Monthly Archives: April, 2012

All photos by Bob Starrett


By Bob Starrett
That’s not true; I admit it right off. Replacing the radiator in my car whupped my ass, or rather my right shoulder and neck. So when we did arrive at Civic Center Park, too late to get a place in the ampitheater and me brandishing a new camera, it wasn’t long before I realized that my goal of getting a bunch of great shots of the event was in jeopardy; I could barely lift my right arm to manipulate the camera. A crippled wannabe cameraman with an erroneous date stamp on his pictures.
I bought a new camera small enough to slip into my pocket in case we had to mix it up with the authorities. Of course that never happened and I really didn’t expect that it would, and I wouldn’t have been able to do much mixing even if it had. The Denver 420 event was a permitted two-day event and the cops were a small and quiet presence on the perimeter.
Because of our tardiness we were relegated to the Stoners section of the park. That’s how I characterized it. Activists and Stoners. As my companion put it, “Those aren’t political people, those aren’t activists. Those are just kids getting stoned. Babies.” And she was right. Wrapped in the protection of a crowd that knows it is largely safe from raid or citation, the folks that we ended up with looked like high schoolers.

All photos by Sharon Letts
Canna Comic Sherry Glaser on the main stage “Being Mother Earth.”

Photos and Story by Sharon Letts
Deep Green Fest II was held the day after 4/20 in the picturesque locale of the historic Craneway Pavilion, located just over the Richmond Bridge from San Francisco.
Joining up purposefully with Earth Day celebrations, Deep Green’s intent is to educate and enlighten on all things green – including Hemp, Cannabis, and holistic healing, with a healthy dose of politics thrown in for good measure.
Four stages featured music, lectures, and panels on everything from beekeeping to Cannabis, Hemp and legalization of both, Canna economics, responsible business models, and protecting children in the crossfire.
The star of the event was Stephen DeAngelo of Oakland’s Harborside Health Center, with his brother Andrew close by. Both were featured in the Discovery Channel’s Weed Wars, and promises of a second season of the hotly debated super miniseries were tweeted earlier in the week by Stephen, but quelled by event day with a promise of finding a new network.

Green Wellness

Worth Repeating
By Ron Marczyk, R.N.
Health Education Teacher (Retired)

Medical marijuana treats so many human illnesses so well due to its stimulation of the endocannabinoid system (ECS).
Why is this so? 
Because the present day medical therapeutic application is based on the evolution of the endocannabinoid system and the psychology of our species.
Together, there is nothing more natural than medical marijuana and how it works in the human body. Let me explain.

Leonard Ortiz/The Orange County Register
Kandice Hawes, 30, director of Orange County NORML, protests outside the Costa Mesa City Council in February after they called in the feds to raid medical marijuana dispensaries. Now, Garden Grove’s police chief has done the same thing.

Police officials in Garden Grove, California — apparently unwilling to uphold state law, which allows medical marijuana dispensaries — have invited federal authorities who raided collectives in Costa Mesa earlier this year to do the same in their town.

The Garden Grove Police Department has already been in touch with federal agents, and “they will be coming to Garden Grove in the future,” promised Police Chief Kevin Raney at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting, reports Roxana Kopetman at The Orange County Register.
Chief Raney would not give details of the city’s request, but said his department is seeking the help of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in “enforcing federal law.” The Chief seems unaware that he is charged with enforcing state law; maybe he always wanted to be a “federal agent,” or something.

In yet another powerful affirmation that support for medical marijuana transcends partisan boundaries, the Republican-dominated New Hampshire House voted 236-96 on Wednesday to pass SB 409.
 
Matt Simon, a legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project, praised the House for ignoring Gov. Lynch’s veto threat, which was renewed the day before the vote, and passing the bill with a veto-proof supermajority
 “Gov. Lynch has repeatedly shown he is way out of touch on this issue, and since he has been unwilling to support a responsible medical marijuana law for New Hampshire’s most seriously ill patients, the House and Senate will simply have to get this done without the governor’s support,” he said.
 
The bill’s prime sponsor, Sen.Jim Forsythe (R-Strafford), agreed. “The promise to veto medical marijuana by Gov. Lynch shows a disappointing lack of compassion for patients battling illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, cancer, and AIDS,” Forsythe said.
 

Injustice In Seattle
White House Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske claims that hemp products contain THC.

Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske has a response(ish) to a petition sent to the White House supporting the legalization of hemp. In his “response,” Gil reveals either a stunning ignorance about hemp, or a shocking propensity to tell a whopper.
By Gil Kerlikowske, Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy
America’s farmers deserve our Nation’s help and support to ensure rural America’s prosperity and vitality. Federal law prohibits human consumption, distribution, and possession of Schedule I controlled substances. Hemp and marijuana are part of the same species of cannabis plant. While most of the THC in cannabis plants is concentrated in the marijuana, all parts of the plant, including hemp, can contain THC, a Schedule I controlled substance. The Administration will continue looking for innovative ways to support farmers across the country while balancing the need to protect public health and safety.
The amounts of THC found in industrial hemp — even in the flowers — are so minute as to be meaningless, since the trichomes contain a preponderance of CBD instead. But the amounts of THC found in hemp fiber are so low as to be undetectable — that’s why hemp fiber products are legal in the United States.



Jinx is a 22-year-old hip hop artist from Ayer, Massachusetts, embarking on two upcoming mix tapes following his self-released debut, Futurama, and tours with Nappy Roots and Wiz Khalifa in 2010.

This is the official music video for Jinx’s single “Ganja” from the Funeral Kings soundtrack, with multi-platinum producers The Lion’s Share at the helm. The Lion’s Share have most recently worked with Pharoahe Monch and Anthony Hamilton, according to Zivi at Foster Care Music, a New York City record label created by the producers.

American History Blog

By Anthony Martinelli
Sensible Washington
There are many who agree that cannabis prohibition is a failure; there are fewer who agree what to do about it.
Whether through a harshly regulated and heavily taxed system, or whether through one that more closely aligns cannabis with, say, tea leaf, there are many thoughts on how we should legalize cannabis. This is a conversation more than worth having.
When having this conversation, one thing must always be taken into consideration: cannabis doesn’t belong on a state or federal list of controlled substances, and work should be made to remove it from such — regardless of the accompanying regulation or taxation system.
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