Millions of Americans tuned into the Democratic presidential debate tonight to hear about the major issues facing our nation. Cannabis law reformers were waiting for the Democrats to discuss marijuana legalization and Anderson Cooper even teased the cannabis question over a commercial break, stating that, “Some of the candidates have tried marijuana, as has probably everybody in this room.”

Bustle added some flair to Cooper’s statement on Twitter:

“Some of the candidates have tried marijuana, as has probably everybody in this room.” – Anderson Cooper #DemDebate pic.twitter.com/YZb8XgRWMo

— Bustle (@bustle) October 14, 2015

Bernie Sanders was asked whether he would vote for marijuana legalization if he were a Nevada resident and the insurgent candidate didn’t disappoint the Drug War reformers that have flocked to his campaign. “I would vote yes because I am seeing in this country, too many lives being destroyed for nonviolent offenses. We have a criminal justice system that lets CEOs on Wall Street walk away and yet we are imprisoning or giving jail sentences to young people for smoking marijuana. I think we have to think through this War on Drugs which has done an enormous amount of damage. We need to rethink our criminal justice system and we have a lot of work to do in that area.”

Hillary Clinton was then asked whether she was ready to take a position on marijuana legalization tonight and the former Secretary of State answered emphatically, “No.” Clinton did go on to discuss her support for medical marijuana and the need to reform our criminal justice system. Unfortunately, none of the other candidates, Jim Webb, Lincoln Chafee, or Martin O’Malley, were asked about marijuana, as I tweeted at the time:  

Disappointed only @BernieSanders & @HillaryClinton were asked about #marijuana. Are the other candidates just blocks of granite? #DemDebate — Anthony Johnson (@anthonyj1977) October 14, 2015

Marijuana legalization, the greater Drug War, civil liberties and criminal justice reform were all discussed in the first debate and will continue to be major issues brought before the Democratic candidates in future debates. Bernie Sanders made reforming our criminal justice system a foundation of his campaign tonight, mentioning the issue several times. It will be interesting to see how voters react to the candidates’ stances tonight and how they handle these important issues in future debates. 

Huge developments are occurring in the Oregon marijuana industry. While changes will need to be made over time, the future certainly looks bright for the burgeoning industry. There is a lot to digest and consider as industry participants choose whether to stay strictly medical, switch over to the new recreational system, or maybe work in both markets. If the first week of adult-use sales are any indication, the Oregon cannabis market will create many jobs and generate millions in new revenue, following in the footsteps of the state’s microbrewery and wine industries.

Draft rules governing both the Oregon recreational and medical systems are out. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission is winding down the rulemaking process that will allow entrepreneurs and businesses to apply for commercial licenses starting on January 4, 2016. The initial rules that will regulate the state’s cannabis industry must be finalized the first week of November. The Oregon Marijuana Business Conference (OMBC) in Ashland on November 21st is extremely timely as lawyers and experts will have a couple of weeks to read and digest the rules and effectively present the necessary information to attendees. In addition to the state rules and regulations, the OMBC will have the latest on local city and country developments as well.

Whether you want to be a breeder, grower, processor, retailer or wholesaler, the OMBC will have lawyers and experts on hand to help you navigate the myriad of laws, rules and regulations that will impact your business. It is an exciting time for those in the industry and those thinking of joining the industry. I am admittedly biased as I help organize the OMBC, but I think any reasonable person would agree that the conference is occurring at a great time to prepare for the new rules and regulations that will govern the Oregon cannabis industry.

While a majority of the information presented will focus on the new recreational rules, we will provide an update on changes to the medical system as well. And if you have been to our previous conferences, you know that Oregon’s patients are always in our thoughts, and as activists, will will continue promoting sensible laws that ensure safe access for sick and disabled patients.

The OMBC is organized by the same group of advocates that put on the International Cannabis Business Conference in Portland and San Francisco and the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference across Oregon. We are very experienced in producing conferences and are proud of the feedback that we have received from attendees. As with our previous events, we provide a fun, welcoming event that gives those in the industry and in ancillary businesses to unwind and network. In addition to the one-day informational event, attendees will get an exclusive performance from Del the Funky Homosapien at the Brickroom.

 

Politicians can make many claims about positions and policies. Some politicians have a long track record of being on the right side of an issue, while others can be politically calculating, depending upon which way the political winds blow. A few politicians have the track record, take the time to promote actual policy changes and the opportunity to bring about real change–Bernie Sanders is such a politician. Sanders spoke out against the Drug War over 40 years ago; he announced his intention to introduce a bill to abolish private prisons; he actually introduced legislation to end the private prison racket; and he just may be the next president of the United States.

To help pass his bill to abolish private prisons, Bernie Sanders is calling upon concerned citizens to sign a petition signaling support for Sanders’ Justice is Not for Sale Act. From an email sent by the Sanders campaign:

Today in America, shamefully, we have more people in jail than any other country on earth. The United States is home to 4.4 percent of the world’s population, and 22 percent of its prisoners.

A big reason for this is because companies that profit from prisons have spent millions of dollars lobbying for laws that needlessly keep people behind bars for far too long.

It is our job, in my view, to recreate our criminal justice system. And I believe that we cannot do that as long as corporations are allowed to profit from mass incarceration.

