Tag: the war on (some) drugs

Teen Use Of Delta-8 THC Is Higher In States Without Legal Marijuana, New Study Published By American Medical Association Finds

Teen use of delta-8 THC is higher in states where marijuana is illegal, according to a new study published on Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). When it comes to adolescent consumption of cannabis itself, “there were no differences in marijuana use by state-level cannabis policies,” the researchers concluded, contrary to legalization opponents’ oft-repeated claim that the reform will lead to increased teen use.

Overall, just over eleven percent of high-school seniors self-reported using cannabis products containing delta-8 THC in the past year, the study found. Use of the largely unregulated psychoactive cannabinoid “is appreciable among US adolescents,” authors wrote, “and is higher in states without marijuana legalization or existing Δ8-THC regulations.”

In states where marijuana remains prohibited, 14 percent of high-school seniors said they had used a delta-8 product in the past year, the federally funded research found. Where marijuana was legal, that figure was 7 percent.

Local decisions to regulate delta-8 THC were linked to even lower use rates among adolescents. In states with no delta-8 rules, 14.4 percent of participants had used the cannabinoid within the past year compared to just 5.7 percent in states with delta-8 regulations.

“Given the federal policy context and divergent regional and policy correlates of Δ8-THC and marijuana use found in this study,” the report says, “Δ8-THC may be marketed to and/or used by adolescents as a psychoactive cannabis substitute in places in which adult-use marijuana is illegal.”

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Marijuana Can Help Increase Orgasm Frequency And Satisfaction For Women, Study Finds

As at least four U.S. states weigh whether to add female orgasmic disorder (FOD) as a qualifying condition for medical marijuana, a newly published journal article by one of the organizers of that effort further reinforces the potential benefits offered by cannabis, including increased orgasm frequency, improved satisfaction and greater ease achieving orgasm.

Published this month in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, the report is the product of a 2022 observational study by authors Suzanne Mulvehill, a clinical sexologist, and Jordan Tishler, a doctor at the Association of Cannabinoid Specialists and the company inhaleMD. While decades of sexuality research support the use of marijuana for sexual difficulties, the authors said, theirs is “the first study to look at FOD specifically, demonstrating significant benefit.”

The survey of 387 participants found that more than half (52 percent) said they experienced orgasm difficulty.

“Among respondents reporting orgasm difficulty, cannabis use before partnered sex increased orgasm frequency (72.8%), improved orgasm satisfaction (67%) or made orgasm easier (71%),” the study found.

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Virginia Lawmaker Slams Governor For Vetoing Bill To Protect Marijuana Consumers’ Parental Rights

The House sponsor of legislation in Virginia that aimed to protect the parental rights of lawful cannabis consumers is criticizing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s decision last week to veto the bill.

If enacted, HB 833 would have prevented the state from using marijuana alone as evidence of child abuse or neglect and, further, established that drug testing in child custody and visitation matters “shall exclude testing for any substance permitted for lawful use by an adult” under the state’s alcohol, cannabis and drug laws.

Youngkin vetoed the bill on Friday, writing in a message that “the proposed legislation, aiming to address a non-existent problem, has potential consequences that may expose children to harm.”

Del. Rae Cousins (D), the bill’s sponsor, said in a statement on Monday that the governor “is turning his back on the needs of our children and neglecting their well-being by encouraging the courts to move forward with unnecessary family separations.”

“We have seen how this is playing out in our courts; with Black and Brown families receiving harsher mandates from our judges for legal and responsible substance use,” the lawmaker said. “Family separation has devastating effects both on our communities and on the well-being of children, and by vetoing this legislation, Governor Youngkin is telling our courts that they can continue to unnecessarily tear children away from their parents.”

On its path to the governor’s desk, the legislation won unanimous or near-unanimous approval in votes on the Senate floor. The House was more divided, with Democrats generally in favor, though the proposal garnered some Republican votes, as well.

“I am deeply disappointed in Governor Youngkin’s decision to veto this bipartisan, commonsense bill that simply helps families stay together,” Cousins said.

The bill now returns to the legislature, where two thirds of both houses will have to approve it in order to override Youngkin’s veto. A companion Senate version of the measure, SB 115, also passed the legislature this session but has not yet been transmitted to the governor’s desk.

The proposal says a person’s “lawful possession or consumption” of state-legal substances would “not serve as a basis to restrict custody or visitation unless other facts establish that such possession or consumption is not in the best interest of the child.” An enactment clause would have directed the state Board of Social Services to amend its regulations, guidance documents and other materials to comply with the provisions of the bill.

Cousins, in the statement from her office, noted that courts “would still have full ability to assess what is in the best interests of the child, including the risk of physical or mental harm.”

Advocates have said they’re disappointed with Youngkin’s veto decision but pledged to continue pushing for the policy change.

“Disappointed doesn’t describe how it feels for the veto to come down after two years of pushing this proposal,” Chelsea Higgs Wise, executive director of the group Marijuana Justice, told Marijuana Moment last week, adding that organizers “will be back next year and every year until we get it right.”

