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There’s no antidote for marijuana but Fitzgerald said those worried about a pet’s recent exposure have a limited amount of time to take action before it’s too late.

pets, edibles, vet

Pill mills can become pot shops-  unethical doctors will find a new job!

Doctors, pot shops, pill mills

“I urge caution,” he said at the National Governors Association meeting in Washington last week. When states promote something that is not good for people, he said, they need to be prepared for “unintended consequences.”

Colorado-0, warning, legalization, Children

This may come as a surprise to some, but if you’ve been smoking pot anytime in the 21st century, you’re most likely smoking a GMO strain. Back in the 1970’s, weed used to be much weaker generally, as most of it was grown naturally without pesticides or chemical alteration, it didn’t look or smoke anything like what we have today. So if you’re looking for non-GMO marijuana, you’re gonna find something that most would just call “schwag” – nearly everyone is smoking GMO pot, because that’s the best that’s around – and they don’t even think twice about it.

GMO, Monsanto

They discovered that the deaths of two of the patients could not be put down to anything other than marijuana use.

Both of these people were men who had died after their hearts started beating either too fast or too slowly.

The researchers believe that this change in heart rhythm – called arrhythmia - was caused by cannabis.

The reason they came to this conclusion was that both had smoked the drug within a few hours of their death and neither had any history of heart problems.

overdose, Studies, Death
legalization, Sabet, Morgan

Pot candy

candy, border, california, edibles
health, safety, cancer
  • Drugged driving kills an average of two people per week in Colorado. That’s more than four times the number of deaths of Columbine and Century Theater combined.
  • One half of those deaths are caused by marijuana use.
  • Deaths caused by drugged driving are increasing at the same time overall traffic deaths are decreasing. The most rapidly increasing cause of drugged driving deaths is marijuana use.
  • Fatalities caused by drivers who tested positive for marijuana increased 26 percent.
Fatalities, car crashes 2, car crashes, Colorado
lungs, harm, warning, Side-Effects

I’d still argue that the police action here was excessive and unnecessary. But it wasn’t nearly as bad as I characterized it. And the timing was, by all appearances, a coincidence.  My apologies for the errors. 

Morgan, ALS, Arrest, Balko

Kevin A. Sabet, the director of the Drug Policy Institute at the University of Florida and a former senior advisor for President Barack Obama's Office of National Drug Control Policy, also takes issue with this sweeping claim.   "Show me that data," Sabet said in reaction to hearing this. "Also, chocolate doesn't cause car crashes or IQ loss or mental illness."

Calvina Fay, executive director of Drug Free America, a nonprofit that educates the public about the dangers of drug abuse, responded, "Unlike marijuana, I am not aware of anyone in treatment for chocolate addiction and it certainly is not a substance that sends people to the hospital or impairs one's ability to work or operate a vehicle or machinery."

addiction, chocolate

Kevin A. Sabet, the director of the Drug Policy Institute at the University of Florida and a former senior advisor for President Barack Obama's Office of National Drug Control Policy, also takes issue with this sweeping claim.   "Show me that data," Sabet said in reaction to hearing this. "Also, chocolate doesn't cause car crashes or IQ loss or mental illness."

Calvina Fay, executive director of Drug Free America, a nonprofit that educates the public about the dangers of drug abuse, responded, "Unlike marijuana, I am not aware of anyone in treatment for chocolate addiction and it certainly is not a substance that sends people to the hospital or impairs one's ability to work or operate a vehicle or machinery."

addiction, chocolate

In a survey and other anecdotal reports, parents of children with drug-refractory epilepsy syndromes have reported successful treatment with cannabidiol-enriched marijuana. But little high-quality evidence is available about the efficacy and safety of cannabidiol in patients with Dravet, Lennox-Gastaux, and other pediatric epilepsy syndromes, as shown by a recent Cochrane Collaboration review of four randomized trials totaling 48 patients with epilepsy that found no adverse effects with 200-300 mg daily over short periods but did not report on the efficacy of the drug.

Charlotte's Web, Dravet syndrome, Orphan Study

Cannabis is involved in approximately 50% of psychosis, schizophrenia, and schizophreniform psychosis cases Cannabis is a known risk factor for schizophrenia, although the exact neurobiological process through which the effects on psychosis occur is not well understood. Cannabis is also of particular interest in both the first-episode psychosis (FEP) and the ultra high risk (UHR) populations. This is mainly due to their increased susceptibility to cannabis abuse.

cannabis-induced psychosis, ncbi, Psychosis
Multple Sclerosis

Marijuana for Epilepsy: Weighing the Evidence, Epilepsy Notes, Andrew N. Wilner, MD, March 25, 2014

Considering Marijuana

In 2011 (more than 2.5 years ago) in "Marijuana: A Viable Epilepsy Therapy?" I reviewed the possibility of marijuana (Cannabis sativa) for the treatment of epilepsy. That article concluded, "More research is needed before patients should consider marijuana for seizure relief, particularly because this represents criminal activity under US federal law and may be accompanied by adverse medical (and legal) events."

