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Buying Marijuana Online Is Pretty Easy, Study Finds

Terry Hacienda
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Buying Marijuana Online Is Pretty Easy, Study Finds

If you want to buy something — anything, really — it’s more than likely you’ll find it online. And that includes cannabis.

That’s the conclusion of a new study published this week in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Millions of shoppers are searching for and finding online marijuana retailers across the country, according to the researchers.

The team monitored Google searches in the United States between January 2005 and June 2017, including all searches with the terms marijuana, weed, pot, or cannabis combined with the terms buy, shop, or order (for example., “buy marijuana”). They omitted similar but irrelevant searches like “buy weed killer.” The team then replicated the relevant searches and checked to see whether the resulting websites advertised mail-order marijuana.

“By studying anonymized, aggregate Internet searches and search results, we were able to directly observe the online marijuana marketplace,” said study co-author Mark Dredze, the John C. Malone Associate Professor of Computer Science at Johns Hopkins University.

The team found marijuana shopping searches nearly tripled in the United States from 2005 to 2017, peaking between 1.4 and 2.4 million searches each month.

Marijuana shopping searches were highest in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, and Nevada. However, the annual growth rate in searching for these terms increased in all but two states, Alabama and Mississippi, suggesting demand is accelerating across the nation. (The six least populated states were excluded from the study.)

Forty-one percent of all search results linked to retailers advertising mail-order marijuana, promising delivery using a variety of methods including the United State Postal Service, commercial parcel companies such as UPS, or private courier. Moreover, mail-order marijuana retailers occupied half of the first-page results, and three out of every four searches resulted in a mail-order marijuana retailer as the very first suggested link.

“Anyone, including teenagers, can search for and buy marijuana from their smartphone regardless of what state they live in,” said study leader John Ayers, an associate research professor at San Diego State University’s School of Public Health.

Such online sales of marijuana are prohibited in the United States, even in states that have legalized or partially legalized the drug, “but clearly these regulations are failing,” said coauthor Eric Leas, a research fellow at Stanford University.

Study: Three Puffs Of Marijuana A Day Will Combat Chronic Pain

Brea Mosley
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Study: Three Puffs Of Marijuana A Day Will Combat Chronic Pain

A clinical trial conducted by researchers in Canada reveals that three puffs a day of cannabis will keep the chronic pain away.

The research, led by Dr. Mark Ware, assistant professor of anesthesia and family medicine at McGill University in Montreal, evaluated 21 men and women, with an average age of 45 years old. All of the patients suffered from some form of chronic nerve pain, also referred to as neuropathic pain.

The team tried three different cannabis strains with varying potencies. The most potent had a concentration of 9.4 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis), the next herbal cannabis had a concentration of 6 percent THC, and the least potent was 2.5 percent THC. They wanted to see the effect cannabis would have on chronic pain.

The study lasted for two months, during which the patients used the three strains, as well as a placebo for the control of the experiment. The cannabis was put into in a bowl of a pipe, while each person was told inhale for five seconds, hold the smoke in their lungs for 10 seconds, and then exhale. They did this single puff method, three times a day for five days. The patients never knew which dose or placebo they were smoking, as a means to make sure the results were untainted.

After the end of the five days, the patients