Cannibals of Freedom: Do Nazis Control America? - by Daniel L. Price Esq.

Cannibals of Freedom: Do Nazis Control America?

Happy November!  Back in September, I wrote about the purpose of law.  I showed how the purpose of law in the US today is to deny freedom, as most laws do just that.  Since writing that article, I had a conversation with a person who I know and respect.  That conversation had to do with the moral good of “following the law”, regardless of the effect of the law.  And further, whether one who fails to follow the law regardless of its effect deserves to be punished?  And more, whether one who upholds the law regardless of its effect is morally superior to one who violates it? 

     When a law denies freedom, it is immoral.  Whether it is based upon racism or bigotry, it is still immoral.  Worse, it makes criminals of people who simply wish to be free and labels them immoral.  At the same time it protects racist and bigoted lawmakers and law enforcers, and labels them as moral.  Thus, the individual is forced to become a law abiding racist and/or bigot, or a criminal, under the laws.

     There are many examples both in and outside of the US.  For instance, in September, 1935, German lawmakers passed the, “Nuremberg Laws”.  These made it a criminal offense for Jews to intermarry with Germans, and declared that only those of German or related blood could be citizens.  These were expanded

in 1935 to include Blacks and Romanians.  Other laws included the 1935 law for a National boycott of all Jewish businesses, and the 1935 law excluding non-Aryans from the legal profession and civil service.  (These are the main enforcement mechanism in society.)  Thus, those most willing to be racists/bigots were deemed morally superior to those who were not.  Further, those most willing to be racist/bigoted were law makers and enforcers, while those who were not were made criminals, to be imprisoned and eventually sent to death camps.

     Should we then hold in the highest of esteem those racists/bigots who “followed the law” and denounce and imprison those who refuse to be racists/bigots?  Ahhh, I can hear your thoughts, but that can’t happen here!  Think again, it did, does, and can again.  Americans had laws which criminalized interracial marriage 300 years before the Nazis which lasted over 30 years after the fall of Nazi Germany.  These were known as Micegenation Laws, which began in the late 1600’s and were not declared unconstitutional until 1967.  And yes, they were enforced by police, judges, and juries around the country.  Think of that, people made criminals and punished by the law because they wanted to be free.  What is more, it was everyday people who supported those laws by remaining silent, or by voting for them. 

     Yet, today we see those types of laws as immoral.  Really?  Today, many people support and defend laws based upon racism/bigotry by saying, well “it’s the law”. 

Laws against the use of marijuana are no different than those laws which forbade people to exercise their freedom to marry whoever they wish.  Racism and bigotry are the same.  They are both based upon greed.  That is, greed is attempting to, or taking the unearned by force or fraud.  In the case of race and bigotry, the “unearned” is self-esteem or self-worth.  Those who are willing to make and enforce laws, whether based upon racism or bigotry, are attempting to gain self-worth by portraying themselves as morally superior. 

     Interestingly, self-worth cannot be gained by the use of force against others, whether based upon race, gender, or personal choices.  Not only this, but the attempt to do so, which is always the case with laws based upon racism/bigotry, denies freedom to those who make and enforce those laws.  That is, once a person accepts that it is moral and right to deny others their freedom, then they must accept that it is moral and right for others to deny them their freedom.  Again, this is how I recognized the syndrome I call, Parasitic Anthropophagy Syndrome (“PASY”).  I recognized that if one attempts to obtain self-esteem by criminalizing others, one is attempting to live as a parasite.  (Parasitic)  And if one does this, one is merely devouring one’s own freedom.  (Anthropophagy)  It is a syndrome, because one can overcome this by working to gain self-worth through the use of one’s own mind and hands in creating things of value, rather than attempting to destroy the self-worth and freedom of others.

     In a society in which the laws are based upon racism/bigotry, and whose purpose is to deny freedom, one can refuse to support those like the Nazis and be a criminal, or become like a Nazi, and be a law abiding citizen.  The only other alternative is to demand and defend freedom!

     Till next month, as always, keep rolling on.

Disclaimer:  This is an informational article only.  It is not to provide individual legal advice.  If you need legal services, feel free to contact me, or any attorney of your choosing.

Being Grateful for the Cornucopia of Cannabis - by Kathy Hess

Being Grateful for the
Cornucopia of Cannabis

There’s almost always something we can find to be thankful for this time of year.  We can be thankful for our freedom, may our liberty endure. We can be thankful for our families who still put up with us.  We can be thankful for our health, or what we still have of it.  We can be thankful for the roofs over our heads as the season of autumn in all its color, gives way to chilly barren winter. We can be thankful for the jobs we have, or the jobs we’ll soon have.  We do have a lot to be thankful for.  I’m especially grateful this year, for the cornucopia of cannabis.

Cannabis, wonderful cannabis, is more than meets the eye. Sure, you may savor the occasional dab here and there but do you really know of the considerable reach of sanctioned medical marijuana? Since the legalization of cannabis, broke and wealthy cities have benefited, pain and PTSD sufferers finally feel relief, and the face of criminality has changed. There is so much goodness that comes from legal cannabis and in the spirit of Thanksgiving, we’d like to review our favorite reasons.
Cannabis is much safer than other legalized drugs. If you’re okay with cigarettes and alcohol being legal, then you should be okay with the legalization of marijuana as well.  To date, there is not a single reported death with cannabis as the cause.  Alcohol on the other hand  accounts for more than 4% of deaths worldwide.  That’s more than AIDS or tuberculosis. When it comes to deaths related to cigarette smoke, the numbers are staggering.  Tobacco kills more the six million people, every year.