Today this situation has gotten so out of hand that our prisoners are no longer people — they have simply become ​sources of profit as laborers who work for pennies an hour on behalf of major corporations. Keeping human beings in jail for long periods of time must no longer be an acceptable business model. Our focus should be on treating people with dignity and ensuring they have the resources they need to get back on their feet when they get out. I am glad that President Obama this week ordered the release of nearly 6,000 nonviolent offenders from federal prison, but there is much more to do.

I have recently introduced legislation that will put an end to for-profit prisons. My bill will bar federal, state, and local governments from contracting with private companies who manage prisons, jails, or detention facilities. And it will require Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to improve their monitoring of detention facilities and eliminate private detention centers within 2 years.

Now I want to know if you’re willing to fight with me on this issue.

Sign my petition in support of my Justice is Not for Sale Act and say you’ve had enough of millionaires and billionaires profiting by keeping more and more Americans behind bars.

The private-for-profit prison racket is a $70 billion industry, and with so much money at stake, it’s not surprising they’ve corrupted our political process.

The industry has contributed millions of dollars to candidates in pursuit of laws that increase incarceration of nonviolent offenders — a practice that disproportionately impacts people of color in the United States. We must stop the practice of governments guaranteeing prison occupancy as part of deals with private corporations that incentivize states to keep prison cells filled. And we must stop the practice of private companies charging exorbitant rates for prisoners to contact their families by phone — sometimes up to several dollars per minute to talk with loved ones, and charging outrageous service fees to prisoners trying to access their money upon release. That kind of exploitation takes an already difficult family dynamic between husbands, wives, parents and children and strains it even further.

It is wrong to profit from the imprisonment of human beings and the suffering of their families and friends. It’s time to end this morally repugnant process, and along with it, the era of mass incarceration.

But my legislation goes even further. It also takes steps to reduce our bloated inmate population by reinstating the federal parole system so that officials can individually assess each prisoner’s risk and chance for rehabilitation. It ends the immigrant detention quota, which requires officials to hold a minimum of 34,000 people captive at any given time. And it would end the detention of immigrant families, many of whom are currently held in privately-owned facilities in Texas and Pennsylvania.

If we act, not only can we prevent thousands of lives from being destroyed, but we can save billions of taxpayer dollars.

Join me today.

Sign my petition in support of my Justice is Not for Sale Act and say you’ve had enough of millionaires and billionaires profiting by keeping more and more Americans behind bars.

This legislation enjoys a broad coalition of support on both sides of the aisle. And if we stand together and continue to bring attention to this issue, we can put a stop to the abomination of private prisons profiting from human suffering.

Thank you for standing with me.

In solidarity,

Bernie Sanders

Marijuana is safer than alcohol has been a prominent battle cry among many cannabis law reformers for years now. Of course, when you base relative harm upon science and facts, clearly marijuana is safer. When you consider addiction, lethal overdose, severe health consequences and link to violent criminal activity, it is easy to see that alcohol is more dangerous.

It now looks like cannabis law reformers can now add that marijuana-influenced sex is safer than alcohol-influenced sex after Oregon researchers have found that while college students are more likely to have sex after utilizing cannabis, they keep their wits about them and still use condoms at the same rate as when sober. Binge drinking, a dangerous epidemic on college campuses, leads to both more sex and a lower usage of condoms, increasing the likelihood of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies.

The Register Guard reports:

“Marijuana use may lead to sex through increased arousal and disinhibition and/or may be sought out to facilitate meeting a partner and to enhance pleasure,” wrote (David) Kerr, who is an associate professor in the OSU School of Psychological Sciences.

The study also found that binge drinking students were likely to throw caution to the wind when it came to condom use.

But the marijuana smokers continued to use condoms at the same rate.

“Unlike alcohol, marijuana may cause users to compensate for impairments in inhibitory control by changing decision-making and risk perception,” the study said.

While I’m certainly not a prohibitionist, it is important that our society understand the facts about alcohol and to reduce the harms caused by the drug. I am often dismayed at the celebration of alcohol at events and in our media. I previously blogged about the fact that Oregon universities were doing a disservice to students by perpetuating the War on Marijuana. While federal law forces these colleges to have a policy upholding federal law, these institutions of higher learning should be doing all that they can to change federal policy. Our current federal policy and national culture is literally killing young students.

The yearly statistics regarding alcohol and college students between the ages of 18 and 24 are very troubling: over 1,800 students die from alcohol every year; more than 690,000 students are assaulted by someone under the influence of alcohol every year; and more than 97,000 students are victims of sexual assault every year. Considering all of the bad choices people make under the influence of alcohol, it isn’t surprising that researchers found that alcohol leads to less safe sex practices.

Cannabis prohibitionists latch upon anecdotal stories of bad consequences and tragic occurrences that have been linked to marijuana. And to be fair, marijuana is not completely harmless and it should only be used (non-medically) by adults.

When prohibitionists cling to a handful of bad marijuana stories, they are spending time fear-mongering around a few cases while ignoring thousands upon thousands of harmful alcohol incidents that occur every year. It is hard to take serious people who work to keep marijuana illegal while they ignore that tens of thousands of college students are raped by criminals under the influence of alcohol every year and over 1,800 young students die from alcohol yearly.

