dope magazine july issue

POT TOURISMCome Along For The Ride On Seattle’s Hottest New Tourist Attraction

CANNABIS COOKING>Spaghetti

ROAD TRIP TO PARISStrain Review

>DA VINCI

XXXVJULY2014

FREE

Da VinciSTRAIN OF THE MONTH 16

SpaghettiEDIBLES 18

The Green DoorFEATURE CO-OP 36

The Green CaféFEATURE VENUE 42

C02 OrganicsGROW 68

ParisROAD TRIP 58

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TilrayMARIJUANA NEWS 20

Times Are ChangingHEALTH 28

Traveling with CannabisHERBAN MYTHS 96

DabaccinoPIECES 76

This photo and cover photo by Allie Beckett

How To Keep CoolGROW 54

Pot TourismFEATURE 24

CHSHEALTH 32

CannabusMARIJUANA NEWS 46

Kettle Falls FiveMARIJUANA NEWS 84

JAMES ZACHODNIEditor-In-Chief

TREK HOLLNAGELSales Director

EVAN CARTEREditorial Director

ALLIE BECKETTPhotography

JARED MIRSKYArt Director

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Sharon LettsMichael Condon Jr

SALES MANAGERS

Devin Patrick

Fernando Kuhn

Angela-Jordan Aguilar

COPY EDITOR

Jordan Baer

DOPE is a free publication dedicated to providing and informative and wellness-minded voice to the cannabis movement. While our foundation is the medical cannabis industry, it is our intent to provide ethical and research-based articles that address the many facets of the war on drugs, from politics to lifestyle and

beyond. We believe that through education and honest discourse, accurate policy and understanding can emerge. DOPE Magazine is focused on defending both our patients and our plant, and to

being an unceasing force for revolutionary change.

Dope Magazine and the entire contents of this magazine are copyright 2013 Dope Magazine LLC, all rights reserved and may not be reproduced in any manner, in whole or part without the written

permission from Dope Magazine LLC.

Published in Seattle, Washington 98109

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QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? EMAIL US AT [email protected]

Heath Laslo

Mychal Trawick

Yasi Firoozi

JESUS DIAZGraphics/Operations

Da Vinci, a strain of rebirth, is a rare Dutch Treat phenotype. Still dominantly an Indica (almost 80%), but little else is known about what separates it from other Dutchies you might see on display. Similar to how little was known about the real Da Vinci from 1476-1478.

I took a whiff of the nug presented to me. Sniff, sniff. A divinely sweet aroma immediately tickles my nose hairs. That soon fades and a wave of pure botanical magic quickly follows it up. The scent caused me to smile but not smile at the same time.

The base color of the buds was a deep, rich green topped with stiff orange hairs protruding towards the heavens. You could almost paint a canvas with the nugget of Da Vinci. Squeeze it a bit and you’ll notice the toughness and firmness of the juicy little morsel.

I detected citrus notes upon the first deep inhale. My lungs thanked me for the smoothness and my tongue was ecstatic. It reminded me of an orange Italian Soda with a splash of mint except it’s cannabis smoke. Certainly makes one want to take an Italian vacation.

GENETICS MEDICAL BENEFITS

LOOKS SMELLWell knock me on the floor and call me the Pope. This little joint of Da Vinci put me in an upright position in my pilot chair with little motivation to remove myself from said chair until all Late Night with Jimmy Fallon was over. I hopped into bed shortly afterwards.

Da Vinci is a strain best honored during a History Channel program about the Renaissance, it will help with anxiety, insomnia, any sort of bodily pain. And although it didn’t eliminate my stress headache, it did make me care less about it. Invent a new flying machine and enjoy this strain.

FLAVOR EFFECTS

WRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTO BY ALLIE BECKETT

Da Vinci

CANNABINOID CONTENT 16.65% THC0.31% CBDTested by

Analytical 360

STRAIN OF THE MONTH

DOPEMAGAZINEONLINE.COM16

provided by CCC Ballard

CANNABINOID CONTENT 16.65% THC0.31% CBDTested by

Analytical 360

ANALYTICAL 360 is Washington State’s �rst Cannabis Analysis Laboratory to provide Quality Assurance testing to the Medical Marijuana Community in Washington State. By o�ering Cannabinoid and Terpene Potency Pro�ling, Foreign Matter Inspection, Microbial Analysis, and Residual Solvent Testing, ANALYTICAL 360 has helped Collective Gardens provide cleaner and safer products to their Medical Marijuana Patients.

Now that Recreational Marijuana is legal, ANALYTICAL 360 is proud to be selected as the �rst Cannabis Analysis Laboratory certi�ed by Washington State to provide Quality Assurance services to I-502 Producers, Processors, Retailers, and Consumers.

Grown in Washington State

ANALYTICAL 360 Cannabis Analysis Laboratory

Tested By

w w w . A N A L Y T I C A L 3 6 0 . c o m2 0 6 - 5 7 7 - 6 9 9 8Open Everyday • Courier Service • CounsultingWestern Washington

2735 1st Ave SouthSeattle, WA 98134

Eastern Washington29 North 1st AveYakima, WA 98902

SLURP SOME NAPLESWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTO BY ALLIE BECKETT

EDIBLES


Remember that scene in “Lady and The Tramp” when the two dogs are enjoying a plate of spaghetti with meatballs? They really could’ve used this delicious, employee-made marinara sauce from Lucky LadyZ on Alki called “Canna-Jess.” Marinara sauce, so named for the mariners (not the baseball team, Go M’s) or sailors, if you will, of Old Italy. It is rumored they invented the stuff coming back from the “New World.” They never imagined it would end up like this, I’m sure.

I began cooking my pasta, I figured spaghetti noodles would best bring out the flavors of the sauce. Fettuccini wouldn’t be acceptable this time. No…I needed to go classic. The garlic, the organic tomatoes, the medicated olive oil and blend of other fine and easy to pronounce ingredients needed a proper palate. The spice I predicted and garlic danced on my tongue just thinking about the sauce …Mmmm…

Anyhoo, I boiled the noodles as directed and flung a test noddle on the wall to make sure it stuck. I started warming the sauce which was jarred, labeled beautifully and erupting with pleasant aromas as soon as it was opened.

Once it reached an acceptable temperature, I then poured the ENTIRE jar over my noodles to properly experiment. I was full about half way through. Fifteen minutes passed. I felt pretty good. Thirty minutes fly by…Now I’m where I need to be. I notice myself laughing uncontrollably at times and my muscles seemed quite relaxed. I soon got hungry again and finished the rest of my dinner. Stuffed and magnificently medicated, I was…to simplify it into a single word…content. Contention is a rare gift in the chaotic universe of our minds. We should relish it. Savor it. Milk it for every nanosecond we possibly can.

Spaghetti With A Special Twist

Canna-Jess Marinara Sauce

$12

SLURP SOME NAPLES

Canna-Jess Marinara Sauce

$12


Tilray, a Canadian medical marijuana grow

operation, made international news after their

country’s overhaul of their medical marijuana

program when they built a multi-million dollar

facility, unlike anything before. Not only have

they been championed as the most elite of

Canadian growers but they’re also setting the

bar for a legal cannabis system worldwide with

their professionalism and quality. DOPE had an

opportunity to connect with the company to

ask a few questions and shed some light on

the new Canadian Medical Marijuana.

DOPE: Tell me a little about Tilray, how it

began and how the company has evolved

along with the Canadian Medical Marijuana

program…

TILRAY: About a year ago, we started hearing

about the new cannabis regulations in

Canada, and began looking into business

opportunities. We met with about 50

companies that were applying for a license

and ultimately decided to put together

our own application to become a licensed

producer under Canada’s MMPR – Marihuana

for Medical Purposes Regulations.

We put together a team of professionals

and submitted our 300 page application to

Health Canada.

We invested $20 million in a 70,000 square

foot facility in Nanaimo, BC, which we built

to grow and ship medical cannabis. We

received our federal license from Health

Canada in April, and since then we have

been harvesting, hand-trimming, packing

and shipping medical cannabis to Canadian

patients every day.

Tilray has already created 65 local jobs and

is still looking to fill positions for marketing

managers, bilingual customer service

representatives, horticulturists, trimmers

and shipping specialists. Tilray will hire

an additional 40 employees in the coming

months.

DOPE: What is the growing capacity of your

facilities? How much and how frequently can

you crop?

TILRAY: We currently have over 10,000

medical cannabis plants in cultivation,

CANADA’S BIG MEDICALWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTS PROVIDED BY TILRAY

TILRAY

GROW

DOPEMAGAZINEONLINE.COM 21

representing over 40 strains, including

indicas, sativas, hybrids and CBD-rich

varieties. By fall 2014 we will have 40,000

cannabis plants in cultivation. We’ll never

build a facility this small again.

DOPE: How does the Canadian Government

view your company and the medical

marijuana industry as a whole?

TILRAY: Health Canada could not have

been more helpful. The regulations are very

stringent and we think that’s a good thing.

This is an industry that’s under a lot of scrutiny

as it transitions from a black and gray market

to a legitimate industry, so it’s important that

we get this right. We were probably over-

prepared, but we passed inspection from

Health Canada the first time, which is almost

impossible. Since then we have had Health

Canada show up unannounced twice for

inspections that lasted several days where

they count every plant in the building.

DOPE: With Health Canada now, more or less,

in control of medical marijuana, does that

help or hurt the medical marijuana industry

and why? Is it difficult to get approval from

the Canadian government?

TILRAY: The MMPR is designed to be a

tightly regulated free market system. The

Licensed Producers compete on quality of

their product and customer service. We are

in favor of Canada’s progressive decision to

make medical cannabis available in a more

TILRAY

GROW


patient-friendly and safe way. We think that

the majority of patients and physicians who

rely on this treatment appreciate access to

pure, predictable cannabis that is consistently

available.

There are 13 companies who have received

approval from Health Canada to grow and sell

medical cannabis. Tilray is the only company

that has been shipping to patients every day.

DOPE: What are the guidelines for growing

companies in Canada? Are there growing

limits, standards and practices that are

mandatory? What are some of their quality

requirements?

TILRAY: Health Canada has issued hundreds

of pages of regulations governing medical

cannabis facilities; the MMPR is only a portion

of the regulations that Tilray must comply

with in order to remain licensed. Despite the

stringent nature of the regulatory structure,

the MMPR does not impose a growing

limit on licensed producers so long as they

have applied for a production capacity that

conforms to their security level. It encourages

a free-market system, albeit highly regulated.

DOPE: Is your product tested in-house or by

another party? Which process is used tested

and what is the product tested for?

TILRAY: Currently, Tilray cannabis is tested by

a third-party lab but we are currently building

out a research and development lab inside

our Nanaimo facility Tilray is producing

premium, pure BC-grown cannabis that

is hand-trimmed, pesticide free, never

irradiated, and tested for quality, purity

and potency to ensure our patients receive

medicine that is free of impurities. Tilray

cannabis is tested for THC and CBD content,

and for biological impurities, byproducts of

biological impurities, pesticides and heavy

metals.

DOPE: Are cannabis concentrates popular for

medical patients in Canada? Is the production

of concentrates allowed by Health Canada?

TILRAY: Under the current system, Health

Canada only allows for the sale of dried

cannabis. All of Tilray’s strains are sold as

whole hand-trimmed dried flower, never

ground up.

