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Reddit's Owner Refuses To Run Legalization Ads; Staff Revolts

Toke of the Town - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 21:22
​First, there was Facebook's censorship of marijuana leaves in legalization ads on its social network. Then came Google's decision to accept and run nearly identical ads. Now, a announcement that social news site Reddit's corporate owner, Conde Nast, to Just Say Now that it will not run any display advertising relating to marijuana legalization has resulted in an near-insurrection among the site's users -- and administrators, who said they were "blindsided" by the move.That decision, unlike Facebook's, pertains not just to images of marijuana leaves, but to any ads supporting legalization of marijuana, according to the "corporate offices" of Reddit's parent company, Conde Nast. Continue reading "Reddit's Owner Refuses To Run Legalization Ads; Staff Revolts" >

Man Barricades Self In House After Cops Ask About Marijuana

Toke of the Town - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 21:14
​Here's a case study in how not to react to questioning. A man barricaded himself in his home after Kentucky State Police stopped by to "ask him a few questions" about growing marijuana, police said.Deputies and state troopers working on a marijuana eradication team said they stopped by the home of Brian Marrone, 36, of Burlington, Ky., just after 2 p.m. on Thursday to ask about the possibility of pot plants being spotted on his property, reports WLWT.At first, nobody answered the door, until a woman came out of the home and told them a man was inside threatening his own life, according to Tom Scheben, spokesman for the Boone County Sheriff's Department, reports WCPO. Continue reading "Man Barricades Self In House After Cops Ask About Marijuana" >

Lawsuit Says Montana Med Pot Business Faked Patient Forms

Toke of the Town - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 20:36
​Three former employees of a Missoula, Montana medical marijuana business that has helped thousands of patients get cannabis authorizations sued its owner Thursday, claiming that he ordered hundreds of card applications to be falsified.The wrongful-discharge lawsuit filed in state District Court in Missoula also accused Montana Caregivers Network owner Jason Christ of verbally abusing employees, using company funds for personal expenses, driving a company van while smoking marijuana and creating a "hostile work environment" that essentially forced the three workers to quit on June 18, reports Mike Dennison at the Billings Gazette. Continue reading "Lawsuit Says Montana Med Pot Business Faked Patient Forms" >

MEDICAL POT CLINICS BUSTED FOR ILLEGAL SALES

Oakland County NORML News - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 19:20
Newshawk: Richard Lake Pubdate: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 Source: Detroit News (MI) Webpage: http://detnews.com/article/20100827/METRO02/8270393 Copyright: 2010 The Detroit News Contact: http://detnews.com/article/99999999/INFO/71011004 Website: http://detnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/126 Authors: Mike Martindale and Jennifer Chambers, The Detroit News Cited: Michigan Medical Marijuana Association http://www.michiganmedicalmarijuana.org/ Referenced: Michigan Medical Marijuana Act http://drugsense.org/url/8mvr7sW8 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?275 (Cannabis - Michigan) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Michigan+medical+marijuana MEDICAL POT CLINICS BUSTED FOR ILLEGAL SALES Oakland CO. Authorities Arrest 15 After Two Raids in Ferndale, Waterford Pontiac -- Authorities raided two medical marijuana businesses and arrested 15 people for allegedly making illegal sales, in a crackdown announced Thursday by Oakland County officials. The arrests followed an undercover investigation that found marijuana being sold illegally, often without buyers showing state-issued medical marijuana cards, officials said. The cards are distributed to people whose doctors have prescribed marijuana for pain relief. Raids Wednesday night targeted Clinical Relief, a Ferndale clinic, and Everybody's Cafe, a Waterford Township restaurant that runs an after-hours "compassion club" behind closed doors. Arrests and drug seizures also occurred at Metro Detroit homes and a Macomb County warehouse, officials said. "This is Michigan, not some Cheech and Chong movie," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said Thursday at a news conference. Deputies displayed seized items that included bagged and candied marijuana worth $750,000, hash oil, other drugs and growing equipment. The arrests were made for offenses ranging from possession to sales and distribution of marijuana and include business operators, employees, and customers, including some with state-issued medical marijuana cards. All are jailed and expected to be charged today. The arrests left some medical marijuana cardholders angry and confused. "This is nothing but harassment," said Thomas Smith, 28, of Auburn Hills, a member of the Waterford Area Compassion Club, which met at Everybody's Cafe to use marijuana. "These are good people and haven't done anything illegal." Bouchard said the cafe sells memberships for $20 a year, and state-certified patients and caregivers can participate. The club has about 450 members. Michigan Law Different

