NEW YORK (AP) - Marijuana use is becoming more accepted among U.S. adults as states loosen pot laws, new national survey data shows. More are using marijuana, using it more often and far fewer think it's risky, the government survey found. That's understandable, experts say, as dozens of states now allow medical marijuana and four states have recently legalized pot for recreational use. More than a half million U.S. adults participated in the survey over a dozen years, and the responses show a shift in attitude. Only a third of adults in 2014 said they thought weekly marijuana use was dangerous, down from half of adults in 2002. [continues 407 words]
A few weeks ago, Derek Peterson got a letter from Mutual of Omaha, turning him down for life insurance. "Our decision was based on," the letter said, then trailed off (Monty Python-style) and picked up in all caps: WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THE PROCESSING OF YOUR APPLICATION FOR INSURANCE DUE TO COMPANY POLICY. WE CANNOT ACCEPT PREMIUM FROM INDIVIDUALS OR ENTITIES WHO ARE ASSOCIATED WITH THE MARIJUANA INDUSTRY. Peterson is indeed associated with the marijuana industry. He is the chief executive officer of Terra Tech, a publicly traded pot company based in Irvine, California. [continues 254 words]
Patients fill significantly fewer prescriptions for conditions like nausea and pain in states where medical marijuana is available, researchers reported Wednesday in one of the first studies to examine how medical cannabis might be affecting approved treatments. Prescriptions for all drugs that treat pain combined, from cortisone to OxyContin, were nearly 6 percent lower in states with medical marijuana programs. Anxiety medication was 5 percent lower. The result was a drop of more than $165 million in health care spending in states that had medical marijuana programs running in 2013, according to the analysis of national Medicare data. The savings would equal 0.5 percent of the entire Medicare program's drug budget if medicinal cannabis was available in every state, the authors projected. [continues 421 words]
SEATTLE (AP) - With a deadline looming for the merging of Washington's recreational and medical marijuana markets, cities around the state are warning unlicensed pot dispensaries to close up shop. July 1 marks the date when, after nearly two decades of confusion about the status of medical marijuana, the industry becomes regulated for the first time. Hundreds of pot shop workers are being certified as medical marijuana consultants, the Department of Health is preparing a voluntary registry of patients, and the Liquor and Cannabis Board has been granting endorsements enabling recreational marijuana stores to sell for medical use. [continues 612 words]
PORTLAND, Oregon (AP) - After months of public hearings with pot growers, lawmen, public health officials and others, an Oregon commission is racing to finalize recreational marijuana regulations and issue licenses to hundreds of businesses within a few months. But those who aim to produce souped-up coffee and other niche products might have to wait a bit longer. "It's like the circus around here," Oregon Liquor Control Commission Chair Rob Patridge said after a hearing in which a pot advocate and a panel member argued about whether marijuana is safer than alcohol, and an entrepreneur discussed selling marijuana-infused java, eliciting blank looks from commissioners. [continues 822 words]
MEDFORD, Ore. - Only a handful of medical marijuana growers have applied for Jackson County permits to keep growing on rural residential land - even though growers without permits face fines of up to $10,000 and orders to remove their plants. Most are flying under the radar, hoping to avoid detection rather than pay the $1,563 permit application fee, the Mail Tribune reported. Jackson County has received only seven applications from growers hoping to be grandfathered in by qualifying for a pre-existing, non-conforming use permit. [continues 511 words]
After Legalization, the Law Now Requires That Any Sample Used As Evidence in an Adult Case Be Tested for THC Levels. EVERETT - Sure, marijuana is legal now, for the most part. However, enough criminal cases still involve the drug that the Washington State Patrol has increased the number of scientists with special training needed to analyze its chemical compounds, from one to seven. None of them work at the lab in Snohomish County. Before legalization, any Snohomish County police department could do a quick field test to scientifically confirm that seized plant materials were, in fact, marijuana. That step is required for prosecution. That so-called "leaf test" was standard since the 1970s, said George Johnston, a manager for the state crime laboratory. [continues 401 words]
SPOKANE (AP) - The amount of money spent on legal marijuana sales in Spokane County last year was larger than the retail sales of wine, bread or milk. That's according to sales numbers from the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board and a survey of household expenses conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Monthly sales of pot topped $5 million in Spokane County for the first time in March, which is on track to top receipts at area bookstores, museums and live music venues, according to figures released by the Washington Department of Revenue. [continues 291 words]