Opioids. Nearly 100 people die from opioid related deaths every day. Every. Day.  Prescription drugs that people have access to through a doctor.  In 2015, it was estimated that more than 2 million people had an opioid abuse problem related to prescription drugs, while 590,000 people had an opioid abuse problem related to herion. Most people who get addicted to opioids do so via a prescription from their physician.

With statistics like those, it’s difficult to understand why the legalization effort for marijuana has run into so many road blocks.  But the fight for states to keep marijuana rights they’ve already won keeps going strong.  And the continued battle in other states to gain legal marijuana rights is gaining momentum.  I’m grateful for medical marijuana.

Medicinal marijuana as relief for those in need.  While we are all looking to the hopeful future and to the complete recreational legalization here in Michigan, we can now at least be grateful for the medical cannabis we have access to.  Medical marijuana is a huge and necessary aid for those in pain, or those who suffer from PTSD.  It’s proven to greatly assist the recovery process in cancer patients, those who suffer from epilepsy, and even sufferers of digestive issues like Chron’s disease. But thanks to the overwhelming passing of medical marijuana, cannabis as a medical aid is easily accessible to all in need of pain relief – even for less severe ailments. 

Medicinal cannabis is also free from the gambit of side effects that inevitably accompany Big Pharma prescriptions.  Rather than inducing side effects, cannabis often helps to alleviate symptoms associated with prescriptions. I’m grateful for medical marijuana.

Green just makes for more green. Can we get a dab for the economic boost that medical cannabis has delivered to the state, especially in our beloved Flint? Hard numbers on just how much the medical marijuana industry has introduced to the state are difficult to measure.  Without taxation, data is more speculative then anything, but its estimated to be hundreds of millions. Where we used to pass strip malls and corner stores long ago abandoned with boarded up windows when the auto industry left town, we now pass by garden supply shops, head shops and dispensaries with their green signage and discreet culture driven names.  The money brought to the state by patient licenses alone is staggering, and we can only imagine what the documentable revenues will be when Michigan is allowed to tax cannabis.  What potholes?

The job creation that medicinal cannabis brings to Michigan alone is a warm welcome to a state that has long been on the list for high unemployment rates.  Dispensaries, garden supply and head shops that need retail workers, farmers who need plant tenders and harvesters, the medical marijuana industry brought thousands of jobs to Michigan.  I’m grateful for medical marijuana.

Decriminalization of marijuana keeps making headway.  As more and more states push for cannabis reform, federal legalization seems nearer than ever. By reprioritizing marijuana as a low level drug and/or decriminalizing marijuana altogether (in some communities), prisons are becoming less crowded, the court system is less bogged-down with ridiculous cannabis drug charges, and people’s lives are less likely to be ruined by unjust imprisonment.

We can also be thankful that the government and DEA can now focus on the truly dangerous and illegal war on drugs – Not marijuana. Granted we still have a long ways to go, and there is still a lot of unfair treatment of some cannabis users by those still ignorant to the truths of cannabis, but we’ve come a long way in the past ten years.  I’m grateful for medical marijuana.

Cannabis advocates and users now find themselves in good company.  More Americans than ever favor legalization over criminalization of marijuana, in fact 62% of Americans are in favor for recreational marijuana legalization. This means more than half of this great nation supports all the good that comes from marijuana. In a time where the citizen’s issues are polarized and the nation is divided, it’s important to come together when we can. More Americans than not, favor legalization and that’s a start towards coming together as a nation once again.  As Michigan moves to legalize recreationally, that good company is only going to grow and we might not have gotten here without medical cannabis paving the way.  I’m grateful for medicinal marijuana.

There is a plethora of reasons to be grateful this Thanksgiving season. Medicinal cannabis is near the top. Role it, pipe it, vape it, dab it or eat it. Express your gratitude humbly and respect others freedoms and opinions. While there are many issues and opposing viewpoints that separate us as a community, we remain grateful that marijuana is bringing the country together and finally getting the respect it deserves.

MMMR RECIPE: Cannabis Pumpkin Pie - by Annette Nay Nay

Cannabis Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin pie is a timeless recipe for several holidays and occasions. As it turns out, it is also the perfect medicated-dessert for those who do not particularly enjoy the taste
of cannabis.

Ingredients

¼ cup kief-butter or cannabis-butter

2 eggs, beaten

¼ cup sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon molasses

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ cup light brown sugar

1 (16-ounce) canned pumpkin

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust

Use these easy, step-by-step instructions to make this classic favorite at home for a special occasion or just because.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°Fahrenheit. In a small saucepan, melt the cannabis butter over low heat. Combine milk, eggs, molasses, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, brown sugar, and pumpkin in a large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly. Stir the kief-butter or cannabis-butter into the pie mixture until well combined. Pour the pumpkin batter into the pie crust and bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes. The pie is ready when the filling has settled. Once done baking, allow pie to cool for 30 minutes before cutting.

Top with whipped cream, and enjoy!

Serves: 8

 

Grow Tip for November 2017 - by Ben Horner

Nutrient Problems
During the life cycle of your plant, it will need primary (N-P-K) and Secondary (S-CA-ZN-FE) nutrients to grow into healthy productive girls, or boys if you swing that way. Learning how to understand the signs of nutrient deficiency is key to adjusting your feeding regiment. Every strain has special nutritional needs. By tweaking the nutrients, whether with organic or chemical fertilizers, skillful growers are able to solve problems just by paying attention.

Nitrogen (N)
Lack of Nitrogen is the most common nutrient deficiency. Signs are yellowing leaves, starting at the tips with the veins remaining green and stems turn reddish-purple.

Potassium (K)
First the tips of the leaves begin to yellow then brown, then the rest of the leaf will form brown spots, then the whole leaf will turn dark brown and die.

