Freedom Is Green

Ah stoners. They get a bad rap, for sure. But sometimes it’s well-deserved and just plain funny.

Note this recent video I found on cleaning your pipe. (A little background: I had a persistent cough. A friend noticed the state of my pipe and suggested that could be to blame, which I hadn’t cleaned in quite a while. I’m guessing there may be some truth to it, since you’re smoking an old tar-like substance and particulates that probably can’t be that good for your lungs. I’ll have to ask Jahan Marcu about that.)

“So this is a new method I invented today. It’s called the “fishing line method.” First, you need….fishing line. You can find it in your basement or in any, I don’t know, fishing store.”

Anyway, laugh and learn:

(I went with the method my friend suggested. Soak pipe in rubbing alcohol then use pipe cleaners. I was surprised how much stuff came out.)

Beth Mann is a popular blogger and writer for Open Salon and Salon. She is also an accomplished artist with over 15 years of experience, as well as the president of Hot Buttered Media. She currently resides at the Jersey shore where she can be found surfing or singing karaoke at a local dive bar.

Contact: maryjane {at } freedomisgreen.com

6/30/2011 – UPDATE 7/1/2011 – Freedomisgreen.com obtained the new Department of Justice memo concerning medical marijuana. The communication is from US Deputy Attorney General James M. Cole.  It was released on June 30th after New Jersey US Attorney Paul J. Fishman forwarded it to NJ state AG Paula Dow. The memo was sent to Dow in response to her multiple requests for federal clarification about medical marijuana operations authorized by state law.

Below is the full transcript. Link to original memo as a pdf

June 29, 2011

MEMORANDUM FOR UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS

FROM:                  James M. Cole
Deputy Attorney General

SUBJECT:     Guidance Regarding the Ogden Memo in Jurisdictions
Seeking to Authorize Marijuana for Medical Use

Over the last several months some of you have requested the Department’s assistance in responding to inquiries from State and local government seeking guidance about the Department s position on enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act in jurisdictions that have under consideration, or have implemented, legislation that would sanction and regulate the commercial cultivation and distribution of marijuana for medical use. Some of these jurisdictions have considered approving the cultivation of large quantities of marijuana or broadening the regulation and taxation of the substance. You may have seen letters responding to these inquiries by several United States Attorneys. Those letters are entirely consistent with the October 2009 memorandum, issued by Deputy General Ogden to federal prosecutors in the States that have enacted laws authorizing the medical use of marijuana (the “Ogden Memo”).

The Department of Justice is committed to the enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act in all States. Congress has determined that marijuana is a dangerous drug that the illegal distribution and sale of marijuana is a serious crime that provides a significant source of revenue to large scale criminal enterprises, gangs and cartels. The Ogden Memorandum provides guidance to you in deploying resources to enforce the CSA as part of the exercise of the broad discretion you are given to address federal criminal matters within your districts.

A number of states have enacted some form of legislation relating to the medical use of marijuana. Accordingly the Ogden memo reiterated to you that prosecution  of significant traffickers in illegal drugs, including marijuana, remains a core priority, but advised that it is likely not an efficient use of federal resources to focus enforcement efforts on individuals with cancer or other serious illnesses who use marijuana as part of a recommended treatment regimen consistent with applicable state law, or their caregivers. The term “caregiver” as used in the memorandum meant just that: individuals providing care to individuals with cancer or other serious illnesses, not commercial operations cultivating, selling or distributing marijuana.

The Department’s view of the efficient use of limited federal resources as articulated in the Ogden Memorandum has not changed. There has, however, been an increase in the scope of commercial cultivation, sale, distribution and use of marijuana for purported medical purposes. For example, within the past 12 months, several jurisdictions have considered or enacted legislation to authorize multiple large-scale, privately-operated industrial marijuana cultivation centers. Some of these planned facilities have revenue projections of the millions of dollars based on the plant cultivation of tens of thousands of cannabis plants.

The Odgen Memorandum was never intended to shield such activities from federal enforcement action and prosecution, even where those activities purport to comply with state law. Persons who are in the business of cultivating. selling, or distributing marijuana, and those who knowingly facilitate such activities, are in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, regardless of state law. Consistent with the resource constraints and the discretion you may exercise in your district, such persons are subject to federal enforcement action, including potential prosecution. State laws or local ordinances are not a defense to civil enforcement of federal law with respect to such conduct, including enforcement of the CSA. Those who engage in transactions involving the proceeds of such activity may also be in violation of federal money laundering statutes and other federal financing laws.

