Yearly Archives: 2011

Field Guide To Marijuana Strains Is A Go-To Resource

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 20, 2011 Culture, Products

One of my favorite books lately — as in, I keep getting it back out again and again — is The Official High Times Field Guide to Marijuana Strains. Penned by the knowledgeable Danny Danko, senior cultivation editor at High Times, the book offers not only a wealth of information on more than 125 varieties of cannabis, it is also absolutely gorgeous.

Photos of each strain, along with info on awards, genetic lineage, flowering time, and where you can get seeds, make this book a potent tool in the hands of the modern cannabis connoisseur.

Danko talked with breeders all over the planet, and they talked about their secrets to creating Cannabis Cup winners. Most of the world’s top pot varieties are covered and lovingly described, from odors and flavors to potency levels and medicinal properties (there are certain notable omissions, such as the absence of one of my favorite pain-killing indicas, Afgoo).

No less an authority than the estimable Dr. Lester Grinspoon, Harvard cannabis researcher and author of Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine has said “If you wish to become more sophisticated about the large number of strains now available, you will be hard-pressed to find a better written and superbly photographed little compendium than this book.”

For 4-20, Suicide Girls Blog Goes ‘All Green’

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 20, 2011 Culture

Photo: Suicide Girls

“They handed Franco the bag of weed. They gave me the lighter.” ~ From Seth Rogan’s Suicide Girls interview

In celebration of the pot smoker’s holiday, 4-20 (you know, bro: the day when even amateurs get high), my friends over at Suicide Girls have rolled up a fattie and shared five of their “fave mellow interview moments.”

Yes, I’ll be upfront and admit it’s a thrill for me to be on a list with Tommy Chong, Danny Leiner (director of Dude, Where’s My Car? and Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle), Seth Rogan (star of Pineapple Express) and Rob Corddry (of Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay).

Worth Repeating: Cannabis Found In Ancient Shaman’s Tomb

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 19, 2011 Culture, News

The Chinese shaman tomb and its contents from 2,800 years ago. Almost 800 grams of cannabis was found inside the tomb.

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.

Health Education Teacher (Retired)

To begin, please watch the following to understand the significance of this cannabis discovery.

China’s Secret Mummies: National Geographic Explorer, December 2007

This National Geographic special provides major archeological evidence of religious cannabis use 2,800 years ago (at minute 38:00 of the video).

Upon your death, what personal items would you want placed next to your corpse in your tomb?
What very special items define you and what your life stood for, in the very short period of time you were alive?
In other words, what is most sacred to you?
To the holy men in this story, cannabis represented the sacred.
I believe that humans have a natural right to use cannabis as part of their private spiritual/religious practice. We all walk our own spiritual path.
Remember, you experience the divine in your head, not in a temple or church.
Meet the “Yanghai shaman,” who will be your guide.

Protesters Ask Governor To Sign Bill Legalizing Pot Dispensaries

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 19, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation

Graphic: 420list.org

About two dozen people rallied on the Washington state capitol steps on Tuesday, calling on Governor Christine Gregoire to approve a law licensing medical marijuana dispensaries and providing arrest protection for patients.

Controversy has erupted over the bill, already approved by both houses of the Legislature, since Gov. Gregoire threatened last week to veto it, claiming it could expose state workers to federal prosecution. State workers have never been prosecuted for licensing medical marijuana operations in any of the 15 states where medicinal cannabis is legal.

Protesters on Tuesday said if the governor vetoes SB 5073, it would show she is disrespecting the 1998 voter initiative that legalized medical marijuana in Washington, and that she is abandoning patients who rely on it, reports Katie Schmidt at The Tacoma News Tribune.

MA Court: Odor Of Pot Not Enough To Order Suspect To Exit Car

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 19, 2011 Legislation, News

Photo: Flawless Hustle

Yes, I know what the car smells like, officer. Maybe you haven’t heard about the decision from the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.

Huge Victory In Massachusetts Limits Police Power

It’s a logical outcome of decrim, and it finally happened today. The mere odor of burning marijuana is no longer reason enough for police officers to order a person out of their car in Massachusetts, now that possession of less than an ounce of pot has been decriminalized there, the state’s highest court ruled on Tuesday.

“Without at least some other additional fact to bolster a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity, the odor of burnt marijuana alone cannot reasonably provide suspicion of criminal activity to justify an exit order,” the Supreme Judicial Court ruled in a decision written by Chief Justice Roderick Ireland, reports Martin Finucane at the Boston Globe.

