Mississippi Assembly Passes Limited Medical Marijuana Bill

Last week, the Mississippi General Assembly overwhelmingly passed HB 1231, which would legalize certain, very limited medical marijuana extracts for patients suffering from seizure disorders. While this bill is a strong endorsement of the medical benefits of marijuana by the Mississippi legislature, it is extremely limited and does not even create a realistic way for patients to obtain the extracts.

Gov. Phil Bryant

The bill, approved by the House 112-6 and the Senate 49-0, now heads to Gov. Phil Bryant, who is expected to sign it. If enacted, it would apply only to patients suffering from epileptic conditions, leaving the vast majority of patients behind. Furthermore, patients would only be able to use marijuana extracts that contain no more than 0.5% THC and more than 15% CBD.

The bill also only allows three specific medical research centers — the National Center for Natural Products Research at the University of Mississippi, the Department of Pharmacy Services at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station at Mississippi State University — to produce or possess the marijuana extracts for research. Given that federal law does not allow medical marijuana, it is extremely unlikely that universities will produce marijuana.

:)

pics :p

Maryland House Votes to Decriminalize Marijuana in Surprise Turnaround

On Saturday, the Maryland House of Delegates overwhelmingly approved an amended version of the decriminalization bill. In a 78-55 vote, the House approved imposing civil fines — not criminal penalties and possible jail time — on those possessing less than 10 grams of marijuana.

The bill now goes back to the Senate for concurrence, before heading to Gov. Martin O’Malley. Gov. O’Malley has previously said he’s “not much in favor” of decriminalization.

Del. Keiffer Mitchell

Saturday’s vote was the product of lots of hard work from MPP and our allies, both in the legislature and outside of it. Just a few days ago, the House Judiciary Committee gutted the decriminalization bill and replaced it with a task force that wouldn’t report back for two years. Thanks to the leadership from the Legislative Black Caucus and Del. Keiffer Mitchell, we were able to turn the tide. Many thanks to all of our supporters who emailed and called their delegates.

But our work on this long overdue reform is not done. Don’t forget to make sure you’re plugged in to our efforts by liking the Marijuana Policy Coalition of Maryland on Facebook and following the coalition on Twitter.

New Hampshire Poll Shows Growing Support for Legalization

The annual WMUR Granite State Poll released Wednesday by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center shows a growing majority of New Hampshire adults support making marijuana legal and regulating it like alcohol.

The survey found 55% percent support making possession of small amounts of marijuana legal in New Hampshire — up from 53% in 2013 — and 67% approve of marijuana being sold in licensed retail outlets and taxed at levels similar to alcohol if marijuana possession becomes legal.

The poll also found that three out of five New Hampshire adults (61%) support House Bill 1625, a measure approved by the State House of Representatives and now being considered by the Senate that would reduce the penalty for possession of up to one ounce of marijuana to a $100 civil fine. Currently, possession of any amount of marijuana is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $2,000. New Hampshire is the only state in New England that treats simple marijuana possession as a criminal offense with the potential for jail time.

The poll of 510 randomly selected New Hampshire adults was conducted March 24-April 1 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3%. The entire poll is available at http://cola.unh.edu/survey-center/most-granite-staters-support-changes-states-marijuana-laws-4914.

Florida Democrats Add Medical Marijuana to the Ballot to Boost Voter Turnout for the Midterm Election

Florida Democrats are pushing for a constitutional amendment that would put medical marijuana on the state’s ballot this November. If the initiative passes, Florida would become the first southern state to legalize some form of marijuana usage. Recent Battleground polls have shown widespread support, especially among young voters.

In a previous MPP blog post, we discussed how about 70% of voters (nationwide) would be more likely to vote this fall if marijuana was on the ballot, and how midterm elections traditionally have lower voter turnout, especially with young voters and liberals. In the 2012 elections, Washington and Colorado both saw significant spikes in voter turnout, possibly due to marijuana being on the ballot. If Florida follows suit, it will be a testament to marijuana’s spillover effect.

Florida Democrats are hoping it “could have a marginal impact,” which doesn’t sound like much, but “a marginal impact in Florida could be the difference between winning and losing,” according to Steve Schale, a Democratic consultant who managed Obama’s Florida campaign in 2008.