Regarding the guest commentary, "Treatment, not punishment, will limit opioid problems": States that end cannabis (marijuana) prohibition are in a better position to help lower opioid addiction and death rates compared to states that perpetuate cannabis prohibition. Citizens may use opiates for chronic pain, which may lead to various addiction scenarios. Cannabis has shown to treat chronic pain, and in states where cannabis has been completely re-legalized, citizens may purchase the plant over the counter without a doctor's permission slip. It's a potential win-win situation that should be promoted. Truthfully, Stan White Dillon, Colorado [end]
President Obama did something remarkable this week. For the first time, a president talked about drug addiction in America without talking about prosecution, mandatory minimums or a war on drugs. For the first time, a president talked about a new approach to addiction - an approach rooted in being smart on treatment instead of just tough on crime. His plan would invest $1.1 billion to provide treatment and fight the national opioid epidemic, which he said is affecting everybody. [continues 717 words]
Oregon officials said they've collected about $3.5 million in taxes from recreational marijuana sales in January. The 25 percent-tax on recreational pot sales began at the start of 2016 and the state began collecting the taxes from dispensaries last month. Data released Thursday show the $3.5 million collected came from 253 individual payments. That's fewer than the 309 medical dispensaries statewide that have elected to sell recreational pot. Some could be late with their payments. An Oregon Department of Revenue spokeswoman said they'll have a better idea of the situation after the dispensaries file their tax returns at the end of the quarter. From Herald news services [end]
EVERETT - The Everett City Council has said "no more" to would-be marijuana retailers. On Wednesday the council imposed a cap on the number of shops operating in the city, limiting the number to the five shops already open. The cap will last a minimum of two years. The 4-2 vote came after weeks of debate that was thought to have been put to rest after the city adopted its "permanent" ordinance last July. What changed since then was the state Liquor and Cannabis Board's decision to double the number of retail shops allowed in each municipality, an attempt to compensate for the fact that most medical marijuana dispensaries across the state are being shut down mid-year. [continues 596 words]
MONROE - Pot smokers won't get to prove they're no couch potatoes, at least not for now. A 5K run aimed at having those involved in marijuana businesses, users and people who don't partake, huffing along together Saturday has been called off. The Farewell to Prohibition 5K at the Evergreen Speedway was to include live music and information booths about the pot industry as part of the after-race festivities. Former beauty-pageant queen Crystal Newton, of Monroe, said she spent thousands of dollars and many hours putting together the festival. But her efforts went up in smoke Wednesday. [continues 432 words]
Legal marijuana may be doing at least one thing that a decades-long drug war couldn't: taking a bite out of Mexican drug cartels' profits. The latest data from the Border Patrol shows that last year marijuana seizures along the southwest border tumbled to their lowest level in at least a decade. Agents snagged roughly 1.5 million pounds of marijuana at the border, down from a peak of nearly 4 million pounds in 2009. As domestic marijuana production has ramped up in places such as California, Colorado and Washington, marijuana prices have fallen, especially at the bulk level. [end]
PORTLAND, Ore. - The owner of the World Famous Cannabis Cafe announced she will close her doors next week after another warning by public health officials that the establishment violates indoor air rules. The cafe will host its final Stoner Bingo session Sunday, said Madeline Martinez, a longtime marijuana legalization advocate and owner of the business, which offers people 21 and older a place to socialize and use cannabis. She doesn't want to face fines for violating the law, she said. [continues 443 words]
The Jan. 22 letter, "Bill creates new pot black market," takes issue with Senate bill 6207, which exempts from public disclosure some information contained within marijuana licensing records. As chief of enforcement for the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, I would like to clarify that the intent of the legislation would protect only a small amount of information from being released publicly. The bill specifically targets information such as the licensee's personal financial and retirement statements, shipment information for licensed deliveries, including vehicle identification, and building security information. Releasing this information to the public could potentially increase the risk for theft, fraud and the illegal diversion of marijuana. [continues 143 words]
EVERETT - The Everett City Council has reopened debate on its marijuana ordinance and is sending it back to the city's planning commission for a second look. After Initiative 502 legalized recreational pot businesses in Washington in late 2012, Everett passed a series of six month emergency ordinances to govern where retail shops were located while the city's staff and city council could study and debate the issue. The city adopted its permanent ordinance in July 2015, but given the latest actions, "permanent" turned out to mean seven months. [continues 371 words]
