Do You Think Medical Marijuana Should Be Legalized for Dogs?



 
Christine L. of Nevada misses her Rottweiler, Sampson, who passed away on November 20, 2012 of a rare form of blood cancer. “In 2010, between the vomiting and diarrhea, he was losing two pounds a day,” she recalls. Unable to afford chemotherapy, she felt helpless watching her best friend waste away to 64 pounds, less than three quarters of his fighting weight.
 

 Sampson the Rottweiler, poster dog for medical marijuana’s healing power.

 
Then Christine stumbled upon a controversial homemade herbal remedy that she credits with enormously improving her dog’s quality of life. She’s grateful that, in his final year, Sampson weighed in at a robust 106 pounds and lived free of the wracking pain that had haunted him. Whereas before Sampson had been too weak to walk, almost overnight he became a born-again youngster. “He was a puppy again, happy and playful,” Christine recalls. “He’d trot around the house with his toys in his mouth, wanting to play fetch!”
The name of the controversial herbal remedy Sampson took? Cannabis.
Inspired by reports of medical marijuana helping human cancer patients, Christine started digging online. The search terms? “How to administer cannabis to a dog.” Christine — who, for the record, is not a recreational cannabis user — was initially concerned about giving it to her dog because of the bad press she’d heard about the plant. But after giving Sampson cannabis flower-bud material mixed with virgin coconut oil (which the Rotti lapped up gladly), she noticed a huge difference in the dog’s attitude almost immediately.
“Cannabis saved my dog’s life,” she says. “It brought him back from the brink.”
 
Full Article:
http://www.dogster.com/lifestyle/medical-marijuana-for-dogs

Arkansans for Medical Cannabis Submit Ballot Initiative for 2014

By: KARK 4 News
 
Arkansans for Medical Cannabis submitted a ballot initiative with hopes of giving voters in the Natural State a second opportunity to decide whether they want medical marijuana legalized.
The group turned the ballot initiative into the Arkansas Attorney General’s office on Monday. – See more at: http://arkansasmatters.com/fulltext?nxd_id=641532#sthash.ixaQM8Vw.dpuf
 
Full Article:
http://arkansasmatters.com/fulltext?nxd_id=641532

Why Country Music Stars Should Join the Marijuana Majority

Jamie Haase

Former Special Agent, Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP)
 
On average, HuffPost readers probably aren’t the biggest aficionados of country music. Still, many readers here understand the need for establishing responsible marijuana policy. When it comes to reversing archaic pot prohibition laws across the United States, the most regressive region is the same place where country music prevails most predominantly. In my opinion, one of the main ingredients still needed for successful marijuana reform in the South is public support by prominent country artists.
Surely Willie Nelson comes to mind for many people when the words “country music” and “marijuana” are mentioned together. Yet Willie has many younger allies these days as a new generation of “outlaw” artists are brazenly singing about pot. Though most haven’t been as open about legalization as Willie, lyrics about marijuana are craftily blended into many of their songs. The likes of Zac Brown, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Randy Houser and Jamey Johnson come to mind to name just a few.
 
Full Article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-haase/marijuana-country-music_b_2776084.html

Obama MIA On Jim Crow During Black History Month

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As Black History Month is celebrated during February, it offers an opportunity to examine the parallels between Jim Crow policies from the early 20th century and current drug prohibition policies, both which have been used to oppress and restrict African Americans, according to Steve Young, co-author of The Cannabis Papers.
Chicago, IL (PRWEB) February 28, 2013
One author of the book The Cannabis Papers, which examines the necessity of cannabinoids for human life and freedom, is expressing disappointment that another February is almost over without appropriate reflection of what the drug war has done to disrupt liberty and the pursuit of happiness in the African American community.
“President Barack Obama delivered his fifth State of the Union Address a couple weeks ago in the middle of another Black History Month with lofty statements and idealistic goals, but he sadly said nothing about the ongoing plague in African American neighborhoods and individual homes that is the war on drugs,” said Steve Young, a co-author of The Cannabis Papers.
Full Article:
http://www.virtual-strategy.com/2013/02/28/obama-mia-jim-crow-during-black-history-month

Georgia’s first Southern Cannabis Reform Conference coming

Posted by Rodney Carmichael

pot-cover-web.jpg
JOEFF DAVIS
 
The homegrown fight to legalize weed is getting fired up again.
Marijuana legalization advocates have announced Georgia’s first Southern Cannabis Reform Conference, scheduled to take place March 15-16. Organized by Peachtree NORML, a local affiliate of the national organization, the conference will mix entertainment and education, with workshops and panels planned to discuss “the how’s and why’s of cannabis reform in Georgia,” according to the press release.
 
