Today’s The New York Times City Blog features an article about a court settlement between New York City and Jamie Rutkowski. Who is Jamie Rutkowski? Until New York City police decided to arrest her for minor cannabis possession—in a city that is supposed to be issuing civil tickets— locking her up in police detention, creating a health hazard for the young woman with diabetes and ultimately paying her $125,000 in damages, no one knew who she was.
Now, all cannabis consumers in the United States—notably in municipalities and states that have reformed their cannabis laws with decriminalization laws and patient protections for medicinal use—should cite Ms. Rutkowski’s case settlement as precedent against overzealous law enforcement agencies who choose to physically arrest and detain minor cannabis offenders, rather than issue them a civil fine, similar to a speeding or parking ticket.
 
Read complete article here:
http://www.opposingviews.com/i/health/diabetes/diabetic-nyc-woman-arrested-pot-gets-125000-settlement

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the unseen wounds of combat, and while it may not be physically apparent to most people, it is an injury that is just as deadly – if not even more so. The physical wounds may heal, but PTSD is something that, if left untreated (or worse, undiagnosed), may last a lifetime.
A feature on the New York Times shared a proposal from the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies in Santa Cruz, California, and a researcher at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. They are seeking federal approval to look into the potential benefits of marijuana on veterans who are suffering from chronic PTSD; should they be granted permission, it will become the first study of its kind.
 
 
Read complete article here:
http://blog.usnavyseals.com/2011/07/marijuana-for-treating-ptsd.html

From Granny Storm Crow:
Everyone knows about the circulatory system, and the digestive system- they are pretty obvious to the naked eye. But there is another less obvious system -the cannabinoid receptor system.
On the surface of your cells, there are chemical receptors that sort of work like an ignition switch in a car. The right shaped chemical will fit into the receptor’s “key hole” and it “turns on” some action. This could be almost anything- from telling a cancer cell it’s time to die, to activating the suckling instinct in an infant, to soothing your upset stomach to making you feel “just a little bit too good”! (For more info on the cannabinoid receptors and what they do, see (1) for the short FOX NEWS version, or (2) for a real education!)
The reason cannabis works, is that our bodies make their own types of cannabinoids, endocannabinoids  that “turn on” the receptors, setting off all sorts of reactions. The plant cannabinoids, THC and CBD, happen to fit in our body’s cannabinoid system’s “key holes” and can fill in for a deficiency in the production of your own endocannabinoids.  The CB1 receptor is responsible for getting you high, and a lot more.
On to the abstract I found – (Where you see “n-3 PUFAs”, read Omega 3.)
“Nutritional omega-3 deficiency abolishes endocannabinoid-mediated neuronal functions.”
The corollaries of the obesity epidemic that plagues developed societies are malnutrition and resulting biochemical imbalances. Low levels of essential n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs) have been linked to neuropsychiatric diseases, but the underlying synaptic alterations are mostly unknown. We found that lifelong n-3 PUFAs dietary insufficiency specifically ablates long-term synaptic depression mediated by endocannabinoids in the prelimbic prefrontal cortex and accumbens. In n-3-deficient mice, presynaptic cannabinoid CB(1) receptors (CB(1)Rs) normally responding to endocannabinoids were uncoupled from their effector G(i/o) proteins. Finally, the dietary-induced reduction of CB(1)R functions in mood-controlling structures was associated with impaired emotional behavior. These findings identify a plausible synaptic substrate for the behavioral alterations caused by the n-3 PUFAs deficiency that is often observed in western diets.
Granny’s translation – “The US diet sucks big time and we are fat, undernourished, and crazy because of it. We get WAY too much Omega 6 and not enough Omega 3. Not getting enough Omega 3 can make you crazy because without it, the CB1 cannabinoid receptors in your brain aren’t made right- a chunk that is supposed to be attached, isn’t! Broken receptors give you “impaired emotional behavior”.  So we think it’s the low Omega 3 diet is making the US totally nuts!”
Now, since the CB1 receptors are not working right because of that broken piece, does this also mean that people who have been deficient in Omega 3 for a while are missing out on the full medical benefits- and their maximum high?
The two most popular forms of Omega 3 supplements are fish oils and flax seed oil. Fish oil may be contaminated with mercury- so many people prefer flax seed oil. Flax is fine, but has a few minor problems nutritionally- look it up if you are curious.
But there is another plant oil that is an even better source of Omega 3 than flax seed oil……….hemp seed oil! (3) The very thing we need to make our CB receptors work at their best is in the hemp plant! Cannabis is the source of the cannabinoids that we need to heal ourselves and the source of the Omega 3 we need for our receptors to do their jobs properly!
A loss of CB1 receptors has been shown in Huntington’s Disease, premature birthing, Alzheimer’s, intestinal tumors, Parkinson’s and other conditions.  It seems reasonable to assume that defective CB receptors would not replicate as well as normal ones would. We need the Omega 3 to make healthy, functioning CB1 receptors!
Some of you by now are thinking “Well, I’m totally up the creek! Never took a fish oil capsule in my life, I hate fish, never even seen hemp seed oil, and I eat at KFC and McDs! My poor old CB receptors must be deformed as heck, and I’ll never get them working right!”
Guess what? Marijuana might cause new cell growth in the brain! (4) So if you were getting the Omega 3s, it would seem logical that the newly-formed brain cells would be normal and healthy! Omega 3 might just be as good for your “head”, as it is for your heart!
But will just popping a few fish or hemp oil caps get you higher (or healthier) tonight? Not right away, but if you keep it up, those neurons with the defective CB1 receptors will be replaced with healthier, working ones! It takes a minimum of 3 weeks for Omega 3’s anti-depressant effects to begin to show, so it seems likely that around a month would be needed for effects to show up medically.  For medical users, Omega 3 may make the difference between health and sickness! Without sufficient, working CB1 receptors, cannabis is less efficient at healing us!
I think the Omega 3 / CB1 connection is vitally important for not just the medical cannabis community, but the whole medical community! (And the “stoners” may appreciate it, too!)
(1)    Are You Cannabis Deficient?      (news – 2010)
http://health.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/03/10/are-you-cannabis-deficient/
(2) Clinical Endocannabinoid Deficiency    (full – 2004)
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/clinical.pdf
(3)  10 Health Benefits of Hemp Seeds
http://www.superfoodliving.com/10-health-benefits-of-hemp-seeds
(4)    Marijuana might cause new cell growth in the brain  (news – 2005)    http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8155
(4)    Marijuana might cause new cell growth in the brain  (news – 2005)    http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8155
 