The U.S. Smart Act Would Protect Marijuana Users and Businesses in States Where It Has Been Legalized. In 2012, voters in Washington state passed Initiative 502, which legalized the sale, consumption and taxation of marijuana products. Including Washington, 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized some form of marijuana, and in 2016, several more states are expected to consider marijuana legalization ballot initiatives. Yet, marijuana possession or use for any purpose is still prohibited under the federal Controlled Substances Act, leaving participants in all of the state markets - including cancer patients - at risk of arrest by federal authorities. [continues 490 words]
EVERETT - For the first time since the legal marijuana shops opened a year ago, the city of Everett is moving toward a permanent ordinance regulating how and where the new businesses will operate. Everett has been operating under six-month temporary ordinances since November 2013. Since then, three retail stores have opened in the city, but no marijuana production or processing businesses have opened. Businesses and residents have been waiting and lobbying the city to adopt a permanent measure. The current ordinance expires July 27. [continues 209 words]
More Than 150 Inmates Have Died of Overdoses Since 2006 VACAVILLE, Calif. (AP) - California inmates are dying of drug overdoses at nearly triple the national rate and it's unclear whether the tough steps state officials took this year to stop illicit drugs from getting into prisons are having any effect, though they are prompting criticism from civil rights advocates. The Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is spending $8 million this year on drug-detecting scanners and a new breed of drug-sniffing dogs while also employing strip searches on visitors suspected of carrying drugs. [continues 658 words]
In 2014, Congress quietly ended the federal government's prohibition on medical cannabis with a provision buried in the 1,603-page federal spending bill, The Los Angeles Times reported at the time. The rule says that states where medical cannabis is legal would no longer need to worry about federal drug agents raiding retail operations and prohibits agents from doing so. The change was prompted by bipartisan supporters. The change, however, does nothing to protect patients who use medical cannabis because the scientifically flawed and old federal law, favored by the Drug Enforcement Agency, still considers all cannabis a dangerous, addictive drug, with no medical use. [continues 510 words]
Regarding the letter, "Keep pot shops away from churches," where author invites his readers, "what say you." Well, here's what I say: I don't have a problem with the city of Everett Planning Commission allowing legal "pot shops" next to churches. Also, believe me, I-502 is not flawed. It has been scrutinized by lawyers inside and out. What is now the legal standard is what the voters voted in favor of. By the way, although I am not the most religious person in the world, but last I checked, the Bible said we are all God's children ... that would include those who legally own and run "pot shops." You could, for instance, invite them to church. You just never know. Kathryn Peterson Mountlake Terrace [end]
In January, the SEC for the first time allowed a company that deals with marijuana cultivation to sell shares of stock. The convention floor at Denver Airport's Crowne Plaza on a recent afternoon could have been the trade show for any well-established industry - gray-haired execs in conservative suits mingling with office park dads in polos and fresh-out-of-college types in brand emblazoned T-shirts. Only this is a new kind of business conference with a special Colorado theme: legal weed. [continues 580 words]
Marijuana Businesses Already Operating and Those in the Permitting Process Before the Vote Are Mostly Unaffected. EVERETT - The Snohomish County Council on Wednesday voted 4-1 to ban new pot businesses in certain rural areas. The decision comes after nine months of public testimony from green-clad marijuana business supporters and neighbors opposed to their operations moving in nearby. The council essentially made permanent a moratorium that was first enacted last fall in response to resident concerns. The ban applies to new recreational marijuana businesses in so-called R-5 zones, rural areas where the county typically allows only one house per five acres. [continues 580 words]
Howard Wooldridge, a Washington lobbyist, is a former detective and forever Texan on an important mission: trying to persuade the 535 members of Congress to end the federal war on marijuana. Liberals tend to be an easier sell than conservatives. With liberals, Wooldridge dwells on the grossly racist way the war on drugs has been prosecuted. "The war on drugs," he tells them, "has been the most immoral policy since slavery and Jim Crow." Conservatives hear a different argument, but one that Wooldridge holds every bit as dear: "Give it back to the states." [continues 514 words]
In three key swing states, marijuana legalization is more popular than any potential 2016 presidential contender. That's according to a Quinnipiac University poll conducted in March. More than 80 percent of adults in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida support medical marijuana, according to the survey. Fifty-one percent of Pennsylvanians, 52 percent of Ohioans and 55 percent of Floridians also support legalizing small amounts of marijuana for personal use. From Herald news services [end]
