By Michael Bachara, OCTA 2012, Sensible Oregon and OMPI Supporter

Portland, OR – This weekend, Portland experienced solidarity from multiple cannabis legalization groups as hundreds assembled from across the region to have their voices heard in the 13th Annual Global Cannabis March through the streets of downtown. Complete with a police escort, marchers began and ended in Portland's living room, Pioneer Courthouse Square.

Members of Oregon National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (Oregon NORML), The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, Oregon Green Free, National Green Friends and many others participated in the annual event, which is held every year on the first Saturday in May.

As Oregon hemp and cannabis activists move forward with multiple initiatives for November and beyond, it is time for a common bond to unite us all. The legalization of cannabis has an optimistic chance this year to make the Oregon ballot as the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (OCTA) and Oregon Marijuana Policy Initiative (OMPI) both bear down for the final stretch in signature gathering efforts.

Both OCTA and OMPI have until July 6, 2012 to turn in the required number of signatures, and each campaign is confident they can make it, but will need active participation from Oregon voters.

By SF Gate Staff

The Department of Justice maintains that there has been no change in the Obama administration's medical marijuana policy. President Obama recently told Rolling Stone, "I never made a commitment that somehow we were going to give carte blanche to large-scale producers and operators of marijuana - and the reason is, because it's against federal law."

Yet it also was against federal law in 2008, when candidate Obama did say he would not "use Justice Department resources to try and circumvent state laws" authorizing medical marijuana. Today, the Department of Justice is waging a full-throated war against medical marijuana dispensaries in California and other states that have legalized it.

In October, a group of California U.S. attorneys announced that they would focus on medical marijuana outlets. They've been raiding area dispensaries ever since. Last week, the office of San Francisco U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag stepped up its offensive by going to federal court to force the landlords of Novato's Green Door Wellness Education Center and Green Tiger dispensary to forfeit their properties.

Download & Print GCMXIII Poster

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Correspondent/Oregon NORML
Photo by LK, Hemp News Correspondent/Oregon NORML

Over two hundred cities world wide join Portland for the Global Cannabis March on Saturday, May 5, 2012. Proponents will assemble in Pioneer Courthouse Square to march at "High Noon" through downtown Portland (Map Below), accompanied by a police escort.

Scott Gordon, Hemp Director for Oregon NORML reports, "We are looking for at least 3,000 people to show up and flex their rights. Anything less than that is unacceptable."

"Polls show that fifty percent of Americans agree that it is time to end cannabis prohibition. We need your support; come and be a part of the Global Cannabis March," is the call to action from Madeline Martinez, Executive Director of Oregon NORML.

Speakers for the rally immediately following the march include Martinez, Paul Loney and Anna Diaz who are members of the board of Oregon NORML along with attorney Leland Berger and Scott Gordon from NORML Rocks.

By Grant Butler, The Oregonian
Photo by Stephanie Yao/The Oregonian

At the digital kitchen table, today's hot topics include hemp seeds, which pack a ton of nutrition in a tiny package, plus more evidence that eating more fruits and vegetables fights diabetes.

Hemp seeds -- the other "superfood": We spend a lot of time in Foodday talking about "superfoods," those nutrient-dense foods that are loaded with vitamins and minerals, and may have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities that help fight everything from inflammation to cancer. While kale, lentils and quinoa have had plenty of attention, Dreena Burton shines a light on hemp seeds in her new blog Plant-Powered Foods. Before launching into predictable jokes about Grateful Dead concerts and tie-dyed t-shirts, listen to what she says about what hemp seeds deliver: "Complete protein, essential fatty acids, chlorophyll, antioxidants, and other vitamins and minerals, an almost perfect balance of the essential fatty acids!"

I've been tossing them on salads and soups for several years, and I like the faintly nutty flavor they deliver. She's got other ideas that never dawned on me:

* Stir into non-dairy yogurt
* Add to cold cereals and granola
* Stir into warm oatmeal
* Add to batters for pancakes, muffins, quick breads and cookies
* Blend into shakes and smoothies

In Oregon, you can find hemp seeds at Whole Foods Markets, New Seasons Market, many food coops and health food stores.

