Free Republic

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration will take a historic step toward easing federal restrictions on cannabis, with plans to announce an interim rule soon reclassifying the drug for the first time since the Controlled Substances Act was enacted more than 50 years ago, four sources with knowledge of the decision said. The Drug Enforcement Administration is expected to approve an opinion by the Department of Health and Human Services that marijuana should be reclassified from the strictest Schedule I to the less stringent Schedule III. It would be the first time that the U.S. government has acknowledged its potential medical...

Researchers at Washington State University (WSU) say they have identified key neurons in the brain that are behind an appetite-inducing phenomenon familiar to cannabis users called the munchies. Previous research found a link between cannabis use and increased activity in the hypothalamus, which, among other things, regulates appetite. The new research study takes those studies even further by identifying typically dormant appetite-increasing neurons within the same brain region, which become activated after cannabis use. The researchers behind the finding believe their work can not only aid sufferers of anorexia and other eating disorders, but may also pave the way toward...

A woman who stabbed her boyfriend 100 times after inhaling marijuana sobbed in court, while clutching a picture of dog - which she also killed. Bryn Spejcher, 32, originally from Chicago, committed the horrific attack in May 2018, after taking two hits of her boyfriend's marijuana 'bong'. According to an expert witness, the violent act was a result of a 'psychotic episode' caused by the cannabis. 'Dog lover' Spejcher is said to have smoked pot just five to ten times in her life, according to testimony heard in the trial that started last week at the Superior Court of California....

Democrats in Washington state are cracking down on marijuana — not the actual drug, the word itself. The Evergreen State legislature recently passed a bill banning the word “marijuana” from official state law and documents over concerns that it is “racist.” At the same time, to help increase diversity in the cannabis business, a taxpayer-funded task force has been spending the last two years focusing on helping minorities in Washington state break into the marijuana business. “The term ‘marijuana’ itself is pejorative and racist,” Washington state Representative Melanie Morgan (D) said during testimony regarding the piece of legislation officially known...

Introduction The ongoing push to legalize recreational marijuana in all fifty states is a very clever juke move on the part of the progressive left. It certainly looks like an expansion of personal liberty, but it doesn’t smell that way at all. Liberty smells like crisp mountain air, right next to a glacier-fed lake. Legalized pot smells like something sweet and sticky coming out of that particularly seedy basement apartment, with the only redeeming feature being the fact that it is strong enough to overcome the smell of urine on the landing. Okay, I thought of another advantage. Since the...

Full Title: When going green is dirty: Colorado's indoor cannabis farms produce 30% more greenhouse emissions than the state's coal mining industry due to electricity use and natural gas consumption, study reveals Growing cannabis indoors requires a lot of energy for lights and climate controls Many states forbid outdoor farming or require operations to be near retail outlets In Colorado, indoor pot farming's carbon footprint is over 30 percent bigger than coal mining Depending on where you are, growing an ounce of weed indoors has the same carbon footprint as burning 7 to 16 gallons of gasoline

Ten states and Washington, D.C., have now legalized adult use of marijuana.Supporters of America's long war on drugs said legalization would create disaster. Has it? No.Colorado and Washington offer the longest points of comparison because weed has been legal in those states now for five years.More people in Colorado tried marijuana after legalization, but that's not a surprise.Colorado's crime rate did rise a bit. But many things influence crime rates. Washington state's violent crime rate rose a little but slightly less than the national average.In California, people I interviewed said legalization made the streets safer. "It's cleaned up the corner,"...

Marijuana legalization had a very good election night on Tuesday. The big news came from Michigan, which became the first state in the Midwest to legalize cannabis for recreational purposes. And it appears to have won by a fairly big margin: With 87 percent of precincts reporting, the “yes” vote got 56 percent of the vote — topping the “no” vote by 12 percentage points. There were also a couple of medical marijuana victories in Missouri and Utah. Both states went Republican in state races (particularly the Senate), yet they still showed solid support for legalizing medical pot. The winning...

Citizens in four states vote Tuesday on ballot initiatives to legalize some form of cannabis. Residents of Missouri and Utah will decide on its medical availability, Michigan and North Dakota on recreational consumption for adults. If all four measures pass, the tally of states that allow some sort of cannabis use will jump to 32, nearly two-thirds of the U.S. The trend could not be clearer: Cannabis prohibition is coming to an end. A Gallup poll last month found 66% of Americans favor legal marijuana. I am now one of those Americans. It began when a friend of mine who...