DOPE: How many companies have been

officially approved under the new rules of

Canadian Medical Marijuana? How many are

expected to meet the demand of patients in

Canada?

TILRAY: Currently there are only 13 Licensed

Producers authorized to sell cannabis to

patients directly.

DOPE: How powerful is the push for full

legalization, or recreational use, of cannabis

in Canada?

TILRAY: That’s for the Canadian government

to decide. Right now we’re focused on

producing pure, precise and predictable

cannabis for Canadian medical patients.

DOPE: What does the future hold for Canadian

Medical Marijuana and how does Tilray plan

on being a large part of that future?

TILRAY: At Tilray, we’re really pleased to be

on the forefront of the new Canadian medical

cannabis system. Health Canada estimates

that there are over 40,000 Canadians who

rely on medical cannabis now, and that

number is expected to grow to over 400,000

within the next ten years. We’re already

looking at locations to build additional Tilray

production facilities and look forward to

serving Canadian patients for many years to

come.

MARIJUANA NEWS


POT TOURISMWRITTEN BY YASAMINE FIROOZI SOME PHOTOS BY ALLIE BECKETT

WASHINGTON’S NEW BUDDING INDUSTRY

MARIJUANA NEWS


While many Washingtonians may still be

basking in the successful passage of I-502,

those behind the scenes of our emerging

marijuana industry have been hard at

work. These ‘gangaprenuers’ as some have

affectionately labeled them, are on their

last leg in the legislative process, and they

are set to assert themselves in the formal

economy. Production, processing, and

retail establishments - at least 334 business

licenses are currently under way - will

proliferate across the State this summer.

It has become apparent that other, perhaps

initially understated, business opportunities

- namely in cannabis related tourism - will

follow suit. The general notion that a sizable

portion of Seattleites smoke pot is not a novel

one. But the idea that individuals - from near

and far - could begin traveling here to do

the same, is. Cannabis Tourism businesses,

gourmet pot food trucks, private marijuana

clubs and the like have been diligently

strategizing their business models as they

eagerly await their debut. However, the size

and impact which this emerging industry will

have on Washington State - and the greater

Northwest - remains ambiguous as the

scarcity of statistical evidence and analytical

publications complicate our ability to

substantiate any real predictions. Although, in

using Colorado’s recent experience as a point

of departure, an informed - albeit generalized

- understanding does emerge. However,

as with most emerging industries - and

especially those that have operated within the

black market - speculating their economic,

political, and social impact presents a myriad

of complexities and contending opinions.

For instance, the Colorado Center on

Law & Policy projects a, “$60 million total in

combined savings and additional revenue

for Colorado’s Budget with the potential for

this number to double after 2017,” of which

$24 million will be allocated to the Building

Excellent Schools Today (BEST) program.

Not only have conventional retail

establishments emerged, cannabis tourism-

in many different forms - has done the same.

Proper cannabis tour companies such as Sprio

Tours, Colorado Cannabis Tours, Colorado

Greens Tours, Mountain High Treks and many

others offer pot friendly day, weekend, or full

vacation packages ranging from dispensary

tours, to glass blowing classes, and mountain

hikes. Cannabis friendly hotels, transportation

and concierge services have sprouted up

across the State as well . So far this year,

the marijuana industry has brought in an

estimated $12.8 million in taxes and fees and

reached a whopping $22 million in sales in

the month of April alone. Denver International

Airport even reported that the month of

April 2014 set the institutions record high for

passenger traffic. However, it is impossible to

say whether it was cannabis tourism’s effect

on travel incentives, or, if this is simply a

coincidence. Similarly, the Colorado Futures

Center evaluated the States estimate of $60

million in increased revenue concluding that:

“…given current consumption estimates, the

cost to grow a pound of marijuana would

be in the range of $1,100 a pound, almost

twice earlier estimates. That level risks raising

the price of retail marijuana so high that it

could send users back to the black market,”

criticizing the excess of current estimations.

Although, Tax Foundation economist Scott

Drenkard responded to this, stating, “Its hard

to know [what to expect] because its an

entirely new product on the legal market.”

However, this is some evidence that gives

even the most ambitious estimates some

merit.

A number of cannabis tourism businesses

are establishing themselves in Washington.

Kush Tourism, Cannabus, White Mustache

Urban Adventures, CannaCon and many

others offer informative tours, entertainment,

site seeing excursions and the like. And, like

Denver, pot friendly transportation - look

for the ‘CannaCab’ brand this summer - are

working together with pot tourism agencies to

provide travelers with the ultimate marijuana

experience. Private member clubs such as

BoomerBuds are also entering the mix. Hilary

Bricken, an attorney for the Canna Law Group,

has seen countless entrepreneurial pitches, “…

from gaming lounges, where there would be

“Not only have conventional retail establishments emerged, cannabis tourism- in many different forms - has done the same.”

MARIJUANA NEWS


a series of recliners and you can get stoned

and play Xbox all day, to cannabis cafes where

there’s a full menu that really adheres to the

cannabinoids and how they affect your taste

buds…evaluation bars where people could

bring there own marijuana and experts would

educate them on each strains composition

and its potential effects…[to] tours through

bucolic, organize pot farms,”. And although

the Washington State Cannabis Tourism

Association stated that, “until the stores

open with full shelves and we can get hotels

on board; cannabis tourism in Washington

will come out at a trot and then gain

momentum into the 2015 season,” the level of

coordination we are seeing between tourism

agencies, the food and entertain industries,

transportation companies, and - hopefully

- the hotel industry does give legalization

advocates some legitimacy in their assertions

that deregulation will spur economic growth

and business innovation. Forbes magazine

has also discussed Wall Street’s promotion

of venture investment in marijuana-related

start ups, highlighting a conference in San

Francisco run by ARcView Investor Network -

a group of entrepreneurs hoping to promote

investment in legal marijuana businesses.

However, Mark Kleiman - a Professor of

Public Policy at UCLA - stated that: “when it

comes to pot, its risky to invest in [marijuana

related] companies.” This is likely due to the

inconsistency between State and Federal laws

regarding marijuana as well as the fact that

banks are required to adhere to federal law -

prohibiting them from financing marijuana

start upsAlthough, the disconnect between

the financial sector, and the marijuana

industry is suspected to be on the mend as

the Treasury and Justice departments are

working to better synthesize State and federal

laws.

From a community perspective, it is

also difficult to speculate the changes to

come. For instance, legalization opponents

often highlight cases of marijuana induced

psychosis and DUI arrests, substance abuse

rates, increased access of minors, and inter-

state trafficking. However, many argue that

these cases are isolated incidences, that

the industry has strictly adhered to State

regulations, and point out that, in fact, crime

in Denver is down by about 10 percept. In

Washington, the same debate will likely

unfold. What is important to highlight here,

if nothing else, is while both proponents

and opponents have the basis to formulate

cohesive arguments, the reality is that it is

probably too soon to fully understand the

changes occurring beneath the surface. But

what we do know is that people are eager

to get involved, they are creating innovative

business models, and they are contributing

- even if below previous estimates - to the

broader economy and public good. Exactly

how well the cannabis tourism industry

will be able to sink its teeth into such an

ambiguous market is impossible to know.

However, the excitement it has generated

among consumers; powerful financial

institutions promoting investment in it; and

the entrepreneurial spirit that characterizes

the industry gives it pretty good odds in my

book.

Since then, 22 of 50 US states and the Dis-trict of Columbia have legalized the medi-cal and/or recreational use of cannabis. We are close to a “tipping point” where so many states have legalized cannabis for medicinal or recreational use that the federal govern-ment is going to have to change its policies in regard to cannabis, which is still considered a Schedule 1 narcotic by the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Patients and patient organizations nation-wide in concert with organizations such as Americans for Safe Access and NORML are pressuring lawmakers to make changes to

the federal cannabis laws. One such patient, and her family, that gained national attention is Charlotte Figi who suffers from Dravet Syn-drome, one of the most serious forms of epi-lepsy. Little Charlotte became the poster child for CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta series on medical cannabis where Dr. Gupta publically changed his opinion on the medicinal use of the drug.

An example of changes in public opinion and political pressure, as noted above, recent-ly played out on a national level in the Repub-lican-controlled US House of Representatives. A bill was passed that would essentially de-fund the DOJ/DEA’s budget to conduct medi-cal marijuana raids in states where medical or recreational is legal and approve a measure that would prohibit the Drug Enforcement Administration from targeting state-licensed medical marijuana operations.

The vote came in conjunction with H.R. 4660, a massive fiscal appropriations bill for the Departments of Justice, Commerce, Sci-

Reflecting back just a few years ago, it is impressive when we examine the progress made by giving pa-tients the right to gain safe access to medical and/or recreational cannabis not only here in Washington State, but nationwide. In 1972, the US Congress placed cannabis in Schedule I of the Controlled Sub-stances Act because they considered it to have “no accepted medical use.” Clearly this is not the case as public opinion has shifted dramatically in the past decade supporting the legalization of the plant for its inherent medicinal value to treat numerous ailments plaguing the American people.

WRITTEN BY HEATH LASLO

ence and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 15, 2015. Representative Dana Rohrabacher, a California Republican, proposed an amendment to H.R. 4660 that reads:

“None of the funds made available in this Act to the Department of Justice may be used, with respect to the States of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Con-necticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Flor-ida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minne-sota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico,

Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Ten-nessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wis-consin, to prevent such States from imple-menting their own State laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession or cultivation of medical marijuana.”

Other measures like this one have been introduced in the past, but none have ever gotten close to passage. This time around, however, was different; the US House of Representatives passed the amendment 219 to 189. The last time a similar bill was intro-duced and voted on was in 2007 when only 165 votes were in favor. This year’s vote in-crease can be largely attributed to the fact that lawmakers only recently began hear-ing the moving stories of the many children whose severe seizures are only relieved by cannabis.

Patient testimonials like the Figis’ have swayed public opinion to support medical cannabis and legalization, and politicians are

beginning to realize that they need to start representing their constituency or suffer the repercussions come election time. Moreover, the vote isn’t the final word on the subject. A long process remains before it can possibly be signed into law. As such, the vote does not yet qualify as a tipping point. Rather, it’s an indication that the balance continues to shift in the positive direction across the country.

While this recent victory in the US House of Representatives is a tremendous victory, it is important to stress that the language of Rohrabacher’s amendment specifically cites medical cannabis, not recreational. What does

this mean? Presumably, the DOJ/DEA could continue to fund enforcement of actions related to recreational cannabis in Colorado and Washington, however this seems unlikely. Both states are literally blazing new trails into uncharted territory and the feds along with other states are watching, anticipating they will be faced with similar legislation in 2016 and in years to come.

Now, the bill will move onto the Senate, where hopefully an identical amendment will pass there, or there could be more work to be done in a joint committee if two different ver-sions of the bill are passed by each chamber. Regardless, this is another victory in a long line of coming victories that will include tax code revisions, easing banking restrictions, states’ rights to pass their own regulations re-garding all adult use and, ultimately, ending cannabis prohibition across the entire nation.

