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Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission Proposal Will ‘Destroy Patient Access,’ Advocates Say

It’s unclear what requirements the state commission to regulate medical cannabis in Nebraska might enact to license such operations by this fall, ahead of a deadline next week for detailing the criteria for applications.

The Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission has until July 1 to write licensing criteria under state law. But as commissioners gear up for their next meeting Thursday, the first with all five commissioners, they have indicated they will consider adopting draft or emergency criteria to accept or deny licensing applications after July 1.

Licensing must begin by October 1, the same time any other requirements for medical cannabis must be enacted, according to a pair of laws that voters overwhelmingly approved in a pair of November ballot measures.

However, with just hours until the next commission meeting, there is no specific indication of what criteria the board will consider.

Also on the agenda is a legal “memorandum of agreement” to help with future rulemaking involving the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Gov. Jim Pillen’s (R) Policy Research Office, the policy lobbying arm of the state’s chief executive.

No draft rules or regulations, including licensing criteria, have yet been made public.

Crista Eggers, executive director of Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, which has led medical cannabis ballot measures since 2020, said she’s faced a lack of transparency and been unable to reach the commission or have questions answered in recent weeks, leaving many advocates “extremely frustrated.”

“I didn’t know we could be more frustrated than what we have been previously, but there just seems to be a new layer added every single day,” Eggers said Tuesday.

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U.S. House Approves Amendment Allowing VA Doctors to Recommend Medical Cannabis to Veterans

The U.S. House of Representatives has approved an amendment that would allow Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) physicians to recommend medical marijuana to veterans in states where it’s legal.

The measure, introduced by Representatives Brian Mast (R-FL) and Dave Joyce (R-OH), was adopted as part of the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act (H.R. 3944). The overall bill is expected to receive a final vote on the House floor soon.

The amendment would prohibit the VA from using federal funds to enforce a longstanding policy that prevents VA doctors from assisting patients with enrolling in state-approved medical marijuana programs. Under current rules, VA physicians are barred from discussing or filling out the necessary paperwork for veterans to access legal marijuana, even in the 39 states that allow its use for medical purposes.

The amendment states:

“None of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the Department of Veterans Affairs in this Act may be used to enforce Veterans Health Directive 1315 as it relates to:

(1) the policy stating that ‘VHA providers are prohibited from completing forms or registering Veterans for participation in a State-approved marijuana program’;

(2) the directive for the ‘Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Operations and Management’ to ensure that ‘medical facility Directors are aware that it is VHA policy for providers to assess Veteran use of marijuana but providers are prohibited from recommending, making referrals to or completing paperwork for Veteran participation in State marijuana programs’; and

(3) the directive for the ‘VA Medical Facility Director’ to ensure that ‘VA facility staff are aware of the following’ ‘[t]he prohibition recommending, making referrals to or completing forms and registering Veterans for participation in State-approved marijuana programs.

Two bills have been filed this year in the House that would take a similar approach in easing access to medical cannabis for veterans, the Veterans Cannabis Use for Safe Healing Act and the Veterans Equal Access Act, filed by Rep. Gregory Steube (R-FL) and Brian Mast (R-FL).

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War Powers Resolution From House Democratic Leaders May Not Limit Trump’s War Powers

As Democrats try to push forward legislation that would block further strikes on Iran, one measure advanced by House leadership could actually strengthen the Trump administration’s justification for subsequent attacks, anti-war advocates warn.

House progressives on Wednesday were trying to reach a compromise with Democratic leaders that would curb further U.S. military involvement in Iran while satisfying concerns from pro-Israel members about American support for Israel’s missile defense.

There are three different war powers resolutions in play in Washington. In the Senate, a resolution from Tim Kaine, D-Va., appears to be on track for a vote on Friday. In the House, however, Democrats remain sharply divided between two resolutions.

“There’s no upside to advancing a competing War Powers Resolution. It’s not just unnecessary — it’s actively counterproductive,” Cavan Kharrazian, a senior policy adviser at Demand Progress, said in a statement. “There’s still time to reconcile this on the House side, and we hope an agreement can be reached to enable a strong vote with the best possible language.”

The resolutions in both chambers face long odds, thanks to near-unanimous support from the majority Republicans for President Donald Trump’s strikes.

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Trees Get Bigger Around the World Thanks to Higher CO2 Levels

Recent scientific investigation, curiously missing from constant mainstream media reports of ecological Armageddon, confirms that trees are getting larger around the world due to higher levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide fertilisation.