What Hasn't Changed Since 2011?

What hasn't changed is the desperation of people with uncontrolled seizures and their families. Heather Jackson, the mother of Zaki, one of the children who responded to Charlotte's web, stated in a Huffington Post video interview, "If you wanted to take my money, I would give it to you. I wanted to save my boy."[13] Such vulnerable families need to be protected from scams, false promises, and dangerous drugs.

Conclusions

Despite the recent journalistic hype, my 2011 conclusions about "medical marijuana" have not changed. Marijuana is still a schedule I drug. It is not FDA-approved for the treatment of epilepsy or any other neurologic condition. Its medical (and recreational) use is still illegal under federal law. There are no controlled trials demonstrating that marijuana is "safe" or "effective" for the treatment of epilepsy. On the other hand, there is evidence that marijuana may be harmful, particularly in the developing brain after regular use. Synthetic cannabinoids appear even more toxic.

However, for many people with epilepsy, seizures cannot be controlled with FDA-approved medications. Other treatment options, such as the vagus nerve stimulator, responsive neurostimulation, or the ketogenic diet, may not work or may not be appropriate choices. For patients who have exhausted conventional therapies, medical marijuana, for which there is anecdotal evidence of seizure control, could be considered as an unproven, "compassionate use" alternative. Any such use of marijuana should be carefully monitored by a physician. A better alternative for children with intractable epilepsy would be enrollment in the new Epidiolex clinical trial.

Charlotte's Web, Notes, Studies

We welcomed in a new industry that knowingly promotes an addictive and harmful substance SO THAT PEOPLE COULD MAKE MONEY. The business of business is to make money and when there is money to be made people will signup no matter how messed up the means are. 
For these businesses to continue making the huge money they are making they will need to do two things: 1) engage new users, 2) convert current users to more frequent users.
Our weed in Colorado is so strong (20-30 percent THC in its smoked form) that we have a strain called “green crack.”
Our concentrates, which are advertised aggressively, are 80-90 percent THC, and are often smoked on a super-heated needle and puts the smoker on their back with one hit.  Our edibles come in gummies, fruit sodas, suckers, candy and yummy looking baked goods that are so potent that a single pot brownie in Colorado comes with a warning that it has to be cut into fourths before consuming.

Colorado-0, edibles, Potency
lobby, soros, Morgan, legalization, follow the money

"The only thing green about that bud is its chlorophyll."

Environment, Growers, Electricity, grow sites, Water, traffic

It's time now to change the flawed medical marijuana system by insisting that standard medical procedures be followed in the dispensing of the drug. Let's save our children from the dangers of "marijuana doctors" before all concerns for safety go up in smoke.

addiction, debate, Teens, abnormal, Medical

Marijuana does possess certain medicinal properties. So does opium. But we don’t allow unscrupulous quacks to write raw opium prescriptions for anyone willing to pay $65. And if we did, would anybody be surprised that the vast majority of opium buyers were not recovering from surgery—and that many of them shared or resold some of their opium to underage users?

Medical, car crashes 2, impaired, IQ
Potency, impaired

A new study suggests people with mental illness are more than seven times as likely to use marijuana weekly than people without a mental illness.

In total, 4.4 percent of individuals with a mental illness in the past 12 months reported using cannabis weekly, compared to 0.6 percent among individuals without any mental illness.

Cannabis use disorders occurred among 4 percent of those with mental illness versus 0.4 per cent among those without.

Researchers also noted that, although cannabis use is generally higher among younger people, the association between mental illness and cannabis use was pervasive across most age groups.

Research, addiction, mental health, usage

The coroner also listed "marijuana intoxication" from cannabis-infused cookies as a significant condition contributing to the death.


 
Colorado-0, Teen, Death

Through a network of nonprofit groups, Mr. Soros has spent at least $80 million on the legalization effort since 1994, when he diverted a portion of his foundation’s funds to organizations exploring alternative drug policies, according to tax filings.
It isn't about For The People it's about the rich taking advantage of the innocent.