HEALTH


Since then, 22 of 50 US states and the Dis-trict of Columbia have legalized the medi-cal and/or recreational use of cannabis. We are close to a “tipping point” where so many states have legalized cannabis for medicinal or recreational use that the federal govern-ment is going to have to change its policies in regard to cannabis, which is still considered a Schedule 1 narcotic by the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Patients and patient organizations nation-wide in concert with organizations such as Americans for Safe Access and NORML are pressuring lawmakers to make changes to

the federal cannabis laws. One such patient, and her family, that gained national attention is Charlotte Figi who suffers from Dravet Syn-drome, one of the most serious forms of epi-lepsy. Little Charlotte became the poster child for CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta series on medical cannabis where Dr. Gupta publically changed his opinion on the medicinal use of the drug.

An example of changes in public opinion and political pressure, as noted above, recent-ly played out on a national level in the Repub-lican-controlled US House of Representatives. A bill was passed that would essentially de-fund the DOJ/DEA’s budget to conduct medi-cal marijuana raids in states where medical or recreational is legal and approve a measure that would prohibit the Drug Enforcement Administration from targeting state-licensed medical marijuana operations.

The vote came in conjunction with H.R. 4660, a massive fiscal appropriations bill for the Departments of Justice, Commerce, Sci-

Reflecting back just a few years ago, it is impressive when we examine the progress made by giving pa-tients the right to gain safe access to medical and/or recreational cannabis not only here in Washington State, but nationwide. In 1972, the US Congress placed cannabis in Schedule I of the Controlled Sub-stances Act because they considered it to have “no accepted medical use.” Clearly this is not the case as public opinion has shifted dramatically in the past decade supporting the legalization of the plant for its inherent medicinal value to treat numerous ailments plaguing the American people.


ence and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 15, 2015. Representative Dana Rohrabacher, a California Republican, proposed an amendment to H.R. 4660 that reads:

“None of the funds made available in this Act to the Department of Justice may be used, with respect to the States of Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Con-necticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Flor-ida, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minne-sota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico,

Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Ten-nessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wis-consin, to prevent such States from imple-menting their own State laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession or cultivation of medical marijuana.”

Other measures like this one have been introduced in the past, but none have ever gotten close to passage. This time around, however, was different; the US House of Representatives passed the amendment 219 to 189. The last time a similar bill was intro-duced and voted on was in 2007 when only 165 votes were in favor. This year’s vote in-crease can be largely attributed to the fact that lawmakers only recently began hear-ing the moving stories of the many children whose severe seizures are only relieved by cannabis.

Patient testimonials like the Figis’ have swayed public opinion to support medical cannabis and legalization, and politicians are

beginning to realize that they need to start representing their constituency or suffer the repercussions come election time. Moreover, the vote isn’t the final word on the subject. A long process remains before it can possibly be signed into law. As such, the vote does not yet qualify as a tipping point. Rather, it’s an indication that the balance continues to shift in the positive direction across the country.

While this recent victory in the US House of Representatives is a tremendous victory, it is important to stress that the language of Rohrabacher’s amendment specifically cites medical cannabis, not recreational. What does

this mean? Presumably, the DOJ/DEA could continue to fund enforcement of actions related to recreational cannabis in Colorado and Washington, however this seems unlikely. Both states are literally blazing new trails into uncharted territory and the feds along with other states are watching, anticipating they will be faced with similar legislation in 2016 and in years to come.

Now, the bill will move onto the Senate, where hopefully an identical amendment will pass there, or there could be more work to be done in a joint committee if two different ver-sions of the bill are passed by each chamber. Regardless, this is another victory in a long line of coming victories that will include tax code revisions, easing banking restrictions, states’ rights to pass their own regulations re-garding all adult use and, ultimately, ending cannabis prohibition across the entire nation.

HEALTH


The purpose of this article is to educate you

on the signs and symptoms of a syndrome

associated with the chronic stimulation of

endocannabinoid system receptors (CB1 and

CB2) via the chronic and heavy use of can-

nabis.

The syndrome is referred to as Canna-

binoid Hyperemesis Syndrome or CHS. Al-

though CHS is thought to be relatively rare, it

is also thought to be underreported since the

symptoms look very similar to Cyclic Vomit-

ing Syndrome (CVS). Interestingly enough,

50 percent of patients with CVS report daily

cannabis use reinforcing the premise

that this syndrome is grossly under-

recognized and underreported.

The primary difference between

CHS and CVS is the compulsive

hot bathing/showering to elevate

nausea and vomiting, which we

will discuss in detail below.

CHS has been documented in a num-

ber of case reports in medical journals for

10 years now, yet it continues to be under-

recognized and misdiagnosed. CHS is char-

acterized by years of daily cannabis use that

causes recurrent “flare ups” of severe nausea,

vomiting/abdominal pain, compulsive bath-

ing for symptom relief and symptom resolu-

tion with cessation of use.

These flare ups occur on average every

two months and can last for days resulting in

multiple ER visits and hospitalizations. This

can place a large financial burden on patients

and their families due to the misdiagnosis,

ineffective treatments and length of

time it takes to get a correct

diagnosis.

When I first read about CHS in the sci-

entific journals, I filed it away in my brain as

“good to know,” but not prevalent enough for

me to consider writing an educational piece

on it. This changed after a friend of mine with

multiple sclerosis who has been using canna-

bis for three years for spasticity and pain relief

started experiencing episodes of severe nau-

sea followed by numerous bouts of vomiting

throughout the day and night.

Subsequently, my friend’s CHS symp-

toms would last on average seven to 14 days.

In the beginning she thought it was the flu

and would ride it out as long as possible.

However, inevitably she would end up in the

ER and hospital for a few days as doctors re-

hydrated her with IV fluids and tried to figure

out what was going on.

As mentioned above in the descrip-

tion of CHS, one of the unique and frankly

strange components of the syndrome is the

compulsive bathing in really hot water.

Taking these baths provided her

symptomatic relief, but it was

relatively short-lived with the

symptoms returning 30 to

45 minutes later. Hence, she

found herself taking anywhere be-

tween six to 10 hot baths a day. In addition to

the bathing ritual for temporary relief of her

nausea, she naturally consumed cannabis for

its well-known antiemetic (anti-nausea) ef-

fects. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to both of

us at the time, the cannabis she was consum-

ing was the cause of the problem and not the

cure.

The severe nausea and vomiting associ-

ated with CHS is one of the most interesting

paradoxical effects of cannabis in patients

with CHS. It is well-known and accepted

within the medical community that canna-

bis can markedly improve nausea associated

with chemotherapy and hence is thought to

be an excellent antiemetic medication.

The cause of the paradoxical hyper-

emetic symptoms of CHS remains unclear,

but several mechanisms have been proposed.

The principal active cannabinoid in canna-

bis is the highly lipophilic compound THC,

which binds to cannabinoid type one (CB1)

and type two (CB2) receptors in the CNS and

other tissues. It is thought that the antiemetic

and appetite-stimulating effects of cannabis

are mediated by CB1 receptor activation in

the hypothalamus. Nausea and vomiting are

thought to be mediated by the CB1 recep-

tor’s activation in the enteric nervous system

(nervous system of the gastrointestinal tract),

which causes slowed peristalsis and delayed

gastric emptying.

In sensitive people, chronic heavy can-

nabis use can cause THC to accumulate to

a toxic level in fatty tissues, causing enteric

receptor-binding effects to override the CNS

receptor-binding effects. This is supported by

case studies describing severe vomiting with

IV injection of crude marijuana extract.

Basically, after years of cannabis expo-

sure, my friend had developed a form of can-

nabinoid toxicity. Logically this makes sense.

As mentioned before, the treatment for CHS

is complete cessation. In my friend’s case, af-

ter spending a few days in the hospital away

from her vaporizer and dab rig, we slowly saw

improvements daily in her condition after

taking an imposed tolerance break. Yeah we

might live in WA, one of the two great states

in this country that has legalized cannabis

consumption, but they haven’t set up any dab

rigs at Swedish or Virginia Mason Hospital…

yet.

So if there is anything you take away

from this review, remember CHS specifically

responds to hot baths, which alleviate the

nausea and vomiting. Second, if you do think

that you or a loved one has CHS, stop using

cannabis for a few days and see if your symp-

toms start to subside. This is a good thing to

know about; it may save you or a loved one

from going through all the tests and proce-

dures and save you a lot in medical bills. Bet-

ter living through education folks. DOPE


CANNABINOID HYPEREMESIS S Y N D R O M E


"IN SENSITIVE PEOPLE, CHRONIC HEAVY CANNABIS USE CAN CAUSE THC TO ACCUMULATE TO A TOXIC LEVEL IN FATTY TISSUES."

HEALTH


The purpose of this article is to educate you

on the signs and symptoms of a syndrome

associated with the chronic stimulation of

endocannabinoid system receptors (CB1 and

CB2) via the chronic and heavy use of can-

nabis.

The syndrome is referred to as Canna-

binoid Hyperemesis Syndrome or CHS. Al-

though CHS is thought to be relatively rare, it

is also thought to be underreported since the

symptoms look very similar to Cyclic Vomit-

ing Syndrome (CVS). Interestingly enough,

50 percent of patients with CVS report daily

cannabis use reinforcing the premise

that this syndrome is grossly under-

recognized and underreported.

The primary difference between

CHS and CVS is the compulsive

hot bathing/showering to elevate

nausea and vomiting, which we

will discuss in detail below.

CHS has been documented in a num-

ber of case reports in medical journals for

10 years now, yet it continues to be under-

recognized and misdiagnosed. CHS is char-

acterized by years of daily cannabis use that

causes recurrent “flare ups” of severe nausea,

vomiting/abdominal pain, compulsive bath-

ing for symptom relief and symptom resolu-

tion with cessation of use.

These flare ups occur on average every

two months and can last for days resulting in

multiple ER visits and hospitalizations. This

can place a large financial burden on patients

and their families due to the misdiagnosis,

ineffective treatments and length of

time it takes to get a correct

diagnosis.

When I first read about CHS in the sci-

entific journals, I filed it away in my brain as

“good to know,” but not prevalent enough for

me to consider writing an educational piece

on it. This changed after a friend of mine with

multiple sclerosis who has been using canna-

bis for three years for spasticity and pain relief

started experiencing episodes of severe nau-

sea followed by numerous bouts of vomiting

throughout the day and night.

Subsequently, my friend’s CHS symp-

toms would last on average seven to 14 days.

In the beginning she thought it was the flu

and would ride it out as long as possible.

However, inevitably she would end up in the

ER and hospital for a few days as doctors re-

hydrated her with IV fluids and tried to figure

out what was going on.

As mentioned above in the descrip-

tion of CHS, one of the unique and frankly

strange components of the syndrome is the

compulsive bathing in really hot water.

Taking these baths provided her

symptomatic relief, but it was

relatively short-lived with the

symptoms returning 30 to

45 minutes later. Hence, she

found herself taking anywhere be-

tween six to 10 hot baths a day. In addition to

the bathing ritual for temporary relief of her

nausea, she naturally consumed cannabis for

its well-known antiemetic (anti-nausea) ef-

fects. Unfortunately, unbeknownst to both of

us at the time, the cannabis she was consum-

ing was the cause of the problem and not the

cure.

The severe nausea and vomiting associ-

ated with CHS is one of the most interesting

paradoxical effects of cannabis in patients

with CHS. It is well-known and accepted

within the medical community that canna-

bis can markedly improve nausea associated

with chemotherapy and hence is thought to

be an excellent antiemetic medication.