SHERIFF EXPLAINS ACTION AGAINST MEDICAL MARIJUANA SELLERS, GROWERS

Oakland County NORML News - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 19:19
Newshawk: Richard Lake Pubdate: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 Source: Daily Tribune, The (Royal Oak, MI) Copyright: 2010 The Daily Tribune Contact: editor@dailytribune.com Website: http://www.dailytribune.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1579 Author: Dave Phillips, For the Daily Tribune Cited: Sheriff Michael Bouchard http://www.oakgov.com/sheriff/ Cited: Prosecutor Jessica Cooper http://www.oakgov.com/prosatty/ Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Michigan+medical+marijuana Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?275 (Cannabis - Michigan) SHERIFF EXPLAINS ACTION AGAINST MEDICAL MARIJUANA SELLERS, GROWERS PONTIAC - One day after an investigation that resulted in 15 arrests, the closure of two medical marijuana dispensaries and the seizure of approximately $750,000 worth of marijuana products, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard spoke about what he sees as a growing problem. "This is Michigan. This is not a Cheech and Chong movie," Bouchard said during a Thursday afternoon press conference. Ferndale's Clinical Relief medical marijuana dispensary, 362 Hilton, was among the establishments that were raided Wednesday by undercover officers with Oakland County's Narcotics Enforcement Team. Police action may not have come as a surprise to employees there. Bouchard said the Sheriff's Office recently warned those at the facility that police believed they were participating in illegal activity. Undercover officers allegedly bought marijuana at the facility without a medical marijuana card, which is required for a legal purchase of the drug. Marijuana also was being sold in the parking lot, and undercover officers witnessed hand-to-hand drug deals, Bouchard said. Other drugs were also confiscated, and the owner had solicited others to buy high-end marijuana to sell in the establishment, he said. "There were many commonalties with what we regularly see in drug houses," Bouchard said. "One place had live alligators walking around protecting the product."

NORML Conference: Key Speakers, Agenda and Earlybird Discounts Concluding

NORML Blog - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 18:29

Key Speakers At 2010 NORML Conference in Portland, Oregon: Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson, Congressman Earl Blumenauer and Best-Selling Travel Author and TV Host Rick Steves

There are three important components in this 2010 NORML conference alert:

-Key Speakers

-Early-bird Pricing For Registration Is About To Expire

-Conference Agenda and Speakers Announced

-Key Speakers-

NORML is honored and proud to have the former two-term Governor of New Mexico, Gary Johnson (R) address the 39th annual national NORML conference on Friday, September 10 at the Governor Hotel in Portland, Oregon.

Gary Johnson became the first sitting governor in 2002 to speak at a NORML national conference in Washington. To date, few elected policymakers—and no governor in American history—have been more politically supportive of ending cannabis prohibition than Governor Johnson. As New Mexico’s term-limited governor from 1994-2002, Governor Johnson championed numerous drug policy reforms, including legalizing medical cannabis.

Governor Johnson, a man of both big political ideas and financial means, is an early and declared candidate to be the next U.S. president in 2012 (running a decidedly libertarian-leaning campaign as a Republican) who favors substantial changes to America’s longest and most expensive war—the war on some drugs.

Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D) is a long-serving member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon, who is a co-signer of current federal legislation that would reschedule cannabis to allow its medical use by qualified patients.

