Andrea Seikaly @AndiSeikaly

 
 
At first blush it sounds like something out of a Cheech & Chong movie, but in fact it’s a serious effort.Fusion, the startup cabler run by ABC News and Univision, has named  journalist Ryan Nerz as its chief cannabis correspondent.
TV PILOTS/DEVELOPMENT SCORECARD: Follow all of the development action during upfront season
Given the spread of legalized marijuana availability in the U.S., Nerz will cover the  growing market for pot, examining economic and cultural impact of the shift in public policy.
 
Full Article:
http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/fusion-taps-ryan-nerz-as-tvs-first-chief-cannabis-correspondent-1201152283/

Marc Stewart

 
DENVER – Friday nights are some of the busiest at the Citi-Med dispensary, where for the moment, only green can be used to buy green.
In the eyes of the Drug Enforcement Agency, Marijuana is categorizedjust like heroin, LSD, and ecstasy.
It’s why most banks won’t accept money from pot sales.
Yet there may be a shift by the feds in making marijuana more mainstream.
Attorney General Eric Holder now says he’s willing to work with Congress to possibly remove pot from the “dangerous drug list.”
“We’d be more than glad to work with Congress if there is a desire to look at and reexamine how the drug is scheduled, as I said there is a great degree of expertise that exists in Congress,” Holder told the House Appropriations Committee hearing Friday, the Huffington Postreported. “It is something that ultimately Congress would have to change, and I think that our administration would be glad to work with Congress if such a proposal were made.”
 
Full Article:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/ag-holder-willing-to-consider-dropping-marijuana-from-same-drug-category-as-lsd-heroin-and-ecstasy04042014?autoplay=true

BY DONALD BRADLEY The Kansas City Star

 
ADRIAN, Mo. — As usual, Gene Halbin rolled a fat one after lunch.
He’d taken a couple of hits when two strangers appeared at the front door. Halbin’s place sits way out of town, off the blacktop, down a dirt road, round a bend, over a bridge and deep into some woods in northwestern Bates County.
Good bet they weren’t solicitors working the neighborhood.
But they did come with purpose and the first words out of one of their mouths stated it clearly:
“I can smell marijuana right now.”
For the rest of the day, Halbin, 60, a retired air conditioning serviceman with a rare and severe form of glaucoma, sat quietly as officers carted out 41 pot plants, growing lights, a dozen or so guns and his grandfather’s pipe collection.
Sometime during all this, Halbin’s wife, Dolores, a registered nurse, came home and saw all the cars. She figured what was happening, got scared and drove on past. She drove around until she ran out of gas.
 
Full Article:
http://www.kansascity.com/2014/03/29/4924807/marijuana-raid-that-removes-a.html

by John Davis

 
A crop that has had an undeserved stigma attached to it could now become a source for biodiesel and ethanol. The recently passed and signed Farm Bill contains a provision that would allow hemp to be grown for research purposes, including making it into the green fuels.
“Hemp is a great crop for biodiesel, and we’ve already started experimenting with [cellulosic ethanol made from hemp],” explained Ben Droz with Vote Hemp, a group trying revitalize industrial hemp production in the U.S., at last week’s National Agriculture Day in Washington, D.C. He pointed out that hemp goes back a long ways in this country’s history, including being grown by the Founding Fathers and the founder of our modern automobile industry. “Henry Ford was actually doing research on hemp fuels and hemp biocomposites. And now today we are looking back to see if we can grow hemp once again.”
 
Full Article:
http://domesticfuel.com/2014/04/03/hemp-to-biofuels-research-gets-green-light/

By Nick Sibilla

 
Local law enforcement needs only to “collaborate” with a federal agency in order to do an end run around a state law regarding marijuana. Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
 
When voters in Colorado and Washington state approved legalizing marijuana in 2012, those votes undermined an abusive—and profitable—police practice: civil forfeiture. Unlike with criminal forfeiture, undercivil forfeiture people do not have to be convicted of or even charged with a crime to permanently lose their cash, cars, and other property. Police can then auction off that seized property and use the proceeds to fund themselves. In the 42 states that allow police departments to profit from forfeiture, that cash flow has funded both themilitarization of police and allowed law enforcement to make ridiculous purchases, including a margarita machine, a Hawaiian vacation, and a Dodge Viper.
 
Full Article:
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/04/equitable_sharing_legalized_marijuana_and_civil_forfeiture_the_scheme_that.html
 

By KRISTEN WYATT

 
 

Nationwide marijuana legalization seems inevitable to three-fourths of Americans, whether they support it or not, according to a new poll out Wednesday.

The Pew Research Center survey on the nation’s shifting attitudes about drug policy also showed increased support for moving away from mandatory sentences for non-violent drug offenders.

The telephone survey found that 75 percent of respondents — including majorities of both supporters and opponents of legal marijuana— think that the sale and use of pot eventually will be legal nationwide. It was the first time that question had been asked.

 
Full Article:
http://news.yahoo.com/poll-nationwide-marijuana-legalization-inevitable-150206513.html

by Drake Dorm

 
 
At the moment, concentrate makers worldwide are producing, or attempting to produce, an absolute – a hard piece of see-through shatter/glass. Essentially, what they are looking for is a stable piece of concentrate that can be held in hand without sticking to it. To achieve this goal, they utilize various methods and equipment such as winterization, vacuum purging, and vacuum drying ovens.
The levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in concentrates overall are getting higher, some exceed 80% THC (either in the raw THCA form or as activated Δ-9 THC). But the pursuit of elevated THC levels has come at the expense of terpenes.
 
Full Article:
http://www.medicaljane.com/2014/04/01/kenneth-k-morrow-discusses-the-future-of-dabs-cannabis-concentrates/

Gary Storck

 
April 1, 2014 was a historic day for Wisconsin marijuana law reform efforts. In the early evening, the state Senate overwhelmingly passed narrowly focused medical marijuana legislation, and in Spring elections held the same day,Dane County voters passed Advisory Referendum #2, asking state lawmakers to enact legislation legalizing marijuana, by a nearly 65/35% margin.
 
Full Article:
http://www.examiner.com/article/wisconsin-passes-cbd-medical-marijuana-bill-dane-votes-2-1-for-legalization

 
As the city of Las Vegas hammers out regulations for medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities, there is growing concern among patients and prospective business owners.
The city on Tuesday passed out a 40-page draft of proposed regulations during a meeting at City Hall. Critics say that if the draft were to become law, the price of operating a medical marijuana business would be outrageous, and those costs would have to be passed on to customers.
City leaders, though, say those concerns may be premature.
 
Full Article:
http://www.fox5vegas.com/story/25148306/operating-a-las-vegas-medical-marijana-business-will-be-costly

by Lisa Singer

 
Hemp seeds are a high protein superfood that can pump up the nutritional value of many of your favorite foods. They contain essential fatty acids that may help lower your blood pressure, improve memory and aid in weight loss. Photo credit: Lisa Singer
 
Three easy ways to incorporate hemp seeds into your diet:

1. Add two tablespoons to your oatmeal – gives it a subtle nutty flavor and boosts your morning protein by 10g.
2. Include in your morning smoothie – sometimes I’ll swap out my flaxseeds and Greek yogurt, I still get my morning protein and omega-3’s but with less sugar and calories.
3. They’re also a great way to add protein to your salads, yogurt, pasta and vegetable dishes.

 
Full Article:
http://www.globalanimal.org/2014/04/02/cruelty-free-eating-high-on-hemp-seeds/