The cause of the paradoxical hyper-

emetic symptoms of CHS remains unclear,

but several mechanisms have been proposed.

The principal active cannabinoid in canna-

bis is the highly lipophilic compound THC,

which binds to cannabinoid type one (CB1)

and type two (CB2) receptors in the CNS and

other tissues. It is thought that the antiemetic

and appetite-stimulating effects of cannabis

are mediated by CB1 receptor activation in

the hypothalamus. Nausea and vomiting are

thought to be mediated by the CB1 recep-

tor’s activation in the enteric nervous system

(nervous system of the gastrointestinal tract),

which causes slowed peristalsis and delayed

gastric emptying.

In sensitive people, chronic heavy can-

nabis use can cause THC to accumulate to

a toxic level in fatty tissues, causing enteric

receptor-binding effects to override the CNS

receptor-binding effects. This is supported by

case studies describing severe vomiting with

IV injection of crude marijuana extract.

Basically, after years of cannabis expo-

sure, my friend had developed a form of can-

nabinoid toxicity. Logically this makes sense.

As mentioned before, the treatment for CHS

is complete cessation. In my friend’s case, af-

ter spending a few days in the hospital away

from her vaporizer and dab rig, we slowly saw

improvements daily in her condition after

taking an imposed tolerance break. Yeah we

might live in WA, one of the two great states

in this country that has legalized cannabis

consumption, but they haven’t set up any dab

rigs at Swedish or Virginia Mason Hospital…

yet.

So if there is anything you take away

from this review, remember CHS specifically

responds to hot baths, which alleviate the

nausea and vomiting. Second, if you do think

that you or a loved one has CHS, stop using

cannabis for a few days and see if your symp-

toms start to subside. This is a good thing to

know about; it may save you or a loved one

from going through all the tests and proce-

dures and save you a lot in medical bills. Bet-

ter living through education folks. DOPE




"IN SENSITIVE PEOPLE, CHRONIC HEAVY CANNABIS USE CAN CAUSE THC TO ACCUMULATE TO A TOXIC LEVEL IN FATTY TISSUES."

HEALTH


T H E C H O I C E I S C L E A RT H E D I F F E R E N C E I S S C I E N C E .

™

i n s t a g r a m . c o m / x _ t r a c t e dM a d e i n W a s h i n g t o n

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i n s t a g r a m . c o m / x _ t r a c t e dM a d e i n W a s h i n g t o n

FEATURE CO-OP


THE GREEN DOORDefined By Generosity

WRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTS BY ALLIE BECKETT

FEATURE CO-OP


THE GREEN DOORDefined By Generosity

WHAT’S INSIDEA long-standing building in Seattle’s historic International District, on 12th and Jackson to be more precise, holds the patient-friendly access point called The Green Door. The door of which, believe it or not, is decorated with the color green. If you visited The Green Door a few years back, you wouldn’t recognize it today with the impressive expansion and remodeling of the joint.

The lobby is accommodating, unassuming and pleasantly arranged. Clean and inviting. The staff is joyful, polite and evidently educated. They welcome patients with open hearts and eloquent conversation. They are excited to work in this field, happy to help patients and motivated to change the minds of naysayers and prohibitionists with intellect and charm. They want the patient to experience the medical and spiritual benefits of this remarkable plant.

A divine array of strains blesses the shelves including the ever-popular Purple Kush, a fine-looking Purple Sour Diesel specimen, an erupting Cherry Bomb, an enticingly named Buckeye Haze and the prideful (and powerful) Danky Doodle. Strains you might find elsewhere for exorbitant prices are not only far more affordable at The Green Door, but likely more potent here as well. As for edibles, enjoy the teas, Nana’s sodas and scrumptious Oreo cake pops enhanced with a dash of RSO, if you’re so inclined.

A variety of keif is available for cannabis connoisseurs along with many fine hashes for sativa savants. Do you prefer your concentrates chemically extracted and dabable? Fear not. The Green Door has an ample array of familiarly branded BHOs, CO2s and a dab station for sampling if you just can’t decide which is best for you. Clearly The Green Door has everything a patient could ask for in terms of products. What sets them apart from your run-of-the-mill dispensary is their enthusiasm for the cannabis plant and their more than generous donation rates. Generosity is the cornerstone of this industry and it’s exemplified at Seattle’s The Green Door.

ADDRESS: 1207 S. Jackson St. Seattle WA, 98144PHONE: (206) 618-7133WEB: www.thegreendoorseattle.com

FEATURE CO-OP


THE GREEN CAFÉComely Chronic and Classic ComfortWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTS BY ALLIE BECKETT

FEATURE CO-OP


WHAT’S INSIDEA longstanding access point in the greater Tacoma area is a rare sight. With many raids and rezoning debacles. Even more rare is that one access point could survive the onslaught of new access points popping up along the same strip of dispensary-dappled Pacific Avenue. But the most rare aspect of our visit to The Green Café…was the overwhelming sense of a familial camaraderie from the welcoming staff and owner.

Many patients frequent The Green Café for their choice flower. The Star Fighter, the DJ Short’s Blueberry, the White Diesel and the Tahoe OG were visibly of the utmost limit of perfection and yet were very reasonably priced. Certainly a valid reason to visit. Many patients visit for the in-house concentrate and vaporizer cartridge selection. The Blue Dream and Sour Diesel BHO’s looked like pieces of candy inside of the silicone containers. Medicated savories and sweets lined the shelves of a case which was topped with fine glass pieces. All very valid reason to visit.

But the best reason I could possibly give to check out The Green Café, above all other shops in the vicinity and many outside of the area as well, is because, even on your first visit, from the moment you are greeted in the lobby, to the moment you step back outside towards your next destination in life, you get the feeling that you were just visiting family and friends. You feel as if you didn’t just pick up some premium medication but that you did it while enjoying yourself and laughing with friends or long time acquaintances. It’s too rare these days that you can find a place of such comfort and ease when it comes to access points. So check out the Green Café on Pacific Avenue. It’s worth zipping by the other collectives along the way.

ADDRESS: 13417 ½ Pacific Ave. Tacoma, WA 98444PHONE: (253) 302-4106WEB: www.thegreencafeoftacoma.com

MARIJUANA NEWS


Seattle is a city unlike any other in geography or history. For every scratch from the past there’s a protective scar, for every broken bone there’s a supportive steel plate. Just remember the Great Seattle Fire. The booming city burnt to nothing then resurfaced, resurrected into the progressive economic behemoth that it is now. Super Bowl winning teams, legalized gay marriage, $15 minimum wage and, of course, a state-wide recreational marijuana program with the most retail outlets in the city limits. It’s no wonder our city streets are beginning to swell up with over-caffeinated tourists, Pike Place wondering looky-loos and legions of recreational smokers from all over the world. Well now Seattle has a tour bus made especially for the latter group. And no…they don’t give out those annoying duck whistles.

The Cannabus pulled up in all its black,

green and glimmering glory to the curb. A moment of suspense passed with silence then…bam…the doors swung triumphantly open, displaying an impeccably designed tour bus. The first thing noticed was the “bar,” as it were, topped with a row of clean, but empty jars similar to that of the shelf at your favorite dispensary. We introduced ourselves politely and climbed aboard the sleek looking vessel. We were offered a hemp based energy drink upon boarding and gratefully accepted. I popped open the can and inspected my surroundings while taking tactical sips. Ample seating for our party and then some, I noticed. Rather spacious. The captain, a magnificently adept driver I would later discover, told me it could fit 14 passengers comfortably. I silently wondered how he could read my mind but figured he probably just read that thought as

well. So I shot him a quick question before even thinking about it, “Do you only do tours or can you also rent this for private events.”

“Yes. Only $100 an hour.”I was struck silly by the affordable rental fee.

I imagined it much higher.The bus began driving and right away we

noticed passersby taking photos constantly. The enormous green lettering on the side of the bus attracted the eyes and lifted smiles of nearly every person we passed. Proof, I decided, that cannabis unites. As we pedaled farther along our journey, we stopped at a few very Seattle-themed locations like The Green Door dispensary (featured in this month’s issue!), the legendary Dick’s Drive-In on Broadway (although it wasn’t “time to get ill” as the ol’ time fable suggests), the Magical Butter Studio in Sodo and the closest place to

A WILD TRIP ON THE CANNABUSWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTS BY ALLIE BECKETT

MARIJUANA NEWS


God’s Heaven on earth…Alki Beach. We got out on the boat launch to soak in the beauty of the city and the sound, the revitalizing power of the sun…and to smoke a doobie. People gawked at the bus from all around us. Honks from pot-friendly drivers in their Nissans and Mazdas.

While riding on the bus, us lucky passengers, high from giddiness combined with childlike excitement, chatted endlessly about cannabis laws, shared hilarious old smoking stories and laughed about everything and nothing while reggae music softly played through the iPod dock in the back. Confirming my belief that a Cannabus, as a mobile lounge, is far superior to the current fleet of Party Buses spilling hundreds of drunken, vomit covered maniacs onto the streets and into the bars on any given weekend. Finally, stoners have their

own party bus in which they can enjoy each other’s company. Purely Seattle. As we drove by Dick’s Drive-In, which was “the last stop for munchies,” I momentarily thought I had seen Ed Murray reciting the lyrics to “Thrift Shop” with Shawn Kemp beatboxing. I was mistaken though.

On their website, theoriginalcannabus.com, they have a well-written little ditty they call a manifesto. The lines that struck me the most,

“Making what was wrong, rightOut of the shadows and into the light”It brings up a good point. Cannabis is now

an industry, even if it doesn’t feel that way for many people here still anticipating the opening of the retail stores. This industry goes much deeper than just pot shops. The unification aspect of cannabis is producing brand new companies all its own. Welcoming tokers from

all around the world to visit Seattle and shuttle them around our magnificent city in honor of a plant that’s likely forbidden in their hometown. There goes Seattle…pioneering again.

Through all of the laughter, the fun and the possibilities of the Cannabus, through all of the smiles of pedestrians and honking from cars, through all of the civilians asking if they could “buy some weed” from the bus (they can’t, for the record), through all of the images of a cannabis friendly utopia flashing through my mind…all I could really think was…This is so perfectly Seattle.

Check out the Cannabus online:www.theoriginalcannabus.comwww.facebook.com/theoriginalcannabus

Firm, but crumbles easily under slight force. Light, by weight, and pockmarked like cheese. It split in my fingers under the same amount of pressure as the cookie portion of an Oreo after it’s been in your cupboard for a few weeks. Not very sticky, it fell off of the testing wand.

THC-A is reportedly very helpful for seizure sufferers and inhibiting the growth of cancer cells. Not too shabby. I also noticed an instant improvement in my mood and an alleviation of any anxiety. Anti-inflammatory properties have been noted by reports and noticed by patients.

It’s looks like a green-tinted version of what most people in America believe a piece of crack cocaine looks like. You know, a foggy, crystal-like chunk of rock. Which this certainly is not. It’s more pliable and infinitely less dangerous. Think of a pleasantly mossy ocean rock or a green-dyed piece of a scrambled egg.