A recent Republican victory in a special House election last month typified the Democrats’ turnout problem. The St. Petersburg-area district has 2.4 percent more registered Republicans than Democrats, but GOP voters outnumbered Democrats by eight percentage points, according to election results.

Maryland Becomes 21st Medical Marijuana State, and 18th to Decriminalize !!!

Yesterday morning, Gov. Martin O’Malley signed into law both the medical marijuana bill and the decriminalization bill, making Maryland the 21st state with an effective medical marijuana program, and the 18th state to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.

The medical marijuana bill expands a program that, while established last year, was unable to get off the ground. The previous law relied on the participation of teaching hospitals, which understandably did not want to be involved with a substance that is still federally illegal. The law signed today will allow registered cultivators to grow medical marijuana and up to 15 licensed cultivators to provide the medicine to patients and dispensaries. This new law will finally provide real access to seriously ill Marylanders.

The decriminalization law removes the criminal penalties for possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana, and replaces them with a civil fine of up to $100 for a first offense, up to $250 for a second offense, and up to $500 for subsequent offenses. Third-time offenders and individuals under 21 years of age will be required to undergo a clinical assessment for substance abuse disorder and a drug education program. The measure will officially go into effect on October 1.

This is incredible progress, but our work is not done yet. A September 2013 poll found that 53% of Marylanders support legalizing marijuana for adults 21 and up, and taxing and regulating it like alcohol.

yeah baby

Washington State Marijuana Retail Licenses Lottery Rolls Out This Week

The Washington State Marijuana Retail Licenses Lottery begins today with a total of 334 retail licenses to be awarded. Washington State University’s Social and Economic Sciences Research Center will be conducting the lottery for the state’s liquor control board, which oversees the marijuana retailers once they become licensed.

Approximately 1,500 applicants are in the lottery pool. With such a large applicant pool, the lottery process is expected to take all week with the board reviewing background checks on not only the applicants, but also their investors and financiers. The Washington State Liquor Control Board says, “The process will be extremely secure and will determine who gets a retail license to sell pot legally in Washington.”

“Legally” is the key term here. This lottery marks the beginning of WA businesses controlling the marijuana market and taking it out of the hands of criminals. Since small amounts of marijuana possession were legalized on Dec. 6, 2012, Washington residents have been acquiring marijuana through unlicensed, illicit dealers.

Final results of the lottery will be released on May 2, and the state expects to have the first marijuana stores open sometime in July of 2014, in accordance with the Implementation of I-502.

New Hampshire Senators Crush Patients’ Hopes for Home Cultivation

Earlier this month, patients practically begged the New Hampshire Senate Health, Education, and Human Services Committee to approve HB 1622, a bill that would allow them to grow up to two mature marijuana plants until a dispensary opens within 30 miles of their residences.

Sadly, even though this bill had already passed the New Hampshire House with 227-73 (76%) support, and even though all five senators on the committee had previously supported home cultivation, the committee refused to move HB 1622 forward. Only Senator John Reagan(R-Deerfield) spoke up on behalf of patients who can’t afford to wait for dispensaries to open, but his appeals fell on deaf ears. After very little discussion, the committee voted 3-1 to recommend the bill for “interim study,” which would effectively kill it for the year.

Sen. John Reagan

It’s clear that the Senate has no actual intention of studying this bill. Less than a week after the Senate refused to consider a House-approved decriminalization bill, senators are again attempting to avoid a vote on whether or not patients should be allowed to grow their own cannabis.

Past Marijuana Convictions Could Be Sealed if SB 218 Becomes Law in Colorado

 Colorado could be sealing any past marijuana convictions that Amendment 64 would have rendered impotent. If Senate Bill 218 is passed, Coloradans could petition to have their previous marijuana-related convictions sealed if they would have not been crimes under current Colorado law.

The bill has bipartisan support and was announced Tuesday, April 29. The proposed bill comes with only a few days left in the 2014 session, but its impact could be huge, possibly giving thousands of residents the right to petition.

“There are tens of thousands of people with previous cannabis offenses that hurt them from getting things like loans, housing, and employment,” Jason Warf, a marijuana advocate and director of Colorado Springs Medical Cannabis Council, told The Denver Post late last week.

Sens. Jessie Ulibarri, D-Westminster, and Vicki Marble, R-Fort Collins, are the sponsors of the proposal, which is scheduled to be heard today by the Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee. If approved, petitioners would have to file in the district where their conviction occurred, and they would have to pay the court filing fees to have their records sealed.

