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The Fresh Toast Marijuana Legislative Roundup for Sept. 11

Alec Engber
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The Fresh Toast Marijuana Legislative Roundup for Sept. 11

A significant chunk of cannabis news took place in the nation’s capital last week as Congress continues to grapple with the complexities of legalization and medical marijuana programs. Meanwhile, Vermont will create a task force to examine legalization and Texas issued its first medical marijuana license. Find out about this and more in our weekly marijuana legislative roundup.

National: 

On Thursday, the extension of an amendment to protect medical marijuana programs from federal law enforcement was signed into law as part of a stopgap federal spending package. The amendment, commonly known as Rohrabacher-Farr, prohibits the use of federal funds to prevent states from “implementing their own state laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana.” The Rohrabacher-Farr amendment has been included in every federal spending package since 2014, and has been extended three times in 2017. Attorney General Jeff Sessions wrote a letter to Congress earlier this year urging lawmakers not to extend the amendment. Under the current extension, the measure is set to expire on December 8. 

On Wednesday, two separate amendments to protect activities relating to medical marijuana were blocked by the House Rules Committee. One amendment, introduced by Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz last week, would have barred the use of federal funds to “prevent or delay the approval of an application, which complies with all applicable requirements, submitted to the Attorney General to possess, distribute, or manufacture a schedule I controlled substance, including marihuana, for the purposes of conducting research, for a substance that is legal for medicinal use pursuant to State law…” The measure was introduced amid reports that the Justice Department had been blocking efforts to increase the number of entities licensed to grow marijuana for medical research. The other amendment would have prohibited federal retribution against banks that do business with state-legal marijuana businesses, and barred the Treasury Department from withdrawing guidelines that permit financial institutions to work with marijuana businesses.  

 Vermont:  

Last week, Governor Phil Scott announced the creation of a commission to study recreational cannabis legalization. The Marijuana Advisory Commission will be tasked with studying recreational marijuana in other states and coming up with a strategy for Vermont to implement legalization. The Commission’s findings will be presented to the Legislature in January 2018. Governor Scott had vetoed a legalization bill passed by the Legislature in May, expressing public health and safety concerns.   

 Texas: 

On Friday, the Texas Department of Public Safety issued its first medical marijuana license under the state’s 2015 Compassionate Use Act. Cansortium Texas will be permitted to grow, process, and sell cannabis for licensed medical marijuana patients. Currently, marijuana may only be sold in the form of non-psychoactive extracts to certain children with intractable epilepsy. A bill to create a comprehensive medical marijuana program in Texas failed earlier this year after receiving an unprecedented level of support.   

Boston Kids Keep Using Chuck E. Cheese Tokens To Pay Library Fines

Brendan Bures
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Boston Kids Keep Using Chuck E. Cheese Tokens To Pay Library Fines

Though Chuck E. Cheese tokens can buy you a great deal of fun and prizes, one Boston library would like to remind its borrowers, as hard as they may try, the tokens cannot pay off your debts.

The problem had apparently become large enough that the Peabody Institute Library, the library for Danvers north of Boston, needed to post on Facebook about.

“This summer we’ve had a surge of folks attempting to pay fines and printing fees with tokens from Chuck E Cheese and Bonkers,” the post states. “Since they are not legal tender, we cannot accept them.

Bookkeeper Sue Kontos told the Salem News one instance where she counted three of the tokens before realizing they weren’t quarters. She did also note that the librarians are being good sports about the whole situation and had a good laugh about it.

Also, the library took the opportunity that Canadian money wouldn’t be accepted either. I guess you’ll have to save those looneys and tooneys for another swindling hoodwink than ripping off the local library.

Scientists Want To Develop Synthetic Medical Cannabis

Maria Loreto
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Scientists Want To Develop Synthetic Medical Cannabis

Researchers from the U.S. and China have discovered the science behind CB1, an important cannabinoid receptor in our body that interacts with THC and delivers us that “high” feeling. A pioneering study from ShanghaiTech University has uncovered the fact that CB1 is pretty complex, having a lot of pockets that are capable of binding themselves with components from the outside environment. These proteins that exist naturally in our brains bind themselves to THC (with the help of CB1) and result in that “high” feeling.

This discovery could lead to the development of  synthetic medical cannabis that’ll model how THC and CB1 interact while also avoiding the side effects that come as a natural part of cannabis, offering only the therapeutic effects of the plant while avoiding that “high” feeling.