Medical Cannabis Patient With Cancer Facing Jail In New Zealand

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 19, 2011 Global, Medical

Photo: Free Peter Davy

Peter Davy: “My partner has advanced multiple sclerosis and I am her 24-hour caregiver. She is dying and will die without me.”

Peter Davy, a medical cannabis patient in New Zealand who suffers from cancer, deserves compassion and should not be sent to prison as a judge has threatened, according to activist group Greencross Auckland.

Davy, 51, who lives in Canterbury, New Zealand, has vowed to go on hunger strike if sentenced to prison.

“I want to make it clear that I will be going on a hunger strike the moment I am given a prison sentence and I absolutely do not want to be force fed under any circumstances,” Davy said. “I will also be refusing all cancer medication. I am 100 percent committed to continuing with a hunger strike until I am dead.”

“Here is a man capable of managing his own pain using medicinal cannabis while at the same time caring for a partner with multiple sclerosis,” said Greencross Auckland spokesman Stephen McIntyre.

“My partner has advanced multiple sclerosis and I am her 24-hour caregiver,” Davy said. “She is dying and will die without me.”

Medical Cannabis Rally At Washington State Capitol Tuesday

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 18, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: city-data.com

12 Noon, April 19, State Capitol in Olympia, WA

In answer to Gov. Christine Gregoire’s stated reluctance to sign SB 5073, the medical cannabis reform bill which has already cleared both houses of the Legislature, the Washington Cannabis Association and other advocates for medical marijuana reform will hold a rally at 12 noon on Tuesday, April 19 at the State Capitol in Olympia, Washington.

“It’s time for the Governor to stop listening to the feds and begin listening to the people of this state who overwhelmingly approved medical cannabis by initiative in 1998,” said Philip Dawdy, WCA’s media and policy director.

Interview: The Individuals’ Album ‘Marijuana Music’ On The Way

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 18, 2011 Culture, Products

Photo: The Individuals

The Individuals, from left: Ando Tha Don, Big Lou a.k.a. Fatt Joejoe, T.C.O. Onedaman, Raw Bizness

Chicago-based rap/hip-hop band The Individuals have already made a huge impact on both the music world and the cannabis reform community. The band’s music was used in the second and third seasons of the smash Showtime series Weeds, which led to The Individuals covering the show’s theme song “Little Boxes” for a third season episode.

Their previous albums, Something To Smoke To and Something To Smoke To 2 took the toking community by storm, serving up a potent mix of musical styles, all steeped in delicious herbal goodness.

It’s not every day that I can say “this band wrote one of my favorite weed songs,” but with The Individuals it’s totally true. Their potently catchy staccato track “High Daily” is a frequent play on my iTunes, and in fact, just talkin’ about it, imma have to bump it right now.

Montana Lawmakers Deciding Medical Marijuana Overhaul Fate

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 18, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: NBC Montana

Montana legislators have just a few days to reach compromise on a bill to “overhaul” the state’s booming medical marijuana industry. If they can’t do that, they face the prospect of the industry continuing to grow. What? An actual bright spot in the Treasure State’s dismal economy? Hurry up, guys, snuff that bitch out!

Legislators started on Monday working out the differences between the Senate and House versions of the overhaul measure, Senate Bill 423, reports KPAX.com.

Governor Brian Schweitzer last week vetoed the Republican plan to repeal to voter-approved medical marijuana law.

Pot Critic Tests 3 Times Over Proposed Limit — While Sober

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 18, 2011 Legislation, News

Photo: Denver Westword

Westword pot critic William Breathes got his blood drawn last week to test THC levels in his blood. He wasn’t high at the time. But he still tested three times over the proposed legal limit for Colorado.

There’s a big problem with tests which measure THC levels in the blood. That being, those tests measure THC levels just fine, but they don’t do shit when it comes to measuring actual impairment — which is why those tests are a piss-poor way to enforce a law against driving while impaired on cannabis.

That simple fact has been highlighted by the spectacular failure of Denver Westword pot critic William Breathes to pass Colorado’s blood test for THC-impaired driving. Breathes not only flunked the test, but he tested nearly three times over the proposed limit of five nanograms per milliliter of blood — while sober.

As Breathes pointed out today, that means that he — and thousands of other medical marijuana patients in the Rocky Mountain State — may be risking arrest every time they drive if the measure passes.

Even Rep. Levy, the sponsor of the bill which limits THC driving limits, is now having second thoughts about the five ng/ml limit, concerned that it may be so low as to unintentionally hurt patients like William Breathes.

“Among the concerns about HB 1261, the THC driving bill first offered by Representative Claire Levy, is the fact that THC can stay in the body days after patients medicate,” Breathes wrote. “And my latest test offers proof.”

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