tolerated.
It'd be a huge boon for the whole West Coast I think.

For God's sakes if you live in California be sure to plan that shit out and get there and vote!
Carpool with friends or some shit.

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies

STRAWBERRY HAZE?!!!

2010-07-31T16:42:49Z

Ahhhh, back again with another. I first want to say thanks to all the fellow weed smokers that post their comments. It is good that we can all share our opininons. Good or Bad....gracias for listening.

Now, the next green on the screen is Starwberry Haze....a nice texture it had a a bright green mid-sized sweet sativa. The bud smelled like a candy-like strawberry, sweet-tasting. High lasted for a good 3 - 4 hours! Sweet!. Munchies weren't apparent, but the dry mouth was in effect. lol! But it really gives a nice high. I really enojoyed this one while playing COD modern warefare,lo!. Gamers stand up!

Anyway my dutch rating for this one is....

DUTCH RATING (1 to 5) - Stawberry haze - 4.0

Peace!

posted in Cannabis - 3 replies

SOUR BUBBA!!??

2010-07-28T13:06:16Z

Ok, I have been smoking weed for years...I just recently started hooking up with fellow weed coneseurs and trying different types of bud. From time to time I will inform you guys of these excellent adventures. Let me know if you tried them as well!

First on the list is something they call "Sour Bubba". Yes, it is on lines our the infamous "Sour Diesel". same light green bud, but with darker sativa. With a mellow high, (which didn't last to long. 1hr - 1 1/2hr.). It tasted very minty and didn't need much to get you high. But, I might have to rate this one low. Becuase it has more of a kick, where it might give you a slight headache when smoking, it is very strong in smell, texture and smokage. I tried to not to choke after every pull, like I was 12 again,lol!

All in all, of course, it was enjoyable, the landing wasn't a crash landing and munchies aren't as fierce. But do wash your hands and spray some stetson, becauase YOU WILL SMELL LIKE A WALKING CHEEBA TREE.

DUTCH RATING (1 to 5) ......SOUR BUBBA - 2.5

PEACE
Dice

posted in Cannabis - 4 replies

Please donate $5 to CA Control and Tax 2010!

2010-07-19T16:30:55Z

Now's the time to make those last minute contributions!
You can give as much as you feel comfortable with, obviously.

If people like us on this tribe don't support the cause... who will?

Anyways I just got through giving $5.
It's all I can spare right now...maybe I'll do another 5 next week...

LINK:
https://secure.taxcannabis.org/page/contribute

posted in Cannabis - 0 replies