Hardrock69's Reefhead Madness Thread

[Hardrock69]

http://www.theweedblog.com/new-research-finds-habitual-marijuana-consumption-not-linked-to-lung-cancer/

New Research Finds Habitual Marijuana Consumption Not Linked To Lung Cancer


A new study reported on this week at the annual meeting for the American Association of Cancer Research has found that habitual marijuana consumers have no more increased risk of lung cancer than casual consumers, or those who don’t consume at all. This was found to be true regardless of how many times a day a person consumes cannabis, and regardless of how long they’ve been a consumer.

The study included data from six case-control studies conducted in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. It included a subject pool of 2,159 lung cancer cases and 2,985 controls – the studies were part of the International Lung Cancer Consortium (ILCCO), an international group of lung cancer researchers.

Dr. Zhang of the University of California performed two analyses, one which compared all lung cancer cases and all controls, regardless of current or past tobacco use. Then, the analysis was restricted to those who had never smoked tobacco, which consisted of 370 cancer cases and 1,358 controls. Dr. Zhang also adjusted the models to account for age, sex, etc.. Habitual use was defined as one joint per day, per year.

When compared with cannabis smokers who also used tobacco, habitual pot smokers had no significant increase in cancer risk.

According to the Oncology Report, which posted today about the study, “In an analysis of marijuana smokers that excluded tobacco smokers, there were no significant differences in any of the comparisons, including habitual vs. nonhabitual use; number of joints smoked per day; duration of up to 20 years or duration of more than 20 years. The difference in risk is likely related to chemical additives in commercial cigarettes that aren’t present in most methods of inhaling marijuana smoke.

As a general recommendation, smoking anything isn’t good for the respiratory system, said Dr. Alberts, chief medical officer of the Moffitt Cancer Center, Tampa. But for patients using medical marijuana, the benefit could outweigh the risks.”

“You can think of it as similar to a CT scan. Radiation isn’t good, but if the scan is something beneficial and the risk is low, you take it. If cannabis is indicated, and if it’s legal, and if there’s literature backing up the indication for use, then you weigh the risk of smoking and the benefit it could bring, and make the decision”, stated Dr. Zhang.

This new study validates research in 2006 by Dr. Taskin of the University of California which found that not only does marijuana consumption not lead to lung cancer, it may actually protect against it.

http://www.abstractsonline.com/Plan/ViewAbstract.aspx?mID=3086&sKey=3e3df4f9-a49f-40e7-a260-ccc3c54e0125&cKey=c7c6690d-3e5e-438e-9de4-d6f67a0703fb&mKey=9b2d28e7-24a0-466f-a3c9-07c21f6e9bc9

[Hardrock69]

Seems like they should just announce: "Marijuana kills ALL FORMS OF CANCER" and let it go at that.

From the When It Rains It Pours department:

http://www.theweedblog.com/study-marijuana-use-connected-with-lower-risk-of-bladder-cancer/

A new study conducted by Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in California, and presented this week at the American Urological Association annual meeting in San Diego, has found promising results indicating that marijuana use may significantly lower an individuals risk of developing bladder cancer. The research was funded by the Kaiser Permanente Research and Evaluation Center, and included an examination of over 83,000 men between the ages of 45 and 69.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/11/study-claims-marijuana-tied-to-lower-bladder-cancer-risk/2153019/

From the above link:

The men in the study, aged 45 to 69, were patients at Kaiser Permanente in California. Thomas and his team evaluated data on their lifestyle habits, including tobacco and marijuana smoking, between 2002 and 2003.

The researchers cross-referenced the study data with medical records to see who was diagnosed with bladder cancer. They omitted men with a history of bladder cancer.

Overall, 41 percent of the men reported marijuana use, 57 percent said they used tobacco and 27 percent reported using both.

During 11 years of follow-up, 279 men -- 0.3 percent -- were diagnosed with bladder cancer. Eighty-nine pot smokers (0.3 percent) developed bladder cancer compared to 190 (0.4 percent) who did not smoke pot.