Sulfur (S)
Young leaves turn lime green to yellow and leave stems turn purple. The tips burn and point down.

Zinc (Z)
Very similar to a lack of magnesium, middle leaves form yellow patches, then brown spots form, but with no zinc the tips and new leaves will contort and dry out.

Phosphorus (P)
Lack of Phosphorus stunts a plant's growth, the leaves turn bluish green, tips point down and then they turn bronze and shrivel before they die.

Magnesium (Mg)
Middle leaves form yellow patches, then brown spots form and the leaf tips point upwards before dying.

Iron (FE)
Symptoms of iron deficiency start on smaller leaves and then turn yellow at the base of the leaves and spread to tips. The tips stay green.

Calcium (Ca)
Young leaves are thin and mis-shaped. Plant growth is severly stunted.

Bitter Herbs - by Rebecca Veenstra

BITTER HERBS

 

Why would anyone choose to eat bitter herbs? Even if they were good for you wouldn’t you want to make them taste better?Not necessarily—sometimes a spoonful of sugar just ruins the medicine.

Probably you have heard of Agnostura bitters? Perhaps you have seen the odd little brown bottle with the ill-fitting paper label on the shelf at the grocery store and wondered what the heck it was…

Anyone who has mixed cocktails has likely put a dash of the strange concoction into the shaker before. Maybe you remember your Grandma or Grandpa telling you it would settle your tummy—or perhaps a friend offered it as a sure-fire cure for a hangover. 

The practice of using bitters had mostly receded to folklore for quite some time here in the United States until recently. New small batch recipe companies and exclusive trendy stores are starting to carry bitters and extol their virtues as though they’d thought of it themselves.

The truth is though, that humans have used bitters for literally thousands of years. Some records indicate that the Ancient Egyptians may have concocted bitters in jugs of wine. Now days, people turn their noses up at bitter flavors for the most part. In the days of hunting and gathering we had little choice but to consume bitter foods and greens. Our ancestors considered these wild bitter tasting plants critical to their health. Many of the diseases our modern culture suffers from like indigestion and gastric reflux to metabolic disorders ranging from elevated cholesterol to type 2 diabetes—seem to all point back to the deficiency of bitterness in our diets. (1) and the lack of protection and tone it imparts to our digestion and metabolic functions. Our palates became more refined as we became more civilized and we found ourselves appreciating salts and more bland foods. So, consequently, bitter herbs became less common--but ironically, more necessary.

Once humans managed to get the hang of distillation, recipes for bitters became quite commonplace. Many of the snake oil peddlers of olden days were selling bitters of one recipe or another. Incidentally, many of those bottles are worth a small fortune now. One of the first bitters ever to be bottled and sold in mass was Agnostura bitters. The recipe was first compounded as a cure for sea sickness by a German physician, Dr. Johan Gottlieb Benjamin Siegert in 1824. Dr. Siegert named his concoction after the town of Agnostura in Venezuela where he formed the house of Agnostura.

The basic concept is a mixture of herbs that tastes bitter. The actual taste is the absolute most important aspect of the recipe. Bitter herbs are thought to stimulate digestive function by increasing saliva production and promoting both stomach acid and digestive enzyme production. (3) which leads to improved appetite and digestion. As a result, they are particularly used when there is low stomach acid but not in heartburn (where too much stomach acid could initially exacerbate the situation).

These herbs literally taste bitter. The therapeutic action of the preparation is hugely reliant on the patient experiencing the bitter taste. If the taste is masked, the neurological, physiological response will not result in the therapeutic stimulation of the digestive system and appetite. (4) In plain English that means that to try and make bitters more palatable by adding sweetener or flavors would completely negate the medicinal effect. How odd right?

Our tongues have zones on them that allow us to taste different flavors. There are many theories about what effects these flavor zones have on our physiology. For example, many Traditional Chinese medicine texts suggest that sour tastes drain the liver. This would be potentially beneficial to people with congested livers. Likewise, it is theorized that when people ingest bitter tasting things the saliva is stimulated which affects the stomach to produce digestive enzymes which prepares the digestive system for the process of breaking down foods.
This could potentially benefit a person with slow digestion or low appetite. The more prepared the body is for food the better it is able to break it down efficiently. Proper absorption is completely dependent on the body’s ability to extract the nutrients from food in the first place.

The other potential benefit to using bitters therapeutically is related to the family that such herbs occupy in the scheme of things. Herbalists categorize herbs into groups based on their

Free the Weed 81 - by John Sinclair

 Highest greetings from my roost just above downtown in the Motor City, about three blocks from the brand-new Little Caesar’s Arena where the Red Wings, the Pistons, and the top grossing of pop stars play almost nightly now.

     On top of hosting the Red Wings and the Pistons, LCA is projected to be the busiest concert venue in the Detroit Metropolitan Area. Plus which, the Ilitchorganization and its new partner, Tom Gores, owner of the Pistons, have formed an event promotion business that controls virtually every major concert venue above the size of a nightclub or bar for miles and miles around.
     When he bought the Pistons several years ago, Gores appointed a guy named ArnTellem as vice chairman of his organization and set him to work on ways the Pistons could be moved back into the city to the benefit of both the team and the local citizenry.

     Teller engineered the union of the Pistons and the Ilitch outfit to include a downtown Detroit home for the pro basketball team in the Red Wings’ new arena and a $50-60 million mid-town office building and practice facility for the Pistons in what we used to call the New Center area around Grand Boulevard and Woodward Avenue.

     Since partnering with the Ilitches in the Little Caesar’s Arena deal. Gores has hooked up with the gigantic downtown developer Dan Gilbert, also owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, to develop a huge plan for converting the abandoned county jail site just north of Greektown into a massive commercial-housing-retail complex crowned by a fifth downtown sports arena to house a new professional Detroit soccer team.

