Cannabis Hemp News

Technological advancements have given today’s teenagers access to a lot of things their parents could hardly envision at that age: The Internet.  iPads.  And marijuana many times more powerful than what people smoked in the 1970s. The rise in marijuana use among teens, as documented by recent national surveys, comes as particularly alarming to health advocates because marijuana is more potent than ever before, experts say.  That means the pot youth are smoking today carries a greater risk of harm … Read More

The proliferation of dispensary-style medical marijuana operations in Oregon concerns the state’s new U.S. Attorney, but she said she’s unwilling to devote much time or money to prosecuting a criminal activity that’s low on her list of priorities. U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall said the number of dispensaries in Oregon has been growing. Her office estimates the state hosts at least 100, most of which are in the Portland metro area. In 2010, Marshall’s predecessor joined his counterparts in other medical … Read More

Three and a half years ago, on my 62nd birthday, doctors discovered a mass on my pancreas. It turned out to be Stage 3 pancreatic cancer. I was told I would be dead in four to six months. Today I am in that rare coterie of people who have survived this long with the disease. But I did not foresee that after having dedicated myself for 40 years to a life of the law, including more than two decades as … Read More

Medical marijuana advocates have a message for Democratic leaders and federal prosecutors with an eye on political office: Don’t mess with pot. Pushing back against a federal effort to stem the proliferation of medical marijuana operations, one of the nation’s largest drug policy groups claimed credit Wednesday for the defeat of a former federal prosecutor who was the early favorite to win the Democratic primary for Oregon attorney general. As interim U.S. attorney, Dwight Holton called Oregon’s medical marijuana law … Read More

Smoking medical marijuana could help relieve some symptoms of multiple sclerosis, a small new study suggests. Researchers from the University of California, San Diego, found that people with MS who smoked cannabis had decreased pain and muscle tightness, called spasticity. However, the researchers warned that smoking the cannabis also led to problems with focus and attention. The study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, included 30 people — 63 percent of them women — with an average age of … Read More

Johnnie Scott Rice has held a lot of titles in her life: director of constituent services, advisory neighborhood commissioner, D.C. Council candidate. But there is one title she covets that has eluded her: District pot dealer. Rice, 71, is part of the Green House, a self-proclaimed “group of old ladies,” that the city recently turned down for a license to sell medical marijuana. Three other rejected applicants, including a Bethesda eye doctor and a competitive bass fisherman, have gone to … Read More

The Crown on Monday urged Ontario’s Court of Appeal to overturn a controversial ruling that struck down the federal legislation governing access to medical marijuana. The case centres on Toronto marijuana activist Matthew Mernagh, who launched a constitutional challenge after being charged with producing marijuana illegally. The trial judge accepted Mernagh’s position that the federal Marihuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) constitute an unfair barrier for sick people, and struck down both the MMAR and sections of the Controlled Drugs and … Read More

A bill legalizing marijuana for medical purposes has passed the Connecticut Senate. The state joins 16 others and the District of Columbia in enacting such legislation. State senators voted 21-to-13 in favor of the measure early Saturday, after nearly 10 hours of debate dominated by bill opponent Republican Sen. Toni Boucher. Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who has said he supports the measure, is expected to sign the legislation into law. The bill moves away from the largely criticized precedent … Read More

Burnaby Mayor Derek Corrigan put his name on the dotted line Thursday, calling for marijuana to be taxed and regulated, along with seven other B.C.  mayors. The open letter to Premier Christy Clark; Adrian Dix, leader of the B.C.  New Democrats; and John Cummins, leader of the B.C.  Conservative Party, comes on the heels of a similar letter from four former Vancouver mayors last December and one from four former B.C.  attorneys general in February. Corrigan told the NOW in … Read More

Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi saw the writing on the wall and came out in defense of medical cannabis patients and dispensaries under assault by the federal government this week. San Francisco dispensaries served her a petition with thousands of signatures May 2. Subsequently, Speaker Pelosi released the May 2 statement saying: “Access to medicinal marijuana for individuals who are ill or enduring difficult and painful therapies is both a medical and a states’ rights issue. Sixteen states, including our home … Read More