Marijuana Blog

Stoners love the smell of their marijuana. Some people love it so much that they have actually created perfumes that resemble the smell of the flowers. However, the perfumes differ from the traditional stink of marijuana, which usually resembles a skunk. This bittersweet aroma is getting people really upset, especially those who don't want to smell it. There are even some businesses, such as a small barber shop in Colorado, who are deciding to turn away customers who carry the smell of cannabis with them.

 

Hugo Corral is the owner of the barber shop and he's gone as far as to hang a sign in the window of his shop that says "Please do not come in if you smell like marijuana, there are families here who don't want to smell it. This is a business, not your home". Corral went on to tell the Guardian Daily that he feels that people who smell like weed are disrespectful, especially to the families that come in to the shop. Some customers have complained that the smell can get so bad that it seems as if someone is smoking right in the chair while they're getting a trim.

 

This situation has definitely begun to cause waves in the community, with Corral being categorized as discriminatory but because smelling like marijuana doesn't fall under race, sex, religion, or sexual orientation, and other constitutionally protected categories, those who say they feel discriminated against have almost no ground to stand on. Extremely unfortunate, seeing as how apparently this business was making money off of these weed smelling smokers and the plan to ban them may eventually effect business.

 

If people smell like marijuana, there's really no reason to bar them from entering places (unless that place is perhaps a preschool). While some people claim that the smell is "offensive" and "rude", the same could be argued for the person who is blowing out a lungful of cigarette smoke while simultaneously pushing open the door to a business. Not everybody smokes cigarettes and it can be offensive to those who don't smoke when someone passes by them, reeking like tobacco. The same could be said for alcohol. If someone is drinking and then goes to a store, the smell of booze carries with them. Alcohol could also absolutely be considered an offensive smell. While not everyone wants to smell it, it seems like these rabble-rousers only have a nose for marijuana and not the other offensive smells that people can carry with them.

Maryland is set to become the 21st state in America to authorize a medical marijuana program that distributes cannabis to patients. The new law creates a greater responsibility for physicians and less restrictions on the patients and caregivers who handle marijuana.

 

House Bill 881 was introduced Feb. 5th and was signed into law by Governor Martin OMalley on April 14. The program officially begins on July 1. HB 881 is an expansion of a previously-passed bill, HB 1101 of 2013, that authorized medical marijuana research in hospitals. That program failed due to lack of hospital participation.

 

“HB 881 establishes a new form of distribution,” said the national patient advocacy group Americans for Safe Access. In their press release they explained, “According to the new law, the Natalie M. LaPrade Medical Marijuana Commission, which was established under last year’s legislation, will regulate dispensaries, characterized as an entity that “acquires, possesses, processes, transfers, transports, sells, distributes, dispenses, or administers marijuana, products containing food, tinctures, aerosols, oils, or ointments, or educational materials for use by a qualifying patient or a caregiver.”"

 

Although the bill is not lengthy, the majority of the new language addresses the doctors and their participation in the program. Physicians must be on staff with a  hospital or hospice, and must pre-register with the state before issuing recommendations. They must also provide a plan to screen the patient for dependence and create a program of follow up care.

 

Read more: http://www.theweedblog.com

For those patients who are suffering from epilepsy that aren't in legal states, getting their hands on the seizure stopping plant can be extremely difficult, not to mention illegal. Most citizens don't want to illegally obtain the substance, especially those who are using the CBD to treat epilepsy. This particular disorder calls for concentrated cannabis oil, which considerably decreases seizures and allows the brain to develop and form in a healthier way. There are more and more parents that are beginning to jump on the cannabis wagon for the treatment of their children's epilepsy, since the drugs administered by doctors can be numerous with extreme side effects.

 

Beth Collins is one of these parents, caring for her 14 year old daughter Jennifer. Jennifer was suffering from 300+ seizures a day. It was so bad that there where days that Beth literally could do nothing but pray for her daughter's condition to improve. "There were days where I just laid in bed with her and prayed," Beth said, "and watched her because I wasn't sure what would happen." Any parent witnessing their child go through such absolute pain and suffering would be apt to give medical cannabis a try, especially if it would help their child to live a normal life.

 

Jennifer and her mother are originally from Fairfax, Virginia. Unfortunately, the laws there don't allow for the life improving cannabis oil that Jennifer is using to combat her epilepsy. In order to get her medicine, Beth moved herself and her daughter from their home in Fairfax to a small two bedroom apartment in Colorado Springs. And they're not the only ones. Another mother-daughter pair moved to Colorado with Jennifer and Beth, in order to obtain this medicine, after trying so many doctor prescribed pharmaceuticals. Dara Lightle has had to watch her 9 year old daughter go through seizures, plus the added stress of extreme anger episodes, where the young girl would kick and scream at her mother, who was simply trying to help.

 

The best part? "I feel better," Jennifer says, "I can focus more and I'm doing better on tests in school. My memory's improved a lot." Not only that but Lightle and her daughter stated that they are "happy to be here (Colorado)." Even though the move can be tough, these parents are set on getting the best medicine for their children. Patients all over can only hope that the cannabis laws continue to reform, allowing the medicine in all states, instead of making people move 1700+ miles for a medicine that works.