Free Republic

Former New York City Mayor—and potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidate—Michael Bloomberg called efforts to legalize marijuana "perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done." Speaking at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on Tuesday, Bloomberg said on the subject, according to WBNG-TV: "We have a different kind of problem in America, for example. Last year, in 2017, 72,000 Americans [overdosed] on drugs. In 2018, more people than that are OD-ing on drugs, have OD'd on drugs. And today, incidentally, we are trying to legalize another addictive narcotic, which is perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done. We've got...

Whoopi Goldberg and her business partner Maya Elisabeth are shuttering their cannabis brand, Whoopi & Maya, after four years. And we’re told it all went up in smoke because of a rift between the pair. Board member and High Times veteran Rick Cusick told us, “In the last few months, Whoopi and Maya wanted a divorce, and the board had worked very hard to try and come up with some proposals … but we couldn’t get both principals to agree.” He said the board thought they had found a “win-win” solution to “preserve the company,” but that Goldberg then sent...

SAN ANTONIO – Midway through a sold out two night stand at the Majestic Theater here, country music icon Willie Nelson said that in spite of recent breathing related health issues, he has no plans to give up touring. “I love the bus,” he told KSAT TV’s Paul Venema during a recent interview. “This is my home.” Performing, he says, is his key to happiness and good health. “It’s an energy exchange,” he said, describing his relationship with the audience. “They give me a lot of positive energy and I hope to give them a lot of positive energy.” He...

... "I have abused my lungs quite a bit in the past, so breathing is a little more difficult these days and I have to be careful," Nelson, 86, said. Nelson had to postpone the tail end of his tour in August due to breathing issues. He resumed the tour the next month. "I started smoking cedar bark, went from that to cigarettes to whatever," Nelson told KSAT. "And that almost killed me." Now, he says, he's more conscientious about his health. "I don't smoke anymore -- take better care of myself."

It’s like Michael Jordan retiring from the NBA. It’s like Donald Trump quitting Twitter. It’s like Lindsay Lohan forsaking drama. Willie Nelson has quit weed. The country icon — whose smoking habit was rivaled only by Snoop Dogg‘s — told KSAT TV, “I have abused my lungs quite a bit in the past, so breathing is a little more difficult these days and I have to be careful.”

Kwong: "How is Trump spending Thanksgiving? Tweeting, golfing, and more. Mark Dice @MarkDice "Newsweek deleted this tweet after getting demolished for their arrogance and hatred when it was revealed that President Trump made a surprise appearance in Afghanistan to serve the troops Thanksgiving dinner."

CNN’s Chris Cuomo was caught having a massive meltdown after one man addressed him as “Fredo Cuomo,” a longtime nickname given to the CNN anchor by Rush Limbaugh. (Snip) @realDonaldTrump Would Chris Cuomo be given a Red Flag for his recent rant? Filthy language and a total loss of control. He shouldn’t be allowed to have any weapon. He’s nuts!

Teen violin prodigy dies of apparent drug overdose in London mansion A lethal cocktail of drugs known as “Calvin Klein” has swept the nightclub scene amid reports that a 17-year-old London-born violin prodigy died from the dangerous combination. Experts warn that “Calvin Klein” binges, which involve ketamine and cocaine, “wreak havoc on the brain’s chemical system and can greatly impair overall brain functioning,” according to a site dedicated to treating ketamine substance abuse. The party drug — with Calvin standing for cocaine and Klein referring to ketamine — produces a euphoric high similar to ecstasy, users claim. The US National...

A miscommunication resulted in an unusual birthday cake for a Milledgeville woman. Kensli Davis is a huge fan of Disney's animated movie, "Moana." Her mother ordered a cake for Davis' celebration. They were surprised to see the cake decorated with a marijuana design. She says the cake came from Dairy Queen. The mishap didn't stop her from eating it. "I was very shocked and it was hilarious to me," said Davis. Davis posted the picture of the cake on Facebook. It went viral with more than 11,000 shares. "I was very impressed by the artistic capabilities of them to be...

A senior Palestinian official said the United States denied her application for a visa to travel to the U.S. on Monday in what appears to be the latest sign of escalating American political pressure on Palestinians. Hanan Ashrawi, a top official in the Palestine Liberation Organization and outspoken activist for Palestinian rights, told The Associated Press that she believed she was rejected for political reasons.

