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By Victor Michel
A patient support group has been formed in Riverside to help AIDS/HIV patients who use or are interested in using cannabis to treat their symptoms.
Sponsored by the THCF Medical Clinic, the group meets weekly and provides patients with information on cannabis’ health benefits, getting a doctor’s approval, methods of ingestion, obtaining medicine, and how to navigate the torturous and potentially life-threatening briar patch of laws, regulations and licensing requirements.
The Inland Empire AIDS Medical Marijuana Patient Group was formed by AIDS patient Tom Place, whose health was restored by using cannabis in conjunction with other medications. Place said, “Marijuana use is still controversial and patients find its use problematic due to a society that still does not understand its immense benefits. Many patients find that cannabis use can cause friction with family members, doctors and social workers and this
Read More: AIDS patient group tackles health, legal, access issues
By Dave Hodges, SJCBC
Since San Jose Councilman Pierluigi Oliverio submitted his Oct. 27, 2009 memo to the rules committee calling for an ordinance regulating medical marijuana, San Jose has exploded with collectives—more than 75 are within city limits. The Council has yet to adopt an ordinance regulating collectives, but it is moving forward with both an ordinance and a tax initiative.
City staff separated the ordinance into two parts. As presented in June, both the “Land Use Urgency Ordinance” and the “Title 6 Urgency Ordinance” drew heavy opposition from the patient community. “Title 6” was called one of the most draconian ordinances in the state. Fortunately the Council did not approve either ordinance and decided to table both until after November. One stated reason for delay was to see the fate of Prop.19. The Council approved a memo by Mayor Chuck Reed and Oliverio
Read More: San Jose seeks a high profit at patients’ expense
Some plans are prohibitive
By Dale Gieringer California NORML
Regardless of whether Prop 19 passes, a growing list of cities are proposing ballot measures to tax medical marijuana sales at ever-escalating rates, as cities look to cash in on revenues from marijuana.
In San Jose, the city council has proposed a ballot measure to impose up to a 10-percent tax on medical marijuana. If approved by voters, that means the city’s dispensaries would be taxed at a whopping 19.25 percent including sales tax.
Oakland began the tax stampede last year by approving a modest 1.8 percent business tax on cannabis. The idea was initiated by the city’s dispensaries, who had proposed a 1.4-percent rate. That was hiked by the city council before being passed along to the voters, who approved it by a lopsided 4–1 margin.
The
Read More: Some localities not waiting for Prop 19 to tax
The Vapir NO2
By Mikki Norris with the MontyPats,
A recent three-day trial of the new, portable, digital, cordless Vapir NO2, shows that vaporizers have indeed come a long way. Health-conscious consumers who switch from smoke to vapor will be instantly impressed with its comfortable-in-the-hand size. It is an attractive, nicely made, lightweight product that works quickly and efficiently for under $200.
The Vapir NO2’s thermostat is convenient. Just turn it on, press a couple buttons to set the temperature, wait for the green light, and start drawing on the plastic straw-like tube that attaches to the top. At 325 degrees, excellent herbal flavors linger and expand in the mouth. The very best flavors are produced at lower temperatures. Higher temperatures are recommended for a thicker vapor and a more recognizable effect.
The NO2 comes with a few tools that make it easy to
Read More: New hand-held vaporizer a pleasure to sip on
By Vanessa Nelson, Medical MarijuanaofAmerica.com
Several notable medical marijuana providers have been released from federal prisons recently. One was Kenneth ‘Kena’ Affolter, whose company, Beyond Bomb, supplied dispensaries with a wide array of medicinal edibles. A tripped burglar alarm at an Oakland warehouse in 2006 led to a raid and federal charges for Affolter and his employees. All the defendants took plea deals, but Affolter’s 70-month prison sentence was the longest by far. A naturally deep thinker, he spent much of his incarceration reading, writing and meditating. He finished serving hard time this spring.
Former medical grower David Davidson also finished off a federal sentence this spring, ending a seven-year ordeal. Davidson was initially busted by local Tehama County authorities in 2003 but disappeared after they turned his case over to federal prosecutors. He was captured in New Mexico in 2007, after his co-defendant revealed his
Read More: Drug War POW updates; several recent releases
Evergreen State update
By Martin Martinez Lifevine Foundation
Even though Washington’s medical marijuana law allows patients to possess up to 15 plants and 24 ounces of processed medicine, there is as yet no allowance for group cultivation.
But group gardens may soon become legitimate, based on the ‘Lifevine collective model.’ Some patient advocates already are drafting proposed dispensary rules for the fall legislative session.
While multiple-patient gardens have been frequently and willfully ignored in Seattle, that tolerance is not secure under law. Roughly half the state’s population resides in other counties, and Seattle’s progressive attitude is not shared in even its closest neighboring cities.
Tacoma followed the example of Spokane in May, going after cannabis patient groups. Westnet officers served warrants at the North End 420 Club and at the home of club owner Guy Casey. Forty mature plants were seized.
