Former Surgeon General Joycelyn Elders has been a pioneering and historic political figure in many regards. The first African American Surgeon General made many headlines during her tenure under the Bill Clinton Administration, as she was certainly one to speak her mind, even if the rest of the world wasn’t quite […]

When news broke today of the death Sunday of The Thin White Duke himself, David Bowie, my first thought was of that amazing cover of “Space Oddity” that Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield recorded on the International Space Station. It’s a fitting tribute to David Bowie that his lyrics are sung […]

Progressive supporters of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders got great news this past week when a Fox News poll showed the anti-establishment Democratic candidate with a commanding 13 point lead over frontrunner Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire. The good polling news continued with the release of the NBC/The Wall Street Journal/Marist also […]

The California cannabis industry was abuzz following the last-minute passage of the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act (MMRSA) that was passed by the California Assembly at the very end of the legislative session. Marijuana entrepreneurs were scrambling to read the MMRSA and have been digesting the implications since. Governor […]

Debbie Does Malice, Again: DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz just reaffirmed her support for continued cannabis criminalization. As chair of the Democratic National Committee, the Florida congresswoman has shown herself to be inept, biased, and unfair. She is especially ignorant regarding cannabis prohibition. Schultz has been a divisive disaster for Democrats and must be replaced […]

Everyone paying attention knows that 2016 will be a huge year for the cannabis community and industry. How to exactly legalize marijuana for all adults, how to best regulate medical cannabis, access to banking, the 280E IRS tax code, are all issues that voters and policymakers will be grappling with throughout […]

I received a call from an Oregonian yesterday who was asking me about our marijuana legalization law. She’s the owner of a mobile home which she has just moved into a mobile home community – a trailer park, in plain English. But before she could do so, she was required […]

Cannabis cultural icon Tommy Chong has had his ups and downs over the years, in many ways his journey is very fitting for the cannabis community. Getting his big breaks in standup comedy and movie roles that centered on cannabis culture, Tommy was an entrepreneur during more “gray market” days […]

By each and every metric, marijuana prohibition has been a dismal failure. Marijuana is the most widely utilized illicit substance and has very much moved mainstream. A strong majority wants to legalize and regulate cannabis like alcohol for all adults and a super-majority feels that it should be legal for […]

Throughout the fight to end adult marijuana prohibition, there has been a constant refrain of “treat marijuana like alcohol”. The public is increasingly aware that marijuana is safer than alcohol and it seems only logical that if our society can handle the legalization of the most harmful drug people consume […]

As California, Nevada and other states (and even countries like Canada) move forward with legalization proposals in 2016 and the next few years, they will undoubtedly look at the experiences of states that have already regulated and legalized cannabis commerce among adults. Colorado has gotten the head start in the […]

Oregon has had its fair share of marijuana milestones and January 4th is the just the latest. Each milestone, for better or for worse, impacts not only Oregonians, but also cannabis policy across the nation as other states look at states that have reformed their own marijuana policy. How the […]

Cannabis law reformers have held great hope that Senator Bernie Sanders would be a candidate that would call for an end to failed and harmful policy of marijuana prohibition. The Vermont Senator had decried the War on Drugs decades ago and held progressive views on just about every position; reforming […]

Wisely, UFC fighters Rose Namajunas and Michael Chiesa want marijuana removed from banned list of substances competitors can’t use leading up to their mixed martial arts bouts. The two up-and-comers stated their positions on cannabis during a Q&A session ahead of UFC 195. Chiesa trains in Washington State while Namajunas […]

Bernie Sanders is running a truly unique campaign that relies upon an army of small donors and has a disdain for Super PACs that can receive unlimited donations anonymously. Despite operating a different kind of campaign, it is imperative that Bernie Sanders keeps pace with Hillary Clinton in fundraising. In […]