A new study by a Spanish pharmacologist has revealed traces of human faeces in the vast majority of the cannabis sold on the streets of Madrid, Spain, and that it presents a very real health danger. Manuel Pérez Moreno released his findings in the journal Science Direct and claimed to have found Escherichia coli bacteria, commonly known as E. Coli, in the vast majority of the 90 samples he had purchased off the street and tested, broadcaster RTL reports.According to Moreno, the presence of E. Coli can be explained as being related to the faecal matter contained within the cannabis....

Alex Berenson .. people who think marijuana is medicine and a safe alternative to alcohol are fooling themselves... The industry’s money and political influence, along with the media’s acquiescence, have obscured the scientific links between marijuana and mental illness... “The problems are real and right in front of people,” he told a crowd at the History Colorado Center in Denver on Wednesday. It was his third Colorado talk in two days to discuss his new book, “Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness, and Violence.” “It’s like we all need glasses. ... The connection to psychosis is real.”...

Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright apologized to Mitt Romney on Tuesday for previously mocking his 2012 description of Russia as the country's top geopolitical foe. Reporters tweeted Albright offered a mea culpa to now-Sen. Romney (R., Utah), then the 2012 GOP nominee, at a House Intelligence Committee hearing, saying "we underestimated what was going on with Russia."

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) earned praise from “drug justice” advocates after criticizing a growing marijuana legalization and business model that is paving the way for white male investors to reap major profits after minorities spent decades in prisons for selling pot. She made her comments during a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing this week on banking services for the burgeoning cannabis industry as more states legalize the sale and use of marijuana. She suggested the growing industry was “compounding the racial wealth gap” by allowing wealthy white-dominated companies to gain a quick advantage in the industry. She complained that communities...

A Salisbury University student has been charged with illegal wiretapping after prosecutors said he streamed a meeting with a congressional staffer for Maryland Rep. Andy Harris via Facebook Live without permission. Jake Burdett, 20, was charged last week with two felony counts of making an illegal recording and distributing the video filmed during a Maryland Marijuana Justice rally at Harris’s Salisbury office in October, the state prosecutor’s office announced Thursday. Marijuana legalization protesters have long tangled with Harris, who in 2014 worked to block full legalization of the drug in the District of Columbia. A protest outside the Republican’s Capitol...

Sen. Kamala D. Harris, California Democrat and 2020 presidential hopeful, appears to have fibbed during an interview Monday about smoking marijuana in college while listening to music by Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur. ...Neither of the future rap legends had released music by the time Ms. Harris completed graduate school, however.

October 17th 2018 - Satellite photos have shown a widespread cloud of skunky smelling smoke appearing over all of Canada. Meteorologists and Canadian Officials are perplexed as to the cause of this sudden cloud of smoke, but have noted a correlation of runs for junk-food such as Doritos, Little Debbie's Cookies and Cakes, as well as Twinkies at local convenience stores all across the provinces. Developing: We'll have more on this story as soon as we can get our reporters to stop giddily laughing incoherently.

DETROIT - "White Boy" Rick Wershe is less than 24 hours away from his best chance at release during a prison sentence of more than 29 years. On Friday, the Michigan parole board will vote on whether or not to release Wershe, who is the longest serving nonviolent juvenile offender in the state's history. On June 8, Wershe went through an intense four-hour parole hearing in Jackson, Michigan, with two members of the parole board and Assistant Attorney General Scott Rothermel. ...The information provided by Wershe led to the arrests of family and friends of Coleman Young, including his favorite...

Scott Adams, the creator of satirical comic Dilbert, is mourning the loss of his 18-year-old stepson who died of a Fentanyl overdose. The 61-year-old cartoonist revealed the heartbreaking news through a video on his Periscope, which was shared Monday. Fighting back tears, Adams explained he received a call from his ex-wife over the weekend telling him that “the little boy I raised from the age of two was dead.” Adams then said coroners found a fentanyl patch on his stepson Justin’s arm, and it is believed that he died of an overdose. Adams also explained Justin was trying to “score...

In a video that is now going viral for perfectly understandable reasons, a punk in a hoodie who tried to rob a restaurant ended up getting way more than he bargained for. The incident went down in Arizona when the thug menaced employees at an Arizona eatery with a box cutter and demanded money.