Limited CBD Bill Becomes Law in Kentucky

The Kentucky Legislature adjourned last week, ending its work for the year. Sadly, although the House Health and Welfare Committee approved an effective medical marijuana bill in February, it was not called for a vote in the House.

Legislators did make an effort to help some seriously ill patients who could benefit from cannabidiol (“CBD,” a non-psychoactive component of marijuana). On Thursday, April 10, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear signed into law a proposal that is intended to allow patients to use CBD if directed to do so by a physician. The new law went into effect immediately with his signature, but, unfortunately, it is unlikely that it will actually result in patients being able to access CBD.

Gov. Steve Beshear

Despite concerns about access, and the fact that this legislation excludes the vast majority of medical marijuana patients, it is still a positive step forward. For more information on this new law, please see our summary of S.B. 124.

Florida House Approves Cannabidiol Bill

On Thursday, the Florida House voted 111-7 in support of a bill that will exempt a limited group of very sick people from criminal laws for using marijuana that is low in THC and high in CBD if certain requirements are met. Gov. Rick Scott has stated that he’ll sign the bill if the Senate agrees to the House version today. Please email your lawmakers today and thank them for recognizing marijuana’s medical benefits.

Gov. Rick Scott

The bill allows patients with cancer and conditions that result in chronic seizures or severe muscle spasms to use marijuana that contains 0.8% THC or lower and 10% CBD or higher. Patients can administer the medicine via pills, oils, or vaporization. Smoking is prohibited. The bill also requires the state to register five dispensing businesses, spread out across the state, to grow and dispense the medical marijuana. Unfortunately, the bill places heavy burdens on physicians who wish to recommend marijuana to their patients, arguably forcing them to violate federal laws in order to do so.

Florida took a small step forward this year, but the law is so incomplete that MPP will not be counting it as a “medical marijuana state.” Voters will have an opportunity to enact a comprehensive, workable medical marijuana law by voting “yes” on Amendment Two this November.

Medical Marijuana On the Move in Minnesota Senate

Once again, the medical marijuana bill authored by Sen. Scott Dibble and Rep. Carly Melin cleared another legislative hurdle. The Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee just voted to refer the bill to the finance committee. The legislation has already been approved by the Senate health and government committees. As you may know, session time is running out, so, if you have not already done so, please find out if your lawmakers support medical marijuana.

Polling shows that a majority of Minnesotans, regardless of political affiliation, age, income, education, or region, support medical marijuana legislation. However, lawmakers tend to lag behind the public on sensible and compassionate marijuana policies, so if you are a Minnesota resident, please let your lawmakers know that their constituents support medical marijuana and they should, too.

love love marjiuana

Source"http://smokeeverytimeandeverywhere.blogspot.com/

Men`s Healt Marijuana

E POT DOCTOR HAS A BACKACHE. As Mahmoud ElSohly, Ph.D. shakes my hand, he’s wincing. Two days ago, ElSohly—the director of the University of Mississippi’s Marijuana Project—bent down the wrong way and threw out his back. And unfortunately, this morning’s visit to his chiropractor didn’t help him much.

Ironically, just outside ElSohly’s office in the Waller Complex—behind bolted doors, coded chambers, and security cameras—lies a government-guarded farm where acres of a pain-relieving drug grow in his care. Only Elsohly isn’t thinking about lighting up: He knows too much.

READ A HEADLINE TOUTING A POT STUDY, and it’s likely referencing the University of Mississippi’s carefully cultivated Mexican marijuana. In fact, the National Institute on Drug Abuse has named this lab the country’s one legal source of marijuana for scientific studies. It’s been operating quietly since about 1968—growing, harvesting, processing, standardizing, and analyzing marijuana.

The farm grows strains for testing with varying amounts of pot’s potent ingredient, tetrahydrocannabinol or THC—also known as the chemical that makes you “high.” But it does more than that. “There are many indications for which THC would be a good medicine if you have the right formulations and dosing,” says Dr. ElSohly.

Unfortunately, this is where the case for medical marijuana gets complicated.

“There are many indications for which THC would be a good medicine if you have the right formulations and dosing,” says Dr. ElSohly.

