The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation

By Marla Miller, Muskegon Chronicle

Gregory Adams grew up in the college town of Ann Arbor, home to some of the most lenient laws on marijuana possession in the country.

Adams, 25, has been involved in marijuana advocacy efforts since his high school days there. And he is bringing his passion to West Michigan as executive director of the Lakeshore Compassion Club. The club plans to meet monthly at Muskegon Community College to help interested individuals wade through the confusion of Michigan’s new medical marijuana law.

“This is what the people want here,” said Adams, citing the fact 67 percent of Muskegon County voters — the third highest county percentage in the state — approved the ballot referendum. “We’re just trying to get our information out to the community. It’s a touchy subject and everyone’s scared. We want everyone to come and get informed.”

That includes law enforcement, lawyers, community activists, regular residents and opponents of the law.

The Lakeshore Club, a nonprofit group run by volunteers, had its first informational meeting last December at Muskegon Community College and had more than 40 people attend. A second meeting Jan. 22 drew about 30 people.

“All those people were so happy when they left,” said Steve Lanore, also a board member of the Lakeshore Compassion Club. “This is legal now in Michigan. We don’t want people to be scared.”

Compassion clubs sprouting up

Human from The Human Revolution and Tim Pate & Friends Scheduled to Perform

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By Hempstalk Staff

Green is their signature color. Medicinal marijuana gardeners throughout the state of Oregon enjoyed a plentiful harvest last fall, and look to 2010 as a year of growth, and change.

By Bonnie King, Salem-News

(SALEM, Ore.) - “After living through arrests in the past for growing marijuana, to be able to do it legally, it’s almost entirely stress-free compared to when it was illegal. So to be able to help the people that need this - it warms our hearts,” said Paul Stanford, Executive Director of The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation. The fear of breaking the law has stopped most people for seven decades from considering marijuana, or cannabis, to treat their ailments. That is no longer the rule of the day, as this medical marijuana garden clearly proves.

By Tristan Scott of the Missoulian

Jim Swansiger took a road trip to Missoula on Monday. When he returned home to Great Falls, the 60-year-old retired construction worker was a legitimate medical marijuana patient.

“My paperwork’s all in order,” Swansiger said. “I’m just going to stop by the Capitol on my way home and drop it off.”

He’ll have to wait a few weeks before the state Department of Health and Human Services sends him an identification card in the mail, but he’s covered under the Montana medical marijuana law until then. That means he can legally grow six marijuana plants and possess up to an ounce of pot, which he intends to start using for pain relief in lieu of a prescription drug called oxycodone.

Swansiger suffers from peripheral neuropathy, a disorder he says causes pain and numbness in his legs and feet – “It’s like someone is jamming pins in the tops of my feet,” he says – and his preferred course of treatment is marijuana.

And so he drove to Missoula, where a nonprofit organization called The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation was offering an all-day clinic to help patients obtain their permits.

With medical records in hand, Swansiger and dozens of other patients sat in a conference room at the Grant Creek Inn. They paid a consultation fee, which is adjusted based on income, and waited to meet with Dr. Eric Eisenbud, an ophthalmologist from Boulder, Colo.

Marijuana prohibition isn't really about drugs, it's about the continued centralization of economic and political control.

The Restore Newsletter is an information service designed to end marijuana prohibition and promote industrial hemp. If you'd like to be involved in the Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp, or just want to keep informed of important new developments, you are invited to subscribe to the CRRH Restore Newsletter. Restore Newsletter - Winter 2010 (PDF) Restore Newsletter - Winter 2010 (Flip Book)

"There is reason to believe there is hope for the 21st Century, and that's the way it will be." Walter Cronkite

Compiled by Hemp News Staff

1. California: DEA To Yield Marijuana Jurisdiction To States - 3/2/2009

Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is sending strong signals that President Obama - who as a candidate said states should be allowed to make their own rules on medical marijuana - will end raids on pot dispensaries in California.

"What the president said during the campaign, you'll be surprised to know, will be consistent with what we'll be doing here in law enforcement," he said. "What he said during the campaign is now American policy."

Source: http://hemp.org/news/us-to-yield-marijuana-jurisdiction-to-states



2. Washington State: Kitsap Medical Marijuana Defendant Acquitted - 3/24/2009

By CHARLIE BERMANT, Port Orchard Independent Staff Writer

A medical marijuana patient being prosecuted in Kitsap County Superior Court for drug trafficking was found not guilty on Tuesday morning, after a jury ruled that his use of the drug was within the law.

