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Chalfonte LeNee Queen of San Diego grappled with violent vomiting episodes for 17 years until she found out her illness was related to her marijuana use. For 17 years, Chalfonte LeNee Queen suffered periodic episodes of violent retching and abdominal pain that would knock her off her feet for days, sometimes leaving her writhing on the floor in pain. "I've screamed out for death," says Queen, 48, who lives in San Diego. "I've cried out for my mom, who's been dead for 20 years, mentally not realizing she can't come to me." Queen lost a modeling job after being...

As canna-business strategist Elise McRoberts walked across an animal skin rug and into the living room of a Pacific Heights home for the recent San Francisco launch of Beboe, an upscale cannabis brand from Los Angeles, she assumed she would see the usual faces on the marijuana circuit — growers, dispensary owners and cannabis chefs. Instead, the party was a cross-pollination of the worlds of high society, Silicon Valley, politics, fashion and design: industrial designer Yves Béhar, former Mayor Willie Brown, who carried decriminalization bills in the state assembly in the 1970s, philanthropists Katie and Todd Traina, boutique owner Emily...

For many, Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is The Beatles at their best. When it came out on 1 June 1967 it was unlike anything that had come before it. Experimental and immersive, it pushed musical boundaries. Half a century on, it remains one of the most influential albums of all time, as Beatles author Steve Turner explains: "It was artistically aspirational at a time when most of their contemporaries were still playing beat music of some kind or another. "They had these great ambitions. Paul was starting to go to the theatre, George was listening to Indian music,...

In a push to hire minority police officers, the Obama administration is asking the nation’s 18,000 law enforcement agencies to forgive drug use, disregard the criminal records of candidates from “underrepresented communities” and lower standards on written and physical exams. It’s part of the administration’s Advancing Diversity in Law Enforcement initiative following a string of officer-involved shootings involving African Americans. Key to the mission is the racial diversification of local law enforcement agencies so that they “better reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.” To accomplish this, several barriers must be removed and the details are outlined in a...

Married television reporters Som Lisaius, 42, and Krystin Sorich Lisaius were arraigned on three criminal charges in Tucson on Monday Krystin Lisaius allegedly snorted cocaine with her husband on May 14 The next day the 26-year-old mother breast-fed the baby, who became ill They took baby to the hospital but refused to allow toxicology test Tests eventually showed cocaine was in the four-month-old's system The mother admitted to police that she used the drug, but didn't think the baby would be harmed Search warrant conducted inside their home found 1.59 grams of cocaine .............................................

Update (April 23, 6 p.m.): SHERWOOD, Ark. - Xavier Porter, 17; Travone Miller, 14; and Quincy Parker, 15 all face charges as adults in the death of 17-year-old Bryan Thompson. Sixth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney Larry Jegley confirmed the identities of the teenagers Saturday (4/23). The trio all face charges of Capital Murder and Aggravated Robbery. Update (April 23, 10 a.m.): SHERWOOD, Ark. - Sherwood Police arrested three unnamed juveniles (ages 14, 14 and 17) on Friday in connection with the death of Bryan Thompson, who was found dead on Thursday. All three face charges of Capital Murder and Aggravated...

Walmart's stock took a steep drop as the company announced that it was expecting lower profits. There are a number of problems Wal-mart has, such as its website and fulfillment not being quite as good as Amazon.com, but Wal-mart is primarily a brick and mortar store, not an internet company. The basic problem as I see it is that middle class people are afraid to shop there. If you look at reviews on Yelp one of the most common words used to describe Wal-mart is "ghetto". There is even a Yahoo question on this very topic: Why is every Walmart...

At Wesleyan University on February 22, 11 students were sickened by psychoactive drugs sold as “molly” — the vernacular name for 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine, abbreviated MDMA. The powder in question, according to police, contained a mix of other chemicals, and four students have been arrested in the case. No buyer of molly knows exactly what he or she is getting, of course. But there are ways to find out, and New York arranged to test several samples obtained in the city over the past year. Home-test kits, sold through dancesafe.org, involve placing a couple of drops of dye on a few grains...

Isn’t this interesting? The offices of a Dallas law firm representing a high-profile State Department whistleblower were broken into last weekend. Burglars stole three computers and broke into the firm’s file cabinets. But silver bars, video equipment and other valuables were left untouched, according to local Fox affiliate KDFW, which aired security camera footage of the suspected burglars entering and leaving the offices around the time of the incident. The firm Schulman & Mathias represents Aurelia Fedenisn, a former investigator at the State Department’s Office of the Inspector General. In recent weeks, she raised a slew of explosive allegations against...