The marijuana plant is made up of more than 500 chemical compounds. Many of these compounds are cannabinoids, which bind to receptors in your body and then affect your immune system and brain. Researchers have pinpointed two main cannabinoids—THC and cannabidiol, or CBD—as beneficial, Dr. ElSohly tells me. (The biggest difference: CBD doesn’t make you high.)

Trouble is, when exposed to the high temperature of a burning joint, the 500 or so chemical compounds in marijuana can produce hundreds or thousands of byproducts—many of which are thought to be carcinogens. Research suggests that marijuana smoke can contain up to 70 percent more carcinogenic materials than tobacco smoke. And while many researchers think that—logically—marijuana smoke should cause lung cancer, studies remain inconclusive. (See Does Smoking Pot Cause Lung Cancer?)

But ElSohly contends that the smoke itself isn’t the biggest issue at this point. “There’s an inherent problem with the smoking of marijuana as a delivery system,” he says.

FORTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, Lester Grinspoon, M.D., now an associate professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, would have never agreed with the idea of marijuana as a medicine. He thought his friends who lit up were ruining their health. Who would blame him? The U.S. government seemed to agree. In 1970, it classified marijuana as a Schedule I drug—alongside heroin and LSD—as a substance with high abuse potential and no accepted medical purpose.

But in 1967, Dr. Grinspoon’s teenage son was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Chemotherapy left him with no appetite, vomiting spells, and nausea—“the kind you feel right down to your toe nails,” the doctor remembers. The drugs that were supposed to ease the pain didn’t. So Dr. Grinspoon’s wife pulled up to Wellesley High School and asked her son’s friend for weed.

A few minutes before his treatments, Dr. Grinspoon’s son would take a few puffs. “We never—for as long as he lived—had to deal with that awful experience of seeing what he went through again,” he says.

But bring something you smoke to the medical world, and chances are they’ll balk at the idea. “Smoking is not an accepted route of administration for medication,” says Peter Friedmann, M.D., M.P.H., professor of Medicine & Community Health at Brown University. “There are so many variables in the smoking process. It’s ludicrous to think you could come up with a dosage,” Dr. ElSohly adds.

This is, in part, why the FDA approved Marinol—a low-dosage formulation of synthetic THC that comes in capsule form. The drug is used to stimulate appetite in people with HIV and control the nausea and vomiting that’s associated with chemotherapy. It’s a good option for people with conditions like cancer who don’t respond to common drugs. It’s also incredibly versatile. “Does it lower intraocular pressure for glaucoma patients? Yes it does. Does it reduce anxiety? Yes it does. Does it stimulate appetite? Yes it does,” Dr. ElSohly says.

The problem: Marinol is one of only two FDA-approved THC-based drugs and, unlike say, Advil, your body doesn’t absorb it well. Only about 10 to 20 percent of the dose becomes available for your body to use. That makes it unpredictable: For some people, the drug works great; others see no benefit whatsoever, says ElSohly. What’s more, it often makes those who it does work for higher than if they had smoked pot—another absorption issue.

Which leaves a clear challenge for researchers: Create a THC delivery method that leads to better absorption while reducing its psychoactive effect. ElSohly and his team are on track to do this at their Ole Miss research facility. They’ve developed a patch that would be applied above your gum line and deliver THC in a way that circumvents Marinol’s absorption problems. If approved, the product could be effective for relieving everything from nerve and cancer pain to glaucoma and anxiety.

You don’t need much THC to experience medicinal benefits, and street pot—as well as pot sold in dispensaries—is just getting more potent.

NO SUBSTANCE IS WITHOUT ITS SIDE EFFECTS. Researchers believe that regular cannabis use can have neurotoxic effects on maturing brain structures. A 2012 study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that people who started smoking before age 18 showed a greater decline in IQ and cognitive functioning than people who started toking as adults. Even more: Heavy teen users—an average of four or more times a week—who continued to smoke as adults experienced an 8-point IQ drop which couldn’t be blamed on booze, other drugs, or less education.

THC has what doctors and researchers know as biphasic activity. “At low doses it has certain effects, and at high doses it has opposite effects,” Dr. ElSohly explains. “Somebody using to get high at the right dose will be calm, happy, getting the munchies, and all of that,” Dr. ElSohly says. Someone using at the right dose could see medicinal benefits, too. But take in too much THC, and you can become irritable, even psychotic. “There are more emergency room admissions today than ever because of marijuana use,” Dr. ElSohly says. “That’s simply because of the psychoactive side effects of the high THC content that the public uses.”