A whiff of the stuff suggested purity. A chemical influence was not prominent in the initial smelling which was a great relief. A few more whiffs down it still holds a firm plant aroma, more so than your average BHO. I imagined by the smell that it would have a powerful pine flavor, perhaps.

TEXTURE MEDICAL BENEFITS

LOOKS SMELLThat was not the case. As it turns out, after a swift recovery mission when the slab fell, the Space Sugar has very little taste at all. Not chemical but not botanical either. It was a surprise. It didn’t taste bad or good, it tasted like plain ol’ vapor. Another subject offered the same criticism unprovoked.

I stood up immediately after my taste. I expected from the high level of THC-A that the effects of that specific cannabinoid would instantly take hold. My eyes began to feel as if they were getting gently tugged back towards my brain. My head became light and quick. I felt…happy.

FLAVOR EFFECTS

WRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTO BY ALLIE BECKETT

Space Sugar

CANNABINOID CONTENT 18.98% THC

80.60% THC-ATested by Steep Hill

CONCENTRATE OF THE MONTH


provided by Urban Paragon

CANNABINOID CONTENT 18.98% THC

80.60% THC-ATested by Steep Hill

“New York Times” columnist Maureen Dowd and author of the purpose-defeating book, “Are Men Necessary?” had a bit of a rough time in Colorado recently when she gobbled down a legal edible and it turned her into a nightmarish hallucinatory world of anguish. The edible newb went as far as saying, “As my paranoia deepened, I became convinced that I had died and no one was telling me.” While most people associate such “trips” with proper hallucinogenic drugs like mushrooms or acid, Dowd was embellishing her high to prove a point. That point being nearly lost in the absurdity of her writings. She frightened readers, in her “New York Times” column entitled, “Don’t Harsh Our Mellow, Dude,” with recent news stories of death and carnage, similar to William Hearst’s old papers, in order to push for better labeling on legal cannabis edibles. This is another prime example of why the country needs better education about cannabis…and better journalists.

Maureen’s Freak Out

The

July 2014 Edition by Michael Condon Jr

POT AROUND THE WORLD

MARIJUANA NEWS


Times

The NSW Nurses and Midwives Association of Australia, a top nursing union in the land down under, has formally endorsed a medical marijuana resolution for patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Crohn’s Disease and other ailments. The union also signed a petition for a young patient suffering from terminal cancer whose family has been fighting for medical marijuana in the country. The NSWNMA General Secretary, Brett Holmes, had this to say, “At our meeting on 3 June, the NSWNMA Council endorsed a resolution to support the implementation of the standing committee’s recommendations…to decriminalize the medical use of cannabis.” That’s how you get the koala bear rolling.

Australian Nurses Appeal For MMJ

Chocolate conglomerate Hershey’s has filed the paperwork to sue companies in both a dispensary in Seattle and an edible manufacturer in Colorado for trademark infringement for selling edibles that are strikingly similar in packaging to their own delicious products. The marijuana-infused edibles have packaging designed specifically to imitate that of the non-intoxicating Hershey’s products like Mr. Goodbar, Heath, Almond Joy and Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. The complaint is concerned that someone may “inadvertently ingest” the weed candy and then advertently purchase a shitload of real Hershey’s products from the 7-11 down the street once overcome with munchies. It’s clear that edible makers need to become their own image instead of playing off of another company’s product.

Hershey’s Hits Hard

MARIJUANA NEWS


When you think of Jamaica, many people in America think reggae and ganja. Most people weren’t aware that it was still a crime to smoke pot in Jamaica. Not so much anymore. The Prime Minister, Portia Simpson-Miller, and her cabinet have announced the decriminalization of cannabis in their country. It will no longer be an arresting offense, merely a ticket-warranting infraction to carry small amounts of marijuana. Citizens cannot be arrested with two ounces or less of usable marijuana. There have been many reports of the police extorting bribes from citizens caught with marijuana, and those who have been arrested have lost many rights due to simple possession. Mark Golding, the country’s Minister of Justice said, “Too many of our young people have ended up with criminal convictions after being caught with a spliff, something that has affected their ability to do things like get jobs and get visas to travel overseas.” Failure to pay the ticket for marijuana possession will result in a minor offense and some community service. The country’s parliament is expected to vote on another measure that would expunge the criminal records of people who have been convicted of possession in the past. Irie.

“I Thought It Was Legal There”

Times

Out of the 188 people that comprise New York State’s Senate and the Assembly, only two tossed out the ol’ “nay” vote on a bill to legalize the cultivation of the super-plant hemp. Passing the state Senate with a vote of 56-2, then later in the day sweeping the Assembly votes 130-0. Once the law is enacted, the New York State Department of Agriculture will set up a hemp pilot program “to provide research-based knowledge that can be used by farmers and businesses to develop a successful hemp industry if federal authorization is granted.” With the federal Farm Bill protecting a state’s decision to cultivate hemp, more and more states are realizing the potential of the industry. The two “no” votes in the Senate were later ridiculed and taunted by the cool kids in the locker room.

New York Sees the Power of Hemp

To keep “cool” is good advice for everybody. Hotheadedness leads to irrationality and irrationality is just not cool, man. Not only is a “cool” demeanor necessary for mental stability and stress relief in people, it’s also important that your cannabis plants don’t overheat as well. Those bent-up fans you may have cycling air in your basement might not be enough to combat the summer temperatures, which could raise the temperature astronomically if not well controlled. What can the average home grower do to protect their medicine? Here’s 10 tips and tricks to help keep your little green babies as cool as Luther Vandross meditating in an igloo.

WRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR.

The warm nature of electricity, most

ballasts can increase the temperature

in your space with little regard to your

puny box fans. If you are unable to put

them in a different room it’s best to

stick them near the fans or hang them

near the ceiling.

This one should be a no-brainer in

summer months. When the tempera-

ture outside drops to a reasonable

level, flick on the bulbs. It’ll keep your

electricity costs down and keep the

mix of heat, from the sun outside and

the lights inside, from incinerating your

precious crop.

The more control you have the better.

When you install proper insulation you

have an advantage in the war against

humidity and heat. It’s easier to dictate

temperature and maintain a certain

temperature when the walls and ceil-

ings are less exposed to the outdoor

variables.

I understand not everybody can afford a fancy centralized air

condition unit and many don’t have the ability or space to hook

one up in their personal home grow. But temporary AC units

can be made out of standard work buckets, power tools, a gal-

lon of frozen water and some clever engineering.

During the winter and spring you managed to only keep a sin-

gle fan blowing through your sea of green but that won’t quite

cut it now. Attach several working fans to the walls from all

angles to keep a nice breeze flowing through the leaves. Just

don’t turn them on full power to recreate hurricane conditions.

You’ve already moved the ballasts maybe it’s also wise to un-

plug and remove that boombox you have in the room to keep

the plants groovin’. All electronics create heat even if you can’t

notice it by touch. Any piece of electronic gadgetry that is not

vital to the cannabis should be removed.

One thermometer in a room isn’t the best gauge of temperature

as pockets of heat and humidity can differentiate from square

foot to square foot. The more thermometers you have the bet-

ter you can accurately pinpoint stagnant areas of heat near ev-

ery plant in your room. Knowledge is power.

MOVE YOUR BALLASTS IN A SEPARATE ROOM

AIR CONDITIONERS ARE WORTHY OF THE PRICE

INCREASE CIRCULATION

UNPLUG ALL UNNECESSARY ELECTRONICS

PLACE THERMOMETERS AND HYGROMETERS EVERYWHERE

RUN YOUR LIGHTS AT NIGHT

APPROPRIATELY INSULATE YOUR SPACE

1 2 3 6 7

4 5

GROW

54 DOPEMAGAZINEONLINE.COM

To keep “cool” is good advice for everybody. Hotheadedness leads to irrationality and irrationality is just not cool, man. Not only is a “cool” demeanor necessary for mental stability and stress relief in people, it’s also important that your cannabis plants don’t overheat as well. Those bent-up fans you may have cycling air in your basement might not be enough to combat the summer temperatures, which could raise the temperature astronomically if not well controlled. What can the average home grower do to protect their medicine? Here’s 10 tips and tricks to help keep your little green babies as cool as Luther Vandross meditating in an igloo.


The warm nature of electricity, most

ballasts can increase the temperature

in your space with little regard to your

puny box fans. If you are unable to put

them in a different room it’s best to

stick them near the fans or hang them

near the ceiling.

This one should be a no-brainer in

summer months. When the tempera-

ture outside drops to a reasonable

level, flick on the bulbs. It’ll keep your

electricity costs down and keep the

mix of heat, from the sun outside and

the lights inside, from incinerating your

precious crop.

The more control you have the better.

When you install proper insulation you

have an advantage in the war against

humidity and heat. It’s easier to dictate

temperature and maintain a certain

temperature when the walls and ceil-

ings are less exposed to the outdoor

variables.

I understand not everybody can afford a fancy centralized air

condition unit and many don’t have the ability or space to hook

one up in their personal home grow. But temporary AC units

can be made out of standard work buckets, power tools, a gal-

lon of frozen water and some clever engineering.

During the winter and spring you managed to only keep a sin-

gle fan blowing through your sea of green but that won’t quite

cut it now. Attach several working fans to the walls from all

angles to keep a nice breeze flowing through the leaves. Just

don’t turn them on full power to recreate hurricane conditions.

You’ve already moved the ballasts maybe it’s also wise to un-

plug and remove that boombox you have in the room to keep

the plants groovin’. All electronics create heat even if you can’t

notice it by touch. Any piece of electronic gadgetry that is not

vital to the cannabis should be removed.

One thermometer in a room isn’t the best gauge of temperature

as pockets of heat and humidity can differentiate from square

foot to square foot. The more thermometers you have the bet-

ter you can accurately pinpoint stagnant areas of heat near ev-

ery plant in your room. Knowledge is power.

MOVE YOUR BALLASTS IN A SEPARATE ROOM

AIR CONDITIONERS ARE WORTHY OF THE PRICE

INCREASE CIRCULATION

UNPLUG ALL UNNECESSARY ELECTRONICS

PLACE THERMOMETERS AND HYGROMETERS EVERYWHERE

RUN YOUR LIGHTS AT NIGHT

APPROPRIATELY INSULATE YOUR SPACE

1 2 3 6 7

4 5

GROW

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ROAD TRIP


WRITTEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY SHARON LETTS

ROAD TRIP: PARIS FRANCE40 Years of Misunderstanding

ROAD TRIP


Though medical or recreational cannabis are legal in France, the plant is somewhat tolerated in small amounts and smoked freely - albeit discretely - in public places throughout the city.

A whiff can be had on the underground Metro, in passing on the streets, under the Eiffel Tower, and along the Siene where locals hangout on the steps to the famous river, playing live music and drinking beer and wine sold via fly-by-night street vendors, along with miniature Eiffel Towers that glow in the dark.

Small amounts can be purchased for a high price on the steps of the historic Sacre Coeur, the spectacular Sacred Heart Cathedral overlooking the city of lights where the French and tourists alike partake. Or you can venture to the suburbs where the price is lower, but there is no shortage of the herb anywhere in the country – only the lack of understanding for good medicine.

Traveling without medicine is hard and this writer took a chance and bought a little bag of what we would call “smalls” in Humboldt – the stuff you don’t waste your time trimming – for $90 U.S. The Nigerian who sold me the bag threw in a small ball of hash to sweeten the deal.