These drugs could potentially be used throughout the world without concerning themselves with legal issues that marijuana still faces. The proposal of these synthetic drugs have already sparked some controversy between different people with different ways of thinking.  Those who advocate only for natural marijuana claim that there’s already enough problems with the current forms of synthetic cannabis and that the potential negative side effects could be much more dangerous than the ones the natural plant offers. Others also claim that the development of these synthetic solutions will take a lot of time, money, and effort, and that everything would be much simpler if we spent all those resources on advocating for the worldwide legalization of the drug. Which is kind of true if only a little too optimistic. 

Gossip: Kirk Cameron Controversy Over Hurricane Comments; How Fergie Keeps Her Sex Life Spicy

Naughty Gossip
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Gossip: Kirk Cameron Controversy Over Hurricane Comments; How Fergie Keeps Her Sex Life Spicy

The “Growing Pains” alum and evangelical Christian actor recently took to Facebook, where he often posts vlogs, to give his take on the disasters. Hurricane Harvey killed 70 people and destroyed thousands of homes in the Houston area about two weeks ago, while Hurricane Irma, one of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded, has already killed at least 10 people in the Caribbean is headed towards southern Florida.

“How should we look at two giant hurricanes coming back-to-back like this?” Cameron says calmly in the video, speaking from Orlando International Airport after a business trip to Florida. “Do we write them off as coincidence? Do we write it off as a statistical anomaly? Wow! Who would’ve thought? Is it just Mother Nature in a bad mood? I don’t know how you think about it but I think it could be something much more than all of that.”

Fergie Talks Dressing Up In Costume To Keep Her Sex Life Spicy

Says ABSOLUTELY to a Black Eyed Peas reunion and talks baby rumors!!

In a sneak peak of an interview airing Monday, Fergie got up close and personal with WKTU’s Cubby & Carolina! She talked about the sexy costumes she wears in the bedroom and baby rumors! Interview and VIDEO

Will there ever be a Blacked Eyed Peas reunion?
Absolutely. I wish I could do a Black Eyed Peas album and a Double Duchess album at the same time and be on tour. There’s just not enough time in the day. You know I’m a mommy and I’ve got to sleep sometimes and workout. I did a video for every single song and the visual experience is called Double Duchess seeing double. It will be out in iPic one day only on 9/20. The whole album with visual experience drops on 9/22 two days later. It’s a movie. Life’s a movie. I’m telling you.

There are rumors about you maybe adopting. Is that true or false?
I’ve heard so many rumors about all of that. I have no idea what’s in the future. Right now, I just turned all my videos in yesterday to everybody. It’s like I’m birthing a different kind of baby. I feel like I’m birthing thing out. It didn’t come from my belly but it came from my soul.

If you could duet with one living artist who would it be?
Bruno Mars. I met his mom. RIP. She’s so beautiful. She met my mom and we were all hanging out at this Grammy’s party that he had. Yeah, it was fun! I love him and his whole band. I just think it would be fun to do something kind of old school together. He’s the first one that popped in my head.

How do you keep your marriage spicy and fresh? I can answer that – you wear latex in all your videos!
Right? I do. I have an Axl-safe costume closet where I have all my superhero stuff. That one doesn’t have a combination. I do have one that’s locked that’s a little bit more mature. I run around my house like I’m a ninja pirate or I’m super girl meets bat girl. We run around the house and you would be surprised. When I say work hard, play hard…it used to be play meant going out to the clubs and all of that, but that’s once in a great while I get to do that. I love it and I do it up, but most of my play hard is dressing up like a ninja princess or a pirate or any costume.

Love the fresh dirt we bring over daily from Naughty Gossip? Let us know in the comments!

The Sticks Of These Organic Lollipops Grow Marijuana Plants

Amy Hansen
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The Sticks Of These Organic Lollipops Grow Marijuana Plants

An edibles company has gone Willy Wonka by creating an herbal lollipop that can also grow weed. This is real life. The magical edible is from Half-Lit. It’s a variety of organic lollipops that, when their sticks are planted and watered, can grow actual marijuana. The sticks contain cannabis seeds, which will sprout marijuana if tended to regularly. According to the company: “Allow 11 days for germination, one to three months for vegetative time, and two to three months for flowers/budding.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BYmOFWFnK6L

So far, Half-Lit lollipop flavors include Watermelon Wonderland, Pineapple Paradise, Hot Mama Mango, Calming Caramel Açaí, Lit Lemonade and Lunar Lavendar which all come with 25 mg of THC.