     You may know that I’m a fanatical Detroit Tigers fan, but other than my periodic trips to Tiger Stadium (I refuse to call it Comerica Park) I’m not a person who would ever attend a sporting event or even a concert in a sports arena. I don’t care what happens to the Pistons, the Red Wings, or the Lions, who last won a championship when I was a sophomore in high school (1957).

      But as a citizen of Detroit, I’m excited to see these things happen in the center of this beat-up city, long ago given up for lost and almost totally abandoned by the people with the money and the jobs and the tax base that had made Detroit the fifth largest city in America and the world center of the automobile industry.

     Their retreat from the city was followed by about a million white people, home-and business-owners who followed the job sites to the lily-white suburbs and ventured back into the cityproper only to attend Tigers and Red Wings games or concerts atCobo Hall, JoeLouis Arena and the few other remaining downtown venues.

     The Lions were moved to the Silverdome outside of Pontiac, the Pistons moved to Auburn Hills even farther north, and it was pretty much left to Mike Ilitch and his family organization to keep professional sports alive in the city. When they built the new Tiger Stadium, the Ford family wasinspired to build a new football stadium downtown and move the Lions back into the heart of the city.

  But the turning point for the redevelopment of downtown Detroit came when a guy named Peter Karamanos decided to build the headquarters for his giant Compuware company in the middle of downtown Detroit—the first such major commitment to downtown development since the opening of the Renaissance Center in 1975.

     The amazing thing was that building this one big commercial building off of Grand Circus Park served as a lever to move downtown into a whole new mode of business and industry. Dan Gilbert, founder of Quicken Loans and already an ambitious property developer in Cleveland, followed behind Karamanos and started buying up abandoned or under-used properties all over downtown and rehabilitating them.

     This kicked off major redevelopment efforts that saw stores and restaurants open in spaces that had been vacant for years. Several major hotels that had fallen into total disrepair were renovated and brought back into service, along with decrepit but once majestic office buildings that are now beginning to thrive again after 40 or 50 years of utter neglect.

     Downtown office buildings were converted into loft apartments and quickly rented to the legions of new white people who were brought into downtown by the jobs created at the worksites erected by Karamanos, Gilbert and their collaborators. New housing was built just north of I-75, across the street from where the new Little Caesar’s Arena now sits, and the redevelopment surged north along Woodward and Cass all the way to Grand Boulevard.

     This summer Dan Gilbert and his civic partners unveiled the QLine light rail system they had funded to run from Larned Street north just past Grand Boulevard and triggered a further round of development along Woodward that’s repopulating a great number of long-abandoned storefronts and apartment buildings and beginning to re-create the sort of street-level culture that once thrived in this vicinity.

     The redevelopment of the downtown area and what they now call Midtown (formerly the Cass Corridor) is an incredible thing and heralds a new era in this long godforsaken urban center. The sad part is that this rebuilding area represents only a tiny fraction of the vast City of Detroit, mostof which is still beat up, abandoned, run down, boarded up or reduced to blocks-long empty fields where there used to be contiguous housing and neighborhood retail spots.

      The boom in hiring to staff the downtown corporate entities doesn’t extend into the African-American neighborhoods of Detroit because for years these citizens were deprived of proper education and training in the sort of job skills that are required to work in the modern world of commerce and industry. So the corporations ship in thousands of young white people to fill those positions and get the big paychecks, while the citizens who have suffered through 50 years of decline continue to suffer.
      In the immortal words of the great tenor saxophonist Lester Young, I don’t want to be a repeater pencil, but this brings me once again to the question of the Insane Clown Posse posing as the Detroit City Council and their prime hatchetman, a guy called Butch.

     With all of the rebuilding activity downtown, essentially the result of enlightened private enterprise, the only positive thing happening in the decrepit neighborhoods of Detroit has been the spontaneous opening of almost 300 compassionate care centers serving medical marijuana patients in the city and from the suburbs since 2008.

     But, as I’ve reported so many times, the Detroit City Council is on a crusade driven by the former police officers and churchpersons who direct its operations to shut down as many compassion centers as possible and limit the licensed medical marijuana businesses to no more than 50. In the year since the licensing ordinance was passed by the City Council, the City has issued only eight operating licenses to marijuana dispensaries.

     Their idiotic crusade is being challenged by a ballot initiative in the city of Detroit this month and is also in conflict with the ridiculously strict State of Michigan licensing act that goes into effect in December. I’ll have more to report next month after the November elections, but I have to repeat that I’ve never witnessed a stupider or more backwards civic action than the closing of the marijuana care centers in the city of Detroit. What’s wrong with these people? Free The Weed!

—Detroit
October 24, 2017

© 2017 John Sinclair. All Rights Reserved,

Senator Rick Jones In the Here and Now - by Tim Beck - Chairman of the Safer Michigan Coalition

Senator Rick Jones In the Here and Now
In the March 2011 issue of the old "Michigan Medical Marijuana Magazine" (which was de facto put out of business by Oakland County law enforcement at the end of that year) I wrote a column called "Senator Rick Jones--In the Eye of the Storm." That January, Senator Jones had just assumed control of the Senate Judiciary Committee upon his elevation to the State Senate in November. He had been an outspoken critic of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act when he was a State Representative. He was feared and hated by many in the medical cannabis community.

I stated in my column, "for all intents and purposes, Rick Jones (R) Grand Ledge will be the point man in the legislature on medical cannabis issues ... As Chairman of Judiciary and a leader of the  Republican Caucus ... the Senator will be cutting a wide swath...for the next eight years"
My predication could not have been more accurate.