The top law enforcement officials in Washington and Colorado are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject a lawsuit from states that seek to strike down Colorado laws that legalize recreational marijuana use. Oklahoma and Nebraska filed their suit directly with the Supreme Court, arguing that Colorado's move to legalize marijuana conflicts with federal drug regulations. The Oklahoma and Nebraska attorneys general contend that easy access to marijuana has led to a surge in trafficking, with residents crossing into Colorado to purchase pot legally and sell it - illicitly - at home in Nebraska or Oklahoma. Kansas has also considered joining the suit. [continues 234 words]
High-End Imports, Home Cultivation Increasing MEXICO CITY (AP) - Once upon a time, Mexican marijuana was the gold standard for U.S. pot smokers. But in the new world of legal markets and gourmet weed, aficionados here are looking to the United States and Europe for the good stuff. Instead of Acapulco Gold, Mexican smokers want strains like Liberty Haze and Moby Dick - either importing high-potency boutique pot from the United States, or growing it here in secret gardens that use techniques perfected abroad. [continues 757 words]
SEATTLE (AP) - Washington high school students who participated in a statewide survey say marijuana is easy to get and they do not perceive any risk from smoking pot once or twice. While high school smoking of tobacco continues to go down, marijuana use has remained stable since the last healthy youth survey was conducted two years ago, state health officials said Thursday. More than 200,000 students in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 in Washington public schools took the voluntary and anonymous survey in October. They answered questions about their health and behaviors. [continues 248 words]
When it comes to marijuana, the majority of young Republicans are far closer to the Democratic view than they are to older members of their own party. Pew poll data shows 63 percent of Millennial Republicans - those born between 1981 and 1996 - support legalized marijuana. That's a higher percentage than Generation X and Silent Generation Democrats. Boomer Democrats still have young Republicans beat, and the gap of support between Boomer Democrats and Republicans is the largest of any age group at 28 points. Overall, Republicans are not supportive of legalization. As of October, only 31 percent of all Republicans supported it. [continues 212 words]
WASHINGTON - The city that brought America government shutdowns and all-night filibusters is set to make pot legal Thursday. But by the time the chaos over implementing the law is settled, most everyone in the District of Columbia might wish they were smoking some. Residents voted overwhelmingly in November to allow growing and possessing small amounts of marijuana. But Congress, using its oversight authority over the nation's capital, inserted a provision into a massive December spending deal that prevented the local government from enacting the law. [continues 377 words]
One Grower Says Regulations, Taxes and a Volatile Market Are Making the New Marijuana "Green Economy" Just a Pipe Dream So Far. ARLINGTON - The farm near here looks much like its rural neighbors on Highway 9. But this one is under 24-hour surveillance. Signs outside a house and two buildings warn that guns and children are not allowed. As one approaches the locked doors of the operation, there is a faint smell of marijuana. Inside, about a dozen workers grow and harvest plants, package dry leaves and buds and prepare it for sale on the state's newly legal recreational marijuana market. The agricultural part of the operation is backed by a sophisticated business that is navigating a labyrinth of regulations, changing rules and nervous neighbors. [continues 1451 words]
WASHINGTON - A new study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finds that drivers who use marijuana are at a significantly lower risk for a crash than drivers who use alcohol. And after adjusting for age, gender, race and alcohol use, drivers who tested positive for marijuana were no more likely to crash than who had not used any drugs or alcohol prior to driving. For marijuana, and for a number of other legal and illegal drugs including antidepressants, painkillers, stimulants and the like, there is no statistically significant change in the risk of a crash associated with using that drug prior to driving. But overall alcohol use, measured at a blood alcohol concentration threshold of 0.05 or above, increases your odds of a wreck nearly seven-fold. [continues 424 words]
We should support comments by Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson agreeing with recent court decisions that cities, towns and some areas of counties have the right to ban the sale and some processing of recreational marijuana. We now are seeing some of the negative effects of recreational marijuana in our communities. Since the passage of I-502 there is evidence of brain damage to our young, damage to their immune systems, damage to their reaction and judgmental decisions that effect their daily life, more involvement by police in marijuana incidents, particularly in fatal and injury traffic accidents and explosions from manufacturing hash oil that have killed people and caused property damage. [continues 146 words]