That’s part of the reason weed became illegal in the first place. Post-prohibition, the federal Bureau of Narcotics (a forerunner of the Drug Enforcement Administration) turned its attention to a plant that newspapers reported was making people violent and crazy—from jazz musicians in New York, to workers on the Mexican border. In 1937, the federal government passed the Marihuana Tax Act to prevent its recreational use . And in the past 10 years, enforcing pot laws has cost taxpayers more than $211 million in the state of Washington alone, according to recent research by the American Civil Liberties Union of Washington State.

Certainly we have legal medicines that have greater risks than marijuana, says Dr. Friedmann, who also notes that these drugs have proven benefits. Watch a commercial for Cymbalta—a common anti-depressant—and roughly half of the nearly 90 seconds are drug warnings, one of which warns antidepressants may increase the risk of suicidal thoughts in children, teens, and young adults. FDA-approved sleeping-aid Ambien even includes this warning: “After taking Ambien, you may get up out of bed while not being fully awake and do an activity that you do not know you are doing. The next morning, you may not remember that you did anything during the night.”

To this effect, doctors like Grinspoon preach pot’s safety: “Marijuana is not only non-toxic—but remarkably non-toxic.” If you look in the literature, you’ll be hard pressed to find a death caused by marijuana, he says: “I couldn’t find evidence of a single death, and the most toxic thing is death.”

Other doctors will remind you that FDA-approved drugs have been tested in clinical studies. They know the implications for using them—how they work, and how they don’t. And although marijuana has been around the U.S. for hundreds of years, “we don’t know a lot of that information about it,” says Dr. Friedmann.

WALK INTO A MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARY in any of the 18 states—or Washington, D.C.—where it’s legal, and you have your choice of remedies: chocolates, drinks, and different strains of weed. None are FDA-approved, but show your medical marijuana card and you can use it to treat what ails you.

In Colorado, there are many conditions which can make you eligible for a doctor’s recommendation, says Ken Lamkin, a family physician in Colorado who evaluates patients for the cards. If you have cancer, glaucoma, HIV or AIDs, cachexia, chronic pain—including migraines—severe nausea, epilepsy or seizures, or persistent muscle spasms, a medical exam and written documentation from a doctor stating that you may benefit from medical marijuana can land you a registration card. Then you have access to varying amounts of weed in your state.

The problem: “How do you prove if the pain is severe or moderate?” Dr. Lamkin asks. While he conducts full examinations on patients, there is no way to objectively tell how severely a patient is experiencing pain.

In California, a mental health condition—such as depression or anxiety—can score you a medical marijuana card. Walk up and down Venice Beach and you’ll see doctor-office storefronts boasting 24-hour live patient verification. If you have some cash, an ID, and a qualifying medical condition, you’re well on your way to weed.

“I think we have to be real about what that’s all about,” says Dr. Friedmann. “It’s really about legalization—not the health benefits or risks.” Sure, tobacco and alcohol—which are both legal—harm many more people than cannabis, but we don’t use them as medicines, Dr. Friedmann adds. “During Prohibition, one of the few ways to get alcohol was by prescription, and some unscrupulous doctors and clinics made good money—just as they are for medical marijuana.”

So could the pot you pick up with a medical marijuana card ease anxiety like many people claim it does? “It could,” says Dr. ElSohly. “But it could also exacerbate it.”

You don’t actually need much THC to see medicinal benefits. But street pot—as well as pot sold in dispensaries—is just getting more potent. Dr. ElSohly and his team at Ole Miss track the THC content in confiscated marijuana in this country. “In the 1970s, the THC content was around 1 or 2 percent,” he says as he shows me weed sent to the lab from the Drug Enforcement Administration after a raid. “Today it’s more like 11 or 12 percent.”

Why that matters: It’s the lowest dose of Marinol—2.5 milligrams of THC —that works best for appetite stimulation in HIV patients, Dr. ElSohly says. This is equivalent to smoking about a half-gram joint at 1 percent THC. The same thing goes for a good high: A 2007 Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics study found that of 1.7, 3.4, and 6.8 percent THC pot, most people preferred the experience from the 3.4 percent weed. What you won’t read in that study is that it was originally designed to include 8 percent THC weed, but “even the most experienced marijuana smokers couldn’t tolerate it,” Dr. ElSohly explains. “So what the heck do you want more THC than that for?”