Rick Steves, a best-selling travel author and NORML Advisory board member is a longtime supporter of cannabis law reform based on his travel experiences and personal observations, who, in 2008 hosted an ACLU television program called ‘Marijuana: It’s Time for a Conversation’.

-Early-bird Pricing for Registration Is About To Expire; Register Now, Save Money-

After a one month-long period promoting early-bird discount pricing to pre-register for the conference, prices are about to take a turn upwards. Register now to save, especially if you’ve already reserved a room at the sold-out Governor Hotel, overflow hotel Red Lion or live in the greater Portland area. Discount pre-registration pricing ends at midnight (Pacific) Sunday, August 29.

-Conference Agenda and Speakers Announced-

The 39th annual NORML conference, ‘Just Say Now!’, continues the tradition of inclusiveness, expertise, passion, devotion, experience and celebration of all things cannabis-related—where over fifty speakers from across America will speak on matters ranging from legalization, medicalization, hemp, history, politics, science, law, business and culture.

Don’t delay if you want to be assured a seat at America’s oldest and largest pro-marijuana conference, as it will likely sell out soon (the host hotel and overflow hotels already have…).

Sponsorships and vending tables are still available. Deadline for sponsorships is Aug. 30 and vendors Sept. 7. Check out more conference details or pre-register at www.norml.org/conference

I hope to see you this September in Portland!

Discount pre-registration pricing ends at midnight (Pacific) Sunday, August 29.

Patients Held At Gunpoint In Michigan Medical Marijuana Raids

Toke of the Town - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 18:00
​"This is Michigan, not some Cheech and Chong movie," Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard bragged Thursday at a press conference where he proudly showed off seized items including bagged and candied marijuana he claimed was "worth $750,000," hash oil, and growing equipment.Two medical marijuana businesses were raided and 15 people were arrested in Michigan for allegedly making "illegal sales," according to the sheriff's department.Bouchard, a publicity-loving former Republican gubernatorial candidate, compared medical marijuana dispensary operators to "organized crime," and is widely viewed as wanting a test case to curtail the pot shops' activities.The raids, during which cancer patients and elderly cardholders were forced to the ground at gunpoint, left many medical marijuana patients confused and angry, report Mike Martindale and Jennifer Chambers of The Detroit News."This is a very disturbing story," said Michael Komorn of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, which has 16,000 members."Patients were held at gunpoint and dragged out," Komorn said. "This law was designed to protect patients and caregivers -- not expend our resources arresting patients and caregivers." Continue reading "Patients Held At Gunpoint In Michigan Medical Marijuana Raids" >

Surprise! Six US Drug Czars Oppose Prop 19

NORML Audio Stash - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 17:58

The worst circle you could pass a joint to in America. (America's Drug Czars, from HW Bush to Obama, clockwise from left in chronological order - Bennett, Martinez, Brown, McCaffrey, Walters, Kerlikowske - with their ideological progenitor, Harry J. Anslinger, Federal Bureau of Narcotics head from FDR to JFK.)

The LA Times printed an op-ed written by the former and current drug czars of Presidents (pot smoker) Barack Obama, (pot smoker) George W. Bush, (pot smoker) Bill Clinton, and George H.W. Bush. In the case of the current drug czar, Kerlikowske, this is no surprise, because it would be illegal of him not to oppose marijuana legalization:

(Drug WarRant) According to Title VII Office of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act of 1998: H11225:

Responsibilities. –The Director– [...]

(12) shall ensure that no Federal funds appropriated to the Office of National Drug Control Policy shall be expended for any study or contract relating to the legalization (for a medical use or any other use) of a substance listed in schedule I of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812) and take such actions as necessary to oppose any attempt to legalize the use of a substance (in any form) that–

  1. is listed in schedule I of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812); and
  2. has not been approved for use for medical purposes by the Food and Drug Administration;

Read that again.  Not only must Gil Kerlikowske take actions to oppose legalization, but he also has to ensure that federal money doesn’t go to scientists attempting to prove medical efficacy of cannabis.  Once marijuana was declared to be “bad”, the government is required to spend your tax money to tell you it is “bad”, spend your tax money to rebut the people who say it is “good”, and stifle any research using your tax money that would prove it is “good”.

