Compounds in cannabis could limit stroke damage

Dr Tim England
A cannabis plant

Chemical compounds found in cannabis may help to reduce brain damage following a stroke, new research has revealed.
Researchers at the University of Nottingham conducted a meta-analysis of experimental studies into cannabinoids; chemicals related to those found in cannabis, some of which also occur naturally in the body. The findings showed that the compounds could reduce the size of stroke and improve neurological function.
Full Article:

Michigan House passes bills to legalize ‘edible’ pot products, clarify law

Written by Kathleen Gray Gannett Michigan
A marijuana plant is seen in the home of Marcelo Vazquez, a marijuana grower, on the outskirts on the outskirts of Montevideo, Uruguay, Monday, Dec. 9, 2013.

Medical marijuana laws were eased and clarified by the state House of Representatives Thursday.
Two bills – one which would let communities allow and regulate medical marijuana dispensaries and the other which would legalize marijuana-infused products like brownies and oils – passed the House and now move to the Senate, which could begin considering the bills next year.
A third bill, SB 660 which passed on an 87-22 vote, would provide for the licensure and regulation of facilities to grow and test pharmaceutical grade pot and allow those facilities to sell the drug to pharmacies to dispense. The bill, which has already passed the Senate, is contingent upon the federal government reclassifying marijuana from an illegal to a prescription drug. Since minor changes were made in the bill in the House, it needs to go back to the Senate for concurrence before it heads to Gov. Rick Snyder for his signature.
Full Article:

Will California be the next State to relegalize Cannabis?

RMForbes

 
It’s long past the time to end the failed prohibition against the cannabis genus of plants. We could use your help to get the word out. Please help us get the California Cannabis Hemp Initiative of 2014 on the ballot for next November. We have only a little over two months left to get this done.
 
Full Article:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/12/11/1262038/-Will-California-be-the-next-State-to-relegalize-Cannabis

Washington state Liquor Board says keep home grows for medical marijuana

Posted by 
 
Washington state Liquor Control Board members signaled today they will recommend to lawmakers that medical-marijuana patients be allowed to continue growing pot in their homes.
Board members would allow qualified patients, or designated providers, to grow up to six plants, three flowering and three non-flowering. A formal recommendation, expected at next week’s board meeting, would reverse a proposal by staff at three state departments — Health, Revenue and the Liquor Control Board (LCB) – to outlaw home growing.
 
Full Article:
http://blogs.seattletimes.com/today/2013/12/liquor-board-says-keep-home-grows-for-medical-marijuana/#.Uqnls_e92E4.facebook

Uruguay legalizes sale and production of marijuana

A man smokes a joint during a march for the legalization of marijuana towards the Legislative Palace in Montevideo, on December 10, 2013 (AFP Photo / Pablo Porciuncula)
A man smokes a joint during a march for the legalization of marijuana towards the Legislative Palace in Montevideo, on December 10, 2013 (AFP Photo / Pablo Porciuncula)
 
Uruguay has become the first country in the world to legalize both the sale and production of marijuana. President Jose Mujica has championed the measure as a way of combatting the illegal drugs industry that has decimated parts of Uruguay.
 
Full Article:
http://rt.com/news/uruguay-legalizes-sale-marijuana-987/

Smoke Screen – It’s time for the NFL to embrace a new pain reliever: marijuana

By Howard Bryant
Bryant Illo
Mark Smith for ESPN
States are legalizing it. More and more Americans approve of it. Is the NFL next?
 
This story appears in ESPN The Magazine’s Dec. 23 Interview Issue. Subscribe today!
THE TRUEST WAY to see the NFL is not before the game, when the helmets are shiny and the energy is high, but after the final whistle, when the bodies are bruised and the athletic tape is soiled with dirt and blood. Or at the practice facility the following day, when the players show up with crutches and walking casts, fingers in splints, arms in slings.
Pain is the singular constant of the NFL. Maintenance of that pain is as vital to players as mastering the read-option; whether through cortisone, painkillers or drugs and alcohol, they have always self-medicated to heal from the game that breaks their bodies. Which is why, more than any other sport, the NFL should lead the conversation on considering medicinal marijuana as a therapeutic alternative.
 
 Full Article:
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/10110004/is-nfl-embrace-marijuana-espn-magazine

This Former DEA Agent Is Going to Work in the Marijuana Business

Patrick Moen former DEA agent, current pot entrepreneur. (Privateer holdings)     

Patrick Moen is a 36-year-old former supervisor at the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, where, until recently, he led a team based in Portland that fought methamphetamine and heroin traffickers.
Now, he is embarking on a career change. A rather dramatic one.  The Wall Street Journal reports today in a delightful article that Moen has become the in-house lawyer at Privateer Holdings Inc., “a private-equity firm that invests solely in businesses tied to the budding legal marijuana industry.”
 
Full Article:
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2013/12/this-former-dea-agent-is-going-to-work-in-the-marijuana-business/282197/

Video: Medical marijuana helps woman with cerebral palsy – Vote in the poll

by 
 
A woman who suffers impairment from cerebral palsy says – and shows – smoking marijuana helps ease her symptoms.
Jacqueline Patterson was featured in a documentary called, “In Pot We Trust,” which explores the politics and uses of medical marijuana.
Patterson’s cerebral palsy causes problems with some of her physical coordination and speech.
She says she moved away from Kansas City to California on the advice of a child protective service worker who was aware of her marijuana use and of her desire to keep custody of her children.
Patterson later reportedly won a court case defending her consumption as strictly for medical purposes.
Tell us in the poll below – do you think medical marijuana should be legal in all states?
 
Video and Poll:
http://wqad.com/2013/12/10/video-medical-marijuana-helps-woman-with-cerebral-palsy/