The suckers are really only half-suckers; the backside is completely gone. Says the company website: “Our name, a gentle nod to the moon above when half of its shape dares to light up the sky.Think of it as a half-moon.”

Here’s how the candy works:

President Trump And Jeff Sessions Struggling Over Legal Marijuana

Mary Schumacher
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President Trump And Jeff Sessions Struggling Over Legal Marijuana

The constitutional authority of Congress to protect medical marijuana state rights from federal authorities is also known as “the power of the purse.” This literally keeps the DOJ from spending tax dollars to prosecute federal laws in states that have chosen to legalize.

While the Senate included a no prosecution amendment in this year’s budget, the House did not, leaving it up to a conference committee to see if the amendment stands.

If it falls, cannabusinesses stand to fall with it and countless medical marijuana patients will be without their medicine, including cancer and AIDS patients.

Studies have shown that when deprived of their medical marijuana, many patients turn back to the opiates they took before they had cannabis to ease the pain. In the midst of an opioid epidemic, this is the last thing our government should want.

Infuriatingly, Sessions continues to try linking the opioid crisis to marijuana as the gateway drug. All studies and anecdotal evidence, however, point to cannabis easing opiate withdrawals and easing opioid users off the highly addictive pills and bags.

And despite being seen as a lefty issue, there are plenty of congresspeople and citizens on both sides of the aisle who support marijuana, both medically and legally. For instance, ten out of the 29 medical states went red for Trump in 2016.

Around 62 percent of our nation’s population lives in a state that has some sort of protective marijuana laws. Nationally, nearly three quarters of Americans – over 60 percent of whom are republicans – oppose the feds interfering with the laws the people voted in. Add that to the whopping 94 percent who believe that if your doctor recommends it, you should be able to have it and there you have it: the tides have certainly turned.

Every drug out there under federal law is “scheduled,” with Schedule I being reserved for drugs with high potential for abuse and no accepted medical value. This is where cannabis lives for the moment and it simply doesn’t make sense any longer.

Aside from becoming normalized on the national and international stages, there is more than enough evidence, doctors, nurses and patients to attest to marijuana’s medicinal value. It’s shown itself to prevent abuse when faced with the opioid crisis and, as any pot smoker will tell you, its potential for abuse is laughable. “Oh no! Louie got too high and ate all the cookies!” will never be a 911 call, at least one that doesn’t go viral.

NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio Admits To Wishing He Still Smoked Marijuana

Brendan Bures
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NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio Admits To Wishing He Still Smoked Marijuana

Marijuana consumption rumors have followed around New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio for some time now. Partly because he continues to invite such rumors, with various actions and comments like one he made earlier this week.

During a Democratic primary debate with Staten Islander Sal Albanese, de Blasio joked that he wishes he still smoked marijuana, according to SILive.com.

“Currently no…some days I wish I did,” de Blasio said with a laugh after being asked if he still smokes. When prompted whether or not New Yorkers should have the ability to purchase weed along city streets, he replied, “I believe the laws we have now are the right laws.”

His opponent Albanese stated that cannabis should be legalized, according to reports. De Blasio added that he smoked “once or twice” in college, but that’s about it.

Yeah. Whatever you say, man.

How This Woman Is Able To Fly With A Load Of Marijuana In Her Luggage 

Sam Jones
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How This Woman Is Able To Fly With A Load Of Marijuana In Her Luggage 

As marijuana becomes legal in more of the country but remains a Schedule 1 drug in the eyes of the federal government, there’s been a lot of confusion around traveling with marijuana (including some back-and-forth around a website glitch that waived weed onto planes for a glorious moment, before it was taken down).

Michelle Cleaver, owner of Weed Dudes, a marijuana store in Sitka, Alaska, seems to have hacked the system. She discovered that she can pack five pounds of bud, or about 6,000 joints, or 65 pounds of edibles into her carry-on luggage, and the Transportation Security Administration only barely bats an eye.

How does she do it? Alaska Dispatch News reports:

She lets police know beforehand when she’ll be there. When she gets to the security checkpoint, she alerts TSA. TSA is a federal agency, but its focus is on security threats. Its agents don’t search for marijuana. If TSA agents see marijuana, they call law enforcement, according to TSA spokesperson Lorie Dankers. Law enforcement decides what to do, according to Dankers. The rest goes as follows: Airport police show up. They check the required travel manifest and other state documents. “As long as they have all of their proper Marijuana Control Board documentation … they can continue to travel at their own risk,” said Deputy Chief Aaron Danielson with the Fairbanks International Airport Police and Fire Department.