By JONATHAN J. COOPER, Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. — Of the thousands of laws that Oregon's attorney general enforces or interprets, the one allowing medical marijuana has lit up the campaign for that office more than any other.

In a Democratic primary where the candidates agree on many things, their differences over marijuana stand out.

It's anyone's guess whether the pot vote will be enough to tip the scales. But no Republicans are seeking the job, so Democrats alone will choose the state's top lawyer in the May 15 primary.

Former federal prosecutor Dwight Holton has called Oregon's marijuana law a "train wreck," and he was the U.S. Attorney for Oregon when federal agents raided marijuana farms that were legal under state law.

His rival, retired Court of Appeals judge Ellen Rosenblum, has staked out a mellower view, saying she'll make marijuana enforcement a low priority.

She's hammered Holton over the issue with the help of a political action committee that wants to legalize the drug.

"Mr. Holton is out of step with his own party on this issue," said Bob Wolfe, director of Citizens for Sensible Law Enforcement. "He's trying to climb the career ladder on the backs of medical marijuana patients, and I don't find that acceptable."

Wolfe's committee was fined last week for allegedly violating initiative laws while gathering signatures for a ballot measure to legalize marijuana. He disputes the allegation.

By Associated Press

HARTFORD, Conn. — Legislation that would allow Connecticut adults to legally use marijuana for medical purposes continued Friday to move its way through the legislature, easily clearing a key committee.

The General Assembly's Finance Revenue and Bonding Committee on Friday passed the proposal 36-14. It now moves to the House of Representatives for further action.

Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton, a vocal opponent of legalizing medical marijuana, expressed concerns that the proposed system will end up costing the state more money. She proposed several amendments on Friday that would create accounts to help pay for everything from enforcement to addiction programs, but all failed.

"We will need to reinvigorate and support our anti-drug education program and certainly add some funds to our addiction programs for adults as well," said Boucher, who added that other states that have legalized the medical use of marijuana have seen an uptick in drug addiction issues.

Boucher continued to voice concerns that the legislation sends the wrong message to children.

"I think that we can agree that Connecticut students already have so many barriers to success," she said.

By Jacob Sullum, Reason Staff

Yesterday a federal judge ruled that distributing pamphlets about jury nullification—even in front of a courthouse—is not jury tampering. U.S. District Judge Kimba Wood dismissed a 2010 indictment against Julian P. Heicklen, a retired chemistry professor who was accused of violating Title 18, Section 1504, of the U.S. Code, which authorizes a jail sentence of up to six months for anyone who "attempts to influence the action or decision of any grand or petit juror of any court of the United States upon any issue or matter pending before such juror, or before the jury of which he is a member, or pertaining to his duties, by writing or sending to him any written communication, in relation to such issue or matter."

By Huffington Post Staff

Your plans to celebrate 4/20 this Friday could actually make the government some money, if only such activities were legal. That’s according to a bunch of economists, and some prominent ones too.

More than 300 economists, including three nobel laureates, have signed a petition calling attention to the findings of a paper by Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron, which suggests that if the government legalized marijuana it would save $7.7 billion annually by not having to enforce the current prohibition on the drug. The report added that legalization would save an additional $6 billion per year if the government taxed marijuana at rates similar to alcohol and tobacco.

That's as much as $13.7 billion per year, but it's still minimal when compared to the federal deficit, which hit $1.5 trillion last year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

While the economists don't directly call for pot legalization, the petition asks advocates on both sides to engage in an "open and honest debate" about the benefits of pot prohibition.

"At a minimum, this debate will force advocates of current policy to show that prohibition has benefits sufficient to justify the cost to taxpayers, foregone tax revenues, and numerous ancillary consequences that result from marijuana prohibition," the petition states.

In Kentucky, lobbying effort for legalizing versatile plant rolls on

By Associated Press Staff

LEXINGTON, Ky. — Hemp isn't legal in Kentucky yet, but the eclectic mix of people at a recent seminar in Lexington was evidence that support for the versatile plant may be taking root.

One by one, elected officials stepped forward to promote the virtues of hemp production, staking out a position that once might have sown political trouble back home. They were cheered by liberals and libertarian-leaning conservatives alike.