(Featured photo credit: Students for a Sensible Drug Policy–Make a Contribution)

I had the honor of speaking at ReformCA’s Post-Mortem Seminar: 2014 Legalization Elections where I had the opportunity to share lessons learned from Oregon’s Measure 91 campaign. While I touched upon the text of the measure, based upon lessons learned from previous legalization efforts and polling, as well as some of our campaign strategy, the most important lesson that I could give California advocates was the need to unify. While the Oregon cannabis community has had its fair share of in-fighting among various legalization proposals, once the New Approach Oregon initiative made the ballot and became Measure 91, the Oregon cannabis community largely unified to pass the measure.

Paul Stanford did the Measure 91 campaign and the entire Oregon cannabis community a great service by leading Measure 80 to the ballot in 2012. While Measure 80 didn’t pass, it did garner a very respectable 47% of the vote with very little campaign cash. Measure 80 was a bit too lax for voters and for national funders, however it gave a great foundation for Measure 91, which put in place limits regarding home cultivation and possession. (It turns out that 47% of Oregon voters would vote for unlimited plants and ounces, while 56% would vote for 4 plants and 8 ounces per household.)

After just losing at the ballot box by just 3%, Mr. Stanford worked to place another ballot on the measure in 2014 while I was chief petitioner and director of the New Approach Oregon effort. During the signature-gathering phase in 2013 and into 2014, the media would often try to get me to say inflammatory things about Paul and I imagine that they did the same to him. We never took the bait and I would always state that I will always vote for any measure that is better than the status quo of prohibition.

Very much to his credit, Paul Stanford, fully endorsed Measure 91 and worked with us to remind his supporters that he was urging them to Vote Yes on 91. If Paul, or any other prominent activist worked to oppose Measure 91, we certainly wouldn’t have gotten 56% of the vote, and who knows what the impact would have been. Many people are responsible for legalizing marijuana in Oregon, and Paul Stanford deserves a ton of credit. Not only has he done a lot for the cause and community, but he kept the cause first and foremost to help pass Measure 91.

Californians laughed at the ReformCA seminar when I stated that egos must be set aside. “Egos, in California?!?” rang throughout the crowd. I stated that while putting aside egos can be a monumental task in a huge state like California with a lot of big money interests and a lot of big personalities, it is simply imperative. Legalizing marijuana is a tough task and many obstacles must be overcome. In-fighting within the cannabis community is a self-inflicted wound that can clutch defeat out of the jaws of victory.

I am not naive enough to believe that putting aside egos in California will be as easy as it was in Oregon. Oregon has about 4 million people while California has 36 million, that makes California essentially 9 Oregons in population alone. Throw in the fact that the Golden State had many producers, processors and retailers engaging in regulated cannabis commerce much longer than Oregon, also means that there are many more players that want their voice heard and can have their voice heard, just based upon their economic strength. I have many people that I call friends and colleagues working on various legalization efforts in California and I greatly respect them and the work they are dedicating to ending prohibition; and I appreciate them taking on such a monumental task. I admit that I didn’t contact anyone about this blog, these are just my observations from afar.

Despite the obstacles in California’s way, I was hopeful that national funders and most local advocates would rally behind the ReformCA team that put together a rather impressive stable of advocates and politicos. However, California being California, there were several competing initiatives filed by various activists and national funders seemed to take a step back, waiting to see how things would shake out, including the text of ReformCA’s initiative.

LA Weekly reported:

ReformCA’s website listed partners that included the Drug Policy Alliance and the Marijuana Policy Project. The coalition’s separate site still lists the DPA and MPP as “coalition partners,” alongside Americans for Safe Access, California NORML, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, the California Cannabis Industry Association and the Greater Los Angeles Collective Alliance.

However, after we reported this week that “the coalition includes NORML, the Drug Policy Alliance and Marijuana Policy Project,” ReformCA had those organizations removed from its website.

The Drug Policy Alliance, one of the biggest players in marijuana politics, might go its own way. It’s preparing its own language for circulation that could be filed later this month if DPA principals aren’t happy with other initiatives being prepared, L.A. Weekly has learned.

SF Weekly followed up and noted that ReformCA didn’t share its initiative text with the Drug Policy Alliance before filing it: “We look forward to reading it,” Tamar Todd, DPA’s state director for cannabis policy, told me on Monday. “Meanwhile, we’re still working on our own initiative.”

Now, with various competing measures, filed or not-quite-filed, a potential saviour may be on the horizon. Sean Parker, a billionaire entrepreneur who co-founded Napster and helped turn Facebook into a giant, may just enter the fray with both his money and an experienced team. Per SF Weekly:

Parker, who put $600 million of his reported $2.5 billion fortune in a philanthropic foundation this summer, has said very little on the marijuana issue publicly, aside from a throwaway comment calling earlier efforts “half-baked” in a San Francisco Chronicle story published last year. But he has secured the services of Sacramento campaign veterans Gale Kaufman and Brian Brokaw, as well as former Newsom campaign insider Jason Kinney, according to sources speaking on condition of anonymity (none of the three responded to requests for comment on Monday).

After throwing around $1.7 million in state and local elections in 2014 — including $300,000 in San Francisco — Parker has contributed to two campaigns in California this year: $56,400 to Newsom’s 2018 gubernatorial bid, and $500 to District 3 Supervisor Julie Christensen.

He may go off on his own. Sources close to the legalization efforts say that Parker’s team could release its own legalization language soon, perhaps as early as next week.