The U.S. is losing the “war on drugs” in Afghanistan, with more than $7 billion invested in counternarcotics efforts since the fall of the Taliban yet poppy-growing at an all-time high. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction issued a report today detailing how the opium suppliers are flourishing thanks to better farm technology and more arable land, defying wipeouts from agricultural disease and interdiction programs to produce bumper crops.

Despite being cashiered out of the Navy Reserve for testing positive for cocaine, Vice President Joe Biden's son is still being allowed to practice law and won't lose his Connecticut law license. Late last week the Wall Street Journal reported that in February of this year Hunter Biden, 44, tested positive for cocaine during a drug test administered by the Navy and was immediately discharged from the Navy Reserve. Days later the Connecticut Bar announced that it was not initiating any reviews of the younger Biden's law license.

Colorado officials think a difference of one-hundredth of a mile will be enough to stop thieves from stealing the mile marker 420 sign along Interstate 70. Amy Ford of the Colorado Department of Transportation says the “MILE 420” sign near Stratton was stolen for the last time sometime in the last year, and officials replaced it with a sign that says “MILE 419.99.” …

Documents obtained by CBS News show that the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) discussed using their covert operation "Fast and Furious" to argue for controversial new rules about gun sales. PICTURES: ATF "Gunwalking" scandal timeline In Fast and Furious, ATF secretly encouraged gun dealers to sell to suspected traffickers for Mexican drug cartels to go after the "big fish." But ATF whistleblowers told CBS News and Congress it was a dangerous practice called "gunwalking," and it put thousands of weapons on the street. Many were used in violent crimes in Mexico. Two were found at the murder...

LIBERTY COUNTY, TX (KTRK) -- When military men and women leave home to serve the country, they expect to return to their homes once their tour of duty is over. But a military couple in the Liberty County town of Splendora almost lost their home to squatters who've been arrested for more than just taking over the couple's house. It was an unusual call for the Liberty County Sheriff's Office, but even more disturbing for homeowner Hollie Burbank. "It makes me sick," Burbank said. The home that's been in Burbank's family for three generations had some uninvited guests all while...

FBI hazardous material experts searched a home where police found pipe bombs and a jar containing the potentially deadly poison ricin, federal agents said Friday. The ricin was found in a baby food jar in a shed of the home owned by a man who went to jail last week for violating protection orders taken out by his estranged wife, according to local and federal officials. The jar was sealed, and officials don't believe the middle-class neighborhood in east Nashville was threatened, although the one-story brick house and part of the street remained cordoned off. Investigators found three blasting caps...

George Soros is a major funder of the Democratic Party. The party sometimes has problems motivating young people, who vote overwhelmingly Democratic, to get to the polls. One way Soros has helped drive them to get into the voting booth is to stoke up their enthusiasm with efforts such as MoveOn.Org - give them a sense of involvement. Barack Obama uses the same strategy: meetups, basketballs games, Organized for America, the internet: make it fun for young people to become Democrats. But over the last year, the young have grown disaffected with Democrats; midterms always pose a problem with...

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The insurance taken out on Michael Jackson for his London concert series does not cover cancellations if the pop star was found to have illegally possessed drugs or was involved in the "illicit taking of drugs." The $17.5 million policy, covering the first 13 shows of the 50-show run, was taken out by Jackson and concert promoter AEG Live in April. A copy sent to The Associated Press shows that the policy had several clauses that would prevent a payout, including if the singer concealed information or acted carelessly to increase the risk of a no-show.

Nice done movie answering to some semi-intelligent comments about the Netherlands. Made my day :o)

Wrote English poet John Keats in On Fame: How fevered is the man who cannot look Upon his mortal days with temperate blood, Who vexes all the leaves of his life's book, And robs his fair name of its maidenhood . . . It's worth rereading as we overindulge in the recent deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. Ed McMahon's death the same week received somewhat less coverage because he was neither beautiful, nor weird, though he qualified as a celebrity. At least McMahon served in two wars as a Marine, which was a real accomplishment. What is it...

The District ranks highest in the country for cocaine use and alcohol dependence, and has the third-highest percentage of marijuana usage, according to a new study. The study by the federal government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is the result of national drug survey results from 2006 and 2007 of residents of the District and 50 states, compiled through interviews and calculated estimations.