 
Fast forwarding to today, I thought it was a good time to reminisce with the Senator, especially after he vigorously stepped up for cannabis patients, against "Michigan Responsibility Council" (MRC) lobbyist Steve Linder who, along with MMFLA  board members Donald Bailey and Rick Johnson want to shut down all existing dispensaries in Michigan until new licenses are issued sometime in the next nine months.

In an incident widely covered by media across the state, the Senator confronted Mr. Linder at a meeting of the Senate Health Policy Committee, which is considering a change in the law to keep existing dispensaries open until state licensed facilities are up and running.

With a sneer in his voice, the Senator asked Mr. Linder: "would you mind telling us what millionaire you work for, who you are lobbying for and who wants a monopoly in this business, because we can all see what's being said."

Mr Linder did not answer the question.

To some, the Senator's comment was surprising but to others, it was classic Rick Jones. No sugar coating and not a huge shock.

"I did not believe in medical marijuana and I did not vote for it. When the Majority Leader told me all marijuana bills were coming through me, I realized I needed to get to know the issue..I've been to Canada and may other places... Over time I got to know more and more about the subject... It (medical marijuana) is very helpful for persons with cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and serious pain conditions. Over time my mind changed."

"When I saw this lobbyist sitting there saying all facilities must be shut down by December 15, I said what I said... this was not the intent of the law " when it passed in Sept 2016. "You cannot just cut off patients like that. You cant just go to a newspaper and find a caregiver. This was a lobbyist who did not care (about patients)."

The Senator essentially acknowledged he was the primary legislative deal maker, responsible for the passage of the MMFLA in 2016.

I can't take all the credit for this...but the first thing I did was start a work group with law enforcement, getting  everyone in the same room. That was key. We had meetings with prosecutors, sheriffs, and the state police. I didn't put anyone looking to make money in (the work group)"

What happened over time is a consensus developed. After intensive discussion, trial balloons and back and forth dialogue, key law enforcement players became either supportive or neutral on the subject of state licensed dispensaries, grow operations and ancillary businesses.


As to whether the bills sponsored by Representative Yousef Rabhi (D) in the House and Senators David Knezek (D) and Senator Jones in the Senate to keep dispensaries open will make it all the way to the Governors desk, is not totally certain as of this writing.

"We have the votes in Committee to report this to the floor" Senator Jones explained. "I think we can get it done faster in the Senate" then in the House.

As far as the situation in the House is concerned, Representative Rabhi is cautiously optimistic about ultimate passage of the bills.

"I believe the votes are there, if the bill can get a hearing" he explained.
Rep. Rabhi went on to say his bill has some Republican
co-sponsors, and the latest action in the more conservative State Senate is very encouraging.


As far as Rick Jones is concerned, Rep. Rabhi went on to say that he and the Senator "agree on a number of things and he (Jones) is phenomenal to work with."

In the final analysis, Senator Rick Jones will be in power until the end of 2018, when he will be term limited out after 14 eventful and fulfilling years in Lansing. His finger prints are on many, many laws passed during those years.



As far as medical cannabis patients are concerned, at the end of our interview, the Senator reiterated his unwavering support for protecting patients from persons and groups driven by self serving motives.

As far as the ultimate legalization of cannabis for everyone in Michigan is concerned, the Senator is just not there right now.

"I support medical. I'm solid on that" he said, "but not recreational. When I was a cop, I saw too much mayhem on the road. I just don't want to open this up...to more"

In any event, I will be so bold as to predict that Senator Rick Jones will be long remembered as a relentless, patient, successful power broker. A man who called things as he saw them and usually got what he wanted at the end of the day.
 

 

World news for November 2017 - by Kathy Hess

No Cannabis for German Hunters
Germany: Can you smoke cannabis and still have the right to hunt in Germany? The answer would appear to be “no,” currently.

Peter Jakobs a 52-year- old who ingests cannabis to relieve the symptoms of his Bechterew’s disease, successfully passed the hunter’s test last year, but his application for a hunting license was subsequently denied. The responsible county’s authority reasoning states that the applicant is intoxicated after consuming cannabis and is therefore not fit to carry a weapon.

Jakobs then turned to renowned psychotherapist Richard Tank for examination. The Trier psychologist confirmed Jakobs had not only the capability but the reliability to deal with weapons within the meaning of the weapons law.

“There are no performance deficiencies,” Tank concluded. The fact that Jakobs is allowed to drive in spite of his medical cannabis prescription is an additional indication
of his fitness and capacity to responsibly carry a firearm.
In the case of Peter Jakobs, it is much more about whether he is “high” after consuming cannabis. The stress-bearing, perception, and concentration test Jakobs carried out directly after consuming his cannabis medication, certified that he “shows no psychological or physical failure symptoms.”

Both laboratory and clinical research show that THC creates tolerance, which is when one becomes accustomed over time to the effects of the compound. This can take on average six weeks depending on potency and use patterns. Tolerance allows for those who are treating chronic pain to have less unwanted side effects and improved daily function. Jakobs believes that ignoring the expert’s report is “impudent” and accuses the county authorities of treating him “as a drug addict.” He has filed a lawsuit to appeal the decision.

The German Narcotics Act rescheduled cannabis from Appendix 3 to Appendix 1, officially recognizing the medical value of cannabis. Because of this, Jakobs’ complaint has a good chance of being heard and even reaching the highest federal court, if necessary. Jakobs is the first hunting cannabis patient in Germany to complain since the introduction of the cannabis law — the verdict will break ground for similar cases in the future.
                                                                                                                                                                  

Mr. Marijuagi
Japan: A 35-year old janitor living in Osaka was arrested at his home last month for growing and selling marijuana. It’s a fairly rare incident in Japan but what really caught the eye of horticulturists and officials alike were the unique techniques that the man used.

