WeedLife News Network

In June 2014, skydiver and pilot Joe Johnson was pulled over as he drove his minivan down a Kansas highway. What began as a routine traffic stop became much more, however, when the state trooper who pulled Johnson over discovered a gun, $374,000 in cash, and 66 pounds of pot in a rear luggage compartment.

Johnson’s arrest led to Operation Golden Go-fer, a DEA investigation that culminated with the October 2014 arrests of 32 illicit cannabis growers and distributors in the Denver area. The bust took down a smuggling ring that was responsible for sending tens of thousands of pounds of weed to Minnesota via skydiving jump planes and autos, bringing in millions of dollars in the process.

A new podcast, The Syndicate, chronicles the smuggling operation brought down by Operation Golden Go-fer, featuring a cast of federal agents, drug mules, DEA moles, and “a cannabis kingpin who took advantage of loopholes in Colorado’s medical marijuana laws, all the while keeping his organization afloat in the face of rivalries, robberies, explosions, and spies,” according to the first episode of the podcast.

The Culture Of Smuggling Weed

But The Syndicate is more than a riveting true-crime series that documents the demise of a criminal organization. It’s also a look into the world of smuggling cannabis in America and the culture that developed and evolved to support it. The host and creator of the podcast, investigative journalist Chris Walker, talked to not only the personalities directly involved in Operation Golden Go-fer, but other pot smuggling veterans as well, including former High Times editor-in-chief Richard Stratton.

“It was really interesting to hear from Stratton about how just the public’s perception of smugglers has changed,” Walker said in a phone interview. “Back in the day, these guys were counter-cultural heroes because you couldn’t get legal weed anywhere. And so anyone who was you know smoking the good stuff had to get it from these smugglers.”

Legal marijuana entrepreneurs are finally starting to win the battle against a long-time enemy—the illicit market. For years, black market operators have undercut cannabis prices and taken away part of the cannabis market share.

But a new study has found that the coronavirus epidemic has accelerated the long hoped for reduction in the illegal market. The legal market has especially taken away business from Mexican drug cartels, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service.

That means the legal cannabis industry is not just supplying U.S. consumers a safer, regulated weed market. It’s also keeping people away from the black market and products from Mexican drug trafficking organizations “that pose the greatest crime threat to the United States,” according to the report.

Positive impact 

The findings of the report might seem somewhat ironic to those in the cannabis business. After all, cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, where it’s listed as a Schedule I  drug on par with cocaine and heroin. But this federal report shows how much legal cannabis has helped curtail the purchase of illegal weed from south of the border.

The report states that authorities on both sides of the 2,000-mile-long border project a “continued decline” in U.S. demand for Mexican marijuana. They write that this is partially “due to legalized cannabis or medical cannabis in several U.S. states and Canada, reducing its value as part of Mexican trafficking organizations’ portfolio.”

While advertisers and Hollywood-types have consistently focused on millennials and Gen-Z over the past few years, it turns out that the cannabis industry may want to turn its attention to another group of potential consumers — senior citizens. According to a report from NBC news, baby boomers in the United States, especially men, have seen their cannabis use rise in the past few years. 

According to NBC News, the numbers come from a new report out in the Annals of Internal Medicine, reflecting changing attitudes towards the drug throughout the United States. The study’s co-author Bill Jesdale, an assistant professor of population and quantitative health science at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in Worchester, told NBC News that more people are accepting of and open to using cannabis now more than ever.

According to Jesdale, cannabis use among older adults is not only increasing in states where the drug is legal, but it is also on the rise in states where prohibition is still in effect.

“It seems that something has happened to the country as a whole,” Jesdale told NBC News.

Jesdale’s study collected survey data from a three year period from 2016 to 2018. According to the report, researchers reviewed cannabis use in over 170,000 adults over the age of 55; two lived in 19 different states and two territories throughout the country. The results found that men between the ages of 60 and 64 were more likely than most to use marijuana. In fact, according to the study, over 12 percent of men in that age bracket used cannabis in the past 30 days when asked in 2018, which was up from around 8 percent who did so in the same period when asked in 2016.

States with higher cannabis and e-cigarette vaping use were not tied to higher rates of the e-cigarette or vaping-association lung illness (EVALI) outbreak from last year, a new study found. In fact, most states with legal marijuana access were connected with a fewer number of EVALI cases on average compared to places where it remains illegal.

The study was published in the journal Addiction this week and corroborates previous reports that EVALI was most likely connected to vaping products purchased from informal sources, or on the black market.