 

soros, funding, legalization
pot shops, lawyer, dispensaries

If you don't think promoting marijuana for medical purposes is about making a profit... THINK AGAIN.

soros, profit, pot shops

Deal has consulted with the federal Food and Drug Administration on how the state can begin legal clinical trials with cannabis oil products at Georgia Regents University Augusta.

Georgia, Charlotte's Web, Studies

For the first time, researchers at Northwestern University have analyzed the relationship between casual use of marijuana and brain changes – and found that young adults who used cannabis just once or twice a week showed significant abnormalities in two important brain structures.

Research, Brain, young adults, Studies
Studies, Medical, Brain, youth

During the last three years, Metro's forensics lab screened 4,500 blood samples for marijuana with the bulk of those being impaired drivers.
Metro said marijuana is dangerous because it slows down mental reactions and a driver's judgment of time and distance. Statewide records from 2002 to 2012 show 45 percent of drivers who were impaired by drugs had marijuana in their system.

car crashes 2, impaired, Las Vegas

I thought 'medical' marijuana was a health issue.  If you don't think its about recreational  legalization and getting vote... think again.
"We want to be able to have our stereotypical, lazy pothead voters to be able to vote from their couch," said Ben Pollara, a Democratic fundraiser and campaign manager for the United for Care group, which also plans to get voters to the polls on Election Day.
Organizers of the medical marijuana effort plan to raise and spend $10 million on their campaign, with much of the money devoted to a turnout operation aimed at registering voters to cast absentee ballots.

voters, political
follow the money, grow sites

Does nobody else see the multiple flaws and outright dangers associated with such an amendment? Does anyone else not recognize the fact that “medical marijuana” is a fantasy created for profit?

ballot, Colorado-0, Medical, chemicals, follow the money

Basically what this amendment is doing is legalizing pot. Really it's a facade to say it's medical marijuana. That's not the end game of this movement," he said. "Marijuana use is harmful, addictive and is a gateway drug."

Florida

Although 95 percent of the complications due to drug use are not captured in this data, the link to cardiovascular disease was clear: The death rate due to cardiovascular disease from marijuana use was as high as 25.6 percent.

heart, OpEd
heart, Death, Studies, risks

Although 95 percent of the complications due to drug use are not captured in this data, the link to cardiovascular disease was clear: The death rate due to cardiovascular disease from marijuana use was as high as 25.6 percent.

heart, OpEd

A couple of 10-year-old Colorado kids were caught making marijuana deals at school — selling and swapping legally purchased pot they pilfered from their grandparents’ stash, a school district official said Wednesday.
A fourth-grade boy brought a small amount of leafy marijuana on Monday to Monfort Elementary School in Greeley, Colo., and sold it to three classmates on the school playground.
 

Colorado-0

Investigators say the explosion happened Wednesday while the people were using butane to extract the intoxicating chemical THC from the marijuana plant.

Colorado-0, Danger

Don't Let Florida Go To Pot

Florida, Sheriff
Teens, Death

Teens who drank and smoked pot at the same time were 90 percent more likely to get a ticket and 50 percent more likely to be in a wreck.
 

car crashes 2, alcohol, pot

Through their analysis, they found that medical marijuana can help alleviate some symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS), but the drug was not very successful at treating drug-induced movements from Parkinson’s disease. Additionally, there was insufficient evidence to support whether or not marijuana can treat motor problems in Huntington’s disease, tics in Tourette syndrome, or seizures in epilepsy.

Multple Sclerosis
Washington, Studies

 

A strain of low-THC marijuana would be legal in Florida for medical use under a bill passed by the Legislature.
THERE IS NOT NEED FOR AMENDMENT 2!
 

Florida, Medical

Lowe’s doesn’t want people acutely or sub-acutely under the influence of marijuana operating forklifts, using circular saws, cutting ceramic tiles, driving company trucks — or cleaning its toilets. And no, the company isn’t interested in lowering its hiring standards, either, said Amy, the friendly and always-approachable manager at my favorite Lowe’s store....  “We’re trying to find the best people to hire, and it’s really hard these days,” Amy the manager told me....However, one thing is certain: Lowe’s isn’t the only Colorado employer struggling to find drug-free workers to fill decent jobs.

Colorado, Employer, drug testing

Deputies said the couple appeared to be extracting oil from marijuana.   
This is the process Charlotte's Web marijuana will undergo to extract the oil. 
 

grow sites, explosion, Florida

State legislators said they were concerned by testimony from Children’s Hospital Dr. Michael DiStefano, who said that seven children had been treated since January for symptoms related to marijuana intake. Between 2005 and 2013, that number was six.