The Department of Justice is tasked with enforcement of existing federal criminal laws in all states, and enforcement of the CSA has long been and remains a core priority,

Cc:  Lanny Breuer
Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division

B. Todd Jones
United States AttorneyDistrict of Minnesota
Chair, AGAC

Michele M. Leonhart
Administrator
Drug Enforcement Administration

H. Marshall Jarrett
Director
Executive Office for United States Attorneys

Kevin L. Perkins
Assistant Director, Criminal Investigative Division
Federal Bureau  of Investigations

Link to memo as a pdf

Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Questions?  [email protected]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 5/10/2011

This year PhillyNORML has partnered with local sponsors and a high-quality group of local musicians for the Philadelphia Freedom Festival concert at the Theater of the Living Arts, a premier venue in the city. Bands include: Psychadelphia, Before the Accident Happens, The Primate Fiasco, I Yhan I Arkestra and headliners The Synth Circus. Local activists will deliver speeches throughout the night. A full list of speakers and additional information will follow next week.

PhillyNORML’s volunteers have been instrumental in recent efforts to reform local marijuana laws.

Pennsylvanians for Medical Marijuana (PA4MMJ) is supporting local legislation. State Representative Mark B. Cohen introduced a medical cannabis bill in the Pennsylvania Legislature in 2009. State Senator Daylin Leach re-introduced it as SB 1003 from the 2011 session. This bill would create legal protections for citizens with serious medical conditions to safely access or grow medical marijuana for therapeutic use. It also creates a statewide system if Compassion Centers for patient access.

April 2010 saw the news break on PhillyNORML’s efforts to work with city officials to change local pot procedures when District Attorney Seth Williams announced an easing of minor possession penalties.  The new Small Amount of Marijuana court program was put into practice in June of 2010 and has saved the city millions of taxpayer dollars. The procedure still requires an arrest but stops the criminal prosecution, collects a fine and automatically expunges the arrest once a weekend class is completed.

Over 800,000 pot arrests are performed each year in America with almost 30,000 in Pennsylvania and over 4,500 in Philadelphia. Ninety percent of these arrests are for minor possession.

PhillyNORML advocates for legalizing the regulated, responsible use of marijuana by adults.

CONTACT: Chris Goldstein [email protected]

ATTENDING: Please arrive at Broad and South no later than 5PM ET Saturday May 21, 2011

CONCERT TICKETS: Available through LiveNation $15 pre-event, $20 at the door

http://www.livenation.com/event/020046A49E2B7BED?artistid=1593008&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=766

ON FACEBOOK:

Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Chris worked at national NORML from 2005-2008 creating daily audio podcasts and continues as a media consultant. He volunteers with local groups to change prohibition laws including PhillyNORML and The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey.

Chris lives along the Delaware River in New Jersey.  He enjoys old school hip-hop, vintage airplanes and changing the world.

“Freedom Is Green Media Group was founded to grow the East Coast cannabis community. ”

chris { at  }freedomisgreen.com

Other blogs:

Philadelphia NORML Examiner

on www.celebstoner.com

on www.norml.stash.org

Jack Cole of LEAP speaks at the Boston Freedom Rally 2010

5/10/2011 – Jack Cole used to go deep undercover to bust marijuana dealers in New York and New Jersey. But since his retirement he founded Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group that now boasts thousands of retired and current members of law enforcement who want to stop the war on drugs. Marijuana consumes most of the resources in this senseless conflict. Nobody knows that better than Cole, that’s why he has traveled to Augusta, Maine to speak before the first committee hearing for cannabis legalization later  today. 

“Since 1970, we’ve spent more than a trillion dollars on this war and all we have to show for it each year is we arrest another 1.6 million people in this country for nonviolent drug offenses. Fully half are marijuana arrests,” said Cole.

LEAP speakers testify in favor of marijuana reform all around the country. The impact of LEAP’s presence on legislators and the public is profound; the stories from the front-lines are moving and LEAP’s perspective is undeniable.

Maine Rep. Diane Russell, the sponsor of LD 1453,  and Jack Cole of LEAP will participate in a press conference at 12 noon today followed by hearings before the Criminal Justice Committee starting at 1PM. LISTEN LIVE HERE

Last year Cole was in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to support HB 1393, a bill to legalize medical marijuana. Video of that powerful testimony is below.

–

Things continued to move ahead in Tallahassee for the new medical marijuana resolution. Representative Jeff Clemens held a press conference last week and the media coverage began.  Here are some of the mainstream stories: “Rep. Clemens is Fired Up About Medical Marijuana, Wants Floridians to Vote on It” or “Medical Weed Proposed by Lawmakers.”

Headline writers in news media just can’t resist snarky headlines with new cannabis legislation.