It costs sixteen times more to keep pot illegal than the social cost of pot smoking. Drinkers cost society eight times more and smokers forty times more than tokers do.

Paul Armentano has already done a fantastic job slamming their thesis, which presents the following premises:

  • “the Dutch have dramatically reduced what at one time were thousands of shops to only a few hundred” – OK, but did they decide they should shut them all down and criminalize anyone caught with even a joint?  No, they maintain a system where adults can possess and use personal amounts of cannabis… because it works.
  • “legalizing marijuana would lead to more accidents and fatalities involving drivers under its influence” – even though all available studies show marijuana-using drivers to drive more slowly and take less risks.  Meanwhile, drunk drivers caused 11,773 deaths in 2008, yet nobody (but me) ever suggests mandatory breathalyzer valet parking at taverns or prohibiting alcohol altogether.
  • Legalization wouldn’t raise tax money because marijuana “is easy and cheap to cultivate… Why would people volunteer to pay high taxes on marijuana if it were legalized?” – you mean like the tomatoes and carrots I pay tax on at the grocery store?  Or the beer I pay tax on that I could easily brew at home?  Drug czars always think it is easy to cultivate marijuana; I’d like to see them deal with a spider mite outbreak.  I’d much rather buy weed at $100 an ounce than deal with spider mites… and so would the majority of tokers.
  • “For every dollar society collects in taxes on alcohol, for example, we end up spending eight more in social costs.” - so, then, you’re arguing to repeal the 21st Amendment, I guess?  It is no surprise alcohol and tobacco cost society more than they reap in taxes, because alcohol and tobacco are toxic and addictive; marijuana is not.
  • “Law enforcement officers do not currently focus much effort on arresting adults whose only crime is possessing small amounts of marijuana” - so, then, if you guys really put your hearts into it, you’d arrest more than 850,000 adults each year, 89% of them for mere possession of marijuana?

We don't really spend much time busting people who smoke pot... except for the 20 million we've arrested since 1970...

So let’s meet the authors – what else do they have to say about marijuana?

Gil Kerlikowske (Obama) – Was Seattle police chief, a city where his officers had been directed by voter initiative to treat marijuana as “lowest enforcement priority”, leading to an 80% decrease in marijuana arrests with no attendant increase in pot smoking.  He also served while Seattle Hempfest was gathering 200,000 people in a park every year, telling his officers to ignore the open pot smoking, with no serious public safety incidents.  The Seattle Times noted in 2003, “Kerlikowske said the number of cases his department handles has declined, down from 600 cases in 1998 to 418 cases in 2001.” If it is so innocuous you feel no need to arrest people for doing it, why should it remain a crime?

John P. Walters (W Bush) – Famous for saying “The fact is today, people don’t go to jail for the possession of marijuana. Finding somebody in jail or prison for possession of marijuana is like finding a unicorn. It doesn’t exist.” During his tenure, 6.2 million marijuana users were arrested nationwide… most of whom at least saw a holding cell as they were booked and some of whom spent significant time in a jail.  A few, an estimated 40,000 to 50,000, are still serving time.

States currently allowing, or considering to allow, Cheech & Chong to practice medicine.

Barry McCaffrey (Clinton) – McCaffrey, a former general, was infamous for calling medical marijuana “Cheech & Chong medicine”, despite the now 14 states that recognize it and groups like the American Medical Association and the American College of Physicians (you know, doctors, not generals).  Though he did say last year he was “100 percent for” medical marijuana, kinda, and that he’s cool with my outdoor grow (“If you’re 40 years old, and you’re living in Oregon, and you have 12 giant pot plants in the back of your log cabin, knock yourself out.”)