Children, Death

The opening months of Colorado's first-in-the-nation recreational marijuana industry have seen a rise in fiery explosions and injuries as pot users try to make the drug's intoxicating oil in crude home-based laboratories. Since Jan. 1, when sales began, the state's only certified adult burn center has treated 10 people with serious injuries they suffered while making hash oil, compared with 11 in 2013 and one in 2012.

hash oil, Colorado-0

Coats was angry because Dish Network fired him in 2010 after his random drug test came back positive for traces of pot.

Business, attorney, legalization

Legalization for treatment to include adults with cancers, Parkinson’s disease, ALS and MLS.
Florida no longer needs Amendment 2. 

Florida

An aerial view of a medical marijuana grow. Researchers used both satellite and field studies to determine how many grows and plants were in four local watersheds. (Submitted by California Department of Fish and Wildlife Scientist Scott bauer)

Environment, Water, california

"It's absolutely getting worse," said Tom Gorman, head of the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area -- the agency that helps to halt drug transactions.

Colorado-0
lab, fire, grow sites

They reported that Colorado underwent a significant increase in the proportion of drivers in a fatal motor vehicle crash who were marijuana-positive after the commercialization of medical marijuana in the middle of 2009. The increase in Colorado was significantly greater compared to the 34 non-medical marijuana states from mid-2009 to 2011.

Colorado-0, impaired, car crashes 2, Fatalities

At least two deaths have already been attributed to legal marijuana cookies in Colorado, and poison control centers continue to report increasing calls related to the drug.

Media, legalization, addiction

A blood sample was taken from Asker after a police investigator detected marijuana impairment.

Impairment, Death, DUI, pedestrians, Fatalities, car crashes
addiction, Doctors, amendment

The Brevard County Medical Society (BCMS) opposes Amendment 2, the constitutional amendment to legalize marijuana for medical conditions; and further, the BCMS supports and adopts the following policy statements from the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM):  Read Article for details.

Doctors

Because regulatory standards of the production process vary by state, the composition, purity, and concentration of the active constituents of marijuana are also likely to vary. This is especially problematic because unlike most other prescription medications that are single active compounds, marijuana contains more than 100 cannabinoids, terpenoids, and flavonoids that produce individual, interactive, and entourage effects.

No other prescription medication is smoked; concerns remain about the long-term risks of respiratory problems associated with smoking marijuana, which are a subject of active investigation.
5 THCis already available in a pill approved by the FDA, yet this form seems to be less desirable to those seeking medical marijuana; this may in part be because its euphoric effects are not immediate and cannot be reliably controlled, unlike smoked marijuana. 6

The current system of dispensing marijuana does not safeguard adequately against the potential for diversion and abuse.

 

Doctors, treatment, youth, Medical
insurance

Kurese Bell, 17, who is being charged as an adult, faces life in prison if convicted.

crime, california

Down in Colorado's Front Range, the cluster of towns and cities that cling to the eastern edge of the Rockies, the scent of what has been dubbed a commercial “green rush” is hanging in the air – literally. On the road in from Denver airport, several of the state's estimated 800-900 legal growers have taken advantage of cheap warehouse space to open sophisticated indoor facilities, whose odour is clearly discernible by passing motorists.

Environment, Colorado-0
Colorado-0, car crashes, Fatalities
video, statistics, crime, Colorado, Death

Claims that "marijuana" is this miracle drug may be next!

Rx Drugs, california

John Morgan and other attorneys will be ready to represent patients that may be denied adequate access to medical pot. Drug Free Workplaces- Beware!

follow the money, insurance, Business, drug free workplace
amendment

Evidence does suggest fairly strongly that the people who use medical marijuana for cancer or AIDS is a small percentage of all users.

amendment, cancer, AIDS

Wildlife biologists noticed streams running dry more often over the 18 years since the state passed Proposition 215... “We knew people were diverting water for marijuana operations, but we wanted to know exactly how much,” said Scott Bauer, the department biologist who studied the pot farms’ effects on four watersheds. “We didn’t know they could consume all the water in a stream.”

california, Water, Environment

In this review, we will provide a detailed overview of studies outlining the effects of regular (at least weekly) cannabis use on neurocognition, including studies outlining cognitive, structural and functional findings. We will also explore the public health impact of this research.