More on Omega 3-
 
Deficiency of Dietary Omega-3 May Explain Depressive Behaviors (abst – 2011) http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Deficiency+of+Dietary+Omega-3+May+Explain+Depressive+Behaviors.-a0248155576
 
Omega-3 fatty acids increase brain volume: while reversing many aspects of neurologic aging. (full – 2010)  http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Omega-3+fatty+acids+increase+brain+volume%3a+while+reversing+many…-a0237529250
 
Wise up!
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Wise+up+with+omega-3%3a+can+omega-3+benefit+brain+health%3f-a0213232330
 
O-3 & heart
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/New+Omega-3+Blood+Test%3a+A+Better+Predictor+of+Coronary+Heart+Disease…-a0206090424
 
O-6 vs. O-3 ratio
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Omega-6+to+Omega-3+Ratio+-+Discover+the+Shocking+Reality+That+Ruins…-a01073970178
 
How Long Before Fish Oil Works on Depression to Lift Your Mood?
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Long-Before-Fish-Oil-Works-on-Depression-to-Lift-Your-Mood?&id=4229948

I am known as Dr. Bob throughout Northern Michigan, my practice certifies patients to use medical marijuana, and I want the state to put me out of a job.
To do that, leaders need to look at the reasons marijuana certification clinics like mine exist and work to remove those reasons while respecting the wishes of 63 percent of Michigan voters. Some 3.2 million Michigan residents voted for the MMMA, yet rather than respect their will, leaders have, at nearly every opportunity, sought to throw up roadblocks to its implementation.
The latest effort is a group of bills sponsored by the likes of Sen. Rick Jones and Rep. John Walsh designed to hamper patients and gut the act, rather than ease access for patients as the MMMA and the people intended.
Patients cannot go to their primary care doctors and get a certification, regardless of how much they want one and how well qualified under the act they are. In most cases they are chronically ill, middle-aged folks who have been using marijuana for years and want to take the step to become legal. They view marijuana as a natural and benign alternative to prescription narcotics such as OxyContin or Vicodin — medications that damage their livers and turn them into zombies.
Read complete article here:
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20110717/OPINION02/307170009/Robert-Townsend-End-fear-medical-marijuana-?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7COpinions%7Cs

Rita Trichur

Hemp is fast becoming a staple of daytime TV as Oprah, Dr. Oz and others extol the health virtues of hemp oil, protein powders and pasta. At the same time, industrial interests tout it as a potential base for products ranging from textiles to car parts. As a result, demand is surging in the United States, Germany and Japan.
But American farmers are prohibited from growing hemp. That leaves farmers in Canada – where it’s been a legal crop since 1998 – free to tap the growing U.S. interest in hemp-based products.
Read complete article here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/the-snicker-factor-aside-hemp-is-serious-business/article2092758/