Regardless of whether Sean Parker, Drug Policy Alliance, ReformCA or any other measure manages to get the necessary funding to move forward, I sincerely hope that the California cannabis community eventually rallies behind whichever measure has the best chance passing at the ballot box. Whether you think that only one legal ounce is enough or a 10 x 10 grow space is optimal, clearly you must recognize that it is a better policy than prohibition. California has historically had fantastic cannabis laws across the country. The Golden State, a pioneer in sensible marijuana law reform, kicking of the medical cannabis revolution in 1996, has an opportunity to add fire to an already red-hot marijuana movement.

Legalizing marijuana in 2016, in the eighth largest economy in the world, will have massive ramifications. In the United States, there will be 53 congressional seats representing a state that has legalized marijuana; these constituents, even many who opposed legalization, will start demanding laws that treat marijuana businesses as any other business. Ending cannabis prohibition in California will greatly hasten the end of federal prohibition, and if the U.S. stops promoting a global War on Marijuana, other countries will quickly follow suit. California cannabis reform advocates, please legalize in 2016, the world is watching.

During the Measure 91 campaign, economic firm EcoNorthwest projected that the state would bring in $38.5 million in new revenue the first year while the state of Oregon projected a more modest $9 of net revenue. If the first week of sales are any indication, the higher projection by EcoNorthwest may just be the more accurate number, if not a conservative estimate itself.  Sales in Oregon were booming the first week that medical marijuana dispensaries could sell cannabis flower to adults 21 and over. Of course, Marijuana Politics was there to cover the first day of legal cannabis commerce in Oregon.

The long lines on the first day looked like sales were good and the numbers didn’t disappoint the following days as retail sales reached more than $11 million in the first week. KGW reports:

One week in, Oregon is already far ahead of dollars spent on pot compared to Colorado’s first week of legal recreational sales, at $5 million. Washington took a month to sell its first $2 million, according to Marijuana Business Daily.

When Oregon voters approved recreational marijuana, the state set an estimate of $9 million in net tax revenue for the first full year of 2017. But the Oregon Retail Cannabis Association believes it’ll bring in three to four times that much.

***

Oregon recreational marijuana sales are all tax-free until January. Once that 25 percent tax gets added on, it’ll go to help fund schools, mental health programs, state police and the cities and counties that are allowing recreational sales.

As KGW notes, a 25% tax goes into effect the beginning of 2016 at the medical dispensaries selling cannabis flower to adults. State-regulated recreational retail outlets that will sell more cannabis products, including edibles, topicals and concentrates aren’t expected to be open to the public until September or October of 2016. The state-regulated retail stores will then be taxed with a 17% state tax while localities can impose an additional 3% tax.

If the $11 million dollar sales mark would continue for an entire year, the state would generate more than $97 million a year with a 17% tax. Sales may drop off a bit as the newness of state-licensed cannabis commerce wears off and when taxes begin, but that drop off may be countered by the new marijuana products that will be available later in 2016. Whether the $11 million a week number keeps up, or the sales dip a bit, it is easy to see that legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana will generate plenty of revenue for the state of Oregon, while creating jobs and better prioritizing law enforcement resources.

I, and others, have often stated that Oregon’s cannabis industry will follow in the footsteps of Oregon’s microbrewery and winery industries, creating a new industry that the state can be proud of. If the first week of sales are any indication, the marijuana industry in Oregon will quickly outpace the tax revenue generated by beer and wine, as the state collects about $17.65 million a year in beer and wine taxes. Prohibitionists used to claim that revenue from legalizing cannabis wouldn’t materialize, but it looks like they will have to move onto another false claim as Oregon has already proven that there are plenty of residents who have been waiting to engage in regulated cannabis commerce.

It is disheartening to hear that any nonviolent person goes to prison for marijuana. It is even more disturbing when those sentenced were cultivating for medical purposes in accordance with state law. Unfortunately, such a tragic sentence has been levied against three members of a group of Washington State cultivators, dubbed the Kettle Falls Five, recently in federal court. Reason’s Jacob Sullum reports:

On Friday the three remaining defendants in the Kettle Falls Five marijuana case, which involves Washington residents who grew their own medicine in a state that allowed them to do so, were sentenced to federal prison. Rolland Gregg got 33 months—more than two and a half years—while his mother, Rhonda Firestack-Harvey, and his wife, Michelle Gregg, each received a one-year sentence. Those terms are much shorter than the potential sentences they faced when their trial started in March, which included a 10-year mandatory minimum. But any prison time at all for growing 70 or so marijuana plants would beanomalous in a state where hundreds of state-licensed businesses, serving recreational consumers as well as patients, openly grow and sell much larger amounts.

Federal prosecutors contended that the Greggs and Firestack-Harvey—together with her husband, Larry Harvey, who died of pancreatic cancer last August, and a family friend, Jason Zucker, whopleaded guilty just before the trial in exchange for a 16-month sentence—were growing marijuana for distribution. But there was little evidence of that. The five of them openly grew their plants outside the home that Rhonda and Larry shared in northeastern Washington, on a plot marked by a sign bearing a large green cross that was visible from the air. They all had doctor’s letters recommending marijuana for the treatment of various conditions, including gout, anorexia, rheumatoid arthritis, degenerative disc disease, and chronic pain from a broken back. Their plant total was below Washington’s presumptive limit of 15 per patient, and prosecutors could not cite a single sale by what they described as a criminal enterprise or any evidence of large illicit profits.