Researchers examined data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which has confirmed more than 2,800 cases and 68 related deaths from the illness. When the CDC ended its investigation in February when no further EVALI outbreaks occurred, they determined vitamin E acetate was the culprit behind the illness. Often vitamin E acetate is a substance used on the black market to thin vaping liquids and sell products for higher profit margins.

“If e-cigarette or marijuana use per se drove this outbreak, areas with more engagement in those behaviors should show a higher EVALI prevalence,” study author Abigail Friedman said. “This study finds the opposite result.

“Alongside geographic clusters of high EVALI prevalence states, these findings are more consistent with locally available e-liquids or additives driving the EVALI outbreak than a widely used, nationally-available product.”

Sales of recreational cannabis have broken $100 million for three months in a row in Oregon as the state continues to wrestle with the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to data from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, which oversees marijuana sales, sales have been up since March, when the state went into lockdown to slow the spread of the virus.

That month total sales in Oregon were $84.5 million, 30% higher than March of 2019.

At the time, some business owners worried the March bump was temporary. But numbers show things have only gotten better, at least for some of the state’s cannabis retailers.

In April, total sales went up 5.7% to $89.7 million which was 44% over the previous April.

Todd Zinicola is pretty sure it’s the only time someone has smoked a Black & Mild cigar in a Virginia courtroom at the request of a judge.

He was defending a client in Fairfax who police searched after saying they smelled marijuana during a routine traffic stop. But Zinicola argued in court that it was impossible for the state trooper to smell the drug, wrapped in two layers of plastic wrap in the back seat, over the overpowering scent of the Black & Mild the man was smoking at the time.

The judge, Jane Marum Roush, who would go on to serve a brief term on the Supreme Court of Virginia, was unfamiliar with the product’s smell and invited him to light it, according to a transcript of the hearing.

“This is highly unorthodox but — here, just go ahead,” she said.

Zinicola wafted the smoke toward Roush, who ultimately agreed — the trooper couldn’t have actually smelled marijuana over the cigar’s overpowering aroma.

In many states, dispensaries are essential businesses during the pandemic. Here are some of the most common safety measures they’ve implemented.

Even though dispensaries are considered essential businesses, the pandemic has still affected them. Just like any other business, marijuana retailers are enforcing new safety measure to keep you COVID-free. Here are just a few of the precautions they’ve implemented.

Adapting to shopping trends

Unlike other businesses that have had to cope with less customers during the pandemic, dispensaries have been experiencing more visits and larger orders. While sales aren’t exactly as robust as they were when COVID first hit, don’t be surprised to see more people than usual in your dispensary or notice that some products have gone out of stock.

In order to keep people safe, dispensaries are limiting the amount of costumers they let inside, allowing for social distanced waiting lines that are usually held outdoors. Some dispensaries might also be implementing shopping schedules.

Implementing social distancing

Photo by Heath Korvola/Getty Images

Bill O’Reilly eyed my brother and me like a hungry lion looking over a couple of lambs. He twisted his face into the trademark O’Reilly sneer and scolded us with a tone of triumph: “Come on, you know what the ruse is, you know what the scam is.”

I’d known the comment was coming. It’s standard procedure for hostile journalists. They all think medical cannabis is a fraud.

My own cannabis recommendation is technically for chronic pain, but I used it for many other purposes. Some were unquestionably therapeutic, like helping me sleep. Others, like shaking off nervousness or sadness, seemed borderline. But there were some that just didn’t fit my definition of medical use, like enhancing the enjoyment of a meal or a piece of music.

Like most people, I used to be locked into an outdated illness concept of human health that views us as either sick or healthy. If we are sick, we go to the doctor, who writes a prescription or recommends a procedure, after which we are supposed to recover and go back to being healthy — if we’re lucky.

But over the last few decades, it has become evident that human health actually operates on a spectrum of wellness. That spectrum occupies the space between perfect health and acute sickness, and it is where most humans spend the majority of their lives.

Many creative people claim cannabis plays a key role in their creative process, but whether it boosts creativity probably depends on the personality of the creative person.

“Where the drugs are concerned, and alcohol, they do seem to open a window for you. They do seem to broaden the vistas—at first,” comedian George Carlin once said. 

Steve Jobs claimed that smoking cannabis made him feel relaxed and creative, while Alanis Morissette said that it helps keep her creative juices flowing. And you probably already knew that Charles Baudelaire, Amedeo Modigliani, and Louis Armstrong used cannabis too.

It begs the questions, is there something special about the most popular illicit substance in the world that makes it more conducive to creativity? And, is a lack of creativity a treatable condition?

One hypothesis is that, because drugs can lower our inhibitions, they help to silence the self-editor that tends to harshly criticize what we create, allowing us to overcome writer’s block or simply the fear of creation.