"We've come a long way," said state Sen. Joey Pendleton, who has sponsored a string of unsuccessful bills seeking to reintroduce hemp in the Bluegrass state. "The first year I had this, it was lonely."

Kentucky once was a leading producer of industrial hemp, a tall, leafy plant with a multitude of uses that has been outlawed for decades because of its association with marijuana. Those seeking to legalize the plant argue that the change would create a new crop for farmers, replacing a hemp supply now imported from Canada and other countries.

The plant can be used to make paper, biofuels, clothing, lotions and other products.

Despite bipartisan support, the latest hemp measures failed again this year in the Kentucky General Assembly. But this time, hemp advocates think they have momentum on their side and vow to press on with their campaign to legalize the crop.

View Larger Map

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Correspondent

WHAT: The Silver Tour - Teaching Seniors the Benefits of Medical Marijuana

WHEN: Tuesday, April 3rd, 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. E.S.T.

WHERE: Lake Worth’s Temple L’Dor V-Dor
7306 Lake Worth Rd.
Lake Worth, Florida 33467
(See Google Map Above)

ADMISSION: Free

Lake Worth’s well known civil rights attorney and popular Rabbi, Barry Silver, is hosting The Silver Tour at Lake Worth’s Temple L’Dor V-Dor. Medical marijuana is the hot topic of the show. Audiences will hear the facts from doctors, patients, lawyers and the man who filed Florida’s first bill to legalize medical marijuana, Lake Worth Representative Jeff Clemens.

Jeffrey Head, LA Times

Woody Harrelson championed the environmental benefits of hemp. Giorgio Armani and Calvin Klein incorporated it into their collections. Now a company promoting hemp as the eco-building material of the moment said it wants to build California's first hemp house.

Hemp Technologies said it wants to use hemp-based materials to construct a 500-square-foot structure at the ruins of Knapp's Castle near Santa Barbara. The castle, completed in 1920, was built for Union Carbide founder George Owen Knapp but destroyed by wildfire in 1940. Since then, all that has remained on the property are the sandstone blocks outlining the once-grand estate.

The principal material for the project is Hempcrete, made of the woody internal stem of the Cannabis sativa plant, which is processed into chips and mixed with a lime-based binder. That concoction is then sprayed on, poured into slabs or formed into blocks like concrete to create the shell of a building. Interior surfaces are plastered, and exterior surfaces are stuccoed.

“The walls are to be framed and earthquake-braced internally with lumber,” said Greg Flavall, Hemp Technologies' co-founder, who added that “hemp is very close in cellulosic value to wood.” The material helps to keep structures warm in winter and cool in summer, he said.

By Angela Brown, Portage la Prairie News

Hemp Oil Canada Inc., which is based in Manitoba, announced this week that it is the first in the world to gain international food safety accreditation for hemp food.

"This is good news for Hemp Oil Canada and the hemp industry as a whole," said Alphonsus Utioh, product development manager with Food Development Centre in Portage la Prairie, "because it would allow this company to be able to access more markets for companies that require hemp suppliers with this accreditation."

The FDC makes a number of hemp products itself and encourages the promotion for the hemp industry.

"The Food Development Centre has worked with the hemp industry for quite some time now," said Utioh. "We have worked with the industry to produce the various products."

The Food Development Centre is currently using hemp product in the development of muesli cereal mix, which will be coming out into the market sometime in the future.

As well, the FDC has been using hemp for the development of its nutrition bars.

"Hemp is known for its Omega-3 and Omega-6 — for the Essential Fatty Acids," said Utioh. "The hemp protein also has high digestibility value."

Utioh explained with Hemp Oil Canada receiving International food safety accreditation it will encourage more companies to develop product with hemp.

By Simon Johanson, Sydney Morning Herald

TWO eco-friendly houses are rising from the ground in suburban Melbourne built from a plant normally associated with 1960s hippie heaven: hemp.

In an Australian-mainland first, the walls of the semi-detached homes in trendy inner-city Northcote will be made from the cannabis-based building product Hempcrete, pioneered by a Queensland company for its carbon-neutral properties.

The eight-star green rated homes are the inspiration of two medical practitioners, a father and daughter team who will live side by side with their three generations in the one construction.