The study examined those who smoke tobacco only, marijuana only, and those who consume both.

“Cannabis use only was associated with a 45 percent reduction in bladder cancer incidence, and tobacco use only was associated with a 52 percent increase in bladder cancer,” stated the study’s author, Dr. Anil A. Thomas.

According to the research, smoking both tobacco and marijuana raised the risk of bladder cancer, but drastically less so than for those who only smoked tobacco, Thomas found, indicating that marijuana may have protective capabilities against bladder cancer. The study unfortunately didn’t examine nonsmokers, leading us to hope for further studies soon.

During the study’s 11-year followup, it was found that “More frequent marijuana use — smoking pot more than 500 times — was associated with greater risk reduction than infrequent marijuana use — smoking once or twice.” This further validates the claims being made by the study’s author that marijuana use may reduce the risk of bladder cancer.

Although more research is needed, this is a promising new study that shows yet another serious diseases, ailment, etc. that marijuana can help fight against.

[Hardrock69]

Another one bites the dust......

http://digital.vpr.net/post/legislature-votes-decriminalize-marijuana

Vermont Legislature
11:46 am
Mon May 13, 2013
Legislature Votes to Decriminalize Marijuana



Lawmakers in Vermont have finalized legislation that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts marijuana. Vermont is poised to become the seventeenth state to remove criminal penalties for possessing pot.

Under the bill, it would be a civil offense rather than a crime to possess one ounce or less of pot in Vermont. Those caught carrying marijuana would receive a civil fine, similar to a traffic ticket. People under 21 caught with pot would be required to go through a diversion program for first and second offenses. A third offense would become criminal.

Rep. Bill Lippert, D-Hinesburg, is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. He says the bill is long overdue.

“Many state’s attorneys are already using a referral to diversion," Lippert explained. "Some arguments from some state’s attorneys has been, ‘We don’t need this because we already do this.' We believe if we already do this then let’s put it into law."

Gov. Peter Shumlin is expected to sign the bill into law in the coming weeks.

The move comes just months after Colorado and Washington State took the issue a step further and legalized pot.

[Hardrock69]

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/cannabis-linked-to-prevention-of-diabetes-8616314.html

Cannabis linked to prevention of diabetes

Regular users of the drug found to have lower levels of insulin after fasting, research shows




Smoking cannabis may prevent the development of diabetes, one of the most rapidly rising chronic disorders in the world.

If the link is proved, it could lead to the development of treatments based on the active ingredient of cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), without its intoxicating effects.

Researchers have found that regular users of the drug had lower levels of the hormone insulin after fasting – a signal that they are protected against diabetes. They also had reduced insulin resistance. Cannabis is widely smoked in the United States with over 17 million current users of whom more than four million smoke it on a daily basis. In the UK latest figures show 2.3 million people used cannabis in the last year, but the numbers have declined in the last decade.

Two US states have recently legalised its recreational use and 19 others have legalised it for medical purposes by patients with one of several conditions including multiple sclerosis and cancer. THC has already been approved to treat the side effects of chemotherapy, nausea in cancer patients, anorexia associated with AIDS and other conditions.

The study involved almost 5,000 patients who answered a questionnaire about their drug use and were part of the National Health and Nutrition Survey between 2005 and 2010. The results showed almost 2,000 had used cannabis at some point in their lives and more than one in 10 (579) were current users. Only those who had used cannabis within the past month showed evidence of protection against diabetes, suggesting that the effects wear off in time. Current users of the drug had 16 per cent lower fasting insulin than those who had never used the drug.

Murray Mittleman, of the Cardiovascular Epidemiology Research Unit at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre in Boston, and lead author of the study published in The American Journal of Medicine, said previous studies had shown lower rates of obesity and diabetes in marijuana users.

