News

Christmas Vigil In Seattle Protests Marijuana Laws; Smug Yuppies Object

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 26, 2009 Culture, Legislation, News

KING5

“Anti-drug advocate”/obnoxiously smug yuppie Steve Danishek spouts ignorance and intolerance on cue for reporter Eric Schudiske

For the past nine years on Christmas Day, 5th Avenue and James Street in Seattle has been at the crossroads of the controversy over marijuana legalization.

As they’ve done every year in the 21st Century, protesters outside King County Jail held a pro-marijuana vigil, maintaining non-violent drug offenders should be home for the holidays, reports Eric Schudiske of King 5 News.

“We just think that otherwise law-abiding Americans should find alternatives to incarceration for marijuana use,” said Vivian McPeak, organizer of the vigil.

McPeak remains optimistic about the prospects for positive change. “We believe very strongly that we’re in the last decade of marijuana criminalization,” he said.

Cops Seize Marijuana Wrapped As Christmas Gifts

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 25, 2009 Culture, News

Photo: www.comptonsunshine.com

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree…

Sometimes the Grinch wears a badge, man.

Police confiscated around 20 pounds of marijuana from a car this week, some in boxes wrapped as Christmas gifts, according to The Associated Press.

A Highway Patrol spokesman said troopers found the cannabis in a vehicle stopped for speeding on Interstate 44 near Joplin, Missouri.

Two California women in the car unwisely gave troopers permission to search the vehicle.

(Quick tip: Never, ever consent to a search. Make them get a warrant. They won’t “go easier on you” if you give up your rights.)

Both were charged after officers found the 20 pounds of weed, and were actually pretty fortunate to be released on just $1,000 bond Tuesday with only one pot-related count each.

Cancer Patient Who Smokes Pot Can Stay For Now

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 25, 2009 Medical, News

photobucket.com

A northern Michigan woman who was in the process of being evicted by Jan. 1 for legally growing and using medical marijuana has been given a holiday reprieve.

Lori Montroy, 49, of Elk Rapids had been told she must be out of her apartment by the end of the year, or face eviction proceedings in Antrim County court.

The Gardner Group, which manages the building, said the process has been suspended and Montroy’s case will be reviewed after Jan. 4, according to the Associated Press.

Montroy has terminal brain cancer of the type that killed U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

Medical marijuana is legal in Michigan, but the Gardner Group says the federal government considers it illegal.

Long Beach Police Serve Warrants At 15 Marijuana Dispensaries; 17 Arrested

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 23, 2009 Dispensaries, Medical, News

Illustration: Joe McGarry

Long Beach Police maybe want to join the DEA, since they seem to be enforcing federal laws.

Police said Tuesday that search warrants were served at 15 dispensaries in and around Long Beach, Calif., last week in connection with an investigation into the “illegal sale of marijuana.”

Specifics of the search warrants are still being kept under wraps, reports Tracy Manzer at the Press-Telegram, but the Long Beach Police Department confirmed Tuesday that 15 search warrants were served and that 17 people were arrested during last week’s sweep.

Both the LBPD and the office of hardline anti-pot crusader, Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley, confirmed last week they were working together on an investigation into “illegal sales of marijuana” at medical marijuana dispensaries.

Sgt. Dina Zapalski, LBPD spokeswoman, said the department wasn’t releasing the names of those arrested because charges have not yet been filed.

Marijuana Policy Project Welcomes New Communications Director

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 23, 2009 Legislation, News

MPP.org

The Marijuana Policy Project recently hired Kurt A. Gardinier to be the organization’s new director of communications. Gardinier joined MPP earlier this month and officially took the reins from Bruce Mirken Tuesday.

Gardinier is based in MPP’s Washington, D.C., office, and among other things will serve as an MPP spokesperson for radio, newspaper and TV interviews.

“While we will certainly miss Bruce and his exceptional work and character, we are very pleased to welcome Kurt Gardinier to MPP,” said Rob Kampia, executive director and co-founder. “Kurt brings more than a decade’s worth of experience in broadcast media and political advocacy to MPP. This background will undoubtedly play a vital role in promoting MPP’s message about the failure of marijuana prohibition at a very pivotal time in our nation’s history.”

