Yearly Archives: 2011

Poll: 85% Of Grandparents Favor Marijuana Legalization

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 26, 2011 Culture, News

Baby Boomers always said they’d make the coolest generation of grandparents ever. Now they’re following through on that promise.

Grandparents, those members of society who’ve had the most time to accumulate knowledge, experience and wisdom, overwhelmingly favor the legalization of marijuana, according to a new poll.

GRAND Magazine, which calls itself “the only magazine for today’s grandparents,” on Thursday released the results from a poll question which appeared in their March/April issue: Is it time to legalize marijuana? A whopping 85 percent responded that yes, pot should be legalized.

Even readers who don’t use cannabis themselves argued that it is hypocritical to outlaw pot when cigarettes, alcohol and fatty foods are legal, but account for so many health issues and deaths.

They pointed out that cannabis is used to treat symptoms such as pain and nausea, and that in some states it is legal for dispensaries to sell medical marijuana.

Arizona Governor Can’t Stop Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 26, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: Opposing Views

Jan Brewer was against Proposition 203 before it passed — and now that it’s law, she wants to ignore the voters.

Prosecutors will still be prohibited from convicting legal medical marijuana patients

The misguided efforts of Arizona Governor Jan Brewer and Attorney General Tom Horne to quash the state’s new medical marijuana won’t work, reports Ray Stern at Phoenix New Times.

Authorized patients can possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis legally in Arizona since the passage of Proposition 203 by voters — with or without “state approval,” New Times reports.

“That’s why Brewer and Horne, two Republicans who are putting politics above the wishes of the electorate, haven’t mentioned any plans to stop the state from handing out medical marijuana registration cards,” Stern writes. “The smartly written Arizona Medical Marijuana Act anticipated an anti-democratic reaction like the one we saw Tuesday and included a powerful work-around.”

Patient Advocates Back 3 Medical Marijuana Bills In Congress

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 26, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Rebels With Just Cause Award

Steph Sherer, ASA: “This kind of policy shift is a no-brainer and should garner the bipartisan support of Congress”

Three medical marijuana bills introduced in Congress on Wednesday have the support of patient advocacy group Americans for Safe Access (ASA). The most significant of the bills is one introduced by Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), which reclassifies marijuana from its current federal status as a dangerous drug with no medical value.

Another bill, introduced by Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) and Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), will allow banks and other financial institutions to provide services to medical marijuana businesses without being subject to “suspicious activity” reporting requirements.

The third bill, introduced by Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA) and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (D-CA), changes the federal tax code “to allow a deduction for expenses in connection with the trade or business of selling marijuana intended for patients for medical purposes pursuant to State law.”

Tourist Fined $2,000 For 3 Grams Of Marijuana In Bermuda

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 26, 2011 Global, News

Photo: Cruise Law News

Don’t carry your weed to Bermuda.

An American tourist who said she smoked marijuana for medical reasons was fined $2,000 on Thursday in Bermuda.

Teresa Sheridan, 53, of Oregon, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court to one count of importing cannabis, reports Mikaela Ian Pearman of the Bermuda Sun.

Sheridan arrived on a flight from New York to Bermuda on May 23 at 2:10 p.m. She was selected for a search by Customs officers because a drug-detecting dog had alerted to her seat on the plane.

Marijuana Advocates ‘Dis-Endorse’ Denver Mayoral Candidate

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 26, 2011 News

Graphic: Cannabis Therapy Institute

A coalition of groups supporting adults’ right to use cannabis and voters’ decision to legalize it in Denver gathered outside a Thursday morning fundraiser for mayoral candidate Michael Hancock to upbraid both candidates for failing to answer a cannabis questionnaire, and to “disendorse” Hancock for mayor.

The action follows last week’s move by Robert Chase of the Colorado Coalition for Patients and Caregivers, who sent an open letter to mayoral candidates Chris Romer and Michael Hancock, asking them to answer three key questions about marijuana policy in the city. Neither camp had responded to the request as of Thursday morning, reports Michael Roberts at Denver Westword.