***

U.S. Attorney Michael Ormsby’s interest in this case was puzzling from the beginning, especially given the relatively small number of plants involved, and seemed to contradict a Justice Department policy that says prosecuting medical marijuana patients who comply with state law is generally not a good use of federal resources. Continued pursuit of the case also seemed to violate a spending rider aimed at stopping federal interference with state medical marijuana laws. Before the rider was approved last year, the DOJ warned that it would have a dramatic impact on federal cultivation and distribution cases; after it was approved, the department suddenly decided it had no impact at all. Rice rejected the argument that the rider compelled Ormsby to drop the Kettle Falls Five case, which is one of the possible grounds for appeal.

As Sullum notes, the prosecution of the Kettle Falls Five seems to contradict both Justice Department policy and federal budget rules. Hopefully, an appeals court will agree that the congressional spending rider, prohibiting federal resources from interfering with state-legal medical cannabis laws, and overturn this unfortunate sentence. I wish that I was confident that a federal appeals court will agree.

How are federal priorities enhanced by the investigation, prosecution and imprisonment of these nonviolent citizens? Can anyone legitimately justify that the time and money spent on this medical marijuana case was the best use of hard-earned tax dollars? The fact that cases like this occur will only quicken the end of cannabis prohibition, as no reasonable person could conclude that trampling the will of voters and needlessly harming the lives of nonviolent citizens, is the best policy for the United States of America; tragically, good people must pay the price for a failed policy that will inevitably end sooner than later.

As just about the entire world is now aware, cannabis is now legal in Oregon. Adults over the age of 21 can possess, cultivate, share and purchase marijuana. While the Measure 91 legalization measure didn’t change the law for those under 21, under an ounce of cannabis remains a decriminalized civil infraction. While adults are experiencing freedom across the state and many localities are now better prioritizing law enforcement resources, while creating jobs, universities across the state are still maintaining a Reefer Madness public stance on campus. The Oregonian reports:

If you’re a student 21 or older, you don’t get a pass if caught using marijuana on campus. Nor can you smoke weed in the privacy of your dorm room. Marijuana, in all its forms, still violates school regulations at every Oregon college that receives federal funding.

“Universities, being federally funded, are obligated to follow federal regulations when it comes to treatment of controlled substances such as marijuana,” said Kelly McIver, University of Oregon Police Department communications director. “Don’t expect a big change, because marijuana will still be a no-no here on University of Oregonproperty, regardless of the age of a person.”

Not that most college security officers are about to detain anyone for possessing small amounts, or refer them to disciplinary action for first, minor offenses. Even Reed College, where campus safety officers take a hard line on marijuana use despite the school’s counter-cultural reputation, tends to give a kid a break in initial relatively minor cases, administrators say.

It is heartening that college security isn’t going to go out of their way to detain students and try to ruin their educational opportunities, but the public hard-line stance is likely to push more students to drink alcohol, a much more dangerous endeavor. Anyone that has been in college knows that students are going to party and seek out mind-expanding substances; expecting students to abstain from all drugs is like expecting them to abstain from sex–abstinence isn’t going to be a successful policy.

Binge-drinking is a very dangerous activity that plagues college campuses. Drinking alcohol to excess can cause fatal overdoses and contribute to serious crimes. Colleges should promote safer choices and base policies upon science. Pushing students to drink, by maintaining a hard-line public stance on cannabis, is completely contrary to how these institutions of higher learning should conduct themselves.

October 1st marks a historic day for the Oregon cannabis community the next step towards ending cannabis prohibition. While there is so much work to be done, today is a day for celebrating how far we have come thanks to so many hard-working advocates. I had the honor of making the first purchase at Cannabliss, a flagship Portland dispensary that has been a model for the state. Canabliss’ owner, Matt Price, is a good friend of mine and I was pleased to accept his offer to be first in line when his dispensary first allowed sales to non-patient adults.

Matt has hosted tours with public officials and has been a great representative for the cannabis industry, demonstrating the industry’s willingness to embrace sensible regulations while always caring for sick and disabled patients. Studio McDermott, KATU News and The Oregonian were both on hand to record history. The Oregonian, who has been covering marijuana legalization extensively, dedicated 20 reporters to the October 1st start of cannabis sales.

After visiting Cannabliss, I ventured over to Cannacea, a dispensary that is working to harness the full potential of the cannabis plant, breeding strains with high CBD and other medicinal cannabinoids (not just THC). People started camping out at Cannacea at midnight and  there was certainly a festive atmosphere. It was an honor to address the crowd and thank them for being a part of history. Several people were very emotional, including owner Trish Siler, and got choked up from just experiencing a day that has been decades in the making. Myself and other Marijuana Politics bloggers will have more to add on the historic first day of adult-use sales of cannabis, including some video, so please stay tuned…

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Oct 1, 2015 at 10:22am PDT

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Oct 1, 2015 at 10:00am PDT

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Oct 1, 2015 at 9:13am PDT

#OregontheStateOfCannabis ??? #filmingonlocation @cannacea with @anthonyj1977 Measure 91 author Anthony Johnson praises Cannacea owner Tisha Siler’s dedication to cannabis research. #legalcannabis #oregrown #oregon #october1sales #recreational

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Oct 1, 2015 at 11:34am PDT

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Oct 1, 2015 at 1:23pm PDT

While the 2015 Oregon legislative session wasn’t perfect for the Oregon cannabis community, as usual, it was two steps forward and one step back, it is a sign that the marijuana movement is progressing well when the Oregon governor hosts cannabis advocates at marijuana bills signing ceremony. Governor Kate Brown signed Senate Bill 844, Senate Joint Memorial 12, House Bill 2041 and Senate Bill 460 with key legislators, lobbyists and activists. It was an honor to join the group for the historic signing ceremony.