Two previous surveys had also shown that although cannabis users consume more calories they have a lower body mass index. The mechanisms underlying this paradox are unknown, the authors say. Joseph Alpert, professor of medicine at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Tucson, and editor in chief of the journal, said: “These are remarkable observations that are supported by basic science experiments that came to similar conclusions.

“We desperately need a great deal more basic and clinical research into the short and long term effects of marijuana in a variety of clinical settings such as cancer diabetes and frailty of the elderly.”

Almost one in 20 adults in the UK has diabetes, of which 2.6 million are diagnosed and 500,000 are undiagnosed. Rates are rising in this country and around the world, driven by Western lifestyles, and the number of cases is expected to exceed 4 million in the UK by 2025. The illness increases the risk of heart failure, kidney failure, and death – and is one of the biggest health challenges facing the UK.

[Hardrock69]

Glad I got this thread to dump this stuff in......it is getting to be non-stop.....

http://news.yahoo.com/wash-set-release-draft-rules-135156245.html

Wash. set to release draft rules for pot industry
What's a legal weed industry look like? After 8 months of work, Wash. releasing draft rules

Associated PressBy Gene Johnson, Associated Press | Associated Press – 8 hrs ago



.

SEATTLE (AP) -- They've spent nearly eight months visiting marijuana grow houses, studying the science of getting high and earning nicknames like "the queen of weed." Now, officials in Washington are taking their first stab at setting rules for the state's new legal weed industry.

The state is releasing preliminary draft rules Thursday afternoon, possibly covering an array of topics ranging from how pot should be grown, labeled and tested for quality assurance to what types of security should be required at state-licensed pot businesses.

But some of the most interesting questions — such as how much marijuana will be grown and how many retail stores will be licensed — aren't likely to be answered yet. The state's official pot consultant is still working to estimate how much marijuana people here use, and those estimates will help determine how much pot gets produced.

"It's been a lot of long hours," said Brian Smith, the spokesman for the Liquor Control Board. "We are doing the groundwork. We're trying to be as thorough as we can as we go through this initial several months since the election."

Last fall voters made Washington and Colorado the first states to legalize the sale of taxed marijuana to adults over 21 at state-licensed stores.

In Colorado, devising rules for the pot industry fell to the Legislature, which has passed a series of bills laying out how marijuana should be grown, packaged and taxed. Gov. John Hickenlooper is expected to sign the bills May 28.

Washington's measure directed the Liquor Control Board, led by three voting members, to set parameters for the industry. Dozens of board employees divided into 11 teams, each researching different areas — licensing, contracting, legal and policy, enforcement — to inform the board's decisions. The teams meet weekly to keep apprised of each other's progress.

The board's comptroller, Mike Steenhout, has worked with testing labs and experts from around the world to determine how the pot should be tested to ensure that it's safe and consistent when it reaches store shelves.

The board held eight public forums around the state to hear what pot growers, prospective retailers and others had to say. More than 3,000 people attended; few were shy about airing their views.

Now, the board is taking what it has learned and setting out what amounts to a draft of its draft rules for the industry. After allowing people to comment on the rules it releases Thursday, it will propose its official draft rules in about month, and take public comment on those. The final rules aren't expected to be adopted until this summer, with applications for pot growing, processing and retailing licenses accepted in September.

Marijuana sales at state-licensed stores should begin in early 2014 — unless the Justice Department has something to say about it. Pot remains illegal federally, and the DOJ could sue to try to block the licensing schemes in Washington and Colorado from taking effect.

So far, the Liquor Control Board has given few hints about what the rules will entail. Board Chairwoman Sharon Foster — who began a speech at a recent conference by saying, "My friends now call me the queen of weed" — has said that the board probably won't allow open-field marijuana grows, because they're too hard to control. There won't be any pot delivery companies to take weed from a dispensary and deliver it to customers, because the law does not provide for licensing of pot delivery companies. People who have old pot-related convictions probably won't be barred from obtaining licenses.

