Research from the last few decades suggest marijuana helps more than it harms. But Jeff Sessions’ proposed crackdown would take us back nearly a century.
Drops of marijuana extract are placed on candy in the kitchen of AmeriCanna Edibles in 2017 in Boulder, Colorado.
(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Joe Mahoney)
The promised marijuana legalization date of July 2018 is approaching fast. Many outstanding regulatory issues – such as online sales and occupational health and safety – pose urgent challenges.
Cannabis plant strains in jars in MediJean’s Health Canada-licensed tissue culture development lab are kept for research as manager Abdul Ahad works in the Richmond, B.C., facility, in this 2014 file photo.
(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck)
The legal cannabis industry will have to develop scientific research and evidence based growth methods and technology if it is to succeed against the secretive illicit industry.
Marijuana brand name stickers are visible as customers line up at the counter in CannaDaddy’s Wellness Center marijuana dispensary in Oregon in April.
(AP Photo/Don Ryan)
There’s a strong case for governments to allow cannabis producers to brand their products via packaging and advertising like any other product. It could boost quality and consumer satisfaction.
Setting a low age floor for legal access to cannabis could improve drug-use prevention, education, health and safety for youth, research suggests.
(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang)
The federal government outlaws marijuana, but many states are legalizing it. Coupled with the growing number of cannabis-related patents, the potential for court battles is dizzying.
Smaller-dose pot-infused brownies are divided and packaged at The Growing Kitchen in Boulder, Co.
AP Photo/Brennan Linsley
We have a reliable and easy-to-use test to measure blood alcohol concentration. But right now we don’t have a fast, reliable test to gauge whether someone is too doped up to drive.
Cannabis is on display at Shango Premium Cannabis, in Portland, Oregon, Sept. 30, 2015.
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Nine states are deciding whether to legalize marijuana. Yet the drug’s prohibition at the federal level has created an unstable financial environment for producers and retailers.
Sea of Green Farms in Seattle, Washington.
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An era of prohibition may soon be over for marijuana, and powerful players are watching. A legal expert explains how smaller, local producers can keep their pot in the game.
Indoor marijuana farms are becoming one of the most energy-intensive industries in the United States.
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As more states legalize marijuana, growing pot indoors is consuming massive quantities of energy. Rules for this new industry should include requirements to use clean power or pay carbon fees.
In some states this is medical marijuana.
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At present, cannabis is fully legalized in Colorado and Washington and will soon be fully legalized in Oregon and Alaska. Additionally, medical cannabis is legal in 23 states. The writing is on the wall…
In states like Massachusetts, heroin overdoses have skyrocketed in recent years.
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In the 1930s, Harry J. Anslinger, the first head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, embarked on a fierce anti-marijuana campaign. Highlighted by the 1936 anti-marijuana film Reefer Madness – where marijuana…
Will the feds raid this Christmas tree?
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Abraham Lincoln said that those who shape public opinion exert an even greater influence than judges and lawmakers. In recent years popular sentiment – on issues like marriage equality and legalization…
Legalised programs may be underused if doctors do not support them.
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A bill to permit medical cannabis use in Australia is set for debate in Senate. If medical cannabis use is legalised, doctors could become gatekeepers between patients and a controversial drug. Lessons…
Professor of Health Policy & Management, USC Sol Price School of Public Policy & Senior Fellow, Leonard D Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics, University of Southern California