Punishments for buying, selling, growing or possession range from a few months to one year or more in jail, with fines ranging from hundreds to thousands of Euros a pop. Minimal compared to the U.S. Federal mandate of five years in prison under the failed War on Drugs, but harsh to be thrown in the slammer for just a joint.

French doctors are allowed to prescribe cannabis for real illness, and give permission for patients to travel to the Netherlands (Amsterdam, specifically) to purchase flower. But, just as in the states, the French government doesn’t yet agree with the treatment of cannabis as medicine, and continue to persecute its people for a plant, leaving the process of medicating precarious, at best.

Big Pharma, Little PlantsMost Parisians I spoke with about cannabis

were unaware of its medicinal value. A visit to a “Pharmacie” was encouraging, as plant-based extractions sat side-by-side to homeopathic medicines, and other alternative treatments.

A discussion with a technician was no different than speaking to the lay person about cannabis as medicine, she had no idea of the benefits and was all ears as I shared with her my own healing with the plant.

I have a partially disabled knee and walking the streets of Paris it was bothersome, to say the least, and asked her about any plant-based salves she may have for pain. There were testers on the counter and soon I was slathering the stuff on a sore spot. The pain quelled some, but did not last – maybe two hours, tops.

Never having seen alternative medicines side-by-side to big pharma’s cornucopia here in the states, the fact that it exists in Frances gives me hope that when the time comes for cannabis as medicine, they may be open and ready to try.

Activism with an AccentLongtime French cannabis activist Farid

Ghehioueche openly admits to smoking his first joint at the tender age of 16, stating the average French citizen begins smoking pot around age 13.

It’s interesting to note, the mega tobacco-smoking French start just as early with the bad habit of tobacco, as with the seemingly good one of cannabis. With studies suggesting cannabis smoking decreases the risk of lung cancer in tobacco smokers (www.sciencedaily.com), starting early might be a good thing to the French.

Ghehioueche began his activism for human rights in the early 90s, serving as Deputy Director of several non-profits, bringing people together in celebration. Today he runs a storefront “Artisans du Monde,” translated to “Fair Trade Shop,” in the posh neighborhood of Bastille in the city of Paris, publishing “La Gazette du Chanvre,” educating the masses.

He’s also part of global radio pod-cast “Time-4-Hemp,” hosting a talk show to further spread the word of good medicine and end ignorance of the facts of the plant (www.timeforhemp.com).

“France has some of the harshest cannabis laws of the world,” Ghehioueche said, “We are supposed to be a country of freedoms, but where drug laws are concerned we are in the dark ages.”

From the first drug policy years in France beginning in the 1970s, Ghehioueche said that well into the 1990s the government was throwing everyone in jail for the plant, with the practice continuing today.

“In France we have a huge population of cannabis users,” he continued. “Our government arrests 200,000 citizens each year, incarcerating 30,000 every year. In 2005 they enlisted a swab test for driving under the influence – which is just a very bad policy.”

The reasoning for the “bad policy” on testing is the simple fact that a patient must

ROAD TRIP


keep the medicine of the plant in their system for it to work – much in the same way a prescription med patient must keep dosing – the very same issue with Washington States testing laws, and many more misunderstood and looming restrictions where patients vs. recreation are concerned.

Worldly KnowledgeLike in the U.S., the French have been told

for decades cannabis is bad, prompting activist and author Jean-Pierre Galland to write a comprehensive history of cannabis in France titled, “Forty Years of Misunderstanding” in an effort to end the ignorance.In March of 2014 Ghehioueche traveled to the United Nations for a special session on cannabis as medicine. From the “United Nations General Assembly Special Session on drugs” he took home a list of ailments cured or helped from cannabis presented in a special workshop at the end of the session by the Minister of Health from Austria.

“The Austrian Minister told me this green treasure has been ignored for years, keeping legitimate companies from studying the more than 400 compounds that make up the medicine,” Ghehioueche continued. “This is just the kind of information we need to take home to France and educate people.

The Emperor in FranceGhehioueche said when he read Jack

Herer’s book, “The Emperor Wears No Clothes,” it changed everything. Finally, he thought, they had something real to educate with. For prior to Herer’s book Ghehioueche said on the heels of Tim Leary’s acid test and images of the hippie fest, Woodstock, it was an uphill battle to get anyone to listen to an intelligent conversation on cannabis as anything other than frivolous or evil.

“Everything that comes from the States, Israel, and Uruguay – or any country where positive things are happening with this plant helps us to educate our own people,” he added. “Solid education is what we need to share. We need to rehabilitate and educate the people to learn about the uses for medicine.”

As we talked the shop filled up with others wanting to share and hear more about progress from America. One young man spoke of his Aunt currently suffering from breast cancer and chemotherapy, and her close-mindedness to cannabis as medicine.

An older gentleman with a cane said he only enjoyed the “fumar,” or smoking, but was interested to hear of the oil. Some years ago he had a climbing accident in the mountains at three thousand meters. The fall, which left him with water in his lungs, still causes him pain. When I suggested he ingest,

Ghehioueche said that was something so far removed from French thinking he wasn’t sure the man could even comprehend.

“You are trying to influence him on something he may not be able to do at this time,” Ghehioueche said.

For his lungs vaporizers were discussed and Ghehioueche said they were just beginning to introduce the delivery method to the smoking French, discussing a latest study showing lung cancer reduced by cannabis smokers. And though the streets are now lined with vaporizer shops, they tout only tobacco products.

Persecuting PatientsGhehioueche said the coming week would

see three cannabis trials in Paris, with three separate patients. The stories of arrest were similar to those in the U.S.

“On Tuesday Eric Chapel will be tried,” he explained. “Eric is an activist who organized the first Hemp Fair in 1994. His shop, ‘Chanvre ‘n Company’ carried hemp products. His challenge is he is a patient with a history of drug abuse, but cannabis helps him.”

As the story goes, a neighbor called the police as Chapel’s home was being broken into. When the police arrived they found Chapel’s plants – including an eight year old Mother plant, which they sadly destroyed.

Chapel was asked to come in to the Police station where they prosecuted him with the trial continuing as this story goes to press. Among the stash they found was 800 grams of trim he would use to make extractions, otherwise known as good medicine.

At best Ghehioueche said the current laws do not take patient’s rights into consideration at all. Just as in the U.S. there is no opportunity to discuss illness, treatment, or rationale when it comes to this plant.

“The laws are foolish and not reasonable,” he added. “The lack of education is such that the French people aren’t even aware we grow Hemp in this country, or that it can make paper or anything.”

Got Hemp?France is the largest producer of Hemp

in Europe. Between 70 and 80 percent of all Hemp fiber grown in Europe was used specifically for pulp, ironically used for cigarette papers and technical applications. Only about 15 percent was used in the automotive sector, with just five to six percent used for insulation mats. Ninety-five percent of hurds produced were used as animal bedding, with five percent going to the building sector (Journal of Industrial Hemp, Vol. 9, Issue 2, 2004).

At a soap maker booth near the Eiffel

Tower every herb imaginable could be found within its colorful soaps – even “Opium” was represented at the table, with nary a hint of the favored illicit herb in sight.

Sadly, the soap makers were not aware of what Hemp was, let alone its beneficial properties, or the fact that it’s grown legally in their own country. The good news is, by the time I left the table they were ready to do their own research and will, no doubt, be implementing the herb soon enough.

“It’s been so long since Hemp was a major industrial crop in this country, people are more familiar with synthetic materials now – like nylon or rayon,” Ghehioueche said. “The bad stigma of cannabis has poisoned the Hemp market.”

Marijuana is Safer than Alcohol“When we argue the laws over cannabis

use as medicine we will push further the argument in France that we are just alcoholics – that wine and alcohol is in our DNA,” Ghehioueche laughed, holding up a poster stating the bold question, “Why not France?”

The question is posed in response to France’s Health Minister’s announcement in January 2014 that “Sativex” was coming to the country.

“We have been waiting since January 8 of this year for our Health Minister to bring a cannabis extract to the country.”

The extract “Sativex” is produced by GW Industries of Great Briton - the only company allowed to grow and produce medicine across the pond.

An under the tongue homeopathic spray developed specifically for symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis, Sativex falls short putting any illness into remission, but it’s a start and France wants it. That open door alone may be what the country needs to start the dialogue for good medicine.

Until then, Farid and friends will paint their signs, show up for court support, and pray for reason for its people and the plant.

“Forty years is a long time to be misunderstood,” Ghehioueche surmised. Agreed.

ROAD TRIP


The past few years I’ve traveled thousands of miles covering four

States in search of good medicine. This year I made the trek to Paris,

France, working on the Road Trip of a lifetime.

It seems as if patients are put in front of me like spirits to Theresa

Caputo (TLC’s Long Island Medium); or perhaps people are just

overall sicker in the world, but there hasn’t been a train, plane, or bus

I’ve been on that someone with real illness hasn’t sat down beside

me, or knows someone suffering under traditional care.

We can safely assume the world has been polluted and poisoned

much in the same way across the continents. For whether a country

has shunned GMOs in favor of organic produce, or not, the damage

of the industrial age, the use of petroleum by-products, or “better

living through science” has been done, with toxins staying in our

genetic bloodlines for generations to come.

And, though I don’t speak but “bad French,” with a translator I’ve

found that our illnesses (as are our biological bodies) are about

the same, as well. Cancers, heart disease, auto-immune diseases,

neurological disorders, and the ever growing autistic spectrum have

touched nearly everyone on the planet.

Procuring Good Medicine AbroadCoinciding with my work with cannabis as medicine, the plant has

become my only medicine, sparing me from traditional therapies with

putting my breast cancer into remission; knee and elbow surgeries

with chronic pain and immobility issues; and thyroid disease with

menopause – multiple symptom hormonal maladies that include

numerous and chronic emotional, metabolism and digestive issues.

This makes traveling a challenge, as one can imagine. The good

news is, all over the world people are growing. It matters not what

the penalties, the plant prevails as the best medicine for pain, pleasure

and everything in between when we access its medicine within.

One painfully small bag of the smallest flower was procured on the

steps of the Sacre Couer, the historic Sacred Heart Cathedral that sits

atop the city, nestled in the idyllic village of Montmartre, at a city cost

of $90 U.S. If we would have traveled to the suburbs it would have

been half that, but with my health issues I need to smoke. The little

bag lasted some days as one pinner was rolled in the morning and

one at night with a little hash mixed in for insurance.

Happily Heavily MedicatedThe French stretch their hash by rolling “Splifs,” half tobacco, half

hash. I’ve never been a tobacco smoker, so that was a bit harsh for me.

But, good news for them, as recent studies show cannabis smokers

get the medicine into their lungs, cutting down the risk of lung cancer.

WRITTEN AND PHOTOGRAPHED BY SHARON LETTS

AMERICAN STONER IN PARIS

ROAD TRIP


This according to the American Association for Cancer Research,

who states, “The active ingredient in [Marijuana] cuts tumor growth

in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of

the cancer to spread,” per research done at Harvard University.

In the thick of menopause, exacerbated by thyroid disease, I need

the strong oil to sleep at night with the THC and an additional delivery

of THC via smoking. I’m being honest; this is what my tolerance will

allow. I literally cannot sleep or am up every hour unless I have my

medicine, and both deliveries help.

