Tagged: weed

September 4, 2014

Marijuana Legalization Supported By A Majority Of Americans, Survey Says

For the first time, a majority of people in the United States believes marijuana should be legalized, according to online polling data company CivicScience. More than 50 percent of Americans believe the recreational drug should be legalized, up 10 percent from last year, USNews.com reported.

Over 450,000 U.S. adults were asked: “Would you support or oppose a law in your state that would legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana like alcohol?” Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they support marijuana legalization. Thirty-nine said they “strongly support” and 19 percent said they “somewhat support.” Men were found to be in favor of legalization more than women, by 60 to 55 percent, the data said.

Pot sales are currently legal in Washington state and Colorado to people 21 and older. People are allowed to be in possession of one ounce or less of the drug.

Read more at International Business Times: http://www.ibtimes.com/marijuana-legalization-supported-majority-americans-survey-says-1677848

September 4, 2014

Parents say cannabis oil helping keep daughter, 4, alive

MILWAUKIE, Ore. — Two Milwaukie parents, once opposed to marijuana use, now credit the oil from the plant for keeping their 4-year-old daughter alive.

“She is so busy and independent,” Bethany Merklin said as she watched her daughter Leah play in their living room.

Sixteen months ago, the Merklins were told by doctors at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital that a rare inoperable brain tumor meant Leah had six to 12 months to live.

“It was the worst day of my life,” remembered Leah’s dad, Erik Merklin.

The Merklins believe the daily doses of cannabis oil sandwiched between Cheerios are keeping Leah’s tumor from growing.

September 4, 2014

South Carolina marijuana committee holds first meeting

Legalizing medical marijuana in South Carolina is being discussed at the statehouse Wednesday.

The law also created the medical marijuana committee, which met for the first time. The panel included medical experts, agriculture officials and the chief toxicologist for the State Law Enforcement Division, who said her agency is opposed to allowing hemp or marijuana to be grown in South Carolina.

Sen. Tom Davis, one of the leaders of the committee, said its main goal is to collect information to give to lawmakers to help refine the state’s marijuana and hemp laws. He called a bill passed this year a baby step allowing residents with severe epilepsy to use oil derived from marijuana if approved by a doctor. He said he hopes the General Assembly can alter SLED’s position.

September 4, 2014

Palm Springs council postpones marijuana dispensary vote

Even though the Palm Springs City Council decided at the beginning of Wednesday’s meeting it would not make a decision regarding which medical marijuana dispensary would be awarded the fourth license to operate, this did not prevent dozens of residents from speaking on the many benefits of medical cannabis.

“It’s been difficult to find a product that works for me,” Carolyn Puschek, who suffers from neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder that causes tumors on the skin, told council members during a public hearing Wednesday to review which of eight applicants would be awarded the fourth license. “We need to find somewhere to put some of these dispensaries.”

The council decided it would not make its decision with one council member — Chris Mills — absent.

September 4, 2014

Medical Marijuana Loophole Overturned In Granville

GRANVILLE, Ohio – A marijuana loophole in a village known for cracking down on drugs was overturned in Granville Wednesday night.

The loophole was discovered in the Granville General Offense Code and states that patients with a prior written recommendation from a licensed physician can’t be convicted for possessing marijuana.

In a 6-1 vote, the Granville City Council changed the law’s wording, to fall in sync with Ohio law.

There were just three lines in the code that meant the difference between a normal life and pain for some people like James Malick.

September 4, 2014

Finally, Some Hard Science on Medical Marijuana for Epilepsy Patients

A groundbreaking clinical trial may provide some answers to medical marijuana as a seizure treatment

For years, some parents have turned to medical marijuana to treat their children’s debilitating epilepsy, crediting the drug with dramatically reducing seizure activity. A groundbreaking clinical trial about to begin recruiting test subjects may finally provide some science to back their claims.

In what is believed to be the first study of its kind, researchers at the University of Colorado, Denver will study the genes of those with a kind of epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome who have been treated with a strain of medical marijuana known as Charlotte’s Web. The study will attempt to determine if specific genetic components can explain why some epilepsy patients see positive results from ingesting Charlotte’s Web, while others do not.

August 28, 2014

Marijuana policy is behind times

The marijuana debate in this country takes several forms, most notably its drain on the criminal justice system relative to its significance as a vice. Does it make sense to fill courtrooms and jails with people who have used or distributed a substance that the president of the United States has declared no more dangerous than alcohol?

A similar question could be applied to the NFL: As more states legalize marijuana for medicinal and/or recreational use, is the league’s testing and discipline growing disproportionate? We seem to be moving in that direction and — depending on which scholar you read — the league might in fact be missing the opportunity to allow a more natural pain treatment than prescription drugs.

First, however, is the issue of discipline. All players are subject to the NFL’s policy on substances of abuse. (You can find the complex set of conditions for entrance and discipline here.) Once in the program, repeat offenders can be fined, suspended or banished from the league based on the circumstances.

August 28, 2014

Santa Fe council passes pot decriminalization measure

SANTA FE (KRQE) – The Santa Fe’s City Council voted five to four Wednesday to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

People in Santa Fe have been pushing to ease the marijuana laws.

There was some doubt that the city could get it on the November ballot there so councilors decided to pass the law themselves.

Santa Fe’s mayor supports the decision.

August 28, 2014

Doctors should lead the way on medical cannabis

A Camden County father cooks up marijuana-infused coconut oil for his 7-year-old daughter, who has a severe form of epilepsy. He pays out of pocket for the three doctors who must approve the girl’s medical marijuana card and drives across the state to buy the drug, which he credits for reducing the frequency and severity of her seizures.

A Franklinville mom makes a similar mixture for her 14-year-old, who’s suffered from epilepsy since she was 2. The woman adds the oil to yogurt and feeds it to her daughter every four hours. Spreadsheets keep track of the teen’s seizures and behavior, as well as the marijuana strains that her mother administers through trial and error.

These parents are doing what it takes to care for their children. But however certain they are that cannabis is helping, they are among the few who have jumped through the hoops of New Jersey’s medical marijuana program, which makes cannabis available through just three dispensaries. (The only South Jersey facility is in Egg Harbor Township, Atlantic County; another planned for Bellmawr has been waiting nearly a year and a half for a permit.)

August 28, 2014

Medical Cannabis: Saving Lives

New studies into the use of medical cannabis show a surprising trend that indicates that it is saving lives versus causing harm. As the uses for medical marijuana continue to be studied, new research clearly indicates that it may actually be effective in lowering death rates as well as helping multiple medical conditions. A study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Network, shows indications that states with medical cannabis laws in place have a smaller percentage of pain pill, such as Vicodin and Percocet, overdoses. States such as California and Oregon which had these laws in place prior to 1999 were compared to states such as Colorado, Hawaii and Vermont where the laws were only enacted between 1999 and 2010.