Persistent users likely to be lower paid and have relationship difficulties Research found abusers ended up in a lower social class than their parents Also more prone to be in less skilled, prestigious jobs and to run into debt Study by Californian university followed children from birth up to age of 38The study, conducted by a team of researchers led by Magdalena Cerda at the University of California and Avshalom Caspi and Terrie Moffitt at Duke University, appeared in the journal Clinical Psychological Science. 'Our research does not support arguments for or against cannabis legalization,' said Cerda. 'But it does...

A Denver woman was allegedly shot to death by her own husband while on the phone with police after he consumed marijuana edibles and began hallucinating. Kristine A. Kirk clung to her phone with a 911 dispatcher for nearly 15 minutes before her final scream was accompanied by a piercing gunshot late Monday night, NBC reported. When officers arrived at the 44-year-old's home they reported finding the mother of three dead at the scene after suffering a gunshot wound to the head.

Marijuana is causing America to be more and more dysfunctional. Its time we recognize that we have a problem. Educational info on marijuana

Whether You Like it or Not - California Will Legalize Pot Next Year (That seems to be the idea behind a new article out today) According to a well known, and outspoken leader from the left it’s a good bet that the state will legalize Pot next year. Part of the reason? The state needs...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday it's time for California to study whether to legalize and tax marijuana for recreational use, though he's not yet advocating for such a change. The governor was asked about a recent Field Poll showing that 56 percent of registered voters support legalizing and taxing marijuana to raise revenues for cash-strapped California. Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, has proposed legislation that would legalize the drug for recreational use, rather than just medical purposes. "Well, I think it's not time for that, but I think it's time for a debate," Schwarzenegger said. "I think all of those...

I’m not sure what to make of the NYT feature “Friends Say Drugs Played Only Bit Part for Obama.” In more than three dozen interviews, friends, classmates and mentors from his high school and Occidental recalled Mr. Obama as being grounded, motivated and poised, someone who did not appear to be grappling with any drug problems and seemed to dabble only with marijuana.Vinai Thummalapally, a former California State University student who became friendly with Mr. Obama in college, remembered him as a model of moderation — jogging in the morning, playing pickup basketball at the gym, hitting the books and...

Willie Nelson Cited for Drug Possession Sep 18 1:06 PM US/Eastern Willie Nelson and several members of his band were issued misdemeanor citations for drug possession early today during a traffic stop in Saint Martin Parish. The traffic stop was conducted on Interstate 10 near Breaux Bridge. Trooper Willie Williams says troopers smelled a strong odor of marijuana when the driver opened the bus door. During a search of the bus, Williams say approximately 1 1/2 pounds of marijuana and approximately 2/10 of a pound of mushrooms were located on the bus. The 73-year-old Nelson of Spicewood, Texas; 59-year-old Tony...

Ivy League? What Ivy League? The quality of a campus is all in the eye of the beholder, according to a survey of 115,000 students released today, which reveals that political leanings, food and mood sway collegians rather than academic prestige alone.-snip-Where do students wax most nostalgic for former President Ronald Reagan? That would be Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Mich. Alternatively, they pine most for former President Bill Clinton at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, N.C. -- which, incidentally, ranked tops in "Reefer Madness" -- marijuana use -- in the poll.

KILN, Miss. -- If you follow the flow of dump trucks out of Waveland, chances are good that you’ll end up at Hemphill-Eutaw Temporary Waste Site, one of four sites grappling with the seemingly endless piles of wreckage from Bay St. Louis and Waveland. Refrigerators, it turns out, are more plentiful and more problematic than most types of waste, which is why there are 20 workers at this site alone dedicated to nothing but dealing with the dead ones left behind by Katrina. This group is from Onyx Environmental Emergency Response, a subcontractor to Ashbritt Environmental, which is overseeing waste...

Study turns pot wisdom on head Lab rats given drug 100 times as strong as pot By DAWN WALTON Calgary — Forget the stereotype about dopey potheads. It seems marijuana could be good for your brain. While other studies have shown that periodic use of marijuana can cause memory loss and impair learning and a host of other health problems down the road, new research suggests the drug could have some benefits when administered regularly in a highly potent form. Most "drugs of abuse" such as alcohol, heroin, cocaine and nicotine suppress growth of new brain cells. However, researchers found...

“Cannabis is still seen as a risk-free drug despite mounting evidence that it can lead to serious mental health problems, particularly amongst young teenagers, people with a family history of severe mental illness and in long-term users.” The charity called for the money to be spent on a massive public education campaign to inform users and potential users of the well-founded mental health dangers of using cannabis at a young age and over a long period of time. Rethink chief executive Cliff Prior told the committee: “Cannabis is still seen as a risk-free drug despite mounting evidence that it can...