Bills To Protect Marijuana Patients & Providers Intro’d In Congress

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 25, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Students for Sensible Drug Policy

A bipartisan group of legislators introduced three bills in Congress on Wednesday which, for the first time in history, would federally protect and support medical marijuana patients and providers in states where the medicinal use of cannabis is legal.

The first of the bills, the “States’ Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act,” would modify federal law so that individuals acting in compliance with state law are immune from federal prosecution. The other two bills, which address banking and tax issues faced by medical marijuana providers, are the first two bills in the history of Congress to protect and advance the interests of medical cannabis businesses.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) is the lead sponsor of the States bill, which has garnered bipartisan support in past sessions of Congress.

Drug Warriors Won’t Play Cannabis Reformers In Softball

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 25, 2011 Culture

Photo: Anastacia Cosner

The One Hitters are already kicking the Drug War’s ass — now they want to beat the drug warriors in a softball game

Once again, the softball team representing the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has backed out of playing a softball game against the One Hitters, a team consisting of members of several drug policy reform organizations and others who want to end the “War On Drugs.”

A game between the two teams had been scheduled for May 25, but the ONDCP Czardinals chickened out shortly after scheduling the game, with ONDCP public liaison coordinator Quinn Staudt claiming an “accidental double-booking.”

This is not the first time the Czardinals have refused to play the One Hitters.

S.F.: Pot Shops Must Release Names, Addresses Of Growers

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 25, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, News

The San Francisco Department of Public Health, which licenses and polices the city’s 26 storefront medical marijuana dispensaries, announced on Friday that it will ask every dispensary to provide a list — with names and addresses — of every grower with which it does business.

The result would be a disaster for the city’s burgeoning medical marijuana industry, according to Kevin Reed, president of the Green Cross medicinal cannabis delivery service, reports Chris Roberts at the S.F. Weekly.

“It’s unacceptable,” Reed told the Weekly. “It would be a disaster.”

The list of grower names and addresses is needed, claimed Rajiv Bhatia, head of DPH’s Occupational & Environmental Health, for safety and legality reasons.

“DPH is trying to ensure that permitted MCDs [medical cannabis dispensaries]comply with all state and local laws,” Bhatia said. “By ensuring this, the industry will be best situated to be protected from code enforcement and criminal prosecution.”

California Judge Throws Out Case Against Marijuana Dispensary

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 25, 2011 Dispensaries, News

Photo: THC Finder

Deputies Conveniently Forget To Mention Existence Of A Tape Which Showed Dispensary Was Following The Law

A Superior Court judge in California has thrown out a criminal case against an Oildale medical marijuana cooperative that was shut down in 2009. According to the judge’s decision, the search warrant that led to the closure was based on incomplete information because it left out a tape recording indicating the cooperative was following the law.

Judge Michael Dellostritto on Friday called the affidavit supporting the search warrant “false and misleading,” and said he never would have issued the warrant if he had heard the recording, reports Courtenay Edelhart of the Bakersfield Californian.

Speakers Urge Rhode Island To Decriminalize Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 25, 2011 Legislation, News

Photo: WPRO

Wife, mother, PTA member — and marijuana user — Catharine Leach, right, testified on Tuesday before the Rhode Island Senate Judiciary Committee

”Look at me, and tell me I should go to jail,” Catharine Leach said to the Rhode Island Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. Leach — who described herself as a wife, mother and PTA member — also described herself as a marijuana user who has used it daily for more than 10 years.

The 29-year-old office manager from Warwick, R.I., was one of nine people to testify for a bill which would decriminalize possession of up to an ounce of marijuana, reports Randal Edgar at the The Providence Journal. The bill would add Rhode Island to a list of about a dozen states that have relaxed their cannabis laws for recreational users.

“It’s like coming home and having a glass of wine after a hard day,” Leach said, except that she runs the risk of jail, while “the drunks don’t go to jail for their vice.”

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