Lee P. Brown (Clinton) – Rebutting the “myths” of legalization, Brown wrote in 1994: In fact, effective enforcement serves to reduce drug supply, drive up prices, reduce the number of users and decrease the effects of chronic hard-core use.” In 1994, there were 4.83% of the American public using marijuana monthly.  Today, that percentage is 6.09%.  Around the beginning of Brown’s term, DEA estimated nationally about 3,000 metric tons of domestic marijuana production.  In 2006, California alone produced about 3,900 metric tons.  How’s that effective enforcement working out for ya?  (But he was right about that price.  I was buying eighths of an ounce of weed for $25 back in the Nineties – some folks are spending $75 an eighth now.)

"Me So Horny" - nearly as dangerous smoking a joint!

Bob Martinez (HW Bush) – After Martinez’ stint as Florida governor, where he tried to outlaw abortion, tried to execute 90 death row prisoners before their appeals had cleared, and succeeded in arresting rap group 2 Live Crew and arresting record store owners who sold their albums, Martinez became drug czar.  In 1999 he called on Florida mayors to oppose medical marijuana, saying “You can’t allow a foot to get through the door, because the whole body will go through eventually.” The theory here must be that you can’t let the foot of a dying puking elderly Floridian on chemotherapy through the door to smoke a joint so she can eat a meal, because it might lead to the body of some teenager smoking a joint at a 2 Live Crew concert (which he was going to do anyway, whether granny got her medical marijuana or not).

Bill Bennett (Clinton) – This is the guy who thinks you shouldn’t have the right to use medical marijuana in a state where it is legal, but had no problem gambling away $8 million in states where gambling is legal.  That $8 million came from proceeds of books like The Book of Virtues and The Broken Hearth: Reversing the Moral Collapse of the American Family. He defends his gambling addiction by claiming he’s a responsible adult who spent his own discretionary funds to engage in an enjoyable habit serviced by a profit-making business that caused him, his family, and society no harm.  Meanwhile, in 1989 on Larry King Live, he was agreeing with a caller who said we should “behead the damn drug dealers,” replying “I mean what the caller suggests is morally plausible. Legally, it’s difficult. But somebody selling drugs to a kid? Morally, I don’t have any problem with that at all.”

In case you're wondering, white folks are statistically more likely to be marijuana users than blacks and Hispanics.

I guess our drug czars have improved their lying about, er, I mean “actions as necessary to oppose any attempt to legalize” marijuana since the days of the first federal anti-drug preacher, Federal Bureau of Narcotics head Harry J. Anslinger (FD Roosevelt – Kennedy).  None of the recent drug czars says things like:

“Marihuana is a short cut to the insane asylum. Smoke marihuana cigarettes for a month and what was once your brain will be nothing but a storehouse of horrid specters. Hasheesh makes a murderer who kills for the love of killing out of the mildest mannered man who ever laughed at the idea that any habit could ever get him….”

“There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result from marijuana usage. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers and any others.”

“Two Negros took a girl fourteen years old and kept her for two days under the influence of hemp. Upon recovery she was found to be suffering from syphilis.”

“Colored students at the Univ. of Minn. partying with (white) female students, smoking [marijuana] and getting their sympathy with stories of racial persecution. Result: pregnancy”

Today the ideological heirs of Harry J. Anslinger continue to support the prohibition that makes murderers out of Mexican drug trafficking organizations that have killed 28,000 in three years. The Six Drug Czars support the prohibition that locks up “Negroes” and Hispanics at rates far greater than their use of drugs compared with whites. Bennett, Martinez, Brown, McCaffrey, Walters, and McCaffrey have been peddling the same lies and half-truths for over two decades to support a war over four decades based on a prohibition for seven decades that is, as President (pot smoker) Obama once declared “an utter failure, and I think we need to re-think and decriminalize our marijuana laws.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Court Allows Warrantless GPS Tracking In Marijuana Case