Neurocognition, adolescent, youth

In spite of the widespread effort to normalize marijuana, Montana knows firsthand the societal problems it can cause.
By 2011, Montana had the sixth-highest rate of youth marijuana use in the country and the fourth-highest rate of youth addiction.
I heard of growers destroying neighborhoods, reducing the values of homes through the foul language, harassment and stench of crowds at the dispensaries. Parents complained that kids could not play in their own yards. Multiple dispensaries set up near schools, targeting our youth.

legalization, Montana, addiction
History

No telling the potency of the "candy" this unsuspecting person consumed.  How many children are innocently eating this dangerous drug?

Colorado-0, edibles, unintended consequences
video, candy, Washington
legalization, tobacco
health, men, Research

The authors review literature showing that marijuana impairs driving, increasing the risk of being involved in a car accident and that these risks are further enhanced when combining marijuana with alcohol.

health, car crashes 2, Impairment, Research
Business, workplace, Colorado-0

"One of the [arguments] for legalizing marijuana [in Colorado and Washington state] ... was to reduce the black market," said Tom Gorman, who heads a multi-state task force called the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. "In fact, the legalized marijuana has become the black market for other states."

Colorado-0, Black Market

“This is just another example of marijuana abuse linked to child abuse,” says Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd.

Death, abuse

"I have concerns that it is written too broadly and stops short of ensuring strong regulatory oversight from state officials," she said. "Other states have shown that lax oversight and ease of access to prescriptions can lead to abuse, fraud and accidents. Also, given Florida's recent history in combating the epidemic of 'pill mills' and dubious distinction as having among the highest incidents of fraud, I do not believe we should make it easier for those seeking to abuse the drug to have easy access to it."

recreational, pill mills

The damaging effects remain even if the person stops smoking the drug
·         Teenagers are at particular risk because their brains are still developing
·         Smoking cannabis affects critical thinking and memory
·         Researchers warn that stronger varieties today are causing more damage 

Studies, Brain, youth, Impairment, memory

Kramer said he receives anecdotal stories from people who claim to have treated their pets with medical marijuana.

“There is nothing that says it’s illegal and there’s no statute saying it’s legalized,” Kramer said.

pets
amendment

The paper points out that the potency of marijuana has increased fourfold since the 1980s and can hardly be compared to the less harmful drug millions of pot smokers used decades ago.
And opponents point to Colorado and Washington, where the passage of medical marijuana in 2000 and 1998, respectively, were followed by the passage of recreational marijuana laws in 2012.

Potency, recreational

THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SMOKED POT AND WHAT THEY (PRO-POT ADVOCATES) CALL "MEDICAL" MARIJUANA.    High at work ..
Last month, a state judge directed an employer and insurer to reimburse an injured worker for medical marijuana prescribed to relieve pain resulting from a lower back injury.   
 

drug free workplace, workplace, insurance, legalization

Finally someone is more concerned about the health & safety of our communities than being politically correct.   THIS TAKES COURAGE. 

legalization, safety, health, political

States that legalized medical marijuana had higher rates of marijuana use. Future research needs to examine whether the association is causal, or is due to an underlying common cause, such as community norms supportive of the legalization of medical marijuana and of marijuana use.

legalization, youth, Studies, Research
Oregon, HIDTA

Oregonians legalized medical marijuana in 1998. The program was sold to voters as a modest one with plans to add about 500 patients per year. But today's Oregon Medical Marijuana Program has more than 60,000 patients who carry permission to own double the number of plants and more than five times the amount of smokeable product than was originally envisioned.

Oregon, Medical, patients

“Liquid THC production - - and incidence of butane hash oil lab explosions -- is expected to rise as the market expands for marijuana edibles and demand increases for product that has a strong psychoactive effect,” the report notes.

Oregon, abuse, Black Market, THC

The scientists focus on marijuana’s harmful effects on teens, an age group in which the brain rapidly develops, which is one factor that could help explain increased risks from marijuana use in this population. Research suggests that marijuana impairs critical thinking and memory functions during use and that these deficits persist for days after using. 

youth, NIDA

The reviewers consider areas in which little research has been conducted. This includes possible health consequences of secondhand marijuana smoke; the long-term impact of prenatal marijuana exposure; the therapeutic potential of the individual chemicals found in the marijuana plant; and effects of marijuana legalization policies on public health.

Research, Studies, addiction, second hand smoke, chemicals
Charlotte's Web, Potency
youth, IQ

Francis told members of a drug-enforcement conference meeting in Rome on Friday that even limited attempts to legalize recreational drugs “are not only highly questionable from a legislative standpoint, but they fail to produce the desired effects.”     Unless of course the desired effect is to get High.

legalization, Pope, church, amendment, religious leader

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