It seems that Oakland Mayor-elect Jean Quan and her virtual campaign running mate, at-large Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan, didn't want to stand in front of the authorities on this one. By a 7-1 vote, the Oakland City Council last week suspended its legal marijuana farm ordinance because it's not as legal as it was billed to be. The council, on the advice of legal counsel and a letter of caution from the Alameda County district attorney's office, temporarily withdrew a plan to allow large indoor pot farms in the city. [continues 558 words]
Dear Editor: Video recently leaked onto the Internet of Miley Cyrus smoking salvia, a herb that can produce hallucinogenic effects when smoked or ingested. Since then, there have been reports of increases in salvia sales at some California smoke shops. As parents, we need to examine how incidents like this affect our kids. It begs the question: What type of influence do celebrities have on kids and teens with regard to important issues such as substance use and abuse? This is the perfect example of a teachable moment - a way for parents to get educated and initiate a conversation with their kids and teens about drug and alcohol use. [continues 61 words]
Maine Dispensary May Be 1st in East AUBURN, Maine - In the cavernous confines of a long-vacant store in a standard-issue shopping plaza, an earnest couple are cultivating plans for what could be the first dispensary for medical marijuana east of the Mississippi River. Called the Remedy Compassion Center and expected to open this spring, the dispensary is one of eight that state health officials will allow in Maine after Jan. 1. In its 10,000 square feet, set next to a craft store, the center will grow, harvest, and sell marijuana. [continues 807 words]
One thing that lifts Jodie Emery's spirits this Christmas is the outpouring of support her jailed husband has received from marijuana advocates around the world. Marc Emery is 10 months into his five-year sentence for selling marijuana seeds by mail order to customers in the U.S. He was transferred to a prison in Georgia last month. "Marc is always very positive and upbeat," his wife Jodie told The Province. "He says he does cry every day thinking of me, he just misses me so much. But when he's not thinking of me and how much he wants to be home, he's keeping really busy. [continues 215 words]
State representatives file bills to ban sales of the risky get-high product. Identical bills filed by two Jacksonville-area lawmakers would make the sale of synthetic marijuana illegal in Florida. The product is marketed as incense, and many packets are labeled as not for human consumption, but its growing popularity as a way to get high has caught the attention of lawmakers across the country. It's banned in more than a dozen states. "A friend of mine told me her daughter got into it," said state Sen. Stephen Wise, R-Jacksonville. "She said it felt like her heart was going to jump out of her chest." [continues 351 words]
THE LEGISLATURE recently invoked a rarely used constitutional power to require the Christie administration to go back to the drawing board to rewrite the rules governing the state's medical marijuana law. We are now on the verge of an unprecedented move to overturn the regulations, with agreement by both houses that the governor has overstepped his constitutional bounds. As sponsor of the law, it was an extraordinarily difficult decision to move forward with this, as I knew it would further delay a program that has already been held up for far too long. But it was critical to ensuring that people with debilitating conditions and patients dying of cancer, HIV and AIDS receive proper care. [continues 705 words]
As a retired police detective, I heartily agree with the proponents cited in community columnist John Ridley's Dec. 21 column that we should legalize, regulate and tax marijuana. My street experience showed that marijuana, though certainly no play toy of a drug, is much, much safer than alcohol for both the user and those around him. My profession - the thin blue line - is getting much thinner all across Wisconsin. Do you want us to keep wasting time on a green plant? We are missing child predators even now. Howard Wooldridge Merrimac [end]