A little extra of the gas of life, nature’s bountiful plant food, has led to bigger trees and more leaf growth over the last few decades. The recent small recovery in the near-denuded level of CO2 that was a threat to plant and human life on Earth has led to an astonishing 15%-plus increase in overall global vegetation growth in the last 40 years. Plants including trees have evolved to thrive in levels of atmospheric CO2 about three times higher than the current 420 parts per million (ppm) and scientific evidence is clearly showing rising levels are leading to faster growth in flora that is both healthier and more resistant to nature’s hazards such as drought.

Fascinating results are starting to emerge from a controlled Free-Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) experiment conducted since 2017 by the Birmingham Institute of Forest Research. This involved increasing CO2 levels to 550 ppm across patches of a 180-year old Oak forest in Staffordshire, England. When compared to controlled plots without the CO2 boost, it was found that oaks fed with the extra plant food showed growth rates that were an astonishing 10% higher in the period 2017-2023. Most of the growth is attributed to wood production. Compared to trees making do with the current 420 ppm, the boosted oaks are estimated to have produced an additional 1.7 tonnes of dry matter per hectare per year.

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3 Uncomfortable Facts about Israel’s War on Civilization that You Won’t Learn from Mainstream Media

And all this time you thought Israel was fighting something called “Hamas”! Poor dears, what else could you think, what with all the U.S. news outlets and “experts” and talking heads telling you the same thing?

But they lied.

They told you that Israel was fighting a “war.” They lied. What Israel is doing in Gaza isn’t a “war.” It’s a genocide.

They told you the carnage was only intended to affect the Middle East. They lied. They didn’t tell you that you could be among the casualties. That’s right: while Israel is piling dead bodies all over Gaza (not to mention Lebanon, Yemen, Syria and Iran), its leaders are planning to make American corpses, too, after they’ve hoodwinked Uncle Sam into waging their next Mideast genocide for them.

They told you not to worry: that it’s all under control. Again, they lied. They didn’t tell you that they have no idea how this will end – if it will ever end.

And now, as Washington, obeying the ever-present Israel lobby, has begun adding its own brand of “shock and awe” to yet another criminal assault in the Mideast whose direction it cannot control, they’re lying to you yet again.

So if you don’t want Iran to be the graveyard of human civilization, it’s time to face some uncomfortable facts about Israel’s war against all of us. It’s time to understand, without any evasions or equivocations, the sort of nightmare Israel is planning for the world.

Here are a few of the most crucial points.

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Australia to deploy 100 soldiers to help Ukraine in its bloody war against Russian aggression

Australia will deploy up to 100 soldiers and a military aircraft to Europe in an effort to support Ukraine in its ongoing war with Russia. 

Defence Minister Richard Marles announced the contributions at the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) leaders summit in the Netherlands on Wednesday. 

At the request of NATO and Poland, Australia will deploy a Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail aircraft in August along with 100 Australian Defence Force personnel. 

Part of Operation Kudu, the deployment is designed to protect an international gateway for humanitarian and military assistance into Ukraine and will not be direct combat roles. 

The deployment is expected to conclude by November and will compliment Australia’s more than $1.5billion in support to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February 2022. 

‘Australia is proud of its longstanding operational partnership with NATO,’ Mr Marles said in announcing the commitments on Wednesday. 

‘The deployment of an E-7A Wedgetail aircraft will again showcase our ability to operate from Europe, alongside NATO and partners, in support of Ukraine and international peace and security.’

Leaders of the defensive alliance descended on The Hague on Tuesday for two days of talks on the conflict and Washington’s uncertain commitment to NATO. 

Representatives of the member states, including many European nations, the UK, the US and Canada, are expected to commit five per cent of their national outputs to defence and related spending. 

Australia is not a NATO member but is considered one of its Indo-Pacific partners alongside Japan, the Republic of Korea and New Zealand.

During the summit, Australia also imposed a fresh wave of financial sanctions and travel bans on 37 individuals and financial sanctions on seven entities.   

Mr Marles said the sanctions will target Russia’s defence, energy, transport, insurance, electronic and finance sectors and proponents of disinformation and propaganda. 

Foreign Minister Penny Wong welcomed the sanctions as a sign of Australia’s deep ties with NATO member states.  

‘Our targeted sanctions reflect our close coordination with key NATO partners, including the UK, Canada and the European Union.