Along with the hemp walls, the architect-designed homes will have a solid rammed-earth dividing wall, double-glazed windows, underground water tanks and grey-water recycling, as well as solar panels for electricity, hot water and hydronic heating.

Michelle Leadston and her father, Bill, bought the large block in Northcote three years ago intent on building two sustainable homes for their families to live in.

"I've always said I'm going to look after my parents when they get old," she said. "This was the most convenient option. The babysitter's next door. And it's not too close. There's a big wall in between."

Both families wanted to share a common backyard and other design features such as lower, child-friendly windows and intimate, internal courtyards, said Dorit Przyborowski of Steffen Welsch Architects.

"The Attorney General is the people's lawyer, and I have the depth and the range of experience to be a strong advocate for the people of Oregon." Ellen Rosenblum

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Correspondent

As Oregon moves closer toward marijuana legalization in November with the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act 2012 (OCTA 2012) and the Oregon Marijuana Policy Initiative 2012 (OMPI 2012) petition drives, the race for Oregon Attorney General on May 15th between Appeals Court Judge Ellen Rosenblum and former acting U.S. Attorney Dwight Holton will be crucial to the implementation of the cannabis legalization initiatives.

Earlier this month, in a debate at the Eugene City Club, Rosenblum said she supported the state’s current medical marijuana law as one that "provides vulnerable citizens with the medicine they needed to cope with their diagnoses."

On the other hand, Holton said the law is actually "a train wreck, putting marijuana in the hands of people, kids, who are not using it for pain management purposes. Of 50,000 card holders, 30,000 got them from 10 clinics. We’ve got a broken system."

By Ms. Sylence Dogood, Hemp News Correspondent

Those who continue to debate the issue of marijuana legalization in support of its prohibition by using false propaganda created in the 1930's to manipulate voters by fear, only succeed in talking themselves deeper into a hole, because research has shown that propaganda to be mostly lies. By educating yourself on the merits of the cannabis plant for its medicinal and industrial properties, you will learn that all of the wasted money thrown into the war on drugs must stop, and as a global community we should be harnessing the benefits to our community and our economy by openly allowing the growth, use and sale of industrial hemp and medical and recreational cannabis.

According to Paul Stanford, Chief Petitioner of the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act 2012 in the attached video from KATU Channel 2 News "Your Voice, Your Vote" debate, "We want to take the stigma out of marijuana and allow it to be a real medicine that doctors can prescribe through pharmacies." Taking the stigma from marijuana is a matter of education about cannabis and telling the truth rather than spouting propagandist lies.

Wasting Our Tax Money

By The Associated Press

FRANKFORT, Ky. — Lawmakers have grown bolder in their push to allow farmers to grow hemp in Kentucky, a Bible-belt state where the issue was once considered politically taboo.

Growing hemp is illegal under federal law, but supporters want to lift the state ban with hopes of Kentucky becoming a leading grower of the versatile crop if the federal ban is lifted.

The House Agriculture and Small Business Committee held a hearing Wednesday on two bills pending in the state Legislature. Neither bill was called for a vote.

Most Kentucky political leaders have dismissed the issue in the past because of fears that voters might somehow conclude that they’re also pro-marijuana. But the issue was a centerpiece in last year’s race for agriculture commissioner, which was won decisively by Jamie Comer, a hemp proponent.

Comer said growing industrial hemp would allow expansion of Kentucky farm markets and create jobs in rural communities.

Industrial hemp, a cousin to marijuana, is used to make fuel, cattle feed, textiles, paper, lotion, cosmetics and other products. Though it contains trace amounts of the mind-altering chemical tetrahydrocannabinol that makes marijuana intoxicating, it remains illegal in the U.S.

By Kevin Wheatley, State-Journal

Industrial hemp could make a comeback as one of Kentucky’s top cash crops if lawmakers legalize the harvest of marijuana’s botanical cousin, legislators have told a House committee.

The Agricultural and Small Business Committee on Wednesday heard from key sponsors of two pieces of legislation –House bills 272 and 286 – that would make hemp a legal crop if the federal government lifts restrictions on it.

The bills didn’t come to a vote, but Rep. Tom McKee, a Cynthiana Democrat and the committee’s chairman, said the discussion would continue so both sides of the argument could be heard.