But many other questions remain. How does the state plan to collect taxes, when federally insured banks won't let marijuana businesses open accounts? How much pot-related advertising will be allowed, if any? Will there be caps on the numbers of growers and processors licensed to provide pot and pot products to the stores? What should be done with all the plants — stalks, roots and leaves — after harvest?

Cale Burkhart, who makes marijuana-infused topical creams under the Vita Verde brand, said he hopes the board doesn't limit the number of growers and processors.

"It's an emerging industry, and it's one that most anybody, as long as they can have their ducks in a row, can break into," he said. "It should be open to people, so that grandma, or a high school dropout, can have the opportunity to start a business and be successful. I'm excited to see if that's how they're going to do it."

[Hardrock69]

http://www.naturalblaze.com/2013/05/smoking-marijuana-effective-at-treating.html

Marijuana is an Effective Treatment for Crohn's Disease
Wednesday, May 15, 2013

A study published earlier this month on the government's website National Institutes of Health found that marijuana has "significant benefits" for treating Crohn's Disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).

"A short course (8 week) of THC-rich cannabis produced significant clinical, steroid-free benefits to 11 patients with active CD, compared to placebo, without side effects," the study concluded.

Conducted by Tel Aviv University, the study included 21 patients with Crohn's who did not previously respond to therapy with steroids, immunomodulators, or anti-tumor necrosis factor-α agents. Half of the control group were given a placebo and the other half were given 2 marijuana joints per day.


The goal of the study was to get the patients into complete remission. The placebo produced 1 person out of ten in the placebo group to experience complete remission. Whereas 5 out of 11 (45%) patients given cannabis to smoke successfully went into remission. Additionally, a beneficial clinical response, or decrease in inflammation, was observed in 10/11 cannabis patients versus only 4/10 in the placebo group.

The marijuana patients experienced "no significant side effects" and a few even weaned themselves off of steroid dependency.

Here are the official results from the study:

RESULTS:Complete remission (a CDAI score < 150) was achieved by 5/11 subjects in the cannabis group (45%) and 1/10 in the placebo group (10%). A clinical response (a decrease in CDAI score of > 100) was observed in 10/11 subjects in the cannabis group (90%) and 4/10 in the placebo group (40%). Three patients in the cannabis group were weaned from steroid dependency. Subjects receiving cannabis reported improved appetite and sleep, with no significant side effects.

Since smoking marijuana is considered one of the least effective forms of delivering the medicine in cannabis, the researchers recommend further studies with a non-smoking mode of intake.

CONCLUSION:Although the primary endpoint of the study (induction of remission) was not achieved, a short course (8 week) of THC-rich cannabis produced significant clinical, steroid-free benefits to 11 patients with active CD, compared to placebo, without side effects. Further studies, with larger patient groups and a non-smoking mode of intake, are warranted.

Link to the study: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23648372

[Hardrock69]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/18/western-leaders-game-changing-drugs-report

Western leaders study 'gamechanging' report on global drugs trade

Review by Organisation of American States on illicit drugs 'could mark beginning of the end' of prohibition



Jamie Doward
The Observer, Saturday 18 May 2013 14.32 EDT



European governments and the Obama administration are this weekend studying a "gamechanging" report on global drugs policy that is being seen in some quarters as the beginning of the end for blanket prohibition.

Publication of the Organisation of American States (OAS) review, commissioned at last year's Cartagena Summit of the Americas attended by Barack Obama, reflects growing dissatisfaction among Latin American countries with the current global policy on illicit drugs. It spells out the effects of the policy on many countries and examines what the global drugs trade will look like if the status quo continues. It notes how rapidly countries' unilateral drugs policies are evolving, while at the same time there is a growing consensus over the human costs of the trade. "Growing media attention regarding this phenomenon in many countries, including on social media, reflects a world in which there is far greater awareness of the violence and suffering associated with the drug problem," José Miguel Insulza, the secretary general of the OAS, says in a foreword to the review. "We also enjoy a much better grasp of the human and social costs not only of drug use but also of the production and transit of controlled substances."

