By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Culture, Legislation
Friday, Aug. 20 2010 @ 11:59AM
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| Photo: Owl Jester/Seattle Hempfest |
| "There's no place more perfect to announce our plans for 2011's campaign than at the world's premier marijuana reform festival." ~ Douglas Hiatt, Sensible Washington |
If at first you don't succeed, try again!
Sensible Washington, sponsor of this year's Washington legalization initiative I-1068, has announced that it will launch its 2011 marijuana legalization campaign at this year's Seattle Hempfest.
"There's no place more perfect to announce our plans for 2011's campaign than at the world's premier marijuana reform festival," said Douglas Hiatt, chair of Sensible Washington and main author of I-1068, which failed to gain enough signatures to qualify for this year's general election.
2 comments
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, News
Friday, Aug. 20 2010 @ 10:17AM
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| Photo: Philly NORML |
| Neill Franklin, LEAP: "Californians finally have an opportunity to do something about it" |
The National Black Police Association (NBPA), with more than two dozen chapters across the United States, announced the endorsement in Sacramento, where the organization is holding a national conference, reports Jesse McKinley at The New York Times.
"Prohibition takes a toll on people of color across the country," said Neill Franklin, executive director of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), which supports Prop 19.
"When I was a cop in Baltimore, and even before then when I was growing up there, I saw with my own eyes the devastating impact these misguided marijuana laws have on our communities and neighborhoods," Franklin said.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Global, Legislation
Monday, Aug. 16 2010 @ 1:16PM
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| Photo: Saipan Realty |
| Can you say marijuana tourism? As soon as Saipan's voters get around to legalizing marijuana -- which they'll soon have a chance to do -- the stoner dollars will start pouring in, mine included. |
A House committee on Monday recommended killing a bill which would have legalized marijuana for all uses in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), which includes Saipan, Tinian, Ascuncion and Rota islands in the Pacific. But the bill will be reintroduced as a legislative initiative to allow the people to vote on it, according to its sponsor.
Rep. Stanley Torres (I-Saipan), author of CNMI House Bill 17-47, said Monday he is "disappointed" that the committee decided to recommend killing his bill, reports Haidee V. Eugenio of the Saipan Tribune.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, News
Friday, Aug. 13 2010 @ 9:37AM
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| Graphic: Yes On Prop 19 |
About 40 percent of respondents oppose Prop 19, which would allow Californians 21 or over to carry up to an ounce of pot and grow a 5x5 marijuana garden. The initiative would also give counties and cities the local option of permitting, taxing, and regulating marijuana sales and cultivation, reports Phillip Smith at StoptheDrugWar.org.
Other recent polls show similar levels of support for Prop 19. A Sacramento Bee/Field poll released last weekend showed support for a general marijuana legalization question at 51 percent.
Interestingly, ike other recent telephone polls, Thursday's Survey USA poll shows higher levels of support for legalization than the face-to-face polls. Voters could be reluctant to say they support a controversial idea like cannabis legalization in a face-to-face encounter, but may do so in much greater numbers in the privacy of the voting booth, Smith points out.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Culture, Legislation
Thursday, Aug. 12 2010 @ 8:40AM
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| Screen Capture: Reality Catcher |
| The Stop Prop 19 people aren't interested in your feedback on their little video. This is a one-way conversation, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?! |
The group's inaugural television ad ignores decades of scientific evidence showing showing otherwise to claim that marijuana is a "gateway drug" leading to methamphetamine and cocaine, and that it's the addiction most cited by teenagers in drug rehab (failing to mention that most of those teens were forced into "marijuana rehab" under threat of jail).
Tellingly, both comments and the "Like/Dislike" buttons have been turned off on the YouTube video. SaveCalifornia doesn't want a dialogue with Californians -- it wants to lecture Californians.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, News
Monday, Aug. 9 2010 @ 2:19PM
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| Photo: Saigon Market |
| I'm assuming dude falls on the "Yes" side of the question. |
The poll is especially interesting because it gave voters a menu of options from which to choose their preferred marijuana policy, reports policy analyst Jon Walker at Firedoglake.
"Maintaining the current marijuana policy is in fact an extreme minority position in the state," notes Walker. Only one third of voters supports strictly enforcing current laws against pot, or passing even tougher laws.
Combining the small group (4 percent) of voters who think marijuana should be legal for everyone with those who support legalizing and regulating it like alcohol results in a total of 51 percent supporting legalization.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, Medical
Monday, Aug. 9 2010 @ 9:20AM
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| Graphic: Medical Marijuana U.S.A. |
| If you're an American with a qualifying medical condition, you can legally smoke marijuana in Oregon or Montana. |
With the discovery of a loophole in Montana's medical marijuana law, the Big Sky State joins Oregon in no longer requiring state residency to obtain legal authorization to use medicinal cannabis.
Montana health officials said Friday that patients don't have to live in the state to receive medical marijuana cards.
The discovery was made after the Department of Public Health and Human Services reviewed plans to require a Montana driver's license or state-issued ID, according to department spokesman Chuck Council.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, Medical
Friday, Aug. 6 2010 @ 11:33AM
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| Graphic: Awesome DC |
Advocates Say Delays Come
At Cost To Patients
Patients in Washington, D.C., who are suffering from conditions such as cancer and HIV/AIDS will now be unnecessarily forced to wait even longer for relief, according to the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).
Agencies tasked with overseeing D.C.'s recently approved medical marijuana law will not have the authority to begin licensing providers or accepting patient applications until January 1, 2011, according to a series of proposed regulations released Friday by Mayor Adrian Fenty and the City Administrator.
The District still needs to consider and license potential applicants to manage medical marijuana dispensaries before patients can legally obtain medical marijuana to alleviate their symptoms. Under the District's law, qualified patients will only be allowed to legally use marijuana that comes from a licensed dispensary.
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Legislation, News
Thursday, Aug. 5 2010 @ 8:09PM
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| Photo: Criminal Justice Collaboratory |
Six years of pro bono work by attorney Sharon Blackford paid off, as the court reversed rulings that had been made at the District Court, Superior Court, and Court of Appeals, all of which had upheld the search under the "exigent circumstances" exception to the search warrant requirement.
"We hold the search State v. Tibbles... was not justified by exigent circumstances and the evidence obtained as a result of the search should have been suppressed," the court ruled. "Accordingly, we reverse the Court of Appeals."
By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ in
Culture, Legislation
Thursday, Aug. 5 2010 @ 12:49PM
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| Photo: Netroots Nation |
| "Radical" Russ Belville: "Three in four cannabis users are white, but it's blacks and Latinos that spend the brunt of the time for punishment" |