Sponsors spoke for about 30 minutes, highlighting primarily the many legal products produced by industrial hemp, such as textiles, paper, auto plastics, rope, construction material, cosmetics and feed for cattle.

The trickle-down effect would create 17,000 jobs and result in an economic impact between $400 million and $500 million, said Sen. Joey Pendleton, D-Hopkinsville, quoting a University of Kentucky survey from years ago.

“We’re sitting on the cutting edge and, to me, on a gold mine here of what we can do in the Commonwealth of Kentucky to create jobs and to give our agriculture people another opportunity to grow something,” he said.

Eighty-five percent of industrial hemp produced in Canada is shipped to the U.S., and China sends a large amount here as well, Pendleton added.

Country music legend has long been a supporter of ending cannabis prohibition.

By Bonnie King, Salem-News.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - The Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (OCTA 2012) has been gaining momentum as the time grows closer to the deadline for signatures to be submitted to the State, but nothing compares to the recent endorsement by the legendary country music star Willie Nelson.

"I am very honored that Willie has given his full endorsement for OCTA 2012," said Paul Stanford, author of the bill. "While he was prepping for his show at the new Performing Arts Center in Las Vegas, he took the time to cut a 30-second ad for the campaign which will be appearing everywhere possible in the coming days and weeks." (See Video above)

"Willie and I met back in 1990 and he has been a supporter of our efforts here in Oregon for a long time."

Willie Nelson and the late Gatewood Galbraith went on a well known historic road trip in the early 1990s. The group drove Galbraith's biodiesel–fueled red Mercedes Benz across Kentucky, spreading the word about the future of the biodiesel industry. Stanford followed them in a caravan of 20+ cars, CNN and other TV News crews in tow, from Lexington, to Frankfort, the state capitol, and on to a benefit concert Willie did for Gatewood's first gubernatorial bid in Louisville.

By CBS NEWS

MIAMI, FL - A South Florida man is setting out to promote the use of medical marijuana.

Billboards are popping up along Sample Road in Broward County that are targeting senior citizens.

The more ornate billboard says, 'Legalize Medical Marijuana. I'm a patient not a criminal' and another depicts an elderly person in a wheelchair.

Down the road, another billboard reads 'Reschedule Medical Marijuana, one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man." CBS4's Cynthia Demos spoke with folks who drove by the billboard.

"For my family I don't like it," said Roseanne Alves.

"Marijuana is a gateway drug," said Zed Castro.

The billboards are the work of 69-year-old Robert Platshorn.

Platshorm said he spent 30 years in prison for smuggling marijuana, a substance he says can help people and shouldn't be illegal. He doesn't want others sent to prison for what he calls, 'not committing a crime', so he is trying to make it legal.

"The billboard is a way to bring attention to the cause," Platshorn said. In the four years he's been out of prison he started his cause, "The Silver Tour" to promote the legalization of marijuana for seniors.

"They have the time, the inclination and the need," he said.

Irvin Rosenfels, 59, is one of Platshorn's biggest supporters.

CARLY FLANDRO, Chronicle Staff Writer

Randy Warburton is working to decriminalize marijuana for those age 21 and older, and he’s doing it for his grandkids.

Warburton said at least two of them will probably use marijuana, and he’d like them to be able to access it safely.

Warburton is one of six coordinators across the state working to get an initiative on the November ballot that would create a constitutional amendment allowing adults 21 and older to use the substance. Wednesday, he and volunteers stood outside the Community Food Co-op, soliciting signatures from shoppers.

More than 48,000 signatures need to be gathered statewide, and they must represent 10 percent of Montana’s qualified voters — including 10 percent of the voters in each of the 40 legislative house districts. The signatures must be collected by June 22.

Warburton and volunteers only recently started collecting signatures in the area, and in their first week doing so, collected 339. In Warburton's first half hour sitting outside the Co-op, he and a helper collected about 10. And last week at a Pinky and the Floyd concert, 35 signatures were gathered in only 30 minutes.

Kate Koenig signed her name to the petition Wednesday, and she said there are “a million reasons” why marijuana should be legal.