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Minnesota Regulators Launch Effort To Catch Retailers Selling Illegal Marijuana As ‘Hemp’ Flower

It has been an open question—until now—whether registered hemp retailers in Minnesota are selling raw cannabis flower that crosses the line between legal hemp and illegal marijuana.

Marijuana use is legal in Minnesota, but legal sales haven’t started yet outside of tribal reservations. That means a raw cannabis flower purchased in the Twin Cities that recently tested above the legal limit isn’t supposed to be sold in the state.

Because of a gap in the state’s new recreational cannabis law, no state regulators had either the legal authority or the inspectors to sample the flower being sold to check whether it exceeded the federal and state definitions for hemp. That is, is the flower being sold in some stores legal or illegal? Does it contain more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC, the intoxicating compound in marijuana?

Turns out, it does. The sample purchased from a registered hemp store by a private person tested at levels that are illegal under the law, according to the results from a California-based cannabis testing lab. MinnPost agreed not to name either the raw flower purchaser or the lab but has verified the identities of both.

The lab reported the flower showed a potency of 1.1 percent delta-9 THC, three times the limit under state law. The same sample showed that the bud had total THC content of 29.99 percent. Total THC is a measure of all different types of THC in the flower and 29.99 percent is similar to the types of flower sold in legal recreational marijuana states.

The retail sample tested is actually more potent than a cannabis sample purchased on the illicit market in Minnesota and tested by the same lab. That sample showed 1.38 percent delta-9 THC and 25.36 percent total THC.

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Massachusetts Officials Eye Regulation Of THC-Infused Hemp Products Sold In Liquor Stores And Smoke Shops

Beacon Hill is waking up to a regulatory loophole that has allowed hemp drinks and gummies with intoxicating doses of THC—the same high-inducing ingredient found in cannabis—to show up in liquor stores, smoke shops and restaurants across Massachusetts.

At a legislative hearing on Tuesday, Sen. Michael Moore (D-Millbury) asked the commissioner of the state Department of Agriculture Resources what she was doing about the spread of these unregulated products. The commissioner, Ashley Randle, said her agency is aware of the problem and working with the Department of Public Health to put out new guidance next month on how these products should be treated.

That was a big step forward. The products are technically illegal in Massachusetts, but neither the Agricultural Department, which regulates hemp, nor the Department of Public Health, which regulates food products, has stepped up with any enforcement. The agencies have left that job to under-resourced local boards of health which have taken no action.

Moore said the current situation isn’t working. “This is a product that people are going to be consuming. When I say people, this could be adults, it could be minors,” he said. “I think we need to have some review just to determine what’s safe.”

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New Hampshire Lawmakers Vote To Expand Medical Marijuana Program With New Conditions And Higher Possession Limits

The New Hampshire House approved a group of bills expanding the state’s therapeutic cannabis program Thursday—as lawmakers continue to grapple with whether to legalize marijuana for everyone.

The chamber voted to pass House Bill 1278, a bill to add debilitating or terminal conditions to the list of qualifications for using therapeutic cannabis, also known as medical marijuana. In a separate vote, the House approved House Bill 1349, which allows those with generalized anxiety disorder to be part of the therapeutic cannabis program.

Both bills would require the patient to obtain a recommendation from a medical provider that they be prescribed medical cannabis.

The House also approved a bill to increase the amount of cannabis a medical marijuana patient can possess at one time. House Bill 1350 would raise the limit from 2 ounces to 4. Currently, the state’s cannabis decriminalization law allows people to possess up to three-quarters of an ounce.

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Viking Drug Use: From Riotous Parties to Berserker Fury

The Vikings stand as legendary figures, their exploits on the seas and battlefields shrouded in myth and mystery. Yet beyond their tales of conquest and exploration lies a lesser-known aspect of Viking culture: their relationship with mind-altering substances.

From the halls of Valhalla to the depths of the dark Nordic forests, some believe the Vikings indulged in a variety of intoxicants, from potent mead brewed from honey to hallucinogenic mushrooms harvested from the wild and maybe even cannabis. It’s even said the Viking’s most fearsome warriors, the Berserkers, were fueled by narcotics.

As is so often the case with Viking history, separating fact from fiction isn’t easy when it comes to Norse drug use.

A Match Made In Valhalla?

The Vikings have a pretty wild reputation, and they were indeed no strangers to revelry and celebrations. Feasts, gatherings, and festivals served as integral parts of their social fabric. Much like many social gatherings today, imbibing certain drugs was a central part of how Vikings socialized.

Their primary drug of choice was, unsurprisingly, alcohol. Not just a means of relaxation and merriment after a hard day’s raiding, it was a symbol of social status and hospitality (a key aspect of Viking culture). Mead, often referred to as the “drink of the gods,” held particular reverence among the Norse with reference being made to it throughout various mythological tales, sagas, and rituals.