Read More: Washington moves closer to collective model
Christie arrested, denied bail
By Don E Wirtshafter
Rev. Roger Christie, leader of the THC Ministry based in Hawai’i, is in jail without bond. In the last issue of West Coast Leaf, an optimistic Christie said he had been raided but not charged and felt safe. Early on the morning of July 8, agents from the Drug Enforcement Admin. stormed the THC Ministry and the homes of many of its practitioners, and 14 were arrested.
The Ministry, Roger and others had sued in federal court in 2004 to establish their legal right as sincere believers to use their chosen sacrament.
The government responded by arguing that even though the Ministry was engaged in the production and distribution of marijuana, it was not under federal investigation or prosecution. Since the ministry could not prove that arrest and prosecution for use of their sacrament was imminent,
Read More: Feds raid THC Ministry
Prosecutor Cooley’s bid for attorney general worries patients
By Jessica Gwyn Gelay, CannAssist.com
The glory days of dispensing medical cannabis in Los Angeles are over. That’s a get-tough theme that GOP candidate Steve Cooley is running on in his bid for California state attorney general.
The streets of LA tell a different story. In one central-city neighborhood patients say 18 of 23 collectives are still open, in defiance of city law. These clubs began operating after the city declared a moratorium, and are dubbed the “post-ICO” clubs. Some of the post-ICO groups have filed suit against the city. A first move failed when a District Court judge denied an injunction preventing the law from taking effect. This decision has been appealed.
The day after the ruling, June 7, LA Municipal Code Ch. IV, Art. 5.1 governing cannabis collectives went into effect; since then
Read More: Hundreds of LA dispensaries fighting closures
Directive protects vets’ use
By Eugene Davidovich San Diego ASA
Undersecretary of Health for the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) Robert E. Petzel, MD, issued a July 27, 2010 directive to provide clarification and guidance on the use of and access to cannabis by veteran patients. It states, “Patients participating in state medical marijuana programs must not be denied VA services.” Although Directive 2010-035 prohibits VA doctors from actually prescribing or recommending cannabis, veterans who use cannabis can now participate in VA substance-abuse, pain-control, and other clinical programs where cannabis might otherwise be considered inconsistent with treatment goals, without being denied services. The directive follows a letter sent to Michael Kravitz, executive director of Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access (VMMA), in which Dr. Petzel wrote, “lf a veteran obtains and uses medical marijuana in a manner consistent with state law, testing positive for marijuana would not preclude the veteran
Read More: VA shifts course on cannabis use
By Samuel Janovici
It started as a minor violation of one of the golden rules of indoor growing: Don’t introduce a new plant into the garden without a reasonable quarantine period and a healthy dose of Azatrol. The new strain was from a friend, a respected grower, so he put the clones of a new variety straight into the main clone room for a few days before moving them to the veg-room.
That was the last chance to notice the spider mites before they traveled into his healthy, bug-free environment to breed in near-perfect conditions.
Spider mites are usually less than 1 mm in size and they produce small, spherical eggs. The hot, dry conditions of an indoor operation are the perfect breeding ground for a population of spider mites. The two-spotted spider mite that infested this crop can hatch in as
Read More: Small mistake leads to mighty mite invasion, crop damage
By Carl Olsen Iowans for Medical Marijuana Medical use of cannabis has been accepted by 14 states — yet not one of these has challenged the federal misclassification of cannabis as having “no accepted medical use” for treatment in the US.
Instead, the first step to initiate such an official challenge to the federal ban comes from a non-medical use state. Iowans for Medical Marijuana (IMM) began the process of legalizing medical use of cannabis in 2008 by asking the Iowa Board of Pharmacy to review its classification of cannabis as having no accepted medical use in treatment — the same language fed- eral drug law uses.
IMM obtained a court order April 21, 2009, forcing the Board to reconsider this classification. On Feb. 17, 2010, the Board recommended the Iowa Legislature remove cannabis from its current classification after holding public hearings across the state and reviewing the most
Read More: Iowa group hopes to challenge Fed classification
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National Cannabis Industry Association’s 2nd Anniversary Gala
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Some localities not waiting for Prop 19 to tax
Some plans are prohibitive
By Dale Gieringer California NORML
Regardless of whether Prop 19 passes, a growing list of cities are proposing ballot measures to tax medical marijuana sales at ever-escalating rates, as cities look to cash in on revenues from marijuana.
In San Jose, the city council has proposed a ballot measure to impose up to a 10-percent tax on medical marijuana. If approved by voters, that means the city’s dispensaries would be taxed at a whopping 19.25 percent including sales tax.
Oakland began the tax stampede last year by approving a modest 1.8 percent business tax on cannabis. The idea was initiated by the city’s dispensaries, who had proposed a 1.4-percent rate. That was hiked by the city council before being passed along to the voters, who approved it by a lopsided 4–1 margin.
The
Read More: Some localities not waiting for Prop 19 to tax