Despite a year to research and ponder how to make legal cannabis - medical, recreational and industrial (hemp) - workable in this state, the Legislature is already in the middle of another mess. Some separate 18 cannabis-related bills were introduced in the House early on. Legislators decided that in order to get a better handle on them, they should all be rolled into one big bill, never mind the contradictions, duplications, etc., contained therein. Reconciling the laws, the proposed bills, and orchestrating a new industry into a viable enterprise is definitely a complicated undertaking, and definitely should not be left to the Liquor Control Board to randomly decide. So much more must go into the decision-making besides visions of pots o' gold tax receipts. With the systems set up correctly, the taxes will come. But the needs of patients and customers must come first, like any business. [continues 513 words]
LAKE STEVENS - Reed Evans and his family members make frequent trips to the Washington State Liquor Control Board office in Olympia. That's because they, like others who have recreational marijuana businesses, owe a monthly excise tax of 25 percent on all marijuana sales. Evans and his family in October opened Cannablyss, the only retail marijuana shop in Lake Stevens. "We drive on down with our 25 percent," Evans said. "We're smart about it. It was really confusing in the beginning but we have an awesome accountant and he just helps us along." [continues 477 words]
SEATTLE (AP) - Marijuana-related calls to poison control centers in Washington and Colorado have spiked since the states began allowing legal sales last year, with an especially troubling increase in calls concerning young children. But it's not clear how much of the increase might be related to more people using marijuana, as opposed to people feeling more comfortable to report their problems now that the drug is legal for adults over 21. New year-end data being presented to Colorado's Legislature next week show that the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center received 151 calls for marijuana exposure last year, the first year of retail recreational pot sales. That was up from 88 calls in 2013 and 61 in 2012, the year voters legalized pot. [continues 666 words]
High Taxes and Not Enough Stores Is Creating an "Economic Nightmare" for Farmers. SEATTLE (AP) - Washington's legal marijuana market opened last summer to a dearth of weed. Some stores periodically closed because they didn't have pot to sell. Prices were through the roof. Six months later, the equation has flipped, bringing serious growing pains to the new industry. A big harvest of sun-grown marijuana from Eastern Washington last fall flooded the market. Prices are starting to come down in the state's licensed pot shops, but due to the glut, growers are - surprisingly - struggling to sell their marijuana. Some are already worried about going belly-up, finding it tougher than expected to make a living in legal weed. [continues 672 words]
Proposed Bills Deal With Recreational/Medicinal Issues, Taxation, Driving, Edibles Vs. Smokables and More. OLYMPIA - A little more than two years after voters legalized the sale of regulated marijuana, lawmakers will wade through a thicket of cannabis-related measures, including merging the recreational and medical industries. "Right now I call it the wild, wild west," Senate Minority Leader Sharon Nelson, D-Maury Island, said during Thursday's annual Associated Press legislative preview. "We've got incongruities in this law that we need to solve." [continues 520 words]
The Legalization of Recreational Marijuana Has Brought Unexpected Problems: Competition, High Taxes and Black Market Sales. SEATTLE (AP) - A year into the nation's experiment with legal, taxed marijuana sales, Washington and Colorado find themselves wrestling not with the federal interference many feared, but with competition from medical marijuana or even outright black market sales. In Washington, the black market has exploded since voters legalized marijuana in 2012, with scores of legally dubious medical dispensaries opening and some pot delivery services brazenly advertising that they sell outside the legal system. [continues 560 words]
DENVER (AP) - Don't worry about a federal lawsuit. But do worry about tax rates. Those are among the many lessons Colorado and Washington have to share from the front lines of America's marijuana experiment. Lesson one: Don't be timid Public officials in the pioneering marijuana states were flat-footed when voters made pot legal. At first waiting for a possible federal lawsuit, then trying to figure out how to monitor and tax a product that had never been fully regulated anywhere in the world, the states spent many months coming up with rules for how the drug should be grown, sold and consumed. [continues 447 words]
Government agencies and legislative bodies, which usually move at a slug-like pace, can act quickly, especially if no one is particularly seeking the change. The Department of Justice announced last week that Indian tribes can grow and sell marijuana on their lands as long as they follow the same federal conditions laid out for states that have legalized the drug, the Associated Press reported. Never mind that many tribes oppose legalization and only a few have expressed interest in the marijuana industry. But the choice is there, just in case. (Which is a good thing.) [continues 380 words]