Toke of the Town - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 16:58
​In a bizarre and unsettling decision, a federal court has ruled that government agents may sneak onto your property, put GPS devices on your vehicles, and follow you around 24/7 -- without bothering to obtain a search warrant.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which covers California and eight other western states, issued the ruling -- which basically means the government can monitor you anytime that it wants -- in a case involving a suspected marijuana grower, reports Linda Young at All Headline News.Among the biggest casualties of the court's ruling is the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, part of the original Bill of Rights, which just took some major damage. The Fourth Amendment states:The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. Continue reading "Court Allows Warrantless GPS Tracking In Marijuana Case" >

Opinion: I am in Favor of Ballot Measure 74

Salem-News.com Medical Marijuana - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 08:26
I was recently asked by a state committee board member whose voice has impact in the future of Oregon's medical marijuana laws, what my opinion was on Oregon's Ballot Measure 74, regarding the Oregon Marijuana Dispensary System. In explaining that I support the passage of Measure 74, I cited a few statistics, such as U.S. Government estimates 0f 300,000 Marijuana users in Oregon, the fact that even this legalization will not slow the black market.

US MI: Medical Pot Clinics Busted for Illegal Sales

MAP - Cannabis - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 07:00
Detroit News, 27 Aug 2010 - Oakland CO. Authorities Arrest 15 After Two Raids in Ferndale, Waterford Pontiac -- Authorities raided two medical marijuana businesses and arrested 15 people for allegedly making illegal sales, in a crackdown announced Thursday by Oakland County officials.

US MI: Sheriff Explains Action Against Medical Marijuana Sellers, Growers

MAP - Cannabis - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 07:00
The Daily Tribune, 27 Aug 2010 - PONTIAC - One day after an investigation that resulted in 15 arrests, the closure of two medical marijuana dispensaries and the seizure of approximately $750,000 worth of marijuana products, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard spoke about what he sees as a growing problem. "This is Michigan. This is not a Cheech and Chong movie," Bouchard said during a Thursday afternoon press conference.

US MI: 15 Arrested in Oakland Sheriff's Pot Raids

MAP - Cannabis - Fri, 08/27/2010 - 07:00
Detroit Free Press, 27 Aug 2010 - Prosecutor Says Clinics Sold Illegally Fifteen people are in the Oakland County Jail, and more arrests may be coming in the state's first major crackdown on medical marijuana distributors. The Oakland County Sheriff's Narcotics Enforcement team raided three businesses and 12 homes Wednesday and confiscated marijuana, $30,000 in cash, guns, grow lights, patient records and two guard alligators, authorities said Thursday.

LA City Attorney Turns Up the Heat

The Los Angeles City Attorney’s office has filed a complaint (download sections 1- 2 -34) asking for a Temporary Restraining Order and Permanent Injunction closing 135 pre-moratorium medical cannabis collectives deemed ineligible to register under the city’s new ordinance. The complaint is City Attorney Carmen Trutanich’s latest escalation in his campaign to roll back safe access to medical cannabis in the city. His aggressive posture has already raised the ire of patients, legal collective operators, and advocates in the state’s largest city – including many who played an instrumental role in developing and promoting regulation in the city.

Yesterday, the City Clerk’s office surprised collective operators by publishing a “Preliminary Priority List,” which indicated that less than 25% of the collectives which applied to register with the city were eligible to do so. Each ineligible collective will receive a letter explaining why they were excluded this week. Early reports indicate that unauthorized relocations, changes in ownership or management, and problematic background checks are leading causes for ineligibility.

That only 25% of the collectives survived the initial vetting speaks to the severity of the city’s ordinance and the narrow interpretation championed by the City Attorney. City Councilmembers can expect renewed controversy over the escalation when they return from recess in September. There will also be new litigation, as “ineligible” collectives seek relief based on a myriad of individual circumstances.