Written by Scott Wartman
COVINGTON—Two of the three gubernatorial candidates debated in Covington Thursday afternoon, Republican State Senate President David Williams and independent candidate Gatewood Galbraith.
Gov. Steve Beshear announced earlier in the week that a scheduling conflict would keep him from attending the debate at the joint conference of the Kentucky County Judge/Executives Association and the Kentucky Magistrates and Commissioners Association held at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center.
 Williams criticized Beshear as having no agenda.
 “My favorite Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt, talks about people in the arena who have the blood and sweat and get in there and try,” Williams said. “Gatewood, thank you for being here today and offering yourself for public office. You’re in the arena. Two out of three candidates are here, and the other will be engaged when he chooses, but he’s not here today.”
Galbraith blamed partisan politics for Kentucky’s woes and said as an independent, he will work with both sides of the aisle.
“I foresee that after my stint as governor, I’m going to be one of the most disliked people in the state because I’m going to have to make decisions that neither party candidate can possibly make, because they’ve got to answer to the party,” Galbraith said. “I don’t answer to anybody except God and an occasional judge or two.”
One of the questions involved the state gas tax, which funds road improvements throughout Kentucky.
Williams believes the state’s entire tax structure must be revamped. The gas tax revenue, based on consumption of gas, goes down as gas prices goes up. But the cost of maintaining the roads gets more expensive with rising gas prices.
“We should take a long hard look at how we tax gas, and how we provide money for roads in the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” Williams said.
Galbraith said the state should allow the growing of hemp as a source of bio-fuel.
“If you planted 7 percent of the U.S. Agricultural land in hemp, we wouldn’t have to import another drop of oil,” Galbraith said. “Gee, reckon if there’s anyone out there that doesn’t want that to happen? People I call the petrol-chemical-pharmaceutical-industrial-transnational-corporate-fascist-elitist SOBS.”
Read complete article here:
http://cincinnati.com/blogs/nkypolitics/2011/07/14/williams-and-galbraith-debate/

Robert Platshorn and Irvin Rosenfeld at the Miami Beach City Commissioners meeting

7/14/2011- Tubbs and Crockett could be issuing tickets for pot possession and saving their city’s tax dollars. Popular tourist destination Miami Beach is cranking up the heat for cannabis reform. Some dedicated advocates have spent the last year gathering 9,000 signatures for a decriminalization measure. This week the petition was submitted to the Miami Beach City Commissioners.
The reduction in penalties would mean that adults caught with less than 1 ounce of cannabis would face a $100 fine and no criminal record. That would be a big change from the possible year in jail and $1000 fine currently for up to 20 grams of pot.
Some nationally prominent marijuana activists are residents of the Miami area and have given significant momentum to the cause.
Robert Platshorn served the longest sentence in history for a non-violent marijuana offense: 28 years. He is involved with the campaign and was on the scene this week: “We went in to present the 9,000 signatures and ten of us also testified. Now we’ve verified most of them [signatures]. If 6,400 are verified they have to put it on the ballot or call a special election. The only concern by Commissioners was triggering a special election in these tough economic times. That would cost the city about 250,000 dollars.”
Although concerned about the technical details the Miami Beach Commissioners, including Mayor Matti Herrera Bower, did take the issue seriously. “They were really very receptive to the petition,” Platshorn said, “where we didn’t have a sponsor on the commission; we do now. They all made statements that they were not against it. Again, we were very well received….many of the speeches got applause from the Commissioners.”
Irvin Rosenfeld is one of the few federal medical marijuana patients and garnered some of those applause. Rosenfeld’s tins of 300 cannabis cigarettes are manufactured by federal authorities under a program created in the late 1980’s.Florida saw a state medical marijuana resolution introduced earlier this year but there was no legislative action.
“I care about medicine getting to patients,” said Rosenfeld,”decriminalization helps patients because now they don’t have to worry about being arrested.”
He brought his tin of cannabis to show the Commissioners, “I asked them to hold up their hands and asked if they paid federal taxes. And they all raise their hands and then I took out my tin – I said ‘Isn’t it silly that city police would be spending time and money chasing people down for the same thing you paid for that helps me!’”
Read complete article here:
http://www.freedomisgreen.com/marijuana-decrim-heats-up-in-miami-beach/

By Dion Markgraaff
The cannabis plant is the key to the revolution in reducing our energy economic costs to individuals and our environment. The bottom line in this change is all based on the financial numbers plugged into a mathematical equation that results in the lowest number. Money, the amount we all pay for energy, is going to decide what society chooses to get our power from and cannabis in a free market will be the overwhelmingly clear choice. The glands of cannabis flowers will pay for the entire cultivation effort, leaving the rest of the plant cost free for energy and other more valuable products.
Read complete article here:
http://nugmag.com/2011/07/hash-the-glands-of-the-cannabis-can-pay-for-free-energy-to-everyone-unedited-version/