Researchers at the University of Florida have found that the theory of a “gateway drug” is not associated with marijuana – results from the Guttman scale indicated that alcohol represented the gateway drug, leading to the use of tobacco, marijuana, and other illicit substances. Furthermore, students who used alcohol “exhibited a significantly greater likelihood of using both licit and illicit drugs”.

In an interview with Raw Story, co-author Adam E. Barry said that his studies were intended to correct some of the propaganda that has infected American culture since the “Reefer Madness” era.

More and more evidence is accumulating that denying medical cannabis to patients suffering from diseases likes multiple sclerosis should no longer be acceptable under any state’s law.

Patients have a right to safe, life-saving botanicals and they’re not waiting around for the federal government or recalcitrant states. They’re getting recommendations for cannabis in one of 23 medical marijuana states, and seeking out formulations like mouth sprays and CBD-rich edibles that specifically help with M.S. symptoms.

Vermont Speaker of the House Shap Smith has announced that he’s in favor of moving forward legislation to legalize recreational cannabis.

“It’s clear to me in my discussions with Vermonters that in general, the people in this state probably favor legalization,” Smith said on VPR’s Vermont Edition. “And I certainly believe that we can legalize marijuana if we do it right … we’ve seen what has happened in Colorado and Washington, and we can learn from their experiences.”

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- A new constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to farm doesn't protect a woman who reportedly grew marijuana in her home, a Missouri judge ruled this week.

Cole County Circuit Judge Dan Green ruled against a woman Tuesday whose public defender tried to argue that cultivating marijuana falls under the farming-rights amendment, the Jefferson City News Tribune reported.

Public defender Justin Carver argued that Green should set aside a grand jury indictment against Lisa A. Loesch. She was charged in 2012 after Jefferson City police arrested her for allegedly growing pot in her basement.

Thumbs too green

On Aug. 25 county commissioners passed a resolution temporarily limiting households to 12 marijuana plants to prevent larger grow operations in unincorporated El Paso County. It's a bigger problem than folks just possessing too much weed.

"[Illegal growers] are coming and destroying [rental] houses," says Commissioner Peggy Littleton. "[They're] putting in ventilation, lighting, stripping things, adding extra outlets everywhere — basically destroying a rental home to set it up as an illegal grow operation. ... I think it's an abuse of what the law was supposed to be."

Illinois may miss a deadline to rule on proposals for more qualifying conditions for medical marijuana. The main sponsor of the program in the General Assembly says he’s not worried. 

Monday went by without Illinois Public Health Director Nirav Shah ruling on whether to add 11 illnesses to the 40 to be covered when the state’s first medical marijuana dispensaries open. That will likely be sometime in the fall. 

The list of recommendations from Illinois’ Medical Cannabis Advisory Board include Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, osteoarthritis, and migraines. 

Not too much…and that’s greatly to its credit! The Washington State Institute for Public Policy (WSIPP, pronounced “wissip”), which is the official think tank for Washington’s state legislature in Olympia, has been charged with comprehensively assessing the costs and benefits of marijuana legalization for Washington’s citizens. The initiative that legalized recreational marijuana back in 2012, I-502, explicitly requires reports from WSIPP in 2015, 2017, 2022, and 2032. It published the first of those reports (authored by Senior Research Associate Adam Darnell) yesterday.

BrainBot Tracks How Cannabis Impacts The Brain

TAMPA, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As cannabis farmers across the country struggle to produce healthy crops without the benefit of any federally approved pesticides, Neutra Corp. (OTCBB: NTRR) is working with its joint venture partner