Munchies Explained! Research: Marijuana Makes Sweets Taste Sweeter

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 22, 2009 Culture, News

Graphic: randazza.wordpress.com

Dude… sweet. I knew there was something special happening last night when I obliterated those Hostess Cupcakes.

Some interesting research indicates that the active ingredients in marijuana “act directly on taste receptors on the tongue to enhance sweet taste.”

The results show the likely scientific underpinning for the well-known phenomenon of the pot “munchies.”

“Our taste cells may be more involved in regulating our appetites than we had previously known,” said study author Robert Margolskee, M.D., Ph.D., a molecular biologist with the Monell Center.

The Monell Center, based on Philadelphia, collaborated with Kyushu University in Japan on the research, which looked at the effect that endocannabinoids, present in marijuana, have on taste and appetite regulation in mice.

“Endocannabinoids both act in the brain to increase appetite and also modulate taste receptors on the tongue to increase the response to sweets,” said study senior author Yuzo Ninomiya, Ph.D., professor of oral neuroscience in the Graduate School of Dental Sciences and Kyushu University.

Uruguay To Cultivate Hemp; First Country In South America

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 22, 2009 Global, Growing, News

Photo: Lossenelin

Industrial hemp being harvested

Uruguay has pulled into the lead in becoming the first country in South America to authorize the cultivation of industrial hemp, Paula Alvarado reports at Treehugger.com.

The Ministry of Cattle, Agriculture and Fishing has authorized “experimental” cultivation of hemp to take place in October 2010. If results are successful, Uruguay could grant permits to farmers to start growing, according to El Pais.

The location selected for hemp cultivation is a secret. The National Institute for Farming Technology will oversee the pilot project.

Washington State Patrol Ordered To Return 9 Ounces Of Pot

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 22, 2009 Culture, Medical, News

Photo: knoxnews.com

“Make sure it’s all there, man.”

A King County judge has ordered the Washington State Patrol to return nine ounces of medical marijuana to an authorized patient.

During a routine traffic stop, a state trooper smelled Scott Verner’s cannabis, searched his vehicle and seized the medicine, even though Verner showed his medical marijuana paperwork to the officer as required by law.

The trooper told Verner he was allowed to use medical cannabis, but not to transport it by vehicle.

“Congratulations to Cannabis Defense Coalition member Aaron Pelley, the attorney on the Verner case,” said Ben Livingston of the CDC. “Aaron made the news last September after winning the return of over 11 pounds of medical marijuana from the Kent Police.”

This Just In: Teens Who Listen To Pot Music Smoke Pot!

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 22, 2009 Culture, News

Island Records [1973]

It’s the latest example of “They needed a scientific study to figure that out?” Displaying a keen grasp of the obvious, a scientific team has “discovered” that teens who listen to music containing references to marijuana are more likely to use the herb than their counterparts with less exposure to such lyrics.

The study, performed at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, is online now in the journal Addiction.

“Based on an analysis of survey data from 959 ninth-graders, we found that students who listen to music with the most references to marijuana are almost twice as likely to have used the drug than their peers whose musical tastes favor songs less focused on substance use, even after controlling for confounding factors,” said Brian Primack, M.D., Ed.M., M.S. (Damn, with all those letters after his name, he must be right.)

California DMV Ordered To Pay Almost $70K In Fees For Medical Marijuana Case

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 21, 2009 Culture, Medical, News

Photo: www.westcoastleaf.com

A Superior Court in California has ordered the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to pay $69,400 in attorneys’ fees to a medical marijuana advocacy organization.

The Merced Superior Court on Thursday ruled the DMV must reimburse Americans for Safe Access (ASA). The attorneys’ fees award results from a lawsuit filed by ASA in November 2008 against the DMV for its policy of unjustly revoking drivers’ licenses of qualified medical marijuana patients.

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