Here at freedomisgreen.com we were part of the breaking coverage, bringing our readers the story of how local Florida NORML Chapters and senior activist Robert Platshorn helped get the resolution introduced.

BREAKING: Florida gets medical marijuana bill

Exclusive interview-Florida: Robert Platshorn moves medical marijuana

Bobby Tuna used to move tons of marijuana by sea and air. Activism is what moves voters and legislators; and it comes in all forms. For medical cannabis just providing basic education can have a profound impact. Especially when the right person delivers the message.

Robert Platshorn, also known as Bobby Tuna, spent 30 years in federal prison. His sentence was the longest for any non-violent marijuana offense. Bobby has a book about his smuggling days, Black Tuna Diaries, and writes articles for High Times Medical Marijuana Magazine.

Now’s he’s giving talks about the benefits of medical cannabis as part of the NORML/High Times Silver Tour to educate seniors.

Bobby has been joining Irvin Rosenfeld, one of the four surviving federal medical marijuana patients, for special presentations to local political clubs.

It was January when Platshorn spoke in front of the Palm Beach County delegation. State Representative Jeff Clemens requested more information after the meeting and then quickly introduced a resolution to legalize medical marijuana.

This story touches many important points of how activism really works and highlights the new frontier for marijuana politics: Americans over the age of 65

Bobby Tuna took time to speak with freedomisgreen.com from Florida today for the first-hand account.

Freedom –Tell us a little bit about how this medical marijuana bill got started

It’s a good example of how just a couple of people can really make a difference.

Several months ago at our chapter meeting of NORML of South Florida one of our chapter members suggested that we go to local meetings where legislators come to their district and hear what the people have to say. The first meeting was in the City of South Miami.

A couple of our members went and they immediately agreed to pass a resolution asking the legislature to pass a medical marijuana bill. And they further resolved that they would ask other city councils to do the same thing.

Then one of the members asked me to go to the Palm Beach County meeting of the state legislators. They put me on the agenda for a 3-minute speech.

When I got there I found out that the legislators had no idea who I was or what I was going to talk about!

But I got up and within the 3-minutes did a good enough selling job to know that the Representative, Mr. Clemens, a new Democrat from West Palm Beach, had decided that he wanted to put in a bill.

His aide got in touch with me… I gave her as much material as I could find. And a week ago he announced that he was going to put in a medical marijuana bill.

This is a big deal in a state like Florida, which is very conservative especially around the Capitol. We didn’t have great hopes of getting a bill in this year unless we could get 700, 000 signatures on a petition.

Platshorn is involved with the local NORML Chapters and a grassroots group called PUFM. They were preparing to go out and get those hundreds of thousands of signatures.

When this bill actually goes to the floor it’s very likely to be that hey will put it up for a vote…because the state polls in support of medical marijuana. Now, this is a medical marijuana bill but Representative Clemens has said he also supports decriminalization.

Rep.  Clemens made it clear what had motivated the bill.

When his aide contacted me she said that he had been considering a medical marijuana bill but that my speech helped him take it to the next step. So it doesn’t take a lot of people if you pursue every avenue. And I can’t take credit for this – it was a volunteer at my local NORML chapter who came up with the idea and put me on the agenda.

Freedom- Tell us about the goal for the new Silver Tour?

Seniors in this state, especially in my county, are over 70% in favor. It’s very well received. Seniors are not against medical marijuana but they have very little knowledge. They don’t know what a great preventative medicine it is and all of things that it being used for today very safely and effectively.

I think making sure that seniors are educated will really make a difference here in Florida for a possible vote count on medical marijuana.  I want the Silver Tour to start more medical marijuana activism among seniors, one of the most important voting groups. I want them top pick up the phone and call their Congressman or Senator.

It’s gonna be that last pebble on the scale to get this done on the national level.

Freedom- What do you think the chances are for the bill?

I’m optimistic because there was a poll commissioned just a week ago and Republicans did it. That poll showed real support, but it also showed that political groups are looking to raise money and ways to save money. I’ve had a few calls where people tell me that our new Governor would be interested in closing prisons. Now marijuana offenders make up a good portion of the overall prisoners here in Florida

So yes; I’m optimistic. Rep. Clemens is cautiously pessimistic – I think he doesn’t want people to get their hopes up but I think he underestimates how much support there will be for the bill.

But I’ve been an optimist my whole life…it was optimism that kept me alive in prison for 30 years.

When Platshorn speaks, you can hear every day he spent in federal prison as one very strong emotion underneath his words.

That is what likely moved Rep. Jeff Clemens and what brought an active medical marijuana bill to Florida this week.

Bobby’s story is being told in the new documentary from Raconteur Films called Square Grouper. Screenings are coming to festivals up and own the East Coast.