Police found 21 potted plants in the man’s house. Marijuana plants can easily grow to be over 3 ft high but these plants were only around 15 inches. When questioned by police, they learned that the janitor had used bonsai techniques to trim, prune and manicure the plants so that he could maximize his limited apartment space.

In a statement the man said – and I quote – “this is the first time I’ve produced such a great crop.” Yes, around the world, he is now considered the Mr. Miyagi of cannabis.

                                                                                                                                                                  

South of the US Border
Latin America: America is Getting Greener Peru has become the latest country in Latin America to allow the medicinal use of marijuana. The nation’s conservative congress voted 67-5 on October 16th , to approve legislation allowing the drug to be produced, imported and sold.

Lawmakers praised the move as a way to improve the lives of thousands of patients looking to better their quality of life. The legislation has the backing of Peru’s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski. Despite the popular support of medical cannabis, the nation isn’t likely to quickly move to legalize cannabis recreationally. They plan to watch the other nations close by that are moving to legalize recreationally, and observe the pros and cons before moving in that direction, or not.

Chile and Colombia also allow medical marijuana, while Uruguay in 2013 became the first Latin America nation to allow recreational use of the drug.

The VAMOS Party in Costa Rica, has made the campaign promise to usher in a countrywide legal cannabis sector for Costa Ricans and tourists alike, should they be elected into Congress.

“Currently, personal consumption of cannabis is not penalized, however cultivation and distribution are,” said VAMOS party leader Margarita Salas in an interview this month. Salas is a Harvard-educated politician who has been following the sweeping cannabis reform happening in around parts of the world. The current bill only allows for patients with a prescription to ingest cannabis, but Salas intends to change that to any adult who wants to partake.

Although Costa Rica is one of the more progressive countries in Central America, the historically negative stigma surrounding cannabis is what has kept it illegal thus far. Salas added that criminalizing cannabis is “unnecessary meddling by the state in people’s private lives and choices.”

Regardless of whether VAMOS is successful in being voted into Congress in February of 2018, Salas firmly believes that Costa Rica will be the first nation in Central America to legalize. The Costa Rican federal elections are scheduled for Feb. 4, 2018.
                                                                                                                                                                  

Police Officer in The Hague Netherlands Arrested
Netherlands: A police officer from The Hague, capital of the province of South Holland Netherlands, has been sentenced to four years for bribery, attempted burglary and membership of a criminal organization after passing on information about illegal marijuana plantations to others.

Amine A, who is 29 and was arrested last June, has also been banned from working as a civil servant for nine years.  The court found that between 2015 and 2016, Amine had combed police files looking for information about plantations and drugs storage locations which he sold to a friend, Yassine. Yassine is accused of breaking into dozens of addresses he had been given by Amine and emptying them of drugs before police could raid the premises. He was jailed for 3.5 years.

Two of Amine’s brothers were also jailed for three and four months for stealing the marijuana but were found not guilty of membership of a criminal organization.

Evidently Amine had been reprimanded for his close ties to known criminals in Gouda during his training period but had, nevertheless, been cleared to join the force.
                                                                                                                                                                  

UK on the Path to Legalizing
Medical Cannabis
United Kingdom: A bill that would legalize medical marijuana in the United Kingdom passed its first reading in Parliament earlier this month, completely unopposed.
The legislation was introduced by Member of Parliament, Paul Flynn (Labour Party) amongst a flood of anticipation. Not coincidentally, on the same day the bill was introduced, a planned protest was executed outside of the Parliament building in London where dozens of cannabis advocates consumed edibles, drank teas, and vaped flower.  Such actions could have landed the protesters in jail for up to five years. There were no arrests.

Despite past apprehension from the UK government on this issue, Flynn very much believes the tide is turning. “I believe there’s been a change. People have seen what’s happening in other parts of the world, and seen the changes that have been made in the law on cannabis, without civilization collapsing and without the sky falling.”

The bill will be headed into its second reading before Parliament this coming February.

National news for November 2017 - by Dolan Frick

Marijuana Can Help Children with Seizures, Cancer, & Nausea
Researchers said medical marijuana is effective in treating some conditions in children, but they urge caution on using the drug in young patients.

Should kids and adolescents ever use medical marijuana?
Administering the drug to younger patients remains somewhat contentious, but it also appears effective in treating a limited number of symptoms.

According to a new study published today in the journal Pediatrics, medical marijuana is effective in treating seizures and chemotherapy-induced nausea in young patients.

Researchers conducted a meta-analysis, looking at 22 relevant studies on the use of medical cannabis on children and adolescents to reach this conclusion.

Of the many chemical components found in marijuana, researchers determined that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the most abundant cannabinoid found in the plant, improved nausea and vomiting for young chemotherapy patients.

Cannabidiol (CBD) another cannabinoid present in marijuana was determined to have an effect on seizures.

Some advocates have hailed these results as further proof of the effectiveness of medical marijuana, particularly in cases where children haven’t responded to other traditional treatments.

“The real-world results of these programs indicate that cannabinoids can play a role in pediatric care, particularly in the treatment of life-threatening seizures, and that they can do so in a manner that is sometimes safer and more effective than conventional treatments,” Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), told Healthline.

Careful usage urged; Currently there are only two synthesized cannabinoids that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as medications: dronabinol and nabilone.
                                                                                                                                                                


34 Cannabis Farms in California Destroyed by Wildfire
California: The latest California wildfires have left many marijuana farmers wondering how they will recover without federal assistance.  At least 34 cannabis farms in northern California were either partially damaged or completely destroyed in the flames and unlike other types of agricultural farms, marijuana growers don't qualify for loans or federal aid because the drug is still federally illegal.

