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Our Interview with Toronto Police on “Project Claudia” Raids
Marijuana.com Interviews the Toronto Police Any decent journalist will tell you that when reporting on a story, it’s important to remain as unbiased as possible, even when writing about situations you may disagree with or interviewing people who have a vastly different viewpoint of the topic at hand. Nevertheless, a story is only complete when […] Thanks to marijuana.com
The finish is nigh? Feds claim forget about interference with condition marijuana laws and regulations
The cost from the fight against drugs continues to be well recorded. The majority of us understand the rising violence south in our border, patients influenced by insufficient access, people imprisoned for possession, and also the expense of prohibition towards the tax payer. We at marijuana.internet wrote about this for a while now.
We’ve learned about these problems again and again, without a whisper of the sensible response from the us government. Just whenever we all increased fed up with the legal stalemate with federal government bodies attempting to hold condition law under control, it seems a significant alternation in federal policy might be going ahead. Last week, the Justice Department introduced it wasn’t likely to prosecute marijuana crimes legal under condition law. While the best objective of reform activists might be reclassification, this might indeed be federal government bodies waiving the whitened flag. Paul Armantano of NORML stated “It certainly seems to become potentially “the start of the finish” in relation to its prohibition.
The timing from the DOJ statement is curious because the agency was asked for an approaching forum on medicinal marijuana and repairing condition versus. federal law. Eric Holder was asked towards the conference and lots of were searching toward getting him obvious in the murky waters that represent the Whitened House’s stance on marijuana. Single questions about marijuana have demonstrated hard for Holder and the staff to reply to formerly. They have stated lack of knowledge towards the research while concurrently declining to confess marijuana was less destructive than heroin along with other opiates. Perhaps a congressional Q&A with follow-up questions wasn’t going to talk about well for that already battling Attorney General.
The general public has significantly transformed their position on marijuana, and they’ll not soon be returning towards the times of “Reefer Madness”. The new policy direction means a lot of things if federal government bodies maintain their word. Many companies and traders happen to be waiting for some indication that they’ll ‘t be jailed for joining the most popular growing industry. Patients might have more bit of mind when attempting to gain access to medication.
Senator Patrick Leahy Organizes Federal Conference on Marijuana Policy
Hashish
The cannabis plant is consumable in many forms. One of the most storied and controversial preparations of marijuana is hashish. Hashish is a compressed and purified form of the resin that grows in the trichomes of the cannabis plant. Historically, bud harvests were pressed between palms or other plant leaves until all excess plant matter, save the resin, was rubbed away. This left a much finer substance, varying in consistency from fine powder to a paste of oily substance. The final product has a much higher cannabinoid content than regular bud clippings. Today, there are numerous ways of preparing hash, from mechanical tumblers, to ice baths, chemical separation treatments, and even vacuum distillation. This can result in powdered hash, hard blocks, nuggets of goo (for lack of a better description), or even a resiny oil, often called “honey oil”. These preparations can range from 30-90% in THC content, as opposed to untreated buds (up 27% THC). Although, as marijuana research and development has progressed, growers are now using high CBD strains to produce hashish that offers medical benefits to a greater diversity of patients.
Though hashish has been found frequently in historic sites throughout the Near East, Middle East and Indian subcontinent, many historical sources tie the name “hashish” to the word assassin and the story of al-Hassan bin al-Sabbah, a warlord from the mountainous region south of the Caspian Sea. In a nutshell, Hassan used hashish preparations in training and maintaining the loyalty of his warriors, often sent out to kill (assassinate) his enemies. This story came to the West, compliments of Marco Polo’s travels in the late 13th Century. This is the most accepted tale, but many scholars refute this story’s accuracy. From the 13th through 18th centuries, the use and spread of hashish stayed mostly in the East. But in the late 1700’s it began to spread West as Napoleon’s conquests into Egypt exposed his troops to it. Despite his prohibition, use of hashish continued and expanded, finding its way to the New World.
By the start of the 20th century hashish production and trade was widespread, with centers in the Middle East, Chinese Turkestan, and on the Greek/Turkish borders. However, as time marched on, many laws prohibiting hashish production and trade were passed across the world. As quickly as it had risen to prominence, it was quickly blacklisted. Today it can be found, in many places but is still castigated in others. In Amsterdam (home of the Ice-olater production method), many kinds of hash can be found, or in India and Nepal as “charas.” In California, Colorado, and other compassionate use states, it can be found at dispensaries. And these cultivators are some of the pioneers pushing the strains in new directions to help benefit patients whose afflictions leave them with few treatments.
On the other end of the spectrum, Oklahoma recently passed a bill including sentencing for anywhere from two years to life for production, sales or distribution of hashish. House Bill 1798 names a mandatory 2-year minimum sentence, as a felony, for first time convictions. Subsequent offenders face sentences without leniency or parole to a lifetime sentence. This is a newly-minted law for a cannabis-based product, not heroin, crack or cocaine (although those laws are just as strict). By the way, Oklahoma and Colorado share approximately 100 miles of border. At the same time, Colorado is looking into DUI laws for cannabis. This may not be welcome news to most patients, but it is a key part of regulation and acceptance. Most people rail against sobriety check points (for alcohol), but they deter drunk driving and therefore save lives. Hopefully Colorado’s legislators will spend time to review the science behind the detection of cannabis in the body. It is not as simple as a test as for alcohol inebriation.