Cannabis lovers have been lining up outside of Illinois’ dispensaries this week as, for the first time in its history, the High Times Cannabis Cup is including the general public in the judging process. 

Those interested can purchase testing kits in dispensaries across the state of Illinois and vote on their favorite strains from the comfort of their own homes. 

The High Times Cannabis Cup was founded in Amsterdam in 1988 by editor Steve Hager and has since become the world’s most famous cannabis festival – an event where both vendors and weed lovers gather to celebrate marijuana.

The pinnacle of the Cannabis Cup is the blind competition for the best weed strains, along with several other categories, with the top prize being the Cannabis Cup trophy. 

Previously, select panels consisting of several dozen expert judges voted for the winner, however, the coronavirus pandemic has changed the concept of the now-virtual event.

The self-care industry has experienced a wildly explosive boom the past few years, and the cannabis market has been paying attention. You can walk into any dispensary and find as many skincare products as stoney edibles. 

But self-care isn't just for the body, it can contribute to overall well-being. Simply caring for yourself and setting up a routine can boost self-esteem. No need to make it elaborate — washing your hair with your favorite shampoo or preparing your favorite meal can help build you up.

In these long days of quarantine and coronavirus, self-care may have taken a backseat in your day-to-day life. Time begins to blend together, and the overwhelming news cycle can start to feel like a constant buzz — so much of this can make everything feel a little hopeless and grey. But these are the times when self-care is most important. 

To understand the need for self-care and CBD, we spoke to Tamara Anderson, founder of Culinary and Cannabis, an ongoing event forum that provides cooking classes and cannabis education from “healthcare professionals, advocacy groups and food & wine experts within the community for a great cause.” 

Also a nurse, Anderson knows how important it is to care for the body and mind, and understands how cannabis may help manage pain and bring relief to a variety of patients. Seeing how self-care and cannabis go hand-in-hand, she's set up virtual “CannaSpas" where you can buy wellness kits and follow along as she or other educators create candles, lotions, edible treats, and various CBD-infused self-care goods. 

Vaping has become a leading topic of conversation among smokers in recent years. While there are still many unknowns about vaping, initial studies show that it’s better than smoking in a variety of ways.

If you’ve been considering the switch from smoking to vaping, you may have a few questions. Here are four things you need to know about vaping before making the switch.

Vaping is Less Harmful than Smoking

While inhaling anything other than oxygen into your lungs isn’t optimal for health, vaping is better for you than smoking. The primary reason for this difference is that vaping has a lower combustion point than smoking. In many vaping apparatuses, you can alter the combustion point to your preference.

The lower combustion means less heat entering your lung tissue. There’s also reason to believe that the lower combustion point limits the release of tar and ash, which are toxic to the lungs.

Additionally, the lack of second-hand smoke and residue makes vaping safer for the people around you as well. For these reasons, vaping is a safer alternative to smoking.

Crop Declines

CBD is a popular skincare additive, with many brands creating expensive products that highlight the compound. Here’s what dermatologist think about that.

CBD’s good reputation and pervasiveness is a good sign because it represents the progress that cannabis has gone through in recent years, but it also raises some red flags, particularly for skeptics. How can a compound that treats pain and provides stress relief also be used to treat skin when applied topically?

To make matters worse, CBD products in the beauty industry tend to be expensive, with some small bottles of cream and serums starting at $100. Ouch.

Celebrity endorsed brands that feature CBD in their products make broad claims, highlighting the fact that the compound is a calming agent and that it can reduce stress and irritation on the skin. While anti-inflammatory results have appeared in different tests conducted on CBD (mostly when its ingested), there’s no sufficient research available on CBD’s effect in skincare.

The Huffington Post spoke with several dermatologists and asked for their opinion regarding CBD skincare products. Most of them agreed that while CBD does sound promising, there’s no way of knowing right now if the compound does what the brands are saying.

Vegan cooking competition show High Cuisine recently debuted on Amazon Prime Video. The 12-episode series taps into cannabis culture by challenging Los Angeles-based vegan chefs to create the most innovative dishes after getting high, while discussing the creative culinary inspiration they get from their use of cannabis. Challenges include creating the world’s largest burrito, turning Thanksgiving dinner into a sandwich, and making sushi for dessert. The chefs make use of everyday vegan ingredients as well as products from national brands such as Beyond Meat, Dandies, The Herbivorous Butcher, and Follow Your Heart. 