The jury deliberated for approximately two hours prior to its ruling.

RIVERSIDE - Riverside's first medical marijuana dispensary is expected to open today.

The Inland Empire Health and Wellness Center Medical Marijuana Collective, 647 N. Main St., is supposed to operate as a nonprofit organization where people with a doctor's recommendation will be allowed to buy marijuana from those permitted to grow it under state law, the Press-Enterprise reported.

In Los Angeles, pot shops have cropped by the hundreds over the past few years, while the City Council alternately stalled on regulating them or declared moratoriums on new ones.

William Sump, the general manager of the Riverside collective, said he and several attorneys had done their best to meet the city's requirements, which include having security guards on duty when the collective is open.

"I feel we have done as much as we possibly can to be compliant and at this point," he told the Press-Enterprise. "It's about access for the patients."

The collective has about 150 members, Sump said. Just across the street is the THCF Medical Clinic, where people can seek a doctor's recommendation for the formerly illegal weed.

Related: Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens In Riverside (Video)
http://cbs2.com/local/medical.marijuana.Riverside.2.1351663.html

Medical marijuana facility to open in Riverside
http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_W_wpot05.4a2a92...

Source: http://www.kesq.com/Global/story.asp?S=11626134

THCF and Several NORML Chapters Join In

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By Paul Stanford and Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

Because hemp is the ultimate cash crop, producing more fiber, food and oil than any other plant on the planet.

By Paul Stanford, THCF/CRRH

According to the Notre Dame University publication, The Midland Naturalist, from a 1975 article called, "Feral Hemp in Southern Illinois," about the wild hemp fields that annual efforts from law enforcement eradication teams cannot wipe out, an acre of hemp produces:

1. 8,000 pounds of hemp seed per acre.

* When cold-pressed, the 8,000 pounds of hemp seed yield over 300 gallons of hemp seed oil and a byproduct of
* 6,000 pounds of high protein hemp flour.

by Jeff Mannix

Medical marijuana is setting root in Durango, throughout Colorado and in 14 other states. The shroud of illegitimacy is lifting, and hundreds of thousands are finding relief from pain and debilitating disease not found with chemical pharmaceuticals and standard medical therapy.

On Nov. 7, 1999, Colorado voters passed Amendment 20, permitting the use of marijuana for the treatment of specified, disabling medical conditions. Regulating the lawful use of cannabis was turned over to the Colorado State Board of Health, which in turn established the Medical Marijuana Registry Program. “Effective June 1, 1999,” Amendment 20 reads, “it shall be an exception from the state’s criminal laws for any patient or primary caregiver in lawful possession of a registry identification card to engage or assist in the medical use of marijuana … .”

With a number of storefront medical marijuana dispensaries now open in Durango and more in the making, law enforcement and municipal and county governments are beginning to accept the volumes of testimony from patients and health providers that this ancient herb is indeed a palliative if not a curative, natural pharmaceutical. The concerns have legitimately turned toward suitable and fair regulation and transparency, similar to scrutiny applied to pharmacies, health clinics and alcohol sales.

"It seemed like hemp needed a voice, we figured we'd be it." Folk Uke

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

Folk Uke is an eclectic acoustic folk duo comprised of Cathy Guthrie and Amy Nelson featuring unique harmonies and sharp, often biting wit. The chemistry that flows between these two musically gifted individuals is obvious and their families contributions have helped to shape our nation.

You may not hear Folk Uke on the radio, since their songs have been described as inappropriate, off-color, explicit, not ready for mainstream and NSFW(Not Safe For Work). Nevertheless their fan base is growing daily and put on an entertaining set. Their humor is contagious and their self depricating banter keeps the crowd thoroughly entertained. The songs they sing may be explicit, but they are intelligent and entertaining.

This extraordinary duo were inspired by many of the greats of the Folk, Country, and Americana genres. Their favorite chords are C, F, and G. So, if you'd like to play along, well, its that easy.

"We must go beyond the arrogance of human rights. We must go beyond the ignorance of civil rights. We must step into the reality of natural rights because all of the natural world has a right to existence and we are only a small part of it. There can be no trade-off." John Trudell

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

The following video slideshow is a compilation of animated photographs taken at the Hemp and Cannabis Foundation's Medicinal Gardens in October 2009. The slideshow is accompanied by the soft cadence of the song "Grassfire" by John Trudell and his band Bad Dog.