My life is pretty much a cannabis immersion of ingesting and topical

use. Hand, body, face lotions, and deodorant packed for the trip are

all medicated with a coconut salve I make at home, or purchased at a

dispensary. In order to have my oil I took a store bought tub of salve,

dumped it out and filled it back up with a strong coconut salve with

RSO (Rick Simpson Oil). This I could use topically on my chronic pain

spots, or I could ingest it at night to sleep.

And, while it’s nerve-racking knowing it’s in my check-on bag, with

a possibility of persecution, it’s a necessary evil, as I will no longer

take prescription sleeping or pain pills.

This trip to Paris my bag was checked with a notice left behind. The

oil container had seeped and no doubt reeked of pungent terpenes

within, but, thankfully, it was left alone.

With a heat wave going on in Paris that week it never fully solidified,

making it a bit messy – but I had my medicine and was able to deal

with jet lag, pain, and helping me sleep like a baby.

Dispelling MythsAs a cannabis writer the subject of pot comes up a lot. First

the question is asked, “What do you do?” To which I reply, “I am a

writer.” Then the dreaded question, “What do you write?” I used to be

subjective about who I shared what I write about, but not any longer.

For once you’ve been helped with this plant it becomes a calling to

share with others who also may be helped.

Eyebrows are raised and myths are dispelled as I explain my use of

the plant, delivery methods, and the truth of real medicine. By the end

of the conversation I know I’ve made a difference either with direct

help, guiding them in the right direction to wellness, or just knowing

when the subject comes up they will pay the information forward,

becoming part of the solution to end Prohibition, not continuing the

stigma.

Helping others with cannabis is a calling when you know the truth;

for until the words come from our mouths, the truth will not be heard.

Evangelize the plant, be the pamphlet. Vive la Plant!

PRODUCTS


Here in Washington State we, uniquely, have a large number of companies producing high-quality cannabis-infused creams and balms. These topicals have been perfected by people with years of experience refining their formulas using cannabis oils and extracts in concert with other essential oils known for their anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. The result is a number of products that offer incredible pain relief when used alone or in combination with other cannabis-infused products (like tinctures for example) to control acute and chronic pain syndromes.

The range of treatment applications for these products is limitless, everything from severe lower-back pain to painful arthritic conditions to neuropathic skin conditions, such as shingles and even a sunburn. These topical-infused creams have no CNS effects, i.e. you don’t get “high,” but they will give you two to three hours of pain-free bliss when used alone or longer when combined with other cannabis products.

Originally my thought was to determine

which of these products contained the highest levels of activated cannabinoids, which I consciously equated to efficacy. After doing extensive research on the topic and reviewing most of the laboratory testing results for these products, what I found is that all of them have roughly the same amount of activated cannabinoids contained within. Arguably, some products have a little bit more than others, but we would be splitting hairs, and I am not convinced that current laboratory testing methods (on topicals) is that precise, nor relevant.

When choosing one product over the other it really comes down to your intended use and personal preference regarding sensation, texture and scent. After application to the skin, some products produce a feeling of warmth, while others feel cool and some have no sensation at all. Other personal preferences to consider are texture, or feel, and scent. Creams in general are lighter, quickly absorbed through the skin and can be spread over large areas if

applied quickly. Balms on the other hand are a bit thicker, can be manipulated longer when applied to the skin and seem to last longer, but can leave a feeling of tackiness if covered by your clothes.

Additionally, when choosing a topical you should consider the type of pain you are treating (i.e. intended use). If you had an extreme case of neuropathic shingles or sunburn, choosing a balm that provides a feeling of warmth similar to Tiger Balm or Icy Hot might not be the best choice. Instead, you might consider using a cream with menthol and lavender that provides a cool feeling. Conversely, if you suffer from arthritic conditions or deep-tissue muscle pain, a balm that provides that deep warm feeling and can be massaged into the skin over a few minutes might be exactly what you need.

Having used all of these creams and balms to treat my own pain and sprains over the years, I felt it was time to identify the best of the best from each company, so on with the show!

TopicalTalkWRITTEN BY HEATH LASLO PHOTOS BY ALLIE BECKETT

PRODUCTS


Kush CreamsName: Organic PermaFrost Use: Moderate to severe painSensation: CoolTexture: Light and creamyScent: Super Sour Diesel

Name: Triple-Infused Creams Use: Mild to moderate painSensation: Depends on infusion – none to coolTexture: Light and creamyScent: Multiple aroma infusions available

Cannabis BasicsName: XXXBody Rescue Balm Use: Moderate to severe painSensation: NoneTexture: Medium creamy balmScent: Light, lavender

Name: The Remedy Pain Stick Use: Mild to moderate pain (great for headaches)Sensation: CoolTexture: Medium to heavy balmScent: Medium, soft terpenes intended to work as aromatherapy

TOPICAL WAYName: Sore Muscle Topical Use: Moderate to severe muscle and joint painSensation: CoolTexture: Light and creamyScent: Slightly medicated, menthol

Name: Healing Cream Use: Mild to moderate painful skin conditions (psoriasis, eczema, sunburns)Sensation: NoneTexture: Light and creamyScent: None

VITA VERDEName: Cayenne/Fire Balm Use: Moderate to severe painSensation: Warm to HotTexture: HeavyScent: Strongly medicated

Name: Soothe Ice Use: Mild to moderate painSensation: CoolTexture: Light to medium, creamyScent: Lightly medicated

CO2 OrganicsA B E A C O N O F H O P E

WRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTOS BY ALLIE BECKETT

Washington’s coastline is a spectacular wagon ride. See the

sprawling, fecund green landscape. See the wide-open fields en-

joyed by black and brown horses. See the delightfully dilapidated

barnyards and the charming roadside cafes. It’s breathtaking.

Northwest Americana. Along the coast there’s a body of water

called the Willapa River. This river leads from the Pacific Ocean

landward into a little town called Raymond, Washington. An old

logging community that reminded me of Kesey’s Wakonda in

“Sometimes A Great Notion.” But this wasn’t Wakonda, Oregon.

This was “The City That Does Things” as old promotions used to

suggest. A city built on stilts.

Raymond was once booming, the population thriving, the

town glamourized. That was until the Great Depression. The na-

tion was hit and, while many towns and cities recovered after a

while, Raymond was never quite resuscitated. There’s still logging,

which hasn’t changed. There’re still courteous townsfolk, which

will never change. What has changed is the direction the city is

taking towards finally revamping a beautiful coastal city that de-

serves greatness. Raymond, the entire township, has its sight on

the future. Staring at the possibility of bringing back that pioneer-

ing spirit of its early years. The future, in their eyes, is cannabis.

Imagine if you will: Raymond is to weed as Woodinville is to

wine. Yes! It’s brilliant. Tours and tastings, concerts and a sweetly

scented air floating about town. Dare I say fields of hemp as well!

It all could happen and it’s all beginning to happen. A few cur-

rent medical growers and 502 hopefuls are betting on it. They are

doing their part to assist in a city’s economic revival, 85 years in

the making! A sleepy town of magnificent scenery receiving the

blood of youth once again!

One such company is none other than the 2014 DOPE Cup

award-winning CO2 Organics. Handedly winning the trophy for

best CO2 concentrate with their Sour Diesel, they are leading

the way to return the city of Raymond to economic prosperity.

The building is a 10,000-square-foot facility on a dock hoisted

above the Willapa River adding a natural flow and good vibe to

the place. The sunny day of our visit was more than impressive; it

was heavenly. We first noticed the CO2 extracting machine made

by Eden Labs. A humble, industrial-looking contraption with vari-

ous knobs, levers, valves, doohickeys, whistles and bells. A part of

me thought it was pulled from the set of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate

Factory and it made me wish for some candy.

We then toured the veg room. The floor was clean and the

lights were aligned orderly. Dozens of plants were growing hap-

pily in baskets as the river was flowing beneath them. You could

see them feeding off of the energy as much as they were feeding

off of the lights’ rays. Deep horticulture. Nutrient drips. Certainly

a place I’d like to live my life if I were a cannabis plant. The plants

were noticeably well cared for and unmistakably vibrant. Stepping

out of the veg room, I noticed the DOPE Cup trophy was proudly

displayed on a diligently arranged table.

Stepping into the flower room was inspiring. Tall, robust can-

nabis plants swayed with the breeze of the fans and were guided

upward towards the hanging lights. Familiar names like Sour Die-

sel, Girl Scout Cookies, along with less-familiar ones like Canna

Tsu, were identified on tags in the soil. At least a dozen other

strains are being cultivated at any given time by CO2 Organics. Va-

riety is important for them, but more so is excellence. They want

the finest, safest product they can possibly create for patients and

consumers. Oil like theirs, as many experts believe, is the future

of cannabis as a medicine. They want the essence of each strain

to come across in their oil and that begins with growing the best

plant they possibly can. Nothing else will do.

The stalks of the flowering plants were stalwart, the buds

were perfect to the naked eye and the employees were some of

the kindest souls you’d wish to encounter in this industry. Offer-

ing us water, raw cannabis smoothies (clearly looking out for our

health), samples of their product and, above all, pleasurable ac-

companiment. A business like CO2 Organics belongs in a small

town like Raymond because they embody the heart of a small

town in their practices and friendliness.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. The rebuilding of Raymond, Wash-

ington, won’t happen right away. But with respectful companies

like CO2 Organics leading the way, recovery and transformation

are inevitable. Maybe one day soon you’ll be taking a trip down

to Raymond to get away from the city and enjoy some exquisite

cannabis tasting and reggae concerts. It’s possible.

GROW


ENTERTAINMENT


As the Grass Grows: A Photographic Journey Into the WA Cannabis IndustryBy Allie Beckett

A striking look at the Washington State marijuana industry covering medical, recreational and every nuance in between. Unmatched photographic talent, a sexy layout and some important words regarding the plant and the industry are crammed into this alluring and accessible book. Study each page, each photo with great focus, and when you’re finished, set it on the old coffee table for visitors to stir up poignant conversation and visual stimulation. A magnificent achievement from a gifted, rising photographer. Photos can speak volumes.

A New Leaf: The End of Cannabis ProhibitionBy Alyson Martin and Nushin Rashidian

In this well-trimmed piece of investigative journalism, the authors take the reader from Election Day 2012 in Washington and Colorado back to where cannabis legalization all began in only 230 pages. Well-researched and thoroughly entertaining, this book takes you on the historical road from prohibition to (almost) freedom. All the right names with the cannabis movements are chronicled in pivotal states such as Washington, Colorado, Montana and California. I was especially impressed with the knowledge of Washington’s medical marijuana industry and the recreational backlash. A must-read for cannabis aficionados.

Kid CannabisStarring Ron Perlman and Jonathan Daniel Brown. Director John Stockwell

Based, loosely, on a true story, “Kid Cannabis” tells the tale of a couple of young entrepreneurs moving pounds of marijuana, and other fun stuff, to and fro across the Canadian border. As you might expect young, rich men to behave, they end up partying and getting into dangerous situations. I recommend you read about the real story of Kid Cannabis and then watch the entertaining film. It will help give you an idea of what kind of danger prohibition causes in people’s lives and our overall safety.

