Search Results: california norml (177)

Graphic: NORML

​Careful who you trust to interpret poll results. You may have seen the poll that was trumpeted just in time for 4/20, supposedly showing that “55 percent of Americans oppose legalizing marijuana.”

The headlines about the April 20 Associated Press/CNBC poll (PDF) on marijuana legalization read “Most In U.S. Against Legalizing Pot,” but Huffington Post reporter Ryan Grim dug down into the results and found that one of the poll’s questions actually appears to show majority support for legalizing and regulating marijuana like alcohol.
“[W]hen pot is compared to alcohol, support for reforming the laws surges,” Grim writes. “Forty-four percent of respondents said that ‘the regulations on marijuana [should]be the same as those for alcohol.’ Another 12 percent said they should be ‘less strict,’ meaning that a full 56 percent support the policy change — perhaps the highest number ever recorded in favor of legalization. (Alcohol is, after all, legal.)”
Kind of odd, wouldn’t you say? The results of a nationwide poll show that a substantial majority — 56 percent of Americans — support either the same restrictions or looser restrictions on marijuana than on alcohol, which is already legal. But somehow, that gets reported in the national press as “Most In U.S. Against Legalizing Pot”?

Photo: Joe Amon/The Denver Post
Thousands gathered in the park across from the Colorado State Capitol in Denver to support the legalization of marijuana, April 20, 2010.

​Colorado state lawmakers at the Capitol on Tuesday toughened regulations for the booming medical marijuana industry as clouds of smoke wafted from a pro-pot really across the street.

The House ultimately passed a bill to create rules for marijuana dispensaries, focusing largely on licensing requirements, tax policy and signage rules, reports John Ingold at The Denver Post.


Graphic: Radioactive24two/Deviant Art

​As a veteran of stoner culture who can remember the years before mass media latched onto the 420 phenomenon in general, and specifically the celebration of April 20 (4/20) as America’s fastest-growing holiday and high celebration of all things cannabis, I have to admit I find the entire scenario a little strange.

On the one hand, I’m thrilled that marijuana gets a holiday of its own, and even more so that it then gets the coverage, as an issue, that it really deserves all 365 days a year. The consumption of cannabis in public places by large crowds of people carries some powerful symbolism and is a meaningful show of solidarity.
​At the same time, I’m well aware that those who are inclined to dismiss the seriousness and validity of the marijuana movement are simply going to use April 20 to do exactly that — and then ignore it again for 364 more days.

Graphic: Chelsea Green Publishing

​It runs against the most basic business acumen to give your product away for free, but next week that is just what Chelsea Green Publishing is going to do.

On April 20, free downloads of Marijuana Is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People To Drink? are available all day on Scribd.com. Users will be able to download, print and share.
Paperback copies of the book will be available on the Chelsea Green website for a discounted price of $10.
April 20 is significant because over the years “420” has become a counterculture holiday, where the primary mode of celebration is smoking marijuana publicly.
Chelsea Green Publishing said the move is intended to raise awareness of marijuana’s relative safety when compared to alcohol in the face of California’s impending referendum for legalization in November.
In one of those oh-so-delicious twists of irony, April is also, coincidentally, National Alcohol Awareness month.
“This promotion is all about getting the message out there,” said Kate Rados, Chelsea Green’s director of digital initiatives. “Via our partners and web communities, we’ll be offering the free download to more than 200,000 people.”

Graphic: NORML

​When supervisors in Placer County, California voted last week to ban medical marijuana dispensaries, they relied heavily on the information contained in a “White Paper on Marijuana Dispensaries” from the California Police Chiefs Association. Trouble is, the cop-sponsored “White Paper” is an inaccurate, nasty bit of propaganda which bears little resemblance to the truth, according to medical marijuana advocates.

The toxic little screed, published last year, argues that dispensaries are linked to “marijuana crimes” and violence, reports Peter Hecht at The Sacramento Bee.
As Hecht reports, here’s a sample of the kinds of, er, “information” contained in the cops’ ‘ “White Paper”:

Photo: HempCon 2010
HempCon 2010 Los Angeles is already a huge success, with thousands of festive attendees on the convention floor. Stay tuned, San Francisco… your turn is in April.

​A three-day celebration of all things cannabis opens Friday in downtown Los Angeles.

HempCon 2010 Los Angeles, at the L.A. Convention Center, will host exhibitors from across the country who’ll be showcasing products and services relating to medical marijuana and the movement to legalize pot, reports the Los Angeles Daily News.
Smoking and marijuana won’t be allowed at the event.
“There’s not going to be any cannabis — but we’re trying to spread the word,” said Cheryl Shuman, executive director of Beverly Hills NORML 90210, a branch of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

www.norml.org

​Yesterday’s Whittier Daily News carried an extraordinary piece by Frank C. Girardot, senior metro editor for the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group.

The piece was so interesting and so well done that I wanted to share it with you in its entirety, which Frank has graciously given Toke of the Town permission to do.
Frankly, I’m with Frank.

Dear President Obama:

Over the weekend I think I stumbled on a great plan to put people back to work.
What I need from you is some stimulus money. Think of it as seed money if you will.
I’m going to use it to start a business. And in a matter of months I think the business can be one of the Fortune 500.
Tax money generated by this startup can go to work fixing our health care system, our roads and our schools. By some estimates consumers already spend $110 billion a year on the product I plan to sell.
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