“Time to celebrate!”  Steve Wessing is all smiles at The Other Spot Thursday night, where organizers are already hard at work preparing for this year’s upcoming Hempstalk only hours after a 3-1 vote to overturn a permit denial, with Amanda Fritz voting against. As one of the original core staff […]

Yesterday, I tried to shred the framing around drinking alcohol that portrays it as somehow different and separate from “doing drugs”. Today, let’s think about the concept of “hard drugs” vs. “soft drugs” and understand where exactly alcohol fits in that dichotomy. To most people, marijuana is considered a “soft […]

I shed happy tears when I first heard that Jeff Mizanskey got paroled and I was happy to have more tears of joy when I saw my Facebook feed full of photos of Jeff surrounded by friends, family and cannabis law reform advocates. It is amazing how a rallying cry […]

Update: Jeff Mizanskey is now a free man! The tragic plight of Jeff Mizanskey, a Missouri man sentenced to die in prison with a life sentence, amazingly gets out of prison tomorrow thanks to the tireless efforts of his caring family and a group of advocates that started a massive […]

MTV’s Video Music Awards aired last night and right now your Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram feeds are doubtlessly blowing up with photos of host Miley Cyrus and all of her wacky antics. From a nipple slip and frantic wardrobe changes to public disses from Nicki Minaj, along with the announcement of […]

It never ceases to amaze me the blind spot the public has in understanding that drinking alcohol is “doing drugs”. Understandable, as our society frames it as something different than drugs. “Drugs and alcohol”, they say. “Clean and sober” if you’ve given up both. “High or drunk” if you have […]

As his poll numbers continue to rise in the Republican primary, Donald Trump remains a focus of media attention. Building on his popularity among Republicans, the business magnate multiplies media appearances, giving journalists the opportunity to question him on his political positions on a variety of issues. Most of the […]

Marijuana Majority recently released the group’s first poll, conducted by Public Policy Polling, to question registered voters in Iowa and New Hampshire on whether the federal government should respect state marijuana laws. The poll found that strong majorities of Democrats, Republican and independents want Uncle Sam to stay out of states’ cannabis […]

As it has been written many times now, Bernie Sanders has become the mainstream candidate of many cannabis law reform advocates, especially following his comments about the Drug War ruining lives and the failure of the War on Drugs; his announcing a bill to abolish private prisons; and his openness […]

Several months ago, our very own Russ Belville helped publicize the plight of Douglas Floyd Ponischil, a 94-year old veteran of World War II, who had been arrested in Charlotte, North Carolina, on felony marijuana possession charges (“Rest Easy, Charlotte. The 94-Year-Old Marijuana Consumer Has Been Arrested!“). Mr. Ponischil wasn’t growing […]

In an unexpected turn, last night the Portland City Council voted 3-1 to grant a permit for the Portland Hempstalk festival at downtown’s Waterfront Park. The vote overturns the Portland Parks Bureau’s denial of the permit, which they announced shortly after last November’s vote to legalize marijuana in Oregon. The […]

You may have seen recent headlines circulating about a wedding in West Linn, Oregon offering an open Weed Bar(!) to guests. Because legalization just took effect in Oregon on July 1, the idea of providing marijuana to wedding guests is still very new, but I believe cannabis-friendly weddings will inevitably […]

Tax revenue data from Washington and Colorado continue to bring us nothing but good news. After about eighteen months of adult-use marijuana sales, the Centennial State has reeled in more than $117 million in tax revenue. After a year of sales in the Evergreen State, revenues have topped $83 million. […]

Depending on the circles you run in, you may have heard about the supposed bad news for Colorado marijuana legalization advocates. “New poll shows more Coloradans opposed to legal marijuana” said Colorado’s second-largest newspaper, the Colorado Springs Gazette; “COLORADANS NOW OPPOSE MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION” screamed Parents Opposed to Pot; “COLORADO HAS […]

What do President Barack Obama, right-wing talk king Rush Limbaugh, pop star Miley Cyrus, and most of the 2016 presidential candidates all have in common? You know, beyond the fact that they travel with security and are rich beyond our wildest dreams? They all smoke or have smoked marijuana and […]