Author Keith Plocek

Arizona is a red state in terms of both landscape and politics, but it looks like it’s becoming greener and greener every day.
Last week there was news that cannabis research is allowed on Arizona college campuses, and now a new poll reveals 56 percent of the Arizonans surveyed are in favor of “legalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use.” Phoenix New Times has the story.

Darryl Rouson is a former crack addict and current Democratic member of the Florida House of Representatives. He has sponsored a bill to ban all bongs, glass bowls, roach clips and other marijuana paraphernalia, since he believes weed is the gateway to crack. “If we can make people drive to Georgia and Alabama and South Carolina to get fireworks, they can drive to get these utensils of death,” he says. Those dismissing the chances of Rouson’s bill should know he was recently elected leader of the Florida House Democrats. Broward Palm-Beach New Times has the story.

Urban Dictionary defines a cannasmurf as “a person who is a member of several medical cannabis dispensaries and who obtains the maximum allowable quantity of cannabis from these clubs in order to obtain a sizable amount of cannabis for personal or commercial reasons.” Colorado’s governor-appointed task force has determined that marijuana tourism is OK, but its members also believe restrictions should be put in place to prevent smurfing. Which is where things could get complicated. Westword has the story.

The Amendment 64 Shadow Task Force is made up of activists monitoring the implementation of Colorado’s A64, which allows adults 21 and over to possess small amounts of marijuana. The shadow task force is now trying to beat the state to the punch via an ordinance that would make Nederland “the first town in America to regulate marijuana since its prohibition some 76 years ago.” Westword has the story.

Dank Depot / Flickr

Yesterday the L.A. City Council approved two competing marijuana initiatives for the May 21 ballot and came a step closer to putting its own measure before voters too.
The Greater Los Angeles Collective Alliance said it would abandon campaigning for its own measure (which will nonetheless remain on the ballot) and throw its weight behind the City Council’s proposal.