Marijuana Blog

Smokers who rationalize their use of cigarettes by saying, "At least, I'm not doing drugs," may not always be able to use that line.

 

New research to be presented Sunday, May 5, at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Washington, DC, supports the theory that cigarettes are a gateway drug to marijuana.

 

"Contrary to what we would expect, we also found that students who smoked both tobacco and marijuana were more likely to smoke more tobacco than those who smoked only tobacco," said study author Megan Moreno, MD, MSEd, MPH, FAAP, an investigator at Seattle Children's Research Institute and associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington.

 

Dr. Moreno and her colleagues randomly selected incoming college students from two universities -- one in the Northwest and one in the Midwest -- to participate in the longitudinal study. Students were interviewed prior to entering college and again at the end of their freshman year regarding their attitudes, intentions and experiences with substances.

 

Read more: http://www.sciencedaily.com

One of eleven medical marijuana sellers in Seattle told to shutdown this week by the Drug Enforcement Administration is speaking out, pleading for state government to defend its own law and suggesting the federal government’s policy will force him to be a “drug dealer”.

 

“Either we trust our government, or all the people that are willing to do this are just taking a risk and we’re all being stupid,” explained Douglas Gerdes, owner of The Only Natural in Ballard.

Gerdes received a letter from the DEA Tuesday, telling him he was violating federal law for selling an illegal narcotic and operating within 1,000 feet of a school.  He has 30 days to comply.

 

“I would love for the DEA to come out here and take a look,” Gerdes said, “I’m not doing anything wrong.

According to Washington law, Gerdes is right.  His “collective garden” is a smaller form of a dispensary.  He is growing 20 plants and has just eight ounces on sale, far below what small pot gardens are allowed.  He sells medical marijuana to a small group of patients.

 

Since federal law supersedes state law, what Gerdes and every other medical marijuana seller is doing is illegal.

 

Read more: http://www.king5.com

Senate Bill 241, a measure which would enable the state’s Department of Agriculture to license farmers to cultivate hemp beginning this year, has passed out of the House Agriculture, Livestock & Natural Resources Committee, as well as the House Appropriations Committee, both unanimously. In addition, the measure was approved through its 2nd reading in the full House of Representatives. The bill now awaits one more House vote, where its expected passage will send it to the governor for final approval, given that it’s already passed the Senate with a 34-1 vote.

 

Under the proposal farmers would have the option of applying for a 10-acre plot in order to study the viability of various hemp varieties, or they could apply for a larger, full-scale hemp farm - one that wouldn’t be limited by the number of plants, but rather by the THC content in said plants.

 

Read more: http://www.theweedblog.com