The development and implementation of medical cannabis regulations in Los Angeles has been a case study in what not to do. The long delay in writing regulations, botched moratorium, indecision on interim operating policies, reckless 11th-hour amendments, and absolute breakdown in enforcement have left patients in a state of confusion and fear. It did not have to be this way. Other cities and counties have successfully regulated medical cannabis already. Angelinos hope that their elected officials will realize that there is a better way to achieve the proven benefits of regulation – reduced crime, fewer complaints, and increased revenue – and abandon this costly path of obstruction and delay.

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Seattle Hempfest 2010: Rick Cusick - The Moment of Freedom

Youtube - Restore Hemp - Thu, 08/26/2010 - 22:26
Seattle Hempfest 2010: Rick Cusick - The Moment of Freedom
Activist/Associate Publisher extraordinaire Rick Cusick speaks to the Seattle Hempfest crowd about getting out and voting and urges them to express their demand for personal freedom. Learn more: WA: http://sensiblewashington.org CA: http://taxcannabis.com OR: http://cannabistaxact.org Footage: Seattle Hempfest August 21, 2010 Courtesy: Hemp News From: RestoreHemp Views: 52 1 ratings Time: 08:23 More in Nonprofits & Activism

Stash for Thu, Aug 26, 2010

NORML Audio Stash - Thu, 08/26/2010 - 22:08

Download Link: Secret Stash - Register to access

Download audio file (NORML_Daily_AudioStash_2010-08-26.mp3)

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  • Groovin’ Thursday: The Literates – “City of Angels”
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition Speaker’s Corner
  • MacKenzie Allen, former King County (Washington) Deputy Sheriff, on street-level drug enforcement
Radical Rant
  • More comments from readers on Prop 19

BBC Video: Cannabis and Human Evolution

NORML Blog - Thu, 08/26/2010 - 21:34

While not necessarily ground-breaking science to longtime observers of cannabinoid research and cultural anthropology, the BBC video below (with about 45 seconds of pro-reform advocacy added), featuring US taxpayer-funded medical research conducted just up the road from NORML’s Washington, DC offices at the National Institute of Mental Health is very well done.

Question: When will a major American (or Canadian) media outlet cover the fascinating and ever-emerging science of cannabis as well as the BBC has?

Hot Dog Stand Was Front For $5 Million Pot Smuggling Ring

Toke of the Town - Thu, 08/26/2010 - 20:57
​Eight family members were arrested Tuesday on federal charges that they used a hot dog stand and other businesses as fronts to hide their marijuana-smuggling ring, which allegedly shipped thousands of pounds of pot from Arizona to Ohio.Federal authorities said they believed Jonathan Ortiz Troncoza, 39, of Tucson, Arizona, headed the organization, and was assisted by various family members, reports Ryn Gargulinksi at Tucson Citizen.The organization supposedly smuggled at least 6,000 pounds of marijuana while collecting, and laundering through the front businesses, up to $5 million in marijuana sales.The cash was reportedly used to run their business as well as buy or rent properties, jewelry, vehicles, and "other items in furtherance of the drug trafficking conspiracy," which sounds like federal-ese for "We're going to basically take everything they own."Federal agents seized marijuana, more than $700,000 cash, numerous vehicles including a semi-tractor trailer, guns, jewelry, and a house in the course of their investigation, according to a news release from the District of Arizona's Office of the U.S. Attorney.Business names allegedly used by the busted Tucscon clan include Wedoito's Hotdogs, Sea of Cortez Seafood & Produce Distribution, and AB Trucking."Conspirators also purchased semi-tractor trailers which were used to transport thousands of pounds of marijuana (and multiple pounds of cocaine) from stash houses in Tucson and Phoenix areas to properties in Ohio," the U.S. Attorney's release claims. Continue reading "Hot Dog Stand Was Front For $5 Million Pot Smuggling Ring" >
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