The Planning Commission Will Hold a Hearing Today As It Seeks Recommendations for the County Council on Marijuana Businesses in Unincorporated Areas. EVERETT - Marijuana-enterprise owners are expected to plead for their businesses at a public hearing before the Snohomish County Planning Commission on Tuesday. Neighbors who oppose pot operations also plan to weigh in before the commission makes a recommendation to the County Council. The council asked for recommendations as it considers amending the rules for marijuana businesses in the spring. In October, the council imposed a temporary moratorium on new pot operations in some of the county's rural areas after some neighbors voiced opposition. [continues 803 words]
Ambiguous Federal and State Laws Are Making New Marijuana Retailers' Work Inefficient and Inconvenient. LAKE STEVENS - Reed Evans called several banks looking to open an account for Cannablyss, his family's recreational marijuana business and the only pot retail store in Lake Stevens. He had no luck. He got his name on a waiting list at a credit union in Seattle, but most financial institutions are shying away from doing business with the still-young industry. "We pay most bills in cash, we literally drive to the PUD and give them a couple of hundred dollars and we drive to our landlord to pay the rent," Evans said. [continues 838 words]
On Oct. 21, Rich Anderson publicly announced that the legalization of marijuana is to blame for many of the problems our city is facing. Considering that under his tenure, the city has banned all access points for medical marijuana patients, and that he continues to uphold restrictive policies to keep out large legal I-502 grow operations, which bring much needed jobs and tax revenue to our city, the real problem we face is Anderson's conservative reefer-mad morality. By restricting legal access to marijuana in our city, not only does he blatantly ignore almost 60 percent of the voters' wishes, his policies are undermining the legalization effort, which in turn, allows the black market to thrive. Politics require the illusion of choice and the Reganomically trained accountant turned councilman naively believes he can eradicate marijuana in our community "by just saying no." The only real choice Mr. Anderson has is to allow marijuana here legally or illegally. Mr. Anderson has made his choice. Now it's time we make ours: Vote Nov. 4 to remove delusional politicians who represent the misguided moral minority so we can finally put an end to the failed prohibition on pot. Jamie Curtismith Everett [end]
When Colorado voters in 2012 approved a ballot measure legalizing marijuana, the state did not merely break new ground in the ongoing battle over narcotics policy. It also bolstered an innovative new political message that compares cannabis to alcohol. Two years later, that comparison is being deployed in key marijuana related elections throughout the country, and drug reform advocates are so sure marijuana is safer than alcohol, they are now challenging police to a "drug duel" to prove their point. The proposal for the duel from David Boyer, an official with the Maine chapter of the Marijuana Policy Project, came after South Portland Police Chief Edward Googins announced his opposition to a municipal referendum to legalize marijuana possession. [continues 522 words]
EVERETT - Marijuana businesses seeking to open in Everett will continue to operate under an interim ordinance that must be renewed every six months. The city council Wednesday unanimously approved the extension despite pleas from marijuana advocates and businesses to either drop or loosen the restrictions. By doing so, the city of Everett bought time in which it can debate the issue, or wait for the Legislature to pass a law on revenue sharing. Among other restrictions, the city's ordinance is tougher than the state guidelines in that it limits producers to a maximum of 2,000 square feet of canopy and prohibits retail businesses from operating within 2,500 feet of each other. [continues 153 words]
Glass Bong Maker Doesn't Have to Disguise the Purpose of His Functional Art Anymore For Jared Betty, the glass pipe has gone from being half empty to half full. Recreational pot in Washington has been a boon for the glass artist specializing in pipes. "The terminology before the legalization was you couldn't say 'bong,'" said Betty, 38, owner of J-Red Glass. "All my pipes had to be labeled 'For Tobacco Use Only.' And I could only sell under the tobacco use only category or I faced criminal charges for selling marijuana paraphernalia. Now I can say it because that is what it's for anyway." [continues 725 words]
PORTLAND, Ore. - Rick Steves smokes the occasional joint, but he's not arguing for marijuana legalization in Oregon just because he likes to get high. Steves, a nationally known guidebook author and host on public radio and television, said Tuesday he's convinced that marijuana prohibition in the U.S. operates solely to harm the poor and people of color, and to profit off their punishment. "It's not guys like me, rich white guys, who need it," Steves said Tuesday at a downtown Portland hotel. "It's the people who are arrested and cited, who are poor." [continues 417 words]
If you wanted to nudge the courts to establish a right to use medical marijuana in states where it is legal, you couldn't pick a more sympathetic plaintiff than Brandon Coats of Colorado. As a teenager, Coats was in an automobile accident that left him severely disabled. Now 34, Coats is a quadriplegic who has had a state medical marijuana card since 2009. He worked as a customer service representative for Dish Network from 2007 to 2010, when Dish fired him after he tested positive for marijuana use during a random drug test. [continues 416 words]
