Saturday, August 2nd, marks the 88th anniversary of the signing of the Marihuana Tax Act, the first federal marijuana prohibition law. Since its inception, the criminalization of the marijuana plant and the stigmatization of those who consume it has been predicated almost entirely upon the promotion of gross exaggerations, racial stereotypes, and outright lies. For
“Cannabis is dangerous.” “Weed leads you to other drugs.” “Marijuana opens the door to harder substances.” How many times have we heard these claims, without clear support or solid scientific evidence behind them? Too many to count, right? Now, a study backed by the Japanese government itself is using hard data to dismantle one of
Original publication: November 1986. MORE POT ON THE WAY FOR ’87 JORGE CERVANTES Whew! The summer marijuana drought is over! The law of supply and demand drove the summertime marijuana price sky high. This scarcity created a run on last year’s harvest of quality outdoor buds. As soon as the pot surfaced on the street,
Australia’s medical cannabis sector is under fire as health authorities ramp up enforcement against what they call “unsafe” prescribing. More than 57 health professionals are facing regulatory action, with another 60 under investigation — many tied to high-volume telehealth models accused of issuing thousands of cannabis scripts with minimal oversight. One practitioner allegedly issued 17,000
For decades, one of the most standardized practices in medical and scientific research has been the use of placebos. No, we’re not talking about the 2000s alt-rock band. We’re talking about a method that, despite its admitted flaws, has for years allowed researchers to study the effects of various substances. However, today this practice faces
Unless your folks are Snoop Dogg or Mila Jansen, telling your parents that you smoked weed probably wasn’t the easiest thing. Maybe it was, but undoubtedly for everyone it was a moment, and that “first time” surely lives on somewhere in your memory. Not everyone started as teenagers, not everyone was precocious when it came
Original publication: September 1999. Tim Leary’s Cannabis Spirituality Or, Know Your Guru Over Time PAUL KRASSNER Recently I had dinner with Keith Stroup, executive director of NORML. He has been in the struggle to decriminalize marijuana for a long time, so I felt encouraged to see him in such an optimistic mood. Although medical marijuana
Nestled in the misty hills of Morocco’s Rif Mountains, a centuries-old cannabis culture is undergoing a profound transformation. Long famed for its golden hashish, smoked across Europe and beyond, Morocco is now walking the tightrope between tradition and regulation, between kif and clinics. This North African kingdom, once the world’s top exporter of illicit hash,
It was in 2002 when I met Ozzy Osbourne. I was on the side of the stage as he was preparing to perform. Thanks to a brief stint as a touring musician that got me backstage access to Ozzfest in 2002, I had the privilege of watching the inner workings of that fine-tuned music festival from
Original publication: November 1986. BREEDING FOR BIG BUDS HARVEST ’86 BY JORGE CERVANTES “Look at the size of that thing, I must be hallucinating,” said Tim as he stared in awe at the huge six-inch diameter flower top. “What did you put in this joint to make me see things twice as big as life?
