Federal Marijuana Raids Sweep Across Montana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 16, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Twelve criminal search warrants for marijuana were executed on Wednesday, November 16, at premises in Kalispell, Missoula, Somers, and Whitefish, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana.

The execution of the warrants comes after a year-long investigation into “drug trafficking” activities of a “criminal enterprise” operating in Montana, claims a press release from office of U.S. Attorney Michael W. Cotter.

Four civil seizure warrants for financial institutions in Missoula, seeking an unspecified amount of cash, were also executed, reports KRTV.

Why Does DEA Quote Toke Signals Marijuana Review In Warrant?

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 16, 2011 Dispensaries, News

Seattle Weekly

Today’s weirdness comes courtesy of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which quoted one of my “Toke Signals” Seattle Weekly medical marijuana dispensary reviews in the search warrant affidavit for a Seattle collective which was raided on Tuesday.

The review, which was a positive one for Seattle Cannabis Co-Op, was printed in the Weekly back in March. It’s not apparent why the DEA would choose to quote the review in their search warrant affidavit, since none of the alleged improprieties mentioned elsewhere in the warrant were even hinted at in the review.

But there it was to greet me this morning, before I’d even had time to fortify myself with a cup of coffee: “DEA Medical-Marijuana Dispensary Search Warrant Quotes Seattle Weekly Toke Signals Column.”

U.S. Atty.’s Office Gives Statement On WA Med Marijuana Raids

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 16, 2011 Dispensaries, News

The Inquisitr

U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan: “We will continue to target and investigate entities that are large scale commercial drug enterprises, or that threaten public safety in other ways.”

U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan of the Western District of Washington released a statement late Tuesday on the Drug Enforcement Administration’s dispensary raids.

The raids, which stretched across at least three counties and involved more than a dozen dispensaries, took many in the community by surprise, even some who had long expected such as move on the part of the federal government.

The post on the U.S. federal government’s Department of Justice website follows in its entirety:

DEA Weighs In On Washington State Medical Marijuana Law

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Drug Enforcement Administration

Matthew G. Barnes, Special Agent in Charge, Seattle Field Division, DEA: “The DEA remains committed to the enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) in all states”

Protest the DEA’s Raids on Safe Access in Washington State, 11 a.m., Federal Building, Downtown Seattle

The federal Drug Enforcement Administration on Tuesday evening, amidst ongoing dispensary raids, released a statement on Washington state’s medical marijuana laws.

“It has never been our policy to target individuals with serious illness,” claimed Special Agent in Charge Matthew Barnes, reports David Haviland at KBKW. “However, there are those operating commercial storefronts cultivating, selling or distributing marijuana under the guise of state medical marijuana laws and exploiting such activities to satisfy their own personal greed.

“The DEA remains committed to the enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) in all states,” Barnes said.

Barnes didn’t say how the DEA would judge the difference between those who are obeying state medical marijuana laws and those who aren’t, but did seem to indicate that the agency would only be going after those in violation of both state and federal law. But who knows what the hell these federal bureaucrats even mean when they talk; they’re so full of lies, a thick lie-cloud envelops every word they utter.

“The coordinated enforcement actions of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and our state and local law enforcement partners involve violations of both state and federal law,” Barnes said.

Cannabis Song of the Day: ‘Open Your Eyes’ (The Vibratones)

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 15, 2011 Culture, Global, Products

Toke of the Town’s Song of the Day, the infectious, laid-back groove of “Open Your Eyes,” comes from Finland via talented pro-cannabis rock band The Vibratones.

”We really feel strongly for the song and the message,” the group’s drummer, Niklas Finnäs, told Toke of the Town on Tuesday. “The cannabis culture in Finland is not as open as in many English speaking countries. It’s not really socially accepted, and that’s mostly due to fear and a lack of knowledge.”

DEA Sweeps Across Western Washington With Dispensary Raids

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 15, 2011 Dispensaries, News

KOMO News

DEA agent Tuesday morning at Seattle Cannabis Co-op’s location in the Rainier neighborhood

Federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents raided medical marijuana collectives in Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, Puyallup, Rochester, and Lacey, Washington, as a coordinated raid swept across the Puget Sound region on Tuesday.

Patient advocates and legal defense groups report that at least nine dispensaries have been raided, according to The Seattle Times. Ben Livingston of the patient advocacy group Cannabis Defense Coalition said he’s spoken with several dispensary owners and defense attorney Aaron Pelley, who confirmed raids were occurring.

“I’m in shock because now I have no pain medicine,” said patient Cameron Christenson outside of Seattle Cannabis Co-op on Rainer Avenue, reports David Rose at Q13 Fox News. “I can think of 100 crack houses in town — why don’t you go raid those?”

Ban On Tourists In Dutch Cannabis Cafes To Begin Jan. 1

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 15, 2011 Dispensaries, Global, News

Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Foreign visitors will be banned from the “coffee shops” which sell cannabis in southern Netherlands starting January 1, supposedly to combat “anti-social behavior” among tourists. (So when do the tourists get banned from bars?) The ban won’t hit Amsterdam, however, until a year later, in 2013.

The Dutch Justice Ministry announced the ban was going forward after a consultation period, despite opposition from some MPs who called the move “tourism suicide, reports Travelmail Reporter at the Daily Mail.

Licensed coffee shops will be considered private clubs under the new rules. Their maximum of 2,000 members will be limited to Dutch residents 18 and older who carry a so-called “dope card.”

DARE Unit Pulled Over Carrying Marijuana Also Had Sex Toys

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 15, 2011 News

Pikeville KY

The DARE Dildo Debacle: Crime Commission President Calls For ‘A Hard Look’ At Backpack Full of Dongs

A Louisiana DARE unit that was pulled over in New Orleans last March carried not only marijuana, but sex toys and performance enhancing pills.

The Drug Abuse Resistance Education sport utility vehicle was at the center of a controversy earlier this year after it was pulled over and New Orleans police discovered marijuana and drug paraphernalia inside on March 8, reports WDSU.

High IQ Linked To Drug Use: Decades-Long British Study

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 14, 2011 Global, News

Zazzle

It’s the smart thing to do.

The next time some buzzkill tries to hit you with the old drooling stoner stereotype, tell ’em about a new British study that finds children with high IQs are more likely to use drugs as adults than people who score low on IQ tests as children.

The data come from the 1970 British Cohort Study, which has been following thousands of people over decades, reports Jennifer Bixler at CNN. The children’s IQ scores were taken at ages 5, 10 and 16. The study also asked about drug use, among other questions.

When the participants turned 30, they were asked if they had used drugs such as marijuana, cocaine and heroin in the past year.

The study found that men with high childhood IQs were up to twice as likely to use illegal drugs than their lower-IQ former classmates. The difference was even more pronounced in girls, where those with high IQs were up top three times more likely to use drugs as adults.

SF Patients’ Choice Cannabis Competition 2011: Inside Report

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on November 14, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical, Products

By Jack Rikess

Toke of the Town

Northern California Correspo
ndent

The Fifth Annual Medical Cannabis Competition, ‘The Patients’ Choice,’ was the place to be Saturday night for local activists, growers and what could be called the backbone of San Francisco’s medical marijuana community.

A benefit for the ever-vigilant patients’ rights group, Americans for Safe Access, the affair started around two in the afternoon and went until the smoke cleared at 9 p.m.

While many local dispensaries and other cannabis friendly businesses help sponsored the event, everyone knows the joyous Kevin Reed, proprietor of the Green Cross dispensary, is the major force behind the night’s event.

Yearly Archives: 2011