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Fruitful Harvest Shared Among Patients Seeking Natural Alternative to Prescription Medicine

By Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

Hemp News recently made a visit to experience a legal medical cannabis garden managed by the Hemp and Cannabis Foundation (THCF) in Portland, Oregon. We spent some time with growers, patients, and community members, in an attempt to shed light on the subject of medical cannabis, and to document the THCF's efforts to help medical cannabis patients in the community.

By Carol Draeger Thomas, Tribune Staff Writer
Photo by Barbara Allison

Carroll Fisher does not regularly use marijuana. But he'd like to.

The retired 67-year-old Niles factory worker has never smoked a joint — except for trying one in his 20s — until July.

That was three months after he was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer.

He took a trip to Canada to visit friends and had the occasion, as he describes it, to smoke marijuana.

Twice a day.

Feeling better

"I slept better. It gave me an appetite where as the chemotherapy takes it away," he said about the drug, which is illegal in Canada.

"It helped me with the pain," he added.

When he returned to Michigan, where voters a year ago approved medicinal marijuana, he asked his cancer physician in Niles, Dr. Chil Kang, to sign the state form authorizing Fisher to use medicinal marijuana.

"He won't do it," Fisher said.

Nor will his eye doctor or his family practitioner, Dr. Douglas Tacket.

"I can't get anyone to sign it," Fisher said.

Michigan's law requires a licensed state physician to sign a certification form, authorizing the patient to grow up to 12 plants to use for medical purposes.

The form is necessary for Fisher to obtain a registry card allowing him to use the drug.

Greg Francisco, executive director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, is not surprised by Fisher's problem.

By Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director The University of Colorado/Denver recently hosted physicians Kevin Boyle and Eric Eisenbud to present a lecture on medical cannabis’ historical, legal and policy considerations; Scientific research and new cannabinoid pharmaceuticals; Clinical applications. (Complete Lecture Video) Family Medicine Grand Rounds http://connect.ucdenver.edu/p89594111/
Source: http://blog.norml.org/2009/10/18/medical-marijuana-sunday-school/

Jack Herer is recovering from a heart attack, but his mission to bring hemp into the spotlight as an answer for multiple problems, continues.

By Bonnie King, Salem-News.com

(SALEM, Ore.) - Jack Herer is a very resilient fellow. 40 years ago he was a Goldwater Republican. Nine years ago he suffered a minor heart attack, and a major stroke.

All these calamities and more, he survived.

But his fight continues. For the last four weeks, Jack has been in a Portland Oregon hospital, slowly recovering from a heart attack. On Monday, he was discharged from Legacy Emanuel Hospital, and his family moved him to a nursing facility in Eugene, according to Oregonlive.com.

Exactly one month ago, Jack was stricken by a heart attack. So, each day, the challenge is no less than the day before. The challenge to bring Jack back.

He was in a medically induced coma for several days, on the critical list in ICU for nearly three weeks. Over time, he showed some improvements. His EEG (brain scan) showed more activity, and he would open his eyes. He stretched his arms and legs, yawned, turned his head from side to side. They removed the respirator.

Last week he was taken off the Critical list, moved out of ICU, and remains in stable condition. Stable enough, it seems, to be moved to another facility.

By Anne Saker, The Oregonian

Jack Herer, a leader in the modern marijuana legalization movement, has been discharged from a Portland hospital nearly a month after a Sept. 12 heart attack, and his family has moved him to a Eugene nursing facility.

Herer, 70, of Lower Lake, Calif., had just delivered what for him was a typical barn-burner of a speech promoting hemp at Portland's Hempstalk festival when he collapsed. He was airlifted to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center and was in critical but stable condition for more than three weeks.

Herer had improved enough to be released from Emanuel and moved, said Paul Stanford, a longtime friend who is executive director of The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation in Portland.

"He is waking up and gazing appropriately when someone's talking," Stanford said Monday, "but he's not really communicating in any way."

The heavy-set Herer suffered a stroke in 2000, and for several years after, he struggled to regain his speech and locomotion. Stanford said that before Herer addressed the Sept. 12 festival at Portland's Kelley Point Park, "Jack was telling everyone that he never felt better."

By IMRAN GHORI, The Press-Enterprise

San Bernardino County's public health department has taken applications for medical marijuana identification cards from 128 people and provided 76 cards since it began the program in mid-August, a county official said.

