Toke of the Town

Times Changing: Brazil’s First Cannabis Grow Book Published

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By on Global, Products

Photo: Sergio Vidal
“I have a feeling that at any moment I will be summoned by the police.” Author Sergio Vidal holds “Cannabis Medicinal,” the first marijuana grow book ever published in Brazil

Exclusive Interview: Author/Activist Sergio Vidal


​​In a sure sign that attitudes toward cannabis are changing worldwide, the first-ever cannabis grow book has been published in Brazil — and it may well be the first grow book printed in the Portuguese language.

Cannabis Medicinal author Sergio Vidal, a marijuana activist, told Toke of the Town that just the discussion of weed — let alone its use and possession — is surrounded by taboos, legal prohibitions, and repression.
“We are a young democracy,” Vidal told us. “We lived in a military dictatorship for many years in the 1960s and 70s. Our Constitution is only 22 years old. And the drug laws are a reflection of this dictatorial period.”
According to Vidal, Brazil’s drug laws include one article that criminalizes conduct “encouraging the use of drugs,” which means you can be arrested for simply advocating the legalization of cannabis. That makes me realize how well we have it here in the States, where more than a year of Toke of the Town has resulted in zero police interference.
“Events such as the Marijuana March have been considered criminal in many cities,” Vidal told us. “The law has been used on several occasions to criminalize social movements for legalization.”
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State Senator Asks: Should Indiana Legalize Marijuana?

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By on Legislation, News

Graphic: ReLegalize Indiana

​An Indiana state senator is asking a question she hopes could spur debate over sentencing laws, and possibly save the state millions of dollars in the process: Should marijuana be legalized?

Sen. Karen Tallian (D-Portage) is sponsoring a bill that would direct the criminal law and sentencing study committee to examine Indiana’s marijuana laws next summer and come up with recommendations, reports Deanna Martin of the Associated Press.
“We need to think about this,” Tallian said. “We’re cutting essential services out of the budget now, and it may not make sense to spend millions of dollars prosecuting marijuana cases.”
Senate Corrections Committee Chairman Brent Steele (R-Bedford) said he would give Tallian’s proposal a legislative hearing, despite the fact that Democrats are badly outnumbered in the Senate. He said the study could help lawmakers decide if they should explore the issue, but noted that “even in California,” a proposal to legalize marijuana failed. (Yes, it’s coming true, as we predicted: The failure of Prop 19 is now being used as a talking point by prohibitionists.)
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Strip Club? Massage Parlor? Cheaper License Than Pot Dispensary

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By on Dispensaries, News

Photo: dipity
Priorities? Opening a medical marijuana dispensary in San Diego costs more to license than opening 17 strip clubs or 27 massage parlors.

​Since You Don’t Have Enough Money — Or A Legal Spot — To Open A Medical Marijuana Dispensary In San Diego County, Maybe You Should Consider The Sex Trade Instead

In a move seen as continuing their notorious hostility to implementation of California’s medical marijuana law, approved by voters 15 years ago, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved an $11,017 annual fee to open medicinal cannabis dispensaries in the county’s unincorporated areas. They also further restricted where the shops can open, resulting in a “de facto ban,” according to activists.

Supervisors Ron Roberts and Greg Cox said the fee — which, surprise, surprise, will go to the Sheriff’s Department — appeared “high,” reports Chris Nichols of the North County Times.
They’re right about that. In fact, it’s the highest annual fee charged to any Sheriff’s Department-regulated business in the county.
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DUI For Drugs Fails In Montana Legislative Committee

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By on Legislation, News

Photo: KPAX.com

​A Montana plan to issue DUI tickets for those under the influence of “dangerous drugs” while driving was rejected Tuesday in a legislative committee amid concerns there is no valid test for determining impairment.

The measure was one piece of the drunken driving reform working its way through the Montana Legislature, reports Matt Gouras of The Associated Press.
Another, larger reform initiative that would require repeat drunk driving offenders to undergo twice-daily breath tests at their own expense was unanimously endorsed Tuesday by the House Judiciary Committee and will go to the full House. 
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Washington Could Legalize Marijuana, Sell It In Liquor Stores

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By on Legislation, News

Graphic: Cafe Press

​A bill has once again been introduced to the Washington Legislature which would legalize marijuana and allow it to be sold in state liquor stores.

State Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson of Seattle, who compared current cannabis laws to alcohol Prohibition, introduced the bill, reports The Associated Press. According to Dickerson, it’s time to take marijuana out of the hands of criminals, regulate it, and tax it like alcohol.
Dickerson introduced a similar bill last year, but never made it out of committee when the House Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Committee, after holding the first-ever legislative hearing on marijuana legalization in Washington, voted it down.
The bill also calls for the state to license marijuana growers.
Critics, of course, claim the bill would “increase marijuana use among teens,” as if they don’t already smoke it, and “could lead to harder drug use,” which is, of course, the already-discredited Gateway Theory.
Predictably, Attorney General Rob McKenna’s office, notorious for fighting marijuana reform, lost no time in saying it will oppose the bill.
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Cannabis Legalization Initiative Filed In Washington Jan. 26

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By on Legislation, News

Graphic: Sensible Washington

​Voters in at least one state may get the chance to legalize marijuana this year. Washington State’s 2011 initiative to legalize cannabis for adults will be filed Wednesday, January 26, Sensible Washington state coordinator Don Skakie told Toke of the Town Tuesday afternoon.

The initiative, which would remove marijuana penalties for adults, will be filed in the Secretary of State’s office in the Legislative Building, Olympia, Washington, at about 2 p.m.
“Anyone wanting to be part of this historic event is welcome to participate,” Skakie said. “Please be mainstream in your dress and appearance.”
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Illinois Looks At Making Marijuana Possession Like Traffic Ticket

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By on Legislation, News

Photo: TheBongPlace

​A new bill introduced in the Illinois House of Representatives would lower the penalty for an ounce or less of marijuana to a petty offense similar to a traffic violation.

House Bill 100, introduced January 12, would change the consequences of possession of under 28.35 grams of cannabis from a Class A Misdemeanor — punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine — down to a petty offense rather than a criminal offense, reports Brendan Denison at the Daily Illini.
If passed, the bill would set a $500 fine for first-time marijuana possession offenders, $750 for second-time offenders, and a $1,000 fine for each offense thereafter.
State Rep. LaShawn Ford, the Democrat who introduced the bill, said he expects it to free up the court systems and reduce the number of people who receive criminal background histories for possessing small amounts of cannabis.
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Marijuana Holds Top 50 Spots In Questions For Obama

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By on Culture, News

Photo: 8000 Credit

​Change.org is once again asking the American public for questions for President Obama, based on their top concerns. This time it’s in the form of “Your Interview with the President, hosted on YouTube. And once again, marijuana legalization questions are dominating the polling, by one account nailing down the top 50 spots based on popular vote.

But unsurprisingly, the subject of marijuana doesn’t show up anywhere on the YouTube site — unless you do some sorting.
Rather than being allowed to actually see the obvious popularity of marijuana law reform, visitors have to click “All Questions” and then click “Sort By Popularity” to see that all the questions with the most votes relate to cannabis prohibition in some form.
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Pro-Drug Test Lt. Gov.: Helping Poor Like Feeding Stray Animals

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By on News

Photo: Playahata
Fox News is gonna love this guy.

​South Carolina Lt. Governor Andre Bauer, as part of an argument that people should lose government benefits if they fail drug tests, drew a comparison between government help for poor people and “feeding stray animals” — who, he added, “breed.”

“My grandmother was not a highly educated woman, but she told me as a small child to quit feeding stray animals,” Bauer said during a town hall meeting, reports Brian Montopoli at CBS News. “You know why? Because they breed. You’re facilitating the problem if you give an animal or a person ample food supply.”
“They will reproduce, especially ones that don’e think much further than that,” Lt. Gov. Bauer continued. “And so what you’ve got to do is you’ve got to curtail that type of behavior. They don’t know any better.”
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Medical Marijuana Bill Introduced In Delaware; Montel Supports

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By on Legislation, Medical

Photo: Pocketburgers.com

​Delaware, ​”The First State,” could become the 16th to legalize medical marijuana.

State Senator Margaret Rose Henry and three Senate co-sponsors on Tuesday introduced SB 17 in the Delaware State Senate, calling for a common sense approach to providing compassionate care for seriously ill patients seeking relief with medical marijuana. Rep. Helene Keeley is the prime sponsor in the House, with eight co-sponsoring House members on the bill.

Montel Williams, a popular former talk show host and multiple sclerosis patient, attended Tuesday’s legislative session to meet with lawmakers and the Governor to urge them to support SB 17. Neuropathic pain associated with MS is one of the ailments for which marijuana has been shown to provide relief.
Passage of the bill would allow Delaware patients suffering from several devastating illnesses to receive medical marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation.
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