“We wanted to do a fresh take on the traditional cooking show. High Cuisine has all of the trappings of a competition show you might find on network television, but with the added fun that stoned chefs bring to the kitchen,” High Cuisine executive producer Asher Brown said. “Plus, we’re aiming our show at a wide audience. You don’t have to be vegan to appreciate how creative great chefs can be when they’re cooking with plants. And you don’t have to smoke [marijuana] to appreciate High Cuisine either. The weed is in the chefs, not in the food, so we’d love everyone watching at home to wonder what a fruit roll-up enchilada tastes like and be able to follow along when a chef tries to make beet cupcakes—and then get inspired to cook some awesome weird plant-based food themselves.”

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, many people are dealing with stress, anxiety and boredom, and some San Diegans' coping mechanism has shown in sales.

"I personally use it a lot to manage my anxiety and my stress,” said San Diegan Jackie Bryant, referring to marijuana, “and it’s been a really huge help for my mental health during the pandemic.”

Blake Marchand is the owner of marijuana dispensary, March and Ash in Mission Valley. He compared the initial rush of marijuana sales during the beginning of the pandemic to that of some other popular items.

“It was similar to how people ran to Costco to grab you know, all the toilet paper that they could. I think in the first couple weeks, you know, a lot of customers are coming in and just grabbing, grabbing enough just in case we were to be shut down," he said.

Any situation where a child ingests even the smallest amount of THC is just not good. Here’s how to keep them safe.

Parents have been getting high since the dawn of time. It used to be one of those situations where old mom and dad might buy a dime bag to have on the weekends after the kids went to bed. Until then, they might stash it in their underwear drawer alongside a small collection of sex toys and dirty magazines, or they might even hide it in the refrigerator inside a can of Folgers coffee.

There’s no way the kids would ever look in any of those places and discover that their parents were going against the wishes of Nancy Reagan by Just Saying YES to drugs. But times have changed since then. 

Now, marijuana is legal for medicinal and recreational use in more than half the nation, and the kids, well, they apparently know no boundaries when it comes to sniffing out the parental stash. That’s right, mom and dad, not even the tried and true underwear drawer is safe anymore. 

It seems that every time we turn around a new report has emerged, showing that more children are being admitted to hospital emergency rooms all across the country to be treated for marijuana-related poisonings. Most of these cases are the result of little Jimmy getting into his mom’s THC-infused candies and biting off way more than his small body and mind can handle. 

If you grow marijuana for a dispensary or personal use, you should know these tips. This guide lists 7 marijuana growing tips every grower needs to know.

In case you didn’t know, CBD is now legal in 33 states, and medical marijuana in the remaining 17. That means that you can grow your own marijuana and make a living out of it. However, making a killing off the trade isn’t as easy as throwing marijuana seeds on the ground and harvesting liters of CBD oil.

Any serious marijuana grower knows that growing marijuana is incredibly difficult. Growing quality marijuana takes lots of diligence, commitment, and resources.  With the right marijuana growing tips; however, growing your own marijuana will be a piece of cake.

Even the most seasoned marijuana growers sometimes have a hard time getting a good yield. However, here is a couple of invaluable marijuana growing tips for both newbies and experienced growers.

You don’t have to be a master marijuana grower to know that your marijuana is only as good as its genetics. The first step to growing some good marijuana is finding an excellent cannabis strain, and there are plenty to choose from. So the million-dollar question is, where do I find quality marijuana strains?

Cannabis shouldn’t create anxiety. Depending on the strain you use, it should ease anxiety, so let’s start there.

As marijuana’s popularity spreads, more people are open to trying it. Perhaps they’ve heard that their medical condition is eased or treated by medical marijuana. Maybe it’s simply time to try something other than a glass of wine at the end of the day. No matter the reason, it’s important to get the dosage right.

The thing is, like most mind-altering substances, cannabis effects people in different ways. And with the myriad of choices as to how one can imbibe, it can become complicated. Cannabis shouldn’t create anxiety. Depending on the strain you use, it should ease anxiety, so let’s start there.

Indicas, Sativas And Hybrids 

These are the three types of marijuana plants that are harvested. Indicas are known for sedation and appetite stimulation, while sativas create more of a “heady” high: cerebral, creative and more active. A hybrid is a cross between sativa and indica and many people new to pot start with a hybrid. Though it’s sativa dominant, a very good strain for newbies is Jack Herer. Its uplifting high is a good start for almost anyone. If you’re looking for something more indica dominant, Bubble Kush is a very popular choice.

Ways to get cannabis into one’s system vary. From smoking, vaping, and dabbing to edibles, tinctures and topicals, it can be tough to know where to start. Especially if the newcomer is enthusiastic. The best advice is don’t try everything at once, because you may freak out. The biggest risk with marijuana is the potential panic attack from being “too high.” It’s easily avoidable, however, if you just follow a few rules.