Senate Bill 844 allowed for youth expungement of marijuana offenses, added protections for medical patients seeking medical treatment such as transplants and established a medical marijuana task force. Senate Joint Memorial 12 calls upon Congress to make necessary changes at the federal level to allow the effective implementation of state marijuana laws. House Bill 2041 moved the tax from the grower level, as mandated under Measure 91, to the retail level. Senate Bill 460, the so-called “Early Start” or “About Time” bill, allowed existing medical marijuana dispensaries to start selling up to 7 grams of cannabis flower to adults starting on October 1st, about a year ahead of when we can expect Oregon Liquor Control Commission-regulated retail outlets to start selling a wide variety of cannabis products, along with flower, to adults.

There is still more work to be done on marijuana policy at the Oregon Legislature, including reducing marijuana penalties to be completely in-line with our alcohol laws and ensuring that sick and disabled patients have access to medicine, but today can be a day of celebration for how far we have come. Oregon advocates should be commended for helping craft cannabis laws that create jobs, better prioritize law enforcement resources and can be the model for the rest of the country.

A photo posted by Studio McDermott (@studiomcdermott) on Sep 30, 2015 at 2:26pm PDT

Special thanks to Studio McDermott for the featured photo.

Carly Fiorina made waves at the last Republican presidential debate when she delved into the marijuana policy debate by bringing up the relative danger between cannabis and beer as well as the tragic death of her step-daughter due to drug abuse. Fiorina, who many pundits feel won the 2nd GOP debate, was taken to task by cannabis law reformers including Marijuana Politics’ Russ Belville, who blogged:

It is terribly sad when a parent loses a child for any reason, much less the preventable tragedy of drug overdose, Ms. Fiorina.

But marijuana did not kill your step-daughter. According to the account in your book, Lori Fiorina struggled with alcohol and prescription pills, as well as the eating disorder bulimia.

You are misleading young people, ma’am, when you equate your step-daughter’s death from highly addictive substances and mental illness to an herb that is incapable of producing fatal overdose, even in the tiny minority of its consumers who develop psychological dependence on it.

Yes, let’s tell the young people the truth: it is misleading to tell them marijuana is just like having a beer, because it is far less dangerous than that. Objectively, Ms. Fiorina, in every measure, marijuana is safer than alcohol. You cannot continue to peddle this reefer madness hysteria in the age of Google and expect to maintain credibility with young people.

As Russ notes, Fiorina attempted to mislead the American people with two rather reckless false statements – that alcohol is safer than marijuana and that marijuana is a gateway drug that led to her daughter’s death. Unfortunately, Fiorina added yet another dangerous statement last Friday, at an Iowa voter forum. Shelly Van Winkle, a a Gulf War veteran and a nurse, asked the former Hewlett-Packard CEO what she would do to make it easier for qualified patients — like veterans battling post-traumatic stress, and children suffering from cancer — to access medicinal cannabis. Think Progress covered the back-and-forth:

“You’re not going to like my answer,” Fiorina responded before hearkening back to her breast cancer diagnosis in 2009. At the time, she recounted, her doctor asked “if I was interested in medicinal marijuana.”

“I said ‘No,’ and his response was ‘Good,’ because its a chemically complex compound that we do not understand — we do not understand how it reacts with chemotherapy and all of the other statements,” she said. “It is true today …. [that before you get chemotherapy] you cannot have any marijuana in your system for at least 30 days …”

Van Winkle interrupted. “That’s no longer true, ” she said.

Fiorina paused. “So I will also tell you something else. We lost a daughter to addiction,” Fiorina said, before recounting the death of her daughter due to drug and alcohol abuse.

As many of us feared, Carly Fiorina, who had been rather sensible on cannabis policy, seems to have doubled down on Reefer Madness rhetoric, that is contrary to her previous public positions, as she has seen her polling numbers rise after the last GOP debate. Dangerously, Fiorina has now implied that alcohol is safer than marijuana; that cannabis somehow contributed to her daughter’s addiction issues and unfortunate death; and that cancer patients, battling through chemotherapy, couldn’t gain any benefit from utilizing cannabis.

While stating that patients shouldn’t rely upon cannabis alone, the American Cancer Society notes that some patients can indeed benefit from cannabis:

A number of small studies of smoked marijuana found that it can be helpful in treating nausea and vomiting from cancer chemotherapy.

A few studies have found that inhaled (smoked or vaporized) marijuana can be helpful treatment of neuropathic pain(pain caused by damaged nerves).

Smoked marijuana has also helped improve food intake in HIV patients in studies.

***

Studies have long shown that people who took marijuana extracts in clinical trials tended to need less pain medicine.

More recently, scientists reported that THC and other cannabinoids such as CBD slow growth and/or cause death in certain types of cancer cells growing in laboratory dishes. Some animal studies also suggest certain cannabinoids may slow growth and reduce spread of some forms of cancer.