But it is likely they didn’t stop there. Over the years there has been much speculation over what other drugs the Vikings may have consumed, especially the potential use of hallucinogenic substances among the Norse.

References in sagas and folklore hint at the consumption of psychoactive mushrooms, such as  Amanita muscaria, known for their mind-altering properties. While evidence for widespread use remains elusive, the possibility of occasional experimentation cannot be discounted.

But before we begin speculating as to what the Vikings may have used, let’s focus on what we know they definitely used. In Viking society, alcohol consumption was a deeply ingrained cultural practice that permeated every aspect of life. Think British pub culture, but even more fundamental and much more spiritual.

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DeSantis Has A ‘Big Problem’ With Florida Marijuana Ballot Measure, Citing ‘Smells’ In Other Places That Have Legalized

With the Florida Supreme Court weighing whether to allow an adult-use marijuana legalization measure to be on November’s ballot, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) on Friday reiterated his stance against the policy change, complaining that letting adults legally consume cannabis could impact businesses and communities—including as the result of odor.

“I’ve gone to some of these cities that have had this everywhere, it smells, there’s all these things,” he told reporters, complaining that the proposal wouldn’t give government officials enough power to control when and where marijuana businesses operate—a claim backers of the initiative deny.

“I don’t want to be able to go walk in front of shops and have this, I don’t want every hotel to really smell,” he added, “I don’t want all these things. But if you’re saying you can’t regulate it or you can’t limit it—which, that’s how I read that—that could be a big, big problem.”

Despite his opposition to the initiative, DeSantis, the former GOP presidential candidate who dropped out of the race in January, has predicted that the state’s highest court will ultimately allow the measure on November’s ballot.

“I think the court is going to approve that,” the governor said at his final campaign event in New Hampshire earlier this year, “so it’ll be on the ballot.”

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Oregon Governor Will Sign Bill Overturning Voter-Approved Drug Decriminalization Law

Gov. Tina Kotek (D) said she plans to sign the centerpiece bill that lawmakers passed in response to the state’s soaring drug addiction and fentanyl overdoses.

House Bill 4002, a compromise proposal that won bipartisan support, will recriminalize possession of small amounts of hard drugs, reversing part of Measure 110, which voters approved in 2020. The bill has provisions to offer drug users multiple opportunities to enter treatment after an encounter with a police officer.

“Finally, reforms to Measure 110 will start to take shape, as I intend to sign House Bill 4002 and the related prevention and treatment investments within the next 30 days,” Kotek said in a statement released late Thursday. “As governor, my focus is on implementation.”

She has 30 business days to sign or veto the 115 bills that were passed, and once that happens, the $211 million lawmakers approved can be distributed. It would provide money for outpatient clinics, residential facilities, sobering centers, opioid treatment in jail, public defenders and court diversion programs. They also allocated $18 million for recovery houses.

A new misdemeanor would take effect in September, with up to 180 days in jail if probation is revoked.

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After 17 Years, Feds Stop Trying To Imprison a Licensed Medical Marijuana Provider

Seventeen years ago, the federal government raided Charlie Lynch’s medical marijuana dispensary in Morro Bay, California, and charged him with five drug felonies. Lynch, whose business complied with state and local regulations, has been fighting to stay out of prison ever since, and last month he finally won that battle.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), which had been insisting since the first iPhone was released that Lynch should be incarcerated for at least five years, suddenly agreed to a deal that will spare him that punishment and erase his criminal record. The case, which proceeded on autopilot even as marijuana prohibition collapsed in one state after another, is a vivid reminder that the unjust, massively unpopular policy persists at the federal level thanks to presidential and congressional inertia.

Lynch, a software developer who lived in San Luis Obispo County, started mulling a new line of work after he obtained a doctor’s recommendation for marijuana to treat his cluster headaches and found there were no nearby dispensaries that could supply his medicine. He conferred with a lawyer, local officials, and even the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) before opening Central Coast Compassionate Caregivers in downtown Morro Bay in April 2006.

California had legalized medical marijuana a decade earlier, and Lynch’s business was licensed, aboveboard, and legitimate as far as the city and state were concerned. The mayor, the city attorney, and city council members attended the grand opening ceremony, where the mayor posed for a photo shaking Lynch’s hand.

None of that mattered to the DEA, which raided the dispensary in March 2007, at which point it had been openly serving patients for a year. During Lynch’s 2008 trial in Los Angeles, he was not allowed to discuss the nature of his business, which was irrelevant under federal law.

“We all felt Mr. Lynch intended well,” the jury forewoman told the Los Angeles Times. “But under the parameters we were given for the federal law, we didn’t have a choice.”

At sentencing, U.S. District Judge George Wu considered details the jury was not allowed to hear, including the purpose of Lynch’s business, his extensive efforts to comply with state regulations, and the “scrupulous record-keeping” that enabled him to do that even as it facilitated his federal prosecution. Noting that Lynch had no prior criminal convictions and deeming him neither a typical drug dealer nor a serious threat to public safety, Wu sentenced him to a year and a day in federal prison.

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