Worth Repeating: Medical Marijuana Is The Best Kept Secret

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 22, 2011 Medical

Photo: Geoff Pugh/The Telegraph

Ben Whalley, middle, with Dr Gary Stephens and Dr Claire Williams of Reading University at a secret cannabis farm in the south of England in the hope of producing a new treatment for epilepsy

Welcome to Room 420, where your instructor is Mr. Ron Marczyk and your subjects are wellness, disease prevention, self actualization, and chillin’.

Worth Repeating

By Ron Marczyk, R.N.

An overwhelming amount of very promising research has been gathered supporting the use of medical cannabis for many illnesses and diseases… and the evidence is now impossible to ignore.

Examples:

“The endogenous cannabinoid system has revealed potential avenues to treat many disease states … Medicinal indications of cannabinoid drugs including compounds that result in enhance endocannabinoid responses (EER) have expanded markedly in recent years.”

“The wide range of indications covers … chemotherapy complications, tumor growth, addiction, pain, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, inflammation, eating disorders, age-related neurodegenerative disorders, as well as epileptic seizures, traumatic brain injury, cerebral ischemia, and other excitotoxic insults.”

Source: “Cannabinoid drugs and enhancement of endocannabinoid responses: strategies for a wide array of disease states,” Current Molecular Medicine, September 2006

A NORML Life: Cannabis Documentary Is Top Notch

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 22, 2011 Culture, Products

Photo: Cinema Libre Studios

Director Rod Pitman’s just-released cannabis documentary, A NORML Life, goes beyond the recitation of facts and figures to capture the beating heart of the legalization movement, in all its passion, its commitment and its excitement.

It’s an extraordinary job by Pitman, producer Doug Ross and a rich cast of cannabis characters including Seattle Hempfest founder Vivian McPeak (who, near the beginning of the show, rightly says America’s marijuana laws are “fixing a problem that never existed,”), and it wastes no time in going for the emotional resonance which is the reason many of us are involved in this movement.

The documentary, which compellingly tells the proud story of advocates fighting for the legalization of marijuana, was released by Cinema Libre Studios on DVD last week. The film presents a strong case that the use of medical marijuana is effective, and that it is a safe alternative to pharmaceutical medicines.

Dogs Nab 2 Marijuana Dispensary Robbers

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 22, 2011 Dispensaries, News

Photo: Coloradoan.com

Ernie Jermaine Savannah, left, and Jeremiah Wright face charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, vehicular eluding and resisting arrest after robbing a Fort Collins, Colorado medical marijuana dispensary.

Robbing medical marijuana dispensaries is a really bad idea. Two Colorado men are in police custody after being accused of robbing a dispensary in Fort Collins and tying up three employees at gunpoint. They were arrested by police and deputies after they “sustained injuries” from the two law enforcement dogs used to capture them.

Ernie Jermaine Savannah, 39, and Jeremiah Wright, 40, face charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, vehicular eluding and resisting arrest, i.e., it’ll be awhile before these fellows see daylight again. They were arrested at Fort Collins Police Services headquarters on Sunday, reports Trevor Hughes at Coloradoan.com.

Congressman Kucinich Speaks Out At Seattle Hempfest

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 22, 2011 Culture, News

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) spoke out Saturday at Seattle Hempfest, comparing the cannabis movement’s momentum to the Arab Spring.

“Open America! Show yourself! Mass action!” the Congressman told the crowd.

“This is why, and how, recent mass movements for freedom in Tunisia and Egypt gained momentum,” Kucinich said.

Seattle Hempfest 2011 In Photos: Friday and Saturday

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 21, 2011 Culture, Products

All photos by Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ unless otherwise noted

Hempfest 2011, the biggest ever (as in, for the first time ever, three days, man) is still happening at Myrtle Edwards Park in Seattle until 10 p.m. Sunday night. The first two days saw plenty of memorable moments.