Insulza describes the report, which examines a number of ways to reform the current pro-prohibition position, as the start of "a long-awaited discussion", one that experts say puts Europe and North America on notice that the current situation will change, with or without them. Latin American leaders have complained bitterly that western countries, whose citizens consume the drugs, fail to appreciate the damage of the trade. In one scenario envisaged in the report, a number of South American countries would break with the prohibition line and decide that they will no longer deploy law enforcement and the army against drug cartels, having concluded that the human costs of the "war on drugs" is too high.

The west's responsibility to reshape global drugs policy will be emphasised in three weeks when Juan Manuel Santos Calderón, the president of Colombia, who initiated the review, arrives in Britain. His visit is part of a programme to push for changes in global policy that will lead up to a special UN general assembly in 2016 when the scenarios of the OAS are expected to have a significant influence.

Experts described the publication of the review as a historic moment. "This report represents the most high-level discussion about drug policy reform ever undertaken, and shows tremendous leadership from Latin America on the global debate," said Kasia Malinowska-Sempruch, director of the Open Society Foundation's Global Drug Policy Program, which has described its publication as a "game-changer".

"It was particularly important to hear president Santos invite the states of Europe to contribute toward envisioning a better international drug policy. These reports inspire a conversation on drug policy that has been long overdue."

The report represents the first time any significant multilateral agency has outlined serious alternatives to prohibition, including legal market regulation or reform of the UN drug conventions.

"While leaders have talked about moving from criminalisation to public health in drug policy, punitive, abstinence-only approaches have still predominated, even in the health sphere," said Daniel Wolfe, director of the Open Society Foundation's International Harm Reduction Program. "These scenarios offer a chance for leaders to replace indiscriminate detention and rights' abuses with approaches that distinguish between users and traffickers, and offer the community-based health services that work best for those in need."

In a statement, the Global Commission on Drug Policy, which campaigns for changes in drug laws and is supported by the former presidents of several South American states, said that publication of the review would break "the taboo that blocked for so long the debate on more humane and efficient drug policy". The Commission said that it was "time that governments around the world are allowed to responsibly experiment with regulation models that are tailored to their realities and local need".

■ The open letter from the Global Commission on Drug Policy is signed by George P Shultz, the former US secretary of state; Paul Volcker, the former chairman of the US federal reserve, and the former presidents of Mexico, Chile and Colombia

[Hardrock69]

http://blog.sfgate.com/smellthetruth/2013/05/14/smoking-marijuana-cured-crohns-disease-with-no-side-effects-new-study-shows/?utm_source=feedly

Smoking Marijuana Causes ‘Complete Remission’ of Crohn’s Disease, No Side Effects, New Study Shows

Posted on May 14, 2013 at 9:38 am by David Downs

Marijuana – scientific name “cannabis” – performed like a champ in the first-ever placebo-controlled trial of the drug to treat Crohn’s Disease, also known as inflammatory bowel disease.

The disease of the digestive tract afflicts 400,000 – 600,000 people in North America alone causing abdominal pain, diarrhea (which can be bloody), severe vomiting, weight loss, as well as secondary skin rashes, arthritis, inflammation of the eye, tiredness, and lack of concentration.

Smoking pot caused a “complete remission” of Crohn’s disease compared to placebo in half the patients who lit up for eight weeks, according to clinical trial data to be published the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

Researchers at Israel’s Meir Medical Center took 21 people with intractable, severe Crohn’s disease and gave 11 of them two joints a day for eight weeks. “The standardized cannabis cigarettes” contained 23 percent THC and 0.5 percent CBD (cannabidiol). (Such marijuana is available on dispensary shelves in San Francisco, Oakland, and other cities that have regulated access to the drug.) The other ten subjects smoked placebo cigarettes containing no active cannabinoids.