Look at the Colorado population using marijuana for pain, Dr. ElSohly says. “It’s mostly youth—people who should be pain free.” It takes him about a minute to stand up—he’s wincing again. “I have back pain right now, but I’m not about to smoke marijuana for it. You know what I’m saying?”  Source"http://smokeeverytimeandeverywhere.blogspot.com/

Мedical Use

Marijuana, or cannabis, as it is more appropriately called, has been part of humanity's medicine chest for almost as long as history has been recorded.

Of all the negative consequences of marijuana prohibition, none is as tragic as the denial of medicinal cannabis to the tens of thousands of patients who could benefit from its therapeutic use.

Modern research suggests that cannabis is a valuable aid in the treatment of a wide range of clinical applications. These include pain relief -- particularly of neuropathic pain (pain from nerve damage) -- nausea, spasticity, glaucoma, and movement disorders. Marijuana is also a powerful appetite stimulant, specifically for patients suffering from HIV, the AIDS wasting syndrome, or dementia. Emerging research suggests that marijuana's medicinal properties may protect the body against some types of malignant tumors and are neuroprotective.

Currently, more than 60 U.S. and international health organizations support granting patients immediate legal access to medicinal marijuana under a physician's supervision.  Source"http://smokeeverytimeandeverywhere.blogspot.com/

smoke marijuana

Today is the annual non-holiday, but perhaps future holiday (hey, beer drinkers have Super Bowl Sunday, right?) of 4/20, the national smoke-a-ton-and-get-blasted day.

Without work in the way, there’s a good chance that you are strictly looking to zone out for a few hours, and I have got just the 4/20 soundtrack to help keep you company.

Cypress Hill, "Hits From the Bong"

The Dusty Springfield's “Son of a Preacherman” sample that drives this joint almost gives it the air of spirituality, but who are we kidding -- it’s just an ode to medicine, right?       Source"http://smokeeverytimeandeverywhere.blogspot.com/ 

Peter Tosh, "Legalize It"

Thank you, Peter Tosh, for giving me the right words to sing to my parents while causing a ruckus when I was living at home.

Bob Dylan, "Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35"

This one makes the list if not for the ambiguous lyrics, then for the fact that is sounds like a damn stoner party in the studio. From the lazy harmonica to the at-times off-beat horns, it wins.

Devin the Dude, "Doobie Ashtray"

If there was a genre of music called marijuana blues (there should be!), then this masterpiece would be the exemplary specimen.

Rick James, "Mary Jane"

As if this song couldn’t get any tighter, Redman even spit over it for the timeless ‘Smoke Buddha.’ Back up, back up, ain’t nobody hitting for free.

Louis Armstrong, "Muggles"

Way back in the day, before pot was even illegal in this country, it had a bunch of other crazy nicknames, among them muggles, the name of this Armstrong instrumental with pianist Earl “Fatha” Hines.

Black Uhuru, “Sinsemilla”

In Spanish, sinsemilla means “without seeds.” And if you know anything about smoking, you know that means that you don’t want no seeds in that bud. To this day, Jamaicans refer to quality herb as sinsemilla, a throwback to the lingo they picked up while the island was briefly ruled by the Spanish. This is one of the all time reggae odes to the leaf.

Three Six Mafia, “Where’s da bud?”

Years before the Mafia Six were known for giving themselves props for winning an Academy Award, they made weed anthems like this over DJ Paul’s signature dark piano loops.

The Toyes, “Smoke Two Joints”

You know that Sublime song that you played that made you feel so rebellious back in the day? Yep, that was a cover. This original version has all the goodies from that version, and even a few extra lines to confuse your karaoke session.

Black Sabbath, "Sweet Leaf"

A few decades before he became America’s favorite brain dead transplant dad, Ozzy Osbourne actually made music. Starting with lead guitarist Tony Iommi’s cough after he took a toke off a joint, the song released into a heavy, all-out dedication to the sweet ganja plant. “Straight people don't know, what you're about/They put you down and shut you out/You gave to me a new belief and soon the world will love you sweet leaf,” Osbourne sings at the end.

basketball marijuana

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puf paf

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Balancing the ganja scale

THE use of ganja engenders strong feelings on either side of the issue across Jamaica. A dispassionate approach to the issue is therefore needed to evaluate benefits, burdens and risks, with a view to deciding whether a positive benefit/risk ratio exists that would warrant decriminalisation of ganja use in Jamaica.