There have been some early clinical trials of cannabinoids in treating cancer in humans and more studies are planned. While the studies so far have shown that cannabinoids can be safe in treating cancer, they do not show that they help control or cure the disease.

When pressed on the changing science, politics and cultural shifts on cannabis, it appears that Fiorina will fall back upon the heartbreaking story of her step-daughter’s death, an emotional personal story that can be hard to combat at any time, particularly on a debate stage live on national television. No one wants to seem uncaring, but it is important that we base our drug policies on science and fact and not on emotion.

While most experts, pundits and casual political observers will agree, Carly Fiorina has a very slim chance of becoming the next president of the United States. Thus, we will inevitably receive comments and emails about why are we even wasting our time covering Fiorina’s positions on cannabis. Well, Fiorina could certainly be the vice-presidential pick of the GOP nominee as she has proven her debate chops and national standing, not to mention the fact that the Republican Party may be inclined an attempt to increase its standing among women (although that didn’t work so well with the ill-fated nomination of Sarah Palin).

Carly Fiorina’s marijuana rhetoric is dangerous both culturally and politically. Culturally, her positions basically favor alcohol and pharmaceutical narcotics over cannabis. By every measure, alcohol and narcotics, such as OxyContin, are more deadly than cannabis. It is reckless to push people into using drugs than can actually cause a fatal overdose over at least trying a substance that won’t cause an overdose death.

Fiorina’s recent statements may have a detrimental impact in the growing number of states looking to legalize cannabis over the next few years, both for medical purposes and adult-use. The key voting bloc on marijuana tends to be so-called “soccer mom” vote. Marijuana legalization is usually favored by a majority of men, while women tend to be a bit more skeptical.

The soccer mom vote becomes key because these moms tend to be progressive on other issues, such as marriage equality and protecting the environment, so they are a natural political ally. But these soccer moms, many of whom may have used marijuana in college, may feel conflicted about legalizing marijuana now that they have children. Trotting out outdated fears about the Gateway Theory or about how dangerous today’s marijuana is, may sway moms who don’t have the time to research the fact that these Reefer Madness positions have been debunked. Throw in Carly Fiorina’s false contention that cancer patients can’t benefit from cannabis, then many moms, who will sympathize with Fiorina’s personal story, may just conclude that don’t support medical cannabis as well.

A sincere and heartfelt thanks to Shelly Van Winkle, someone who has risked her life for this country and is brave enough to take on the rising GOP political star. It is imperative that cannabis law reformers and everyone that supports policies based upon science to challenge the Reefer Madness rhetoric of all of the 2016 candidates. Rand Paul is the reasonable voice on the Republican stage, but he can’t do it alone. We must continue to discredit the false statements and bad policy positions that have since been espoused by Carly Fiorina, Chris Christie and Marco Rubio.

We have made too much progress towards sensible cannabis policies to allow for dangerous Reefer Madness rhetoric to stop the implementation of policies that will remove marijuana from the unregulated, criminal system into one where we can protect patients and better prioritize our limited resources towards treatment and prevention instead of wasting taxpayer dollars on mass incarceration.

(Featured photo credit: Darren McCollester/Getty Images)

Many cannabis law reform advocates and Drug War reformers have certainly rallied behind Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. The insurgent candidate has stated that he will consider legalizing marijuana; that states should be able to legalize without restrictions; he has called the Drug War a failure; and he has introduced a bill to abolish private prisons.

Apparently, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, a hard-right Christian fundamentalist who finished 2nd in the 2008 GOP primary, believes that Sanders statements and positions on marijuana and drug policy amount to legalizing all drugs. He also seems to believe that legalizing all drugs is very popular, feeding the surge in the polls for the anti-establishment candidate and fueling his large campaign rallies. You can see the video of Santorum’s statement here.

Now in Santorum’s defense, he is responding to a question from an audience member, so he’s speaking rather off-the-cuff and he also adds that Sanders says that he’s gonna “do all sorts of great stuff” (but what presidential candidate doesn’t promise great things). Additionally, Sanders did oppose the War on Drugs four decades ago and he has seen his poll numbers climb at the same time that he has continued to speak out for sensible Drug War reforms.

Despite finishing only behind Mitt Romney for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, Santorum has had a difficult time finding any traction at all in 2016 as he is polling around 1%; he is probably appalled that a newcomer like Donald Trump has dominated coverage. In contrast to Sanders’ huge crowds, Santorum famously had 1 person show up for one of his Iowa campaign stops. Santorum even went on the Bill Maher show to somehow increase his profile and then Maher had to correct the record two weeks after the conservative candidate provided some incorrect information regarding climate change during his live interview.

Many of us wish that Senator Sanders would call for an end to the Drug War, as it is a failed and harmful policy that has plagued our nation for far too long, but he hasn’t gone that far as a presidential candidate. There are many reasons why voters across the country, including a majority of Democratic primary voters in the early states of Iowa and New Hampshire, have decided that they support Bernie Sanders over the establishment candidate Hillary Clinton. We may #FeelTheBern and many of us say #NoMoreDrugWar, but Senator Sanders hasn’t joined us reformers in calling for a complete end to prohibition. We’ll probably have to wait for his 2nd term for that.

(Featured photo collage credit: John L. Micek)

Retired (for now) undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather and current UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey have had a war of words ever since “Money” acted like he had never heard of the UFC champ before. “Rowdy” Rousey fired back after she beat out the boxer for best fighter of the year at the most recent ESPY Awards. Since then, there has been some (entertaining) banter between the two undefeated champions, with Floyd falling back on all of the money he makes and Rousey countering with the fact that she finishes fights and doesn’t let bouts go to a decision on the judges’ scorecards.