So, it’s at least partially about having the right documentation and being prepared ahead of time.

Jesse Davis, chief of the Anchorage Airport Police and Fire, told ADN that they’ve been alerted a handful of times to businesses traveling with marijuana, and it’s all gone smoothly.

Full disclosure is key, but there is one party Cleaver doesn’t share her secret stash with: The airline itself. All airlines follow Federal Aviation Administration regulations, which dictate that an airline is at risk if it “knowingly” carries marijuana. What they don’t know can’t hurt them, once she’s through TSA clearance. As long as the loud isn’t TOO loud; She gets a friend to smell-check her luggage once it’s all packed up.

While a common citizen flying around the country can’t pack a shit-ton of weed in their rolling bag and expect to whiz through security, business owners can use this loophole to transport product to hard-to-access locales like Alaska.

Vin Baker Says He Scored 41 Points In NBA Game While ‘Half-Stoned’

Brendan Bures
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Vin Baker Says He Scored 41 Points In NBA Game While ‘Half-Stoned’

Vin Baker’s career is not one to glorify, but wayward tale of squandered potential. A once-rising star, he had a known problem with drinking. So much so that Boston Celtics doctors once told Baker he’d damaged his liver because of his alcoholism.

Financial woes led Baker to losing $100 million due to bad investments and friends taking advantage of him. Reports surfaced all around the internet Baker was working at a Starbucks a few years ago. Losing all that money and other substance abuse problems made Baker hit rock bottom.

But Baker has managed to turn his life around. In an interview to promote his recent book God and Starbucks, the former basketball player detailed his journey of getting sober and telling his story of how far he’s come.

“I came from a dark, dark place,” he told WBUR.

He also added, “We talk recovery, one day at a time. Win the day. So when I got the job at Starbucks as a store manager in training, it was the upswing. I was happy. I was ecstatic.”

One interesting detail that came out of the interview, however, is that Baker admitted he once played in an NBA game after smoking cannabis. Ahead of the game, he was hanging with several other Milwaukee Bucks teammates, including Glenn Robinson. Baker said Robinson was smoking marijuana and offered him some.

Baker indulged. Later, he played “half-stoned,” but was lights out. In fact, it was a coming-out party of sorts for Baker, who scored 41 points.

“Statistically, it was my best game ever as a pro. I scored 41 points,” he told WBUR. “It was a weird coming out party for me, because in some ways it said, ‘Wow, I’ve arrived on this level, to score 40 points, which is a big deal in the NBA.’ But at the same time, the cost of arriving, I didn’t see that night.”

Baker now works in broadcast and served as a youth summer camp director this year.

Kelis Finally Reveals The Boozy Milkshake Recipe That Brings All The Boys To The Yard

Jillian Peterson
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Kelis Finally Reveals The Boozy Milkshake Recipe That Brings All The Boys To The Yard

First off, before you ask yourself whether or not you should take a milkshake recipe from Kelis with a grain of salt, know that the Grammy nominated singer is a trained chef and graduate of Le Cordon Bleu.

Second, September 12 is National Milkshake Day, so even if you don’t trust a recipe from a singer who made a sextually suggestive song about — honestly, who knows? — it’s worth trying to replicate so you can take part in this national treasure of a holiday.

Now, where were we.

The recipe for this particular milkshake involves Baileys Irish Creme liquor, a cayenne-spiked cinnamon rim, ginger candy and ginger beer. This is how a milkshake becomes a tease on the playground.

Refinery29 has the recipe and accompanying video where, according to Kelis, people still always ask her what’s in her milkshake. Time to come up with a better pickup line, guys.

Ingredients

  • 3 oz Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur
  • 8 oz Ginger Beer
  • 4 scoops Chocolate Ice Cream
  • 5 pieces Candied Ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
  • Chili Cinnamon Rim
  • Ginger Infused Whipped Cream for Garnish

Preparation

  • Combine Baileys, ginger beer, chocolate ice cream, candied ginger and cayenne pepper in a blender with a cup of ice. Blend until smooth.
  • Pour mixture into glass with chili-cinnamon-sugar rim (1:1:1).
  • Top with ginger infused whipped cream and a piece of candied ginger.
  • Check the yard.

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