By CULTURE Staff
THE STATE
Pot talk ends up a special guest on The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show host Jay Leno weighed in on the marijuana and legalization debate recently when Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) was a guest on his show. In a conversation about Proposition 19, the marijuana legalization measure that California voters will consider in November, Leno suggested that pot could be marketed to kids, referring to alleged past practices of the tobacco industry. He also suggested the marijuana is already “de facto legal” because “you can get it anywhere.”
But Frank called such a policy hypocritical and said that legal enforcement was racially discriminatory. He also pointed out that the tobacco industry had to stop ad campaigns—like Joe Camel—that were seen as targeting kids and said the same rules could be applied to pot sales.
State senator from Montebello introduces cannabis tax proposal
State Sen. Ron Calderon (D-Montebello) has introduced a bill to regulate and tax the medical marijuana industry.
Under the Cannabis License Act (Senate Bill 1131), the Board of Equalization would issue permits to all those involved in the medical marijuana industry—from growers to retailers. Those in the industry would be required to keep transaction records of “every sale, transfer or delivery of cannabis or cannabis related products,” the bill states.
Calderon has said that the current system doesn’t do a good job of collecting taxes on legal medical pot sales and this would better help the state collect sales taxes. The state now collects about $105 million in sales tax on pot sales.
But marijuana activists have called the proposal premature, saying it would tax the industry without providing legal protection to those involved.
THE NATION
“Gateway drug” myth is exaggerated, new study concludes
A University of New Hampshire study says the long-standing belief that marijuana is a “gateway drug” is overblown.
The study, published in the September issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, found that other factors such as race, employment status and stress are much likelier factors of predicting whether someone will abuse drugs.
Data from 1,226 young adults from the Miami-Dade area showed that those who did not graduate or attend college were more likely to use marijuana or other drugs, sociology professors Karen Van Gundy and Cesar Rebellon wrote.
The researchers also found that drug use tended to decrease for most once they turned 21.
Michigan lawmaker seeking to ban marijuana clubs
A Michigan state legislator is aiming to ban marijuana clubs that have opened since state voters approved medical cannabis use in 2008.
State House Rep. Rick Jones said such clubs pose a safety risk because marijuana users shouldn’t drive to and from clubs, and should smoke in their own homes. The bill would impose a penalty of 90 days in jail.
Club owners say they provide an important service and are allowed to operate under state law.
THE WORLD
“Prince of Pot” sentenced to five years in prison
Canadian marijuana activist Marc Emery is facing a five-year prison term in Washington state after he pleaded guilty earlier this year to the charge of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.
Emery, often called the “Prince of Pot,” was extradited to Seattle on charges of selling cannabis seeds through the mail to U.S. residents from his Vancouver store. Emery is president of the British Columbia Marijuana Party.
U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan told The Province newspaper that prosecutors agreed to a five-year sentence in exchange for his guilty plea and two years probation for two of his employees who were also arrested. She said 75 percent of his business was to U.S. customers.
Emery’s wife, Jodie, told the paper that supporters are petitioning both the U.S. and Canadian governments to allow her husband to serve his sentence in Canada.
Israel boosts the number of doctors who can prescribe pot
The government of Israel is increasing the number of physicians allowed to prescribe marijuana in response to an expected increase in the number of patients seeking its use.
Five more doctors will be allowed to prescribe as health ministry officials predict a 66 percent increase in permits for medical marijuana, or about 5,000 additional patients.
The government has allowed 14 farms to grow cannabis although only three are operational at this time.
Three puffs can help relief chronic nerve pain, research shows
Canadian researchers have released a study that finds that smoking three puffs of marijuana a day can relieve chronic nerve pain and help sufferers sleep better.
Mark Ware, an assistant professor of anesthesiology and family medicine at McGill University in Montreal, said his study, published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, backs up anecdotal evidence.
The study targeted 21 men and women (average age was 45) who suffered from chronic nerve pain and put them on three different potencies of marijuana and also gave them placebos. They were given a single puff three times a day. When given the highest potency they saw the most pain relief over five days.
Germany will now allow a cannabis extract medicine
Initial reports that the government of Germany planned to relax its marijuana laws turned out to be premature.
The nation’s press carried headlines recently saying that the government planned to legalize medical marijuana.
Instead, the International Association for Cannabis As Medicine reports that the government has reclassified marijuana from not being allowed for medical use to allowing it to be used for the preparation of medication.
Marijuana will still not be allowed in its natural form but Sativex, a marijuana extract, can be sold starting next year. Pharmaceutical giant Bayer plans to market the drug to multiple sclerosis patients.