The state is preparing to legalize marijuana on Jan. 1, 2018, but some businesses are struggling with preparing to open by that date.
"We might be facing a much smaller harvest than we were anticipating, which could potentially drive the price up", a spokesman for the California Cannabis Industry Association told the Washington Post. "We still don't know how much has survived, how much has been lost."

Farmers are now left to come up with the funds on their own without the help of federal grants and loans.

"I'm not going to sit here in my burnt-down house and cry about it," Ashley Oldham, the owner of Frost Flower Farms, told Rolling Stone.

Oldham's farm wasn't completely destroyed by the fires, but she said she's worried about how the ash will affect her product.

"The only thing I can do is keep my chin up and put one foot in front of the other," she said. "This will be like starting over but I think with the support of my community, I can pull it off."
                                                                                                                                                               

Native American Tribes Capitalize on Cannabis
Native American tribes in Nevada are expanding beyond casinos and venturing into the cannabis industry. In June, Governor Brian Sandoval signed Senate Bill 375 and Senate Bill 396, which allow Nevada’s Native American tribes to directly negotiate with the state over the use and sale of medicinal marijuana on tribal lands.

Nevada Native American tribes like the Yerington Paiute Tribe, the Ely Shoshone Tribe, and the Las Vegas Paiute Tribe formed an agreement with the State of Nevada that allows them to grow cannabis, produce concentrates and edibles, perform lab-testing, and dispense marijuana products to customers.

In 2016, the Las Vegas Paiute held a ceremony on Snow Mountain Indian Reserve to bless the site of one of the largest medical marijuana cultivation and production facilities in Nevada with at least two dispensaries and three greenhouses on a 15,000-square foot facility that will be called the Nu Wu Cannabis Marketplace.

While the Nevada government enacts hefty taxes on marijuana sales, some Native American tribes are looking to amend tribal laws that may lead to tax-free cannabis. How is this possible? The U.S. Supreme court recognizes tribal sovereignty, which allows the Native American people to self-govern. Though individuals are responsible for federal income taxes as U.S. citizens, tribes are not subject to federal income taxes on their earnings and can form business corporations to keep their income exempt.

Tribal Cannabis Consulting (TCC) specializes in Native American cannabis policy and established the first cannabis compact, which allowed tribal and state governments to establish business agreements signed by Nevada’s governor. The firm aims to expand Native American economic presence in the marijuana marketplace and helps tribes create their own regulatory codes for matters like issuing medical marijuana cards.

Together, tribes and the state government are working to develop a governing system that will outline and enforce marijuana cultivation and sale on Native American Land and establish a universal agreement that will keep dispensaries in accordance with their state and federal laws.

“Our ancestors used it before as medicine,” said Benny Tso, chairman of the Las Vegas Paiute council. “The Paiute people are about helping other people, so this medicine that we’re going to provide for Nevada is going to be truly a blessing for both for Nevada and the tribe.”

Native American tribes have seen success in other states when it comes to selling cannabis on tribal land. In Washington, two tribes have been operating shops successfully for years. The Squamish Tribe opened Agate Dreams in December 2015 and the Squaxin Island Tribe’s Elevation dispensary has been serving cannabis customers since November of the same year.

Both tribes worked closely with the State of Washington and the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board to ensure compliance with state regulations. They entered into a ten-year compact that allows them to charge non-Native customers the same tax rate as the rest of the state. The tax revenue collected remains the property of the Tribe.

In California, however, Native American Tribes in the northern part of the state have encountered difficulties.

The Pinoleville Pomo Nation announced plans for a large-scale medical marijuana cultivation operation in 2015. Shortly after the operation was up and running, the Mendocino Sheriff’s Office conducted a raid on the property, removing nearly 100 pounds of dried flower and hundreds of plants.

In 2016, the Tribe filed a claim against the county alleging unreasonable search and seizure, trespassing, and violations of the Tribe’s due process. Also in 2016, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Department raided the Hopland Band of Pomo Indians, removing more than 800 plants from their property. They filed a lawsuit against the sheriff’s office earlier this year requesting $25,000 in damages.

In Southern California, the Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel is seeing better success after converting a former casino into a 35,000-square-foot cultivation facility.

In 2015, tribal leaders began to slowly craft marijuana regulations for the reservation. The Santa Isabel Regulatory Agency and Cannabis Commission oversee the tribe’s cannabis venture. Their high-tech facility includes a testing lab, greenhouses, and space to expand into processing.

The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department released a statement saying the agency was not responsible for enforcing laws within the Iipay Nation and the San Diego District Attorney’s Office told the San Diego Union-Tribune in May that the tribe has been advised it would intervene only if state laws are broken within their jurisdiction.

Michigan news for November 2017 - by Kathy Hess

Degree in Weed
Marquette: The University of Northern Michigan, located in the U.P. in Marquette, is offering degrees in medicinal plant chemistry.   Yes, you can now get a degree in weed, here in Michigan.  Of course there have been other colleges that offer classes on marijuana policy and laws or certificates in a variety of disciplines.  But NMU is the first to offer a four year program addressing the science and business behind the marijuana industry. 

This program isn’t for the undisciplined scholar.  Students will be required to take 400 level classes in chemistry, biology, botany, horticulture, marketing, and finance to achieve the degree.  The hard work could pay off nicely.  Experts believe that a degree in medicinal plant chemistry could land a graduate a $70,000 year job right out of school.  Considering the booming market in Michigan, graduates won’t likely have to leave the state to find work.

