Author Steve Elliott ~alapoet~

Canada Couple Wants Province To Buy Pot Growing Equipment

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 27, 2011 Global, Growing

Photo: Bristol County District Attorney’s Office

The government of Nova Scotia is facing a lawsuit by a couple who say the Canadian province should pay for their equipment to grow medical marijuana because they’re too poor.

Sam and his wife, Tanya, have disabilities and are on income assistance, reports CBC News. They both have medical marijuana licenses from Health Canada, and are allowed to grow a total of 25 plants.

But the couple said they don’t have enough money to buy the lights.

“We’re out of medication quite often,” Sam said. “We can’t keep up on the amount that we need to grow.”

Government Forced NCI To Censor Medical Cannabis Facts

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 27, 2011 Medical, News

Graphic: NORML Stash Blog

Fuck censorship.

In March, the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a component agency of the National Institutes of Health, acknowledged the medicinal benefits of marijuana in its online treatment database. But the information only stayed up a few days, before it was scrubbed from the site.

Now, newly obtained documents reveal not only how NCI database contributors arrived at their March 17 summary of marijuana’s medical uses, but also the furious politicking that went into quickly scrubbing that summary of information regarding the potential tumor-fighting effects of cannabis, reports Kyle Daly at the Washington Independent.

Phil Mocek, a civil liberties activist with the Seattle-based Cannabis Defense Coalition, obtained the documents as a result of a Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA) request he filed in March after reading coverage of the NCI’s action. Mocek has made some of the hundreds of pages of at-times heated email exchanges and summary alterations available on MuckRock, a website devoted to FOIA requests and government documents.

Dutch Government Moves Ahead With Weed Ban For Foreigners

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 27, 2011 Dispensaries, Global, Legislation

Photo: THC Finder

The Dutch make lots of money on cannabis tourism — so obviously, they have to stop that. Wait a minute…

The Dutch Cabinet said it will go ahead with plans to force anyone wishing to buy marijuana at the country’s “coffee shops” to first get an official pass — a move designed to stop tourists from buying cannabis.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte said he plans to begin rolling out the system in southern Netherlands later this year, reports the Associated Press. The southern part of the country is popular with French and German cannabis tourists. The system would then be instituted in Amsterdam’s famed weed cafes, which are major tourist attractions for the city, later in Rutte’s term of office.

Report: Marine Never Fired On Officers Who Fatally Shot Him

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 27, 2011 News

Photo: CNN

Jose Guerena was shot up to 60 times by five police officers. There was nothing illegal in the house.

A United States Marine who died in a flurry of bullets in a botched drug raid near Tucson, Arizona, never fired on the SWAT team that stormed his house, according to a new report from the Pima County Sheriff’s Department.

The revelation added to national outrage over the death of Jose Guerena, who died May 5 after a SWAT team descended on his home with a search warrant, reports Chuck Conder at CNN. Guerena’s home was 0one of four that police claimed were “associated with a drug smuggling operation” in the area.

Poll: 85% Of Grandparents Favor Marijuana Legalization

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

Photo: I’ve Made A Huge Tiny Mistake

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.

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