‘Australia has now imposed more than 1,500 sanctions in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. We will continue to work with partners to disrupt Russia’s ability to fund its illegal and immoral war.’

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Britain’s plan for war: Nuke-laden jets, new submarines, £1bn for bio labs and the ‘Blitz spirit’ – how UK is readying itself as chilling report warns country should ‘actively prepare’ for an attack

The UK is buying a fleet of nuke-laden jets, building new attack submarines, establishing a network of bio labs, and reviving the ‘Blitz spirit’ amid growing threats.

As Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer attends a NATO summit in The Hague, it was confirmed Britain is set to buy 12 F35-A fighter jets.

The £80million jets, a variant of the F35-Bs the UK already uses, can carry conventional weapons but can also be equipped with nuclear bombs.

They are expected to carry American B-61 nuclear gravity bombs, capable of killing thousands.

It follows the recent announcement that the UK will build up to 12 new attack submarines.

The new conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines will replace the seven-strong Astute class from the late 2030s onwards. 

The bolstering of Britain’s military kit comes as a chilling new report outlined the growing threats faced by the UK.

The national security strategy, published yesterday, warned of a direct attack on British soil.

‘For the first time in many years, we have to actively prepare for the possibility of the UK homeland coming under direct threat, potentially in a wartime scenario,’ it said.

In his foreword to the report, Sir Keir set out an ‘historic commitment’ to spending 5 per cent of Britain’s GDP on national security by 2035.

This is as has been agreed by NATO leaders at this week’s summit.

The national security strategy also set out how £1billion is being invested in a new network of ‘national biosecurity centres’.

These willl bolster the UK’s defences against biological incidents, accidents and attacks.

The report included a call for Brits to revive the ‘Blitz spirit’ as it warned ‘the years ahead will test the UK’ in the face of ‘radical uncertainty’ across the world.

‘We do not need to look too far into our history for an example of a whole-of-society effort, motivated by a collective will to keep each other safe,’ it added.

‘We can mobilise that spirit again and use it both for our national security and the rebuilding of our country.’

Asked about the warnings that Britain needs to be prepared for the risk of war on home soil, Defence Secretary John Healey told LBC this morning: ‘Nobody expects an invasion of Britain today or tomorrow.

‘But this is part of the warnings that we saw in the strategic defence review, a recognition that we need to take the resilience of our homeland, the defence of our homeland, more seriously.’

In the national security strategy, the UK was said to now find itself in ‘an era in which we face confrontation with those who are threatening our security’. 

The report highlighted Russian cyber attacks and sabotage against the UK, Iranian hostile activity on British soil, and other adversaries ‘laying the foundations for future conflict’.

This includes them ‘positioning themselves to move quickly to cause major disruption to our energy and or supply chains,’ the strategy said.

The strategy aims to protect the UK at home and abroad, and also invest more in artificial intelligence (AI) and defence.

Sir Keir said the UK is ‘facing daily challenges on the home front’ with Britain targeted by ‘very, very frequent and very, very serious’ cyberattacks.

The PM, speaking to Sky News at a NATO summit in The Hague on Tuesday, added: ‘We have to guard properly against those threats, and we will do so.’

While the national security strategy outlined the threat from Russia, Iran and North Korea, it also highlighted the ‘challenge’ of China as a global actor.

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Federal Court Upholds Arkansas Hemp Restrictions, Contradicting Texas Governor’s Stance In Vetoing Proposed Ban In His State

Several of the reasons Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) made for vetoing a statewide THC ban, SB 3, were rejected Tuesday by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Texas legislature overwhelmingly passed SB 3 with bipartisan support during the regular legislative session. Late Sunday night, Abbott vetoed it.

In his proclamation explaining the veto, he said SB 3 was “well-intentioned. But it would never go into effect because of valid constitutional challenges.” If it were enacted, “its enforcement would be enjoined for years, leaving existing abuses unaddressed,” he said, adding that “Texas cannot afford to wait.”

He pointed to Arkansas enacting a THC ban in 2023, Act 629, which was challenged in court. A lower court halted it from going into effect, arguing it would “likely [be] preempted by federal statutes and that its criminal provisions were likely unconstitutionally vague,” Abbott said. “The result in Arkansas? Their law has sat dormant, meaningless, having no effect for nearly two years while further legal proceedings play out. That result must be avoided in Texas,” Abbott said.