"You can't die from it, it helps people, it stimulates the economy," she said. "Just think how many people in Bozeman don’t have a job that could."

By AP, Staff

RICHMOND, Va. - Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson says marijuana should be legalized and treated like alcohol because the government's war on drugs has failed.

The outspoken evangelical Christian and host of "The 700 Club" on the Virginia Beach-based Christian Broadcasting Network he founded said the war on drugs is costing taxpayers billions of dollars. He said people should not be sent to prison for marijuana possession.

The 81-year-old first became a self-proclaimed "hero of the hippie culture" in 2010 when called for ending mandatory prison sentences for marijuana possession convictions.

"I just think it's shocking how many of these young people wind up in prison and they get turned into hardcore criminals because they had a possession of a very small amount of a controlled substance," Robertson said on his show March 1. "The whole thing is crazy. We've said, `Well, we're conservatives, we're tough on crime.' That's baloney."

Robertson's support for legalizing pot appeared in a New York Times story published Thursday. His spokesman confirmed to AP that Robertson supports legalization with regulation. Robertson was not made available for an interview.

By Noelle Crombie, The Oregonian

Twice in the past two years, Gary Storck has boarded Amtrak's Empire Builder outside his hometown of Madison, Wis., and headed west to Oregon. The trip takes about 40 hours and costs more then $1,000 – all for something that makes the illegal legal.

He pays a visit to one of the state's 15 or so medical marijuana clinics, fills out an application and sees a doctor. Storck walks out an hour later, the proud holder of an Oregon-issued medical marijuana card. It's a process he'll have to go through each year to keep the card.

Storck, 56, is one of hundreds of out-of-staters who each year make an unusual pilgrimage to Oregon – the only state in the country to issue medical marijuana cards to non-residents.

"It's not a bad place to visit," said Storck, who has used marijuana for four decades to treat glaucoma and other chronic ailments. "It lifts my spirits to be in a place where medical cannabis is legal and life goes on."

Some users of medical marijuana go through the effort to acquire an Oregon card because it allows them to use the drug legally when they're in the state. Others hope it provides some legal protection if they're arrested in a state where medical marijuana is outlawed. Many out-of-staters see an Oregon card as important recognition that their use of the drug is legally recognized somewhere in the United States.

By Will DuPree, Video Journalist

JONESBORO, AR (KAIT) – A petition is circulating statewide to allow the sick and dying access to medical marijuana with a doctor's recommendation.

The Arkansans for Compassionate Care, or ACC, are encouraging others to support the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Act, which would decriminalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

"It's common sense," said Ryan Denhem, campaign director. "It's time to have a policy like this in Arkansas."

Denham spoke to Region 8 News by phone Wednesday from Fayetteville, where the ACC is located. He says a growing number of volunteers has helped the group collect more than 20,000 signatures since May 2011, but that's a third of what's needed to get the issue on the ballot in November.

"If that passes, it will allow patients a safe environment, a tightly regulated, controlled environment, to purchase medical marijuana with a doctor's supervision," Denhem said.

By Lauren Maschmedt, NBC Montana

BOZEMAN, Mont. -- Montana medical marijuana supporters are campaigning for a new petition drive.

This one would legalize marijuana across the board.

The petition aims to put Constitutional Initiative 110 (CI-110) on the ballot in the 2012 elections.

CI-110 calls for an amendment to the 'adult rights' article in the Montana Constitution.

As it stands, the article states adults have the right to purchase, consume or possess alcohol.

Supporters want the article expanded to include marijuana.

It classifies adults as over 18, but of course under federal law, no one can possess alcohol under 21.

Trained petitioner Rick Whatman said the over 21 law would apply to marijuana, rather than allowing it over 18.

"I think with all the support that we have on this initiative, that we should do very well with it" Whatman said.

Whatman was a trained petitioner and supporter for Initiative Referendum 124, which was backed by grassroots organization Patients for Reform, Not Repeal and put Senate Bill 423 on the November ballot.

At the end of the 2011 session, state lawmakers passed SB 423, which placed strict new regulations on medical marijuana.

Seeing the success at gathering enough signatures for IR-124, Whatman said he has no doubt they'll be able to do it again.

And the process will be streamlined the second time around, he said.