Legalization of Marijuana

By Phil Daigle My friend, Bill is dying of cancer. He probably has two or three days left. He's not conscious and while the caretakers say that he can recognize my voice, I doubt it. He's being given a lot of drugs including morphine, but they don't seem to give him peace. His body struggles as if he is trying to free himself from unseen restraints. Perhaps he's pain-free, but he definitely does not seem comfortable. However, I was able to say goodbye to Bill with a smile on my face because of something his wife told me a few minutes earlier. She said, ... Read Full Story

Stanford Progressive VIA CANNABIS NEWS California -- Many advocates of legalizing or decriminalizing marijuana feel Obama has abandoned them. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is a consistent warrior against decriminalization. Attorney General Eric Holder has a history of opposing drug policy reforms and considers the adult use of marijuana equivalent to public nuisance. Even Joe Biden, when asked about pain management and medical cannabis, responded that “there's got to be a better answer than marijuana.” But the reality is that the Obama administration has turned the tides in favor of legalization and decriminalization in a much stronger and subtler way than open ... Read Full Story

For those about to Spark, Read this before you get distracted! Not only is April 20th traditionally a day where pot smokers smoke the pot that they already intended to smoke in the exact same quantity that they normally would, but it is a day when you can say, "4:20 Dude" while doing so. However, this year, 4/20 has even more significance. Today, The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws Foundation (NORML Foundation) has launched a nationwide ad campaign to promote awareness regarding the need to decriminalize cannabis. Check out the fantastic ad here. Legalization: Yes We Can And just for fun, ... Read Full Story

The U.S. Supreme Court handed medical marijuana patients and advocates a resounding victory on Monday, refusing to hear a case brought by San Diego County, which has long chafed at implementing statewide medical marijuana laws. The state of California, in an effort to systematize the 1996 voter-approved initiative, required localities to implement identification card programs for patients with doctor approval in 2004. Such ID cards are required to enter medical marijuana shops in California and can be shown to police officers who find patients in possession of marijuana. San Diego County, however, argued that the federal ban on marijuana trumps the state law, meaning ... Read Full Story

It’s been known by the government since 1974 that marijuana may play a role in cancer prevention but the government dismissed the information…..I can only assume they did so because it didn’t suit their predetermined agenda of a war on drugs. I wonder how many lives could have been saved or suffering averted had this information been made public and acted on. One would almost think that curing cancer really isn’t a major priority for our government or our medical community. I believe the government dismissed this information because we have a profit driven health care community and an empire building drug enforcement community. ... Read Full Story

Face transplant patient regains self-confidence The woman who received the first-ever near-total face transplant in the United States told her doctor she has regained her self-confidence, said Dr. Maria Siemionow, head of plastic surgery research at the Cleveland Clinic and leader of the transplant team. The patient, who prefers to be anonymous, is finally able to breathe through her nose, smell, eat solid foods and drink out of a cup, Siemionow told participants of the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Chicago over the weekend. The complex surgery, a 22-hour procedure, took place in December at the Cleveland ... Read Full Story

Huffington Post VIA Cannabis News USA -- April 20 is "National Pot Smoking Day." It's a day where people across the world celebrate in the conspicuous consumption of the magical herb, marijuana. It's an unofficial counterculture holiday that is based on the simple concept of smoking some cannabis and being happy. The history of its origin is somewhat cloudy. I found some interesting theories into the beginning of this toker's holiday. The most convincing account was recorded in the San Francisco Chronicle. According to the editor of High Times, Steven Hager, the term "420" originated at San Rafael High School, in 1971, among a ... Read Full Story