Instead, he proposed regulating THC similar to how alcohol is regulated.

On Monday, Patrick challenged each of Abbott’s arguments, saying they were flawed and factually inaccurate. Federal law expressly permits states to impose their own restrictions, including banning THC, Patrick said. He also said the Fourth and Seventh circuits have ruled as much and California and Colorado banned THC with no problems, The Center Square reported.

He said he believed the 8th Circuit would rule in favor of Arkansas.

One day later, it did.

On Tuesday, a panel of judges on the Eighth Circuit, including the chief judge, reversed the lower court’s injunction.

The judges also confirmed Patrick’s argument, stating in their 16-page ruling that nothing in the 2018 Farm Bill “preempts or limits any law of a State or Indian tribe that…regulates production of hemp and is more stringent than this subchapter.”

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The Algorithm Behind IAEA Iran Nuke Allegations: ‘Minority Report for Uranium’

On May 31, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) disclosed that there were 408.6 kg of uranium enriched to 60%, including 166.6 kg located at the Fordow nuclear site in Iran, issuing a caution regarding a possible “nine-bomb” breakout. According to Reuters, which reviewed the IAEA confidential report, the UN nuclear watchdog concluded that “three locations (Lavisan-Shian, Varamin, and Turquzabad), and other possible related locations, were part of an undeclared structured nuclear programme carried out by Iran until the early 2000s and that some activities used undeclared nuclear material.” This report eventually led to a censure on June 6 (with a vote of 19–3), thereby facilitating Israel’s strike on June 12. A separate IAEA report sent to UNSC member states indicated that Iran’s stockpile of uranium enriched to around 60% purity has risen by 50% to 408.6 kg, nearing the 90% threshold for weapons-grade material. The IAEA stated this quantity could potentially produce nine nuclear weapons if further enriched.  What wasn’t explained is how the IAEA came to these conclusions with zero evidence to back up their allegations…

On June 12, 2025, Israel initiated “Operation Rising Lion,” aimed at Iran’s Natanz nuclear site and the heavily fortified Fordow bunker, leading to numerous fatalities, among them two IRGC commanders and one nuclear scientist. Prime Minister Netanyahu was quick to characterise Israel’s unprovoked strike as a direct assault on the heart of Iran’s nuclear aspirations. Meanwhile, President Trump, with the backing of CENTCOM’s General Kurilla, cautioned of dire repercussions.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei Hamaneh’s response was immediate, with Tehran strongly criticising the UN nuclear watchdog, accusing its head, Rafael Grossi, of bias and alleging IAEA alignment with Israel amidst Tel Aviv’s aggression on Iran. Hamaneh’s allegations arose following Grossi’s statement, which unfortunately came too late,  that the regulatory body lacked any evidence of a coordinated attempt by Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.

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Rand Paul Files Bill To Triple Federal THC Limit For Hemp As House Pursues Crackdown On Consumable Cannabinoids

As the hemp industry raises concerns about congressional attempts to ban most consumable cannabinoid products, a GOP senator has filed a bill that would triple the concentration of THC that the crop could legally contain, while addressing multiple other concerns the industry has expressed about federal regulations.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the legislation, titled the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (HEMP) Act, last week. It mirrors versions he’s sponsored over the last several sessions.

Hemp and its derivatives were legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill, but the industry has experienced multiple setbacks in the years since—and the proliferation of intoxicating cannabinoid products has led to pushes in Congress and state legislatures across the country to reign in the largely unregulated market.

To that point, a GOP-led House committee this week approved a spending bill containing provisions that hemp stakeholders say would devastate the industry, prohibiting most consumable cannabinoid products that were federally legalized during the first Trump administration.

The legislation would “effectively” criminalize hemp-derived cannabinoid products, including CBD, according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report.

In contrast, the newly reintroduced measure from Paul would address one of the most common complaints that lawmakers have heard from hemp businesses under the current law, which is that the crop is federally defined as containing no more than 0.3 percent THC by dry weight. They say that’s too low, and so the bill would increase that threshold to 1 percent.

It would also address potential problems with testing requirements under U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulations. Hemp processors currently get a 15-day window to test the crop’s flower to ensure that the THC concentration is within the allowed limits. But testing flower can be onerous and farmers have said it would stretch their resources thin, not to mention that the plant’s THC is significantly impacted by external factors.

To fix that issue, the bill calls for final hemp products themselves to be tested, rather than the initial flower from the plant.

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