You can certainly put us here at Marijuana Politics in the Team Rousey camp, but we are happy to see Mayweather agree with Rousey that the five-year suspension levied against UFC Fighter Nick Diaz (who Floyd believably doesn’t seem to have heard of) is ridiculous. Mayweather looks utterly shocked that a fighter could be suspended five years for cannabis, stating, “Let that man smoke weed and enjoy his life!”

Here’s the video of Mayweather’s statement on the Diaz suspension (WARNING: NSFW language):

It is great to see another top fighter ridicule testing athletes for marijuana. With Ronda Rousey and Floyd Mayweather on the same team, opposing ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith, hopefully the Nevada Athletic Commission’s and other sports governing bodies will come to understand that prohibiting athletes from using cannabis, and pushing them to use more harmful and addictive narcotics, is a policy that needs to be changed immediately.

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor strangely dismissed marijuana legalization when talking to college students about the importance of political engagement. Justice Sotomayor, as a lawyer and a judge, should know the significance of ending cannabis prohibition. It is alarming that a Supreme Court Justice, who invoked the Civil Rights Movement in her speech to students, doesn’t understand the importance of ending cannabis prohibition and the entire Drug War.

While many want to scoff at cannabis law reform activism, ridiculing the advocates of just wanting to get high or to try and make it rich in a new legalized industry. However, what Justice Sotomayor and many critics miss is that marijuana legalization is about freedom and sound public policy. Marijuana prohibition, and the Drug War in general, takes away personal liberty and responsibility, ruining lives in the process, while not accomplishing any of its stated goals and wasting hard-earned taxpayer dollars.

Activist Tom Angell found the video of Justice Sotomayor’s statements and covered it at Marijuana.com:

“We can only change the conditions you don’t like if each and every one of us becomes passionate about something,” Sotomayor said in the appearance at Amherst College.

“I don’t really care what kind of thing you become passionate about,” she said, before tilting her head and dismissively waving her hands, adding, “Maybe legalizing marijuana, but you know.”

And while Sotomayor followed up with, “Even that has people who have been passionate and have accomplished something, OK,” the implication was clear: Working on marijuana legalization is a frivolous waste of time that, in the justice’s view, would much better spent addressing a more meaningful issue.

 

 
The Drug War has been a terribly policy for the United States; it has decimated communities of color, stripping away educational, employment and housing opportunities. Marijuana prohibition is a huge reason why so many get ensnared by a criminal justice system that is imprisoning people for profit. Professor Michelle Alexander has called the mass incarceration of African-Americans due to the War on Drugs the New Jim Crow. It is rather insulting that Sotomayor would scoff at the work of Professor Alexander and others that have dedicated their lives to legalizing cannabis and ending the failed and harmful Drug War.

After UFC champion Ronda Rousey criticized the 5-year suspension of fellow fighter Nick Diaz (#FreeNickDiaz) for testing positive for marijuana, controversial ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith took exception and gave his take on the issue. Rousey noted the ridiculousness of suspending Diaz five times as long as his opponent, Anderson Silva, as Silva tested positive for steroids, a performance-enhancing drug that can put opponents in serious physical danger.

The face of women’s mixed martial arts gave her very legitimate opinion that testing for cannabis at all is a violation of privacy since the plant isn’t a performance-enhancing substance. Smith countered the champ and defended the suspension because marijuana is “not allowed” by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, using the debunked gateway theory as a basis, along with the hilariously erroneous statement that marijuana isn’t legal in “48 of the 52 states.”

Seriously. Stephen A Smith said there are 52 states on #FirstTake pic.twitter.com/fO2qBDIW7F

— rob (@R0BaTO) September 17, 2015

“Rowdy” Ronda Rousey is a refreshing athlete at the top of her game who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and take on important issues, from marijuana policy to the Armenian genocide to encouraging women to have their own career and not rely upon others.  While Stephen A. Smith attempted to disparage the world champion as someone who has “puffed and passed on a few occasions” because of “how she sounds,” any usage by Rowdy would further highlight the absurdity of punishing athletes for consuming cannabis.

Smith has a long history of backing punishments levied against professional athletes for marijuana. The commentator’s support of the status quo is disappointing as the cultural stigmas and biases against cannabis help perpetuate the Drug War, a war that disproportionately hurts people of color. Further, Ronda Rousey has had an ongoing feud with boxer Floyd “Money” Mayweather while Smith has been an apologist for Mayweather and other domestic abusers; Smith’s blaming of domestic violence victims following the infamous Ray Rice incident led to a suspension from ESPN. Stephen A. Smith may be a bit biased in going after Rousey, as he is standing up for his (convicted domestic abuser) buddy.

I encourage everyone that supports cannabis legalization, privacy, freedom and good policy in general, to support Ronda Rousey in anyway that you can. You can let the champ know that you agree with her on her social media outlets, buy her licensed merchandise, support her sponsors and purchase her fights. Rowdy clearly isn’t afraid to stand up for what she believes in, but we should still let her know that she has plenty of people in her corner as she comes under attack from uninformed and ignorant blowhards like Stephen A. Smith.

(Featured photo credit: Getty Images)