Administrators at NMU state that marijuana is not grown on/off campus through the program, as it’s still listed as a schedule 1 drug, but they do grow other medicinal/non medicinal plants, and use cannabis plant parts in labs for testing and learning the components of cannabis.



                                                                                                                                                         



Green Light for 32
Bangor Twp: Bangor Township officials have approved 32 applications for medical marijuana facilities.  As a result, millions of dollars in investments are expected to flow into the Bay County municipality.

In its meeting on Tuesday, October 24th, Bangor approved permits for 16 growers, 10 provisioning centers (dispensaries), 5 processing centers and 1 secure transport permit, according to Supervisor Glenn Rowley.  Of those ready with applications on Tuesday, none were denied/rejected.

There were 9 businesses in total that applied and were granted permits: Green Acres Wellness Center, Oasis Wellness Center, Pioneer Medical Cultivator, Pure Releaf, Therapeutic Health Choices, Uncle Bud’s Provisioning Center and 3 other (unknown)limited liability corporations. 

During the meeting more applications were dropped off.  As it stands the board has 11 new applications to review and vote on at its November 15th meeting.
                                                                                                                                                          

Former Paralegal Faces Prison
Kent County: Susan M. Bond, who was accused of running an illegal medical marijuana dispensary north of Grand Rapids last year, was convicted Thursday, October 16th of numerous felony charges that could put her in prison for up to 20 years.
Kent County jurors found the 52-year-old guilty of five charges, including conducting a criminal enterprise and racketeering. The jury began deliberations Wednesday afternoon and reached a verdict mid-afternoon Thursday. Judge Joseph Rossi (Kent County Circuit Court), who presided over the two-week trial, ordered Susan be held on a $100,000 bond pending her sentencing date in mid-November.
The Provision Center was among seven locations visited by the Kent Area Narcotics Enforcement Team on Nov. 28, 2016. Where Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Boer claims Bond headed a multi-million-dollar marijuana business in Plainfield Township.

Bond’s defense attorney, Michael Komorn, said Bond did nothing illegal. Komorn informed the jury that the investigation was only launched after Bond herself called police to report embezzlement from her business.  “And they flip it around and make it a mobster crime,’’ Komorn said in opening statements last week. “At no point are you going to hear that my client delivered marijuana to anybody.’’

Members of the Kent Area Narcotics Enforcement Team launched the probe in the summer of 2016. Between Aug. 1 and Oct. 14, 2016, the business reportedly took in more than $647,000; Bond pocketed about $137,000, according to Boer.  “Bond used proceeds to pay rent and salaries, and invest in supplies,” Boer told jurors.

Bond was found guilty of racketeering and conducting a criminal enterprise – felonies punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Jurors also convicted Bond of two counts of delivery/manufacture of marijuana (a four-year felony) and maintaining a drug house (which carries a two-year term).
                                                                                                                                                          

Camping for Cannabis
Leoni Township: Leoni Township decided to take a different approach to the license application process for medical Marijuana Dispensaries.  The imposed a ‘first come, first served,’ process.  People will camp in extreme temperatures for limited iPhones, or Black Friday deals.  Did Leoni Twp neglect to know that, or is the endurance of the race part of the test?

Applications will begin to be accepted on Wednesday, November 1st.  However Leoni Twp has already declared that it was only allowing for 6 medical marijuana dispensary licenses.  Although the date was little more than a week away, hopeful entrepreneurs began arriving at 4:20pm on Thursday, October 26th.  They came in campers, R.V.’s, and passenger cars to line up and wait with temperatures that dropped to 28 degrees during the night, for one of the prized medical marijuana licenses.

"It's worth it," said Ryan Basore of Michigan Marijuana Law Experts, who is in line on behalf of one of his firm's clients. The payoff for a few days of camping-it-out  could be a license to dispense medicinal marijuana to the state's 262,000+ registered patients, a golden ticket potentially worth millions of dollars over the next few years.
                                                                                                                                                         

Lobbyists Mold MMM Laws
Lansing: It has been discovered that businesses, through a key group of lobbyists, have been privately weighing in on the potential rules for the estimated $840 million medical marijuana industry.

“The state officials who will be in charge of regulating medical marijuana have agreed to personal meetings with big players, gone out to lunch with their lobbyists and given private presentations to lobbyist groups,” according to records obtained by MLive and the Michigan Campaign Finance Network under the Freedom of Information Act.

The Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation asked lobbyists and select businesses for input through a series of questionnaires, claims BMMR Director Andrew Brisbo, as it gathered information and educated itself before attempting to craft regulations. "We needed to rely on expertise, and that is individuals that are interested participants in the industry, their representation, other state regulatory agencies, we really have tried to gather as much information from all those sources as possible," Brisbo said.

The revelation of lobbyists and big business influencing the regulation of a booming market doesn’t surprise those who have been immersed in the industry for the past ten years.  But what does bother them is being completely shut out.  Many feel as though they should have a right to sit at the table on regulations, as they have been the ones investing their own hard earned money to open up and run the thriving businesses in the industry already.  They also feel as though it’s a slap in the face, as not only have they invested their own hard earned money –in a financially broken state-they have endured all of the dire risks in making marijuana an acceptable and viable industry.

It also brings into question if these lobbyists, and shadowed big businesses, have influenced the current numbers for the application fees and requirements for liquid assets. The licensing board has stated that its intent is to require businesses seeking facility licenses to have between $150,000 and $500,000 in startup capital (liquid assets), depending on the type of license being applied for.  Then each application could cost between $4,000 and $57,000, which is non refundable if your application is denied. 

Considering the current medical marijuana businesses already established in the state are majority “mom and pop” operations, it’s easy to see why they feel the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation is moving to push them out.  Most feel as though the state doesn’t truly care about small businesses, the backbone of our country.