Posted at 3/9/2011 – 7:15PM Update 3/10/11 – 12:12PM

Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade.  He volunteers with local groups to change prohibition laws including PhillyNORML and The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey. He enjoys old-school hip-hop, vintage airplanes and changing the world. Contact chris { at } freedomisgreen.com

Eric Perez in a photo provided by his family to the media – posted at the Miami Herald website

8/1/2011 -State authorities in Florida caused a stir last week when they stopped a check to pay for the funeral services of a teenager who died after jail staff refused him medical attention. The West Palm Beach Post reported that a $5,000 check issued at the request of the Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) was destroyed last week by the state’s Chief Financial Officer. Today the same newspaper is reporting that state CFO Jeff Atwater re-issued the check.

On the night of July 9th Eric Perez as just another young resident in Florida with a small amount of marijuana. He turned 18 just a few weeks earlier. But the next morning Perez was dead. What happened in the time between is the subject of an intense and ongoing investigation.  Some disturbing details have already emerged.

For the seven hours that Perez was in custody he was having severe headaches and was continuously vomiting.  He pleaded for help. Guards have come forward to say they were directed by supervisors not to call 911 that night.  (Those guards were then fired for following those orders.) Towards the end, Perez was moved to a bare “medical” cell and left without anyone to monitor him inside. At some point the guard assigned outside the door apparently went absent.

The tragic conclusion is all too clear: Eric Perez died completely alone and in great pain on the floor of that Juvenile Detention Center cell. His mother will receive the video of her son’s last moments.

This horrific case showcases that the poor management of local jails quickly becomes inhuman treatment of those incarcerated. Men of color between 18 and 35 bear the brunt of marijuana prohibition laws. Because this is the most-arrested group of Americans means they also have the greatest probability of encountering the worst in jail environments.

Fourteen US states have decriminalized the possession of a small amount of marijuana by adults. Even more states have the option of issuing a court summons at the time of a police encounter in lieu of a custodial arrest.

The death of a young person in a Florida correctional institution was common enough that the Department of Juvenile Justice already has a policy in place to pay for the burial expenses.

The agency has issued the payments twice before, according to DJJ spokesman C.J. Drake.

Drake would not comment on the finger-pointing but said “we’re pleased that this matter is finally being resolved in favor of the young man’s family.”

The check was overnighted Monday to Richard Schuler, an attorney representing Perez’ mother Martiza Perez, Atwater spokeswoman Alexis Lambert said.

“They have done an about-face on the issuance of the check for funeral expenses. I think it’s the right thing to do under the circumstances,” Schuler said. read full at West Palm Beach Post

Freedom Buzz

• NJ Legislators Support New Marijuana Decrim Bill
• New Jersey Patients Say Medical Marijuana Regulations Still Need Work
• Maine Gov LePage Signs Medical Marijuana Privacy Law
• PA Medical Marijuana Bill Named After Gov Shafer

Maryjane’s Corner

• Medical Marijuana Clinic says Cannabis Effective for Many Women’s Issues
• NYC Weed-smoking Moms Come Out
• Miss USA Alyssa Campanella for Medical Marijuana…Like, Kinda
• How to Help Women Behind Bars for Marijuana

Sensible Science

• THC Tunnel Vision Limits Therapeutic Cannabis Variety
• Scientists Uncover How CBD Treats MS, Alters Cholesterol Metabolism
• Cannabis Laboratories: The Testing Landscape in America

Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Questions?  [email protected]

4/29/2011 – Even in states without a specific law seriously ill residents are fighting for the right to access cannabis. Today a court in Florida dismissed charges against a disabled man because he was using marijuana for medical purposes.

From WPEC – CBS 12 Boynton Beach, FL

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla.  –  53-year-old Jeff Kennedy was prepared to spend five years in prison for growing medical marijuana for medical reasons. But on Friday, Kennedy showed up in court wearing a t-shirt stating, ‘I am a patient not a criminal,’ and it turns out the state agrees. The state dropped the charges at the last minute.

“I’m just going to go forward and advocate for medical cannabis,” said Kennedy.

Kennedy suffers from chronic pain caused by a botched back surgery. His legs burn and twitch constantly. Doctors have prescribed him a cocktail of highly addictive and dangerous pain killers.

“It is slowly killing me,” said Kennedy. Read more: http://www.cbs12.com/articles/fla-4732209-marijuana-medical.html#ixzz1Kxhg6Wps

Last month FL Rep. Jeff Clemens introduced a resolution that would create a state regulated medical cannabis system. If there are more advocates like Mr. Kennedy it may not take long to pass.