Full Article:
http://clatl.com/freshloaf/archives/2013/02/28/georgias-first-southern-cannabis-reform-conference-coming
 

FL Lawmakers to consider medical marijuana bill


 
TALLAHASSEE, Fla.- State Sen. Jeff Clemens (D-Lake Worth) introduced a bill Wednesday, that would allow Floridians with debilitating medical conditions to legally obtain and use marijuana if their doctors recommend it.
S.B. 1250, the Cathy Jordan Medical Cannabis Act, would allow patients with certain qualifying medical conditions, or their officially designated caregivers, to privately possess up to four ounces of marijuana and grow up to eight marijuana plants. It would also require the Department of Business and Professional Regulation to license and regulate medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivation facilities. The bill is named in recognition of Cathy Jordan, president of the Florida Cannabis Action Network, who uses marijuana in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” Police raided Jordan’s home on Monday and seized her medical marijuana after a government employee visiting the home next door saw marijuana plants on her property.
 
Full Article:
http://www.winknews.com/Local-Florida/2013-02-27/FL-Lawmakers-to-consider-medical-marijuana-bill#.UTAaWaL-fFJ

‘Weed’ should be legalized in U.S.

Activists have been struggling to legalize hemp for decades in the United States, but only recently has the issue seemingly caught fire in Congress.

HANDOUT / THE CANADIAN PRESS ENLARGE IMAGE
Activists have been struggling to legalize hemp for decades in the United States, but only recently has the issue seemingly caught fire in Congress.

As states of a more liberal bent battle the federal government over the legalization of medical and even recreational marijuana, another cannabis battle has re-emerged in the farm states. But if pot smoking raises troubling moral and safety questions, industrial hemp does not.
Activists have been struggling to legalize hemp for decades in the United States, but only recently has the issue seemingly caught fire in Congress. Last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell signed on to legislation that had for years been championed by Texas Rep. Ron Paul, the former GOP presidential contender, and has now been taken up by his son Rand, the Republican senator from Kentucky. It would remove hemp from the federal government’s list of Schedule 1 controlled substances and make it legal to cultivate the plant.
What’s so hep about hemp? Supporters tout it as a wonder fiber with dozens of potential uses that would find a lucrative market in the United States. But while that may be an exaggeration — hemp is unlikely to become anything more than a specialty crop for a few hundred growers supplying goods to high-end food markets and low-end textile producers — there’s no denying that it’s a highly useful weed. The global market for hemp consists of 25,000 products, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service, including fabric, paper, rope, auto parts and home furnishings. Hemp seed, meanwhile, is an alternative protein source used in a variety of food and beverages, and can be pressed to make body oils, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.
 
Full Article:
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Weed-should-be-legalized-in-US-193613621.html

Hemp Bill Clears Hurdle in the Hawaii House

REPORT FROM THE HOUSE MINORITY – The House Finance Committee unanimously passed HB154 HD2, to establish an industrial hemp research pilot program, on Monday, February 25, 2013. A primary focus of the research is phytoremediation, the process by which the hemp plant draws toxins out of the soil and processes them safely through its roots, stalk, branches, and leaves, leaving the soil refreshed and ready for the next crop.
 

Rep. Cynthia Thielen stands before a hemp crop in France
 
Full Article:
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/hemp-bill-clears-hurdle-in-the-hawaii-house/123

Oklahoma bill reducing marijuana criminal penalty unanimously passes House committee

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Courtesy of okhouse.gov
 

Criminal penalties for marijuana possession in Oklahoma would be reduced under a bill passed without objection by a House committee.
The House Public Safety Committee voted 14-0 on Wednesday for the bill that would make first and second offenses of marijuana possession a misdemeanor. Under current law, a second offense is a felony punishable by between two and 10 years in prison.

Full Article:
http://www.kjrh.com/dpp/news/political/oklahoma-bill-reducing-marijuana-criminal-penalty-unaimously-passes-house-committee