Investigators reported that smoking weed caused a “complete remission” of Crohn’s Disease in five of the 11 subjects. Another five of the eleven test subjects saw their Crohn’s Disease symptoms cut in half. Furthermore, “subjects receiving cannabis reported improved appetite and sleep, with no significant side effects.”

The study is the first placebo-controlled clinical trial to assess the consumption of cannabis for the treatment of Crohn’s, notes NORML. All of the patients had intractable forms of the disease and did not respond to conventional treatments. Still, the United States government claims that marijuana is as dangerous as heroin and has no medical use. U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag is waging a war on safe access to medical cannabis in the Bay Area.

[PETE'S BROTHER]

pot belly pigs...

http://news.yahoo.com/marijuana-waste-helps-turn-pot-eating-pigs-tasty-184633031.html

[Nitro Express]

http://www.motherjones.com/tom-philpott/2012/02/explosive-hog-farm-manure-foam

Maybe that's what is making the pig shit explode.

[FORD]

[Hardrock69]

http://www.theweedblog.com/studies-show-marijuana-consumption-not-associated-with-dangerous-driving/

Studies Show Marijuana Consumption Not Associated With Dangerous Driving

Anyone who consumes cannabis on a regular basis knows that it doesn’t make you a dangerous drive. To many people, it makes them a safer, more focused driver that’s more aware of their surroundings and the dangers associated with controlling tons of gasoline-filled metal. Not only has this been an anecdotal truth for as long as cars and cannabis have been paired, science has also been clear that consuming marijuana doesn’t make you a dangerous driver, and may in fact make some people safer drivers. More research is needed, but it’s hard to deny that of the research we have, marijuana hasn’t been found to increase a person’s risk of an accident.

To back this claim up, here’s a list of studies and research conducted on this very topic, some of which were funded by national governments in hopes of different results. (Sources on the above page are hyperlinked).

“20 years of study has concluded that marijuana smokers may actually have fewer accidents than other drivers.” - 4AutoInsuranceQuote.com; Reasons why marijuana users are safe drivers, 2012



“States that legalize medical marijuana see fewer fatal car accidents, according to a new study, in part because people may be substituting marijuana smoking for drinking alcohol.” Time Magazine; Why Medical Marijuana Laws Reduce Traffic Deaths, 2011



“No differences were found during the baseline driving segment (and the) collision avoidance scenarios,” - Research published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 2010



“Although cognitive studies suggest that cannabis use may lead to unsafe driving, experimental studies have suggested that it can have the opposite effect.” - U.S. National Library of Medicine; The Effect Of Cannabis Compared With Alcohol On Driving, 2009



“The evidence to suggest an involvement of cannabis in road crashes is scientifically unproven.” - Research paper; Cannabis and Cannabinoids: Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutic Potential, 2002



“Cannabis alone, particularly in low doses, has little effect on the skills involved in automobile driving.” - Canadian Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs;Cannabis: Summary Report: Our Position for a Canadian Public Policy, 2002



“There is no evidence that consumption of cannabis alone increases the risk of culpability for traffic crash fatalities or injuries for which hospitalization occurs, and may reduce those risks.” - Research paper published in Epidemiologic Reviews; Role of cannabis in motor vehicle crashes, 1999



“Evidence from the present and previous studies strongly suggests that alcohol encourages risky driving whereas THC encourages greater caution” - University of Adelaide study; Marijuana’s effects on actual driving performance, 1995



“Drivers under the influence of marijuana retain insight in their performance and will compensate when they can, for example, by slowing down or increasing effort. As a consequence, THC’s adverse effects on driving performance appear relatively small.” - U.S. Department of Transportation study; Marijuana and actual driving performance, 1993

[FORD]

Another Medical use for weed - Weight Loss??