The Coed and the Zombie StonerStarring…does it really matter? Director Glenn Miller

Campy comedy/horror films are a dime bag a dozen. While this film is not a great film, or even a good film by any stretch of the imagination, it does involve cannabis as a healing element so at least it has that going for it. A sorority hopeful begins dating a mindless fraternity zombie (as they all are) and finds the only cure for the zombie disease running rampant in her college, which happens to be full of scantily clad women and letterman jacket-wearing apes, is a few licks from ol’ Mary Jane. At least it doesn’t pretend to be watchable.

Goooood morning, Dabbers and Dabbettes.

Does that early morning glob cause the “a.m.

woozies” to seemingly never end? Around

noon you still can’t quite emerge from that

fog cloud loitering in your brain. Slamming

steaming cups of java throughout the day

with no effect. Many of you know what I’m

talking about, it’s enough to make you think

you shouldn’t do dabs in the morning. Not so

fast, Usain Bolt! Don’t give up on breakfast hits

just yet! Glassmaking engineers and pioneers

have come to your rescue and made the

sickeningly brilliant dab rig/cappuccino cup

combination to get every dab-body up and

running like real-life, productive members of

society. But only in the accepted reality, of

course.

Skullfish Glass out of Vancouver B.C.

are the proud blowers of these sleek cereal

bowl companions. Meticulously designed

and decorated with crazy monster eyes, Vad-

ers and/or an array of squiggly colors, these

rigs feature a usable cup, perfectly sized for a

nicely prepared cappuccino or orange juice,

to assure you receive your daily caffeine in-

take while simultaneously strengthening

the advancement of your endocannabinoid

system. Some take vitamins, others ingest a

steady diet of cannabinoids. Whatever gets

your synapses firing.

Take a sip of the coffee…rip a slab of the

“coughee.” Inspiration comes in many forms.

Sometimes that form can come from watch-

ing the oil vaporize into white deliciousness

while the smell of coffee invigorates the mind.

This is a morning dabbing ritual for many and,

with the addition of these cups to the world

of dab glass, many will soon follow suit. Ba-

con and Eggs, Biscuits and Gravy are two

powerful breakfast combinations that will

never be unpaired. But Cigarettes and Coffee

may soon be replaced by Dabs and Cappuc-

cinos. I’ll take mine with extra foam!

DABACCINO LIFE, HOW TO LIFT OFF: AND OTHER TALES OF ENGINEERING MADNESS

“CIGARETTES AND COFFEE MAY SOON BE REPLACED

BY DABS AND CAPPUCCINOS.”

GET YOURS TODAY ATskullfishglass.bigcartel.com


PIECES


MARIJUANA NEWS


Northeast Washington. Kettle Falls, specifically.

Thick, undisturbed forested areas. Encircled

by gorgeous mountains and luscious scenery.

Wildlife is more wild there and the civilians

are more civil. 40 miles south of the Canadian

border. Wilderness, bears, termites, wolves,

bullfrogs aplenty. Upper Columbian River,

Onion Creek, Rock Island Dam. Humans

surviving in nature in the most basic way

of life. Small towns are the heartbeat of

the United States of America. So why is the

American government going to war, so to

speak, with an elderly family and their adult

children? This is a tale of power gone wrong.

A tale of normal folks, not too unlike you and

me, falling victim to corruption...Submitted for

the approval, of the midnight toking society…I

call this story…The Tale of the Kettle Falls

Five…

Who are the Kettle Falls Five?

Larry Harvey, a name like that suggests an

everyman kind of fella, and his wife Rhonda

were the typical, law-abiding, self-sufficient

kind of people that generally reside in the area

of Washington State known as Kettle Falls.

Larry was a hard-working man, experienced

in long-haul semi-truck driving and fishing

in the wild seas of Alaska. Built himself

up a substantial retirement savings and a

comfortable, picturesque 34 acre spread out

KETTLE FALLS FIVEWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTO BY KARI BOITER

MARIJUANA NEWS


near Onion Creek. A true American success

story. Larry and Rhonda grew their own

vegetables, chopped their own firewood and

Larry even made his own homemade sausage.

Well within the boundaries set by our

medical marijuana law over 15 years ago, Larry

and Rhonda also grew medical cannabis, each

with their own specific and genuine ailment,

with appropriate recommendations for

themselves and for her son, her daughter-in-

law and a friend. Our state medical law says

you may legally grow 15 plants per patient, or

45 for a collective garden. Although multiple

collective gardens may exist on the same

property making the wording on the law a bit

confusing to some and creating a murky legal

climate. Larry and Rhonda were the only ones

out of the five that lived on the property, the

house sitting nearly a quarter mile from the

garden. The Harvey’s were not vendors for

local dispensaries nor were they anywhere

near a school, arcade, library or any other

children dominated location.

Flyovers, from local and federal agents, are

common in that area as it’s so close to the

border and so forested. Larry is an intelligent

man, he knew this, so he even built a four-

foot by eight-foot plywood sign displaying a

giant green cross. The standard insignia of the

medical marijuana movement to ward off the

authorities and alerting them to the honest

intentions of the garden which was in it’s

infancy, at the time of the incident. It was only

their second crop ever.

One such fly over happened in July of 2012.

Aerial photographs taken showed roughly 70

plants growing on their property. Some of the

photographs also show Larry’s large green

cross. Come August of 2012, Rhonda hears a

knock at her door. Larry was in Alaska at the

time. Rhonda thought it was just some friends

paying her a visit, when she opened the front

door, to her surprise, eight members of law

enforcement donning bulletproof vests were

staring back at her and showcasing a warrant.

They said they saw cannabis growing on the

property, to which Rhonda responded by

retrieving her stack of legal medical marijuana

authorizations to prove she was in the utmost

compliance. Most of the intruders were local

agents…except one. The warrant was from the

state so they contacted the Stevens County

prosecutor’s office to help figure it out. They

were told to leave 45 plants and murder the

rest. They left the garden decimated but there

was no arrest necessary.

That wasn’t the end of it. Just over a week

later, Rhonda was home by herself again

when there was another knock at her front

door with more officers this time. Another

noticeable difference between these guys and

the first set: these agents had “DEA” clearly

labeled on their chests and served Rhonda

with a federal warrant. The DEA agents not

only savagely destroyed their whole garden,

they also confiscated some loose cannabis,

some edibles along with hunting rifles,

shotguns, a couple legally owned handguns,

$500 in cash from Rhonda’s underwear

drawer, their ATV and two motorcycles. Yet

still didn’t arrest anybody.

A few months went by and they imagined

the whole situation would just disappear.

Federal officials had taken the case to a grand

jury. In March 2013, they were arrested. The

Feds going as far as arresting the 70-year

old Larry with guns drawn…despite knowing

they confiscated all of his weapons in the

second raid on their property. The other three

members, all living in Western Washington,

turned themselves in to authorities.

They were charged with one count of

conspiracy to manufacture and distribute 100

or more marijuana plants (even though they

only had 45 at the time of the federal raid),

one count for the actual manufacturing of 100

plants and one count for the actual distribution

of 100 plants. To toss salt into the wound, they

tacked on a count for “Firearm possession in

furtherance of a Drug Trafficking crime” and

“Maintaining drug-involved premise.” How

did they justify the 100 plants? The Feds found

photos of their first crop on their confiscated

computer. So they beefed up the number and

trumped up the charges. Oh…isn’t cannabis

legal in Washington State?

These charges combined could have them

serving 40 years in a federal prison. Larry

was in jail for only 17 days when gout began

to take effect. Malnourished and denied the

medication he needed, Larry was in “mortal

agony” from the swelling of his foot. Suffering

permanent damage, he left the jail on bail

in worse shape and with less mobility then

when he arrived.

This travesty is echoing off of the

journalistic walls and social media outlets,

falling into the minds of people all over the

nation who assumed that this kind of bullshit

didn’t happen in the Cannabis-friendly

Washington State. This was something you’d

expect to hear out of Texas or Georgia. The

lives of American citizens are on the line. The

DEA has shown its ingrained ability to forget

they are supposed to work to protect the

people of this nation. People…like The Kettle

Falls Five.

Their trial is set for July 28th. Show your

support for the Kettle Falls Five in person at

the trial or from home on their Facebook

page:

www.facebook.com/kettlefallsfive

For more information on the case please visit

the Americans For Safe Access website:

www.safeaccessnow.org

“ RHONDA THOUGHT IT WAS JUST SOME FRIENDS PAYING HER A VISIT, WHEN SHE OPENED THE FRONT DOOR, TO HER SURPRISE, EIGHT MEMBERS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT DONNING BULLETPROOF VESTS WERE STARING BACK AT HER AND SHOWCASING A WARRANT. “

EVENTS


Saturday June 7th I believe, held at the 7 Point Studio in Seattle was the Pacific Northwest’s chapter of the Secret Cup. The ode to all things concentrated. “Shatter” influenced BBQ sauce, dabs, pinned caps, slabs and many slaps. If these words aren’t familiar or the picture isn’t painting itself yet it’s likely that you’re not too steeped in the 710 world. It’s wholly different from the 420 group. It’s an interesting subset of the marijuana movement to say the least. A sharp new dialect and hats weighed down by elaborate and artistic pin-making. The Secret Cup, which is judged blindly by the contestants, is the only peer

reviewed Concentrate Cup you will find. There are chapters in Denver and California as well.

The setting was spacious and open. Pitbulls politely patrolled the premises on the other end of the leash from their wax puffing owner. The event was held all day to allow lollygaggers to scramble in for the exciting awards show. It took a while to find some rolling papers, surprisingly, but there was no shortage in clear, amber, yellow and green budders, waxes, shatters or oils. The 710 Community is here to stay. This event proved it.

THE SECRET CUP 2014710 at 7 PointWRITTEN BY MICHAEL CONDON JR. PHOTOS BY ALLIE BECKETT

EVENTS


HERBAN MYTHS


HERBAN MYTHSANSWERED BY

MYTH: YOU CAN TAKE YOUR CANNABIS ON AN AIRPLANE WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES. Unfortunately, this is a myth that looms large these days. While

Amendment 64 and Initiative 502 have done wonders for the

overall social acceptance and legalization of marijuana in America,

the two laws have done nothing to change Federal policy and laws

concerning traveling the airways with your cannabis.

Because cannabis is still a Federally illegal Schedule I Controlled

Substance, passengers are prohibited from traveling with their

cannabis on Federally chartered flights, which is pretty much all of

them. In fact, in January, the Transportation Security Administration

(TSA) seized thirty-six (36) ounces of marijuana-laced food in a

passenger’s checked luggage at the Aspen Airport. While it could have

sent the matter up the Federal chain, the TSA ultimately referred the

case to the Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office. Obviously, while cannabis

isn’t the TSA’s top priority, it can refer possible violations of Federal

law (including marijuana possession) to Federal, state, or local law

enforcement in any state.

While some airports in Colorado actually have dispensing

receptacles (referred to as “amnesty boxes”) into which you can put

your cannabis prior to boarding, most airports don’t. In fact, Denver

International Airport bans cannabis altogether. Washington is slightly

different where Seattle-Tacoma International Airport doesn’t ban

legal amounts of marijuana at the airport. Nonetheless, if TSA catches

you with your cannabis when they screen you in any given state,

marijuana friendly or not, don’t think you’re off the hook.

CANNA LAW

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