Jimmy Kimmell Pressures Obama on Marijuana Reform
The pressure on the Commander in Chief to consider a new approach toward marijuana reform seems to be increasing. Recently, both the president and vice president have faced criticism from Latin American countries who have grown weary of the Cartel, and United States failed war on drugs. Participants in online chats have tried to engage President Obama as well, although the topic was simply dismissed both times. Finally, last week in an interview with Rolling Stone Magazine, Barack Obama attempted to clarify (though many are still confused) his position on medical marijuana. Barney Frank D-Mass) also put the president in an uncomfortable situation by taking him to task about Obama’s 2009 statements on medical cannabis at a lavish political fundraiser.
As the American 24/7 news cycle further degenerates into a collection of stories that do not engage any real impact issues, Americans have already grown to expect comedians to ask the tough questions. Although political humor is not for everyone, John Stewart and Steven Colbert, would probably be more likely to ask tougher questions of our candidates. However in Colbert’s case, the questions are not straight forward as viewers must see past his faux right wing character to deduce what he is really saying.
Jimmy Kimmel now joins the list of comics asking the tough questions. At the White House Correspondent’s dinner, the late night comic served as the event’s host and was more than willing to grill the president on marijuana. Kimmel balanced the conversation with both humor and serious points. He said “What is with the marijuana crackdown? Seriously, what is the concern? We will deplete the nation’s Funyun supply? Pot smokers vote too. Sometimes a week after the election, but they vote.” Kimmel then turned to the celebrity filled crowd and posed a question to them. He asked them to raise their hands if they did not ever use marijuana. With few hands being raised Kimmel effectively made his point and said “Marijuana is something that real people care about.”
Wherever the president seems to goes he is going to face tough questions on medical marijuana. While being “tough on drugs” may be part of his re-election strategy, is it truly working if these types of questions dog the president? The discussion is not relegated to medical marijuana states or even America as a whole. As always this president has captivated the world, and fair or not, his actions are constantly scrutinized.
Some of the venom toward the president is not fair. It is important for us to avoid being single issue voters, if possible, and the president has some landmark accomplishments such as catching Osama Bin Laden and lifting the federal ban on stem cell research. However, struggling patients may not have the luxury of engaging in the typical political discussions. Patients need relief now and may not have the time to wait for a second term or for a re-election strategy to play itself out.
Outside of U.S. Comfort Zone President Obama Forced to Discuss Failed War on Drugs
Over the weekend President Obama attended the 6th Summit of the Americas in Columbia. Most of the media focus will be on the secret service prostitute scandal and Cuba’s exclusion from the event. However, medical marijuana patients were treated to at least a glimmer of hope from the weekend summit.
President Obama has sidestepped discussions on marijuana several times over the past several months. In two separate online votes, the White House has encouraged participants to submit topics they wanted the president to discuss. Marijuana reform dominated the votes, but was sidestepped by the White House. This comes at a time where patients are genuinely concerned about the administration’s handling of medical marijuana and feel that President Obama is not keeping his promise to uphold state law.
Unfortunately for the president, he was unable to maneuver out of a drug policy discussion at the Summit of the Americas. Momentum for marijuana legalization seems to be growing significantly. Many Latin American countries have voiced their opposition to the American War on Drugs recently. Vice President Joe Biden also was pressured on marijuana policy last month in his visit to Central America. As the violence has escalated out of control in the region, especially in Mexico, many former and current world leaders including former Mexico president Vicente Fox, have called for a change of course.
At the summit, President Obama maintained his current position that legalization is not the answer to combat drug cartel violence. Instead he feels we need smarter laws, better law enforcement structure and stronger economies. These general statements may not sit well with U.S. patients and residents of Latin America although President Obama did indicate that he was willing to hold a debate on the issue. He did acknowledge that the war on drugs has not been successful over the past 40 years.
While the United States Federal government seems reluctant to enact any changes to its approach on marijuana policy, other countries seem more than willing to do so. The United States now trails many other countries in education, crime rates, and stem cell research. Is America willing to take a backseat on yet another global issue?
Medicinal Marijuana Industry News Week of August 22, 2011
Cannabis Science, Corporation. (Ticker Symbol CBIS) estimations the purchase of medicinal marijuana in america will achieve $1.9 billion this year. Located in Colorado, Colorado, Cannabis Science is really a developer and output of medical cannabis items. * * * As the US media is frequently unwilling to set of the pricey fight against drugs, foreign reporters don’t have any such fear. Aljazeera British has a number of in-depth shows around the ongoing war and it is mounting costs. Highlight: Mexican government bodies estimate which more than 35,000 ordinary people happen to be wiped out within the 5 years because the attack on cartels started. And also the violence is distributing. * * * Hempcon returns to La. For that 2nd time this season, the convention center located the medicinal marijuana trade event. Popular features of the show incorporated workshops on: how you can open and operate a dispensary, cooking with cannabis, and Hollywood and marijuana. Although marijuana wasn’t offered at the show, patients might be examined with a professional for his or her certificate. For a lot of, the highlight from the show was meeting medicinal marijuana pioneer Richard W. Eastman.