[Hardrock69]

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/may-huge-month-marijuana-legalization-164334579.html

May Was A Huge Month For Marijuana Legalization And Virtually Nobody Noticed
Business InsiderBy Walter Hickey | Business Insider – 1 hour 34 minutes ago

Reuters
It has been six months since Colorado and Washington voted to legalize marijuana, and the momentum for changing the way states handle pot has never been stronger.

May was a huge month for marijuana reform supporters, with a string of significant wins and important milestones as more and more states lean toward a laissez-faire approach to marijuana.

First and foremost, the Colorado Legislature successfully navigated its first big regulatory test, inventing the legal framework for a marijuana economy.

House Bill 1317 was the law that resulted from Amendment 64, the ballot initiative that legalized pot, dictating that Coloradans can buy an ounce of pot from specially licensed stores. House Bill 1318 set up the tax infrastructure for the market, which will go up for voter referendum in November.

Gov. John Hickenlooper is set to sign both bills today, according to KDVR.

There's also been significant movement in other states in pursuing a similar system. May saw the NYPD's arrest numbers for marijuana offenses begin to decline, Christopher Robbins at Gothamist reported, with Commissioner Ray Kelly pushing pot to the back seat in favor of drugs that have dangerous effects.

New York City arrests for marijuana possession are set to drop 20% in 2013.

Upstate in Albany, State Senator Liz Krueger swore to introduce a law to decriminalize, regulate, and tax marijuana in New York State, Dana Rubenstein at Capital New York reported.

The Empire State has been floated as one which could be in the next batch of states that, like Colorado and Washington, have a legal marijuana economy.

On the West Coast, incoming Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti indicated Monday he supports legalizing marijuana for general use. This comes a month after California Lieutenant Governor — and potential 2014 gubernatorial candidate — Gavin Newsom penned an op-ed calling for California to legalize pot.

Most interesting of all is movement in Illinois to approve medical marijuana. The bill passed the state Senate earlier this month and awaits Gov. Pat Quinn's signature.

On the whole, the political success for marijuana in May is really just the implementation of American's changing views on pot.

A Reason-Rupe poll from earlier this month found that a mere 6% of Americans think marijuana possession should be punished with jail time. This, combined with a new majority of Americans supporting legalization, has dealt a devastating blow to opponents of legalization.

[Hardrock69]

http://www.theweedblog.com/federal-lawmakers-to-vote-on-industrial-hemp-amendment-to-farm-bill/

Federal Lawmakers To Vote On Industrial Hemp Amendment To Farm Bill
Posted May 29, 2013

y Erik Altieri, NORML Communications Director

Senator Ron Wyden has introduced an amendment to Senate Bill 3240, the Senate version of this year’s federal farm bill, that requires the federal government to respect state laws allowing the cultivation of industrial hemp. Hemp is a distinct variety of the plant species cannabis sativa that contains only trace (less than one percent) amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis.

The amendment language mimics the “Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2013,” which remains pending as stand-alone legislation in both the House and Senate but has yet to receive a legislative hearing. Senator Wyden’s provision to the Senate’s Farm Bill amends the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of marijuana. The measure grants state legislatures the authority to license and regulate the commercial production of hemp as an industrial and agricultural commodity.

“For me, what’s important is that people see, particularly in our state, there’s someone buying it at Costco in Oregon,” Senator Wyden previously stated in support of this Act, “I adopted what I think is a modest position, which is if you can buy it at a store in Oregon, our farmers ought to be able to make some money growing it.”

Eight states - Colorado, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia – have enacted statutory changes defining industrial hemp as distinct agricultural product and allowing for its regulated commercial production. Passage of this amendment would remove existing federal barriers and allow these states and others the authority to do so without running afoul of federal anti-drug laws.

Senator Wyden’s amendment is co-sponsored by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) has also expressed his support for this proposal.

According to a Congressional Research Service report, “The United States is the only developed nation in which industrial hemp is not an established crop.”