The rest of the applications are still being processed by the state, which keeps a database of applicants and actually issues the cards, said Jim Lindley, county public health director

Only one application was rejected -- because the doctor's recommendation could not be verified, he said.

The county began accepting applications from medical marijuana patients Aug. 14 after county officials lost a three-year legal battle against the state program.

In May, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the county's challenge to the state's program, which it claimed conflicted with federal drug laws.

The county initially had estimated that 250 to 300 residents would seek cards, Lindley said.

The department saw a slowdown in applications after the first few weeks, he said.

Lindley said officials tried to make the process as smooth as possible, requiring applicants to make appointments by phone, advising them of the information they would need and then having them come in for quick interviews to review the applications.

"The process looks like it's working well," he said.

By Bill Shea, Crain

Nick Tennant intends to cash in on what he believes is literally a booming “green” growth industry: medical marijuana.

Tennant is the founder and president of Southfield-based Med Gro Cannabis College, a new trade school offering training courses for adults interested in becoming state-qualified caregivers under the medical marijuana law.

His idea to open such a school was in anticipation of voters last November approving state-regulated therapeutic use of marijuana for people suffering from specific chronic medical conditions. He began organizing the school in December.

Med Gro's first class of 25 students launched in September, and a new class began Thursday night. The six-week curriculum, which is 25 to 30 class hours and meets one night a week, covers legal and business issues, pot history, cultivation, cooking and medical/caregiving training.

Degreed botanists and lawyers teach the classes, Tennant said, and the student body ranges from recent high school graduates to church pastors who minister to people suffering from AIDS and other diseases.

The Michigan Department of Community Health this year has issued nearly 1,800 cards to caregivers that allow them to grow marijuana for more than 4,400 qualified patients who also have state-issued cards.

"It took courageous people to stand up and question the prohibition against alcohol." Rick Steves, Marijuana Conversation

By D. Paul Stanford & Michael Bachara, Hemp News Staff

Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp (CRRH) and Oregon NORML have finished gathering the 1000 sponsorship signatures needed for the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act 2010 (OCTA) & Oregon Cannabis Tolerance Act 2010 (OCTA Light) petitions. These were turned in to the Oregon Secretary of State's office on September 21, 2009. We are currently waiting for official ballot titles from the state and should have them in the next few weeks. After polling, we will begin circulating one of the petitions across Oregon. We will need 100,000 valid signatures by July, 2, 2010 to qualify for the November 2010 election.

Activists had previously filed OCTA in 2008, but withdrew it when polling showed antipathy about the previous version placing cannabis sales in existing state liquor stores. Activists went back to the drawing board and came up with two versions.

By Madeline Martinez for Hemp News

PORTLAND - A compelling mix of upbeat music, a cannabis law reform message and a focus on industrial hemp as the answer to many of our practical needs, the fifth annual Portland Hempstalk is set for 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, September 12th and 13th at Kelley Point Park, located at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia Rivers.

Co-sponsored by The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, Oregon NORML and Oregonians for Cannabis Reform, the event is free to attendees of all ages. With more than 15,000 people expected to attend, it will wrap up the summer festival season with a bang.

By Corey Levitan, Las Vegas Review Journal

The debate over the legalization of marijuana in Nevada overlooks one significant detail: It's already legal.

An estimated 1,530 Nevadans have obtained permission to lawfully possess and use pot since NRS-453A was signed into law in 2001, according to the Nevada State Health Division. (Nevada is one of 13 states with a medical marijuana program.)

But a medical marijuana card does not read: "Get Out of Jail Free." Medical marijuana can never legally be purchased, or smoked in a public place. It must be grown and inhaled (or ingested via baked goods) at the cardholder's residence.

The process begins with a written request and $50 check sent to the state Health Division in Carson City. This gets prospective patients an application and a physician's statement that must be taken to a doctor willing to recommend marijuana. (According to FDA guidelines, it's a Schedule 1 drug, which makes it illegal to prescribe.)

The legal conditions recognized by Nevada to medicate with marijuana are restricted to AIDS, cancer, glaucoma, weight loss, severe nausea, severe pain, seizures and persistent muscle spasms. (Each has a box on the form for the physician to check.)

If the application is approved by the Health Division, patients then pay a further $150 processing fee, which covers a background check for the one crime that will get them rejected: selling, or intending to sell, a controlled substance.