For me, speaking for the first time from the Share Parker Memorial Main Stage on Friday was a sure enough rush. Looking out, seeing and hearing that many cheering, happy people was definitely one of the high points of my weekend — and one that I was able to replicate again on Saturday from the Seeley Memorial Stage, where I spoke just before 4:20 and got back up onstage with a big crowd of folks at the magic moment.

Here are some of the best photos from this weekend to remember.

Seattle Hempfest All Weekend! Meet The Safety Team

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 19, 2011 Culture

Photo: Jack Rikess

By Jack Rikess

Toke of the Town

Northern California Correspondent (From Seattle)

Seattle’s Hempfest opens today. For 20 years, political activists, social progressives, cannabis enthusiasts and the curious has been making the trek out to the Northwest’s longest running cannabis klatch. The festival occupies a twist of land that stretches on the East edge of the sound for a little better than a mile and half. Really, just a hefty salmon toss down from Pike Place Market.

Expanding from two to three days, with a new Friday opening instead of the usual Saturday beginnings, from what I saw Thursday as the crews were setting up, it’s only getting bigger and better. For three days, there will be knowledgeable speakers talking about issues intrinsic to Washington State, plus non-stop music, great looking food booths and of course, about two hundred thousand attendees, looking for info, music, exotic munchies and a precipitous good time.

Vote For Medical Marijuana At South By Southwest

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 19, 2011 Culture, Medical, News

Photo: WBAL

Marijuana critic: William Breathes at work

My friends at Denver Westword are lobbying to have their medical marijuana panel accepted for the 2012 South By Southwest (SXSW) conference, and they have a good shot at making the cut. But they need our help.

The panel, “Big Business: The Future of Marijuana Journalism” couldn’t be more relevant and timely.

Online voting comprises 30 percent of how a panel gets accepted for inclusion. “That’s a big chunk,” said Web Editor Nick Lucchesi at Westword.

To vote for inclusion of the medical marijuana panel, click this link:

http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ideas/view/9525

Find The Right Marijuana Strain For You At Leafly.com

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 18, 2011 Dispensaries, Medical, Products

Graphic: Leafly.com

Leafly helps you make sense of the plethora of medical marijuana strains available.

Leafly.com, online for just over a year now, is a powerful resource which can help medical marijuana patients find the strains which work best for them. Since its debut in June 2010, patients have used the site to explore the dispensary options available and to match strains with symptoms.

When I entered one of my favorite strains, Afgoo, Leafly told me the effects, medical uses, and where I could find it, listing five dispensaries from 10 to 35 miles away.

Toke of the Town had a chance to chat with Mike Juberg, on the sales team at Leafly.com, about what the site has to offer.

This Weekend: Hempfest Marks 20 Years With Biggest One Yet

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 18, 2011 Culture, News

Graphic: Seattle Hempfest

There has to be a Number One in every category. When it comes to pot rallies, Seattle Hempfest is the biggest and arguably the best on the planet.

The monster marijuana rally — or “protestival,” as organizer Vivian McPeak puts it — is marking 20 years of existence with this year’s event, held at Myrtle Edwards Park on the beautiful Seattle waterfront — and for the first time ever, Hempfest is slated for three days.

The party begins at high noon on Friday, August 19 and continues until 8 p.m., then things start up again at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, lasting until 8 each night.

President Freezes Up, Stumbles When Asked About Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on August 17, 2011 Culture, News

Photo: Blogging Vermont Style

Since it is becoming increasingly obvious that President Obama is going to be asked about marijuana every single time there’s a forum where the public is free to submit questions, it would make sense for the Commander in Chief to bone up on the subject, and at least go to the trouble to prepare some intelligent responses.

Apparently the Administration doesn’t feel that it’s worth their time to do that, though. Obama seems to actually be getting worse at talking about cannabis, as pointed out by Scott Morgan of StoptheDrugWar.com.

“This latest exchange is just embarrassing,” Morgan writes of the President’s latest sidestepping of a cannabis question.

Yearly Archives: 2011