The legalization of recreational marijuana sales that kicked in on January 1 in Colorado has prompted a boom in pot tourism despite the continuing refusal by the State of Colorado and the City of Denver to embrace and promote the cannabis industry.
More indications of this phenomenon can be seen in the increasing number of marijuana-themed conventions and events — and not just around 4/20. Witness the Colorado Cannabis Summit, taking place later this month. And it’s far from the last major get-together of its kind. The conference gets underway at 8 a.m. on May 22 at the Exdo Event Center. Here’s how Stan Wagner, event CEO and head of Red Thread Creative Group, hypes it.
| A marijuana vending machine in Colorado. |
At Arizona’s BC Wellness Center, a small retail shop in Black Canyon City, two black vending machines sit side by side behind a counter, where they can be accessed only by employees.Instead of Famous Amos cookies or soda pop, packets of buds and various cannabis-infused edibles and juices sit tucked into the rows of dispensing trays.
The machines are the flagship product of Medbox, one of the fastest-growing companies in the burgeoning industry of legal marijuana. Or, are they? Phoenix New Times‘ Ray Stern looks into a company that many of us in the legal marijuana world have yet to actually see despite how popular the company claims to be.
While you’re at it, check out this March 2013 piece on MedBox from our own Jack Daniel, “Helpful or Hype?”
In October of last year, we reported here at Toke of the Town on a landmark move by the Canadian government to pump over $1.3 billion dollars into a new national medical marijuana program. The approach was aimed at providing the rapidly growing number of medical marijuana patients with access to cannabis produced by massive, state-of-the-art growing and distribution operations.
The new law proposed to outlaw home growing, forcing medical marijuana patients to go to these large-scale pot shops for their weed. But on March 21st of this year, a Federal Court ruling put a halt to that section of the new regulations, and temporarily grandfathered in anyone who was already licensed to grow at home before September 30th, 2013.
| Keith Bacongco/Flickr. |
A coalition of groups working toward marijuana reform has earned a six-figure settlement from the City of Springfield after council members there unconstitutionally quashed a petition to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana. Now Springfield will have to pay $225,000 to those pro-reform groups.
It all started back in 2012 when Show-Me Cannabis and the American Victory Coalition introduced a citizen-funded ballot initiative slated for the November 2012 election.
But according to the lawsuit complaint filed in July 2013, Springfield City Council tried to be slick and prevented the measure from going to the voters by passing it themselves with the sole intention of immediately repealing it, which they did.
Ripping off a legal medical marijuana grow facility in Colorado is pretty stupid as just about every square inch of the places are covered in security cameras. Apparently the dumb duo who raided the Chronic Therapy grow house in Westminster, Colorado either didn’t know that or are too stupid to care, because now their photos are everywhere and (hopefully) they get caught. Stealing medicine intended for medical marijuana patients is about as scummy as it gets.
| Larry Harvey and Rhonda Firestack-Harvey. |
If the last few months of pot tolerance from the Obama administration has left you thinking that all is well in the world of state-legalized medical marijuana, you’d be wrong. A federal judge yesterday refuse to allow a Washington state family to use the state’s medical marijuana laws in their defense against federal charges of cultivation, possession and distribution of marijuana as well as a gun charge for having a firearm “in furtherance of drug trafficking.”
| Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-Minneapolis), the chief sponsor of a medical marijuana, speaking with reporters. |
The Minnesota Senate approved a bill yesterday afternoon that legalizes marijuana for medical use but limits ingestion to pills, oil, and vaporizing. It made it across the finish line with enough votes to overcome a veto by Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton — 48 to 18 — following a five-hour debate that produced some of the most bizarre statements uttered this session.
The biggest pushback came from Sen. Bill “I’m so against this bill” Igebrigtsen (R-Alexandria), who opened up his remarks by saying the state should be more concerned with pot holes than pot. What followed was a series of statements, similar to those he laid out in a recent letter, about how medical marijuana was a grave step towards all-out blazing in the streets.
| Grow4Vets.com |
Suicide and drug overdose deaths are major issues facing the veteran community in this country, and too often vets fall through the cracks without any help or support. Operation Grow4Vets hopes to change that one person at a time by offering free marijuana, pot-infused foods and growing equipment to Colorado veterans.
| https://www.facebook.com/nodalmolinvicenza |
| An Italian anti-war protester, and his ammunition |
Besides being home to countless fine restaurants, museums, and theatres, Vicenza, Italy is also the location for U.S. Army Base Del Din and Camp Ederle, home to the U.S. Army Africa, the regional U.S. Army Garrison, and the 173d Airborne Brigade.
In 2004, the U.S. military announced its intention to expand the base to take over a nearby abandoned airport by the name of Dal Molin. Besides some minimal resistance during a change in leadership, the Italian government was on board with the base expansion. It was not until two years later however, in 2006, that the general public was made aware of the Americans’ plans, and a resistance was born.