THE EFFECTS OF GANJA

When smoked, the tetrahydrocannabinoids (THC) found in ganja are rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream, giving perceptible effects within minutes. When taken by mouth, pharmacological studies show that the peak effect may not occur for hours, but will last much longer that when ganja is smoked. The THC also persists in the brain longer than in the blood, so that psychological effects persist for some time after the level of THC in the blood begins to fall.

The National Commission on Ganja reported that a state of euphoric intoxication is induced in the acute phase of ganja use. There is mild intoxication, a state of relaxation and increased sociability, a heightened sensory perception - which some musicians say is helpful to their work - and an increased appetite. However, according to the World Health Organisation (1997), in higher doses, acute effects can include perceptual changes, the loss of one's sense of identity, and panic.

A single dose of cannabis for an inexperienced user, or an overdose for a habitual user, can sometimes induce a variety of intensely psychic effects, including anxiety, panic, paranoia, and feelings of impending doom. These effects usually persist for a few hours.

A study by Leirer and others carried out on the effects of ganja on aircraft pilot performance showed that cannabis use impaired flight performance at 15 minutes, 4 hours, 8 hours, and 24 hours after smoking. These results suggest that human performance while using complex machinery can be impaired as long as 24 hours after smoking as little as 20mg of THC, and that the user may be unaware of the drug's influence.

Signs of ganja intoxication include bloodshot eyes, lack of coordination, enhanced sensations and perceptions, increased appetite, dry mouth, possible dizziness, and nausea. According to the National Commission on Ganja, intoxication may also lead to a longer-lasting toxic psychosis involving delusions and hallucinations that can be misdiagnosed as schizophrenic illness in some people. This is temporary, and most times clears up within a few days of terminating the use of ganja. However, the WHO reports that it is well established that ganja can exacerbate the symptoms of those already suffering from schizophrenic illness and may worsen the course of the illness.

A number of factors may influence the effects that ganja may have on an individual. These include the potency of the ganja, as the THC content of marijuana varies among different plants, the route of administration, the smoking technique, the dose, and the user's unique biological vulnerability to the effects of the ganja.

EFFECTS ON OTHER ORGAN SYSTEMS

Like cigarette smoking, persistent smoking of ganja over prolonged periods can cause airway injury, lung inflammation and a decreased pulmonary defence against infection. The consequences include chronic bronchitis, emphysema and cancer. Other studies have also shown lowered sperm count and lowered sperm motility in ganja smokers when compared to non-smokers. Motility is the ability of sperm to swim up the vagina, through the womb and into the Fallopian tubes to effect fertilisation.

MEDICINAL USES OF GANJA

Researchers have conducted controlled studies that have shown beneficial uses for ganja. These include reducing nausea and vomiting, stimulating appetite and promoting weight gain (particularly important in patients with advanced cancer), and decreasing high intraocular pressure from glaucoma. Cannabis has also been used in some countries to reduce muscle spasticity caused by spinal injuries and tremors in multiple sclerosis, relief from migraine headaches, depression, seizures, insomnia, and chronic pain. An extract from ganja has also been used to treat asthma in Jamaica.

There is still a need for further research in several important areas, however, including clinical as well as epidemiological research in its effects on human health, its chemistry and pharmacology, and the various possible therapeutic uses for benefit to the general population. WHO has stated that there are still important gaps in our knowledge about the consequences of ganja use on health. Consequently, there needs to be continued objective research and ongoing public education about all aspects of the use of ganja.

In the meantime, our strategy in Jamaica should be to educate people about prevention and the possible consequences of ganja use, without criminalising those otherwise law-abiding citizens who use small amounts of ganja for personal, recreational or religious purposes. Supportive measures in minimising use and limiting access could be done through taxation and banning the herb's use in public spaces, as well as through serious health warnings posted at prominent places. Decriminalisation would thereby become a strategic platform for the reduction of ganja use, rather than total freeing up of its use.

The latter strategies are crucial, given ganja's potential for harm to children and juveniles exposed to it, as well as its potential effects on drivers and pedestrians in causing traffic accidents. These issues are important for both public morality and public health.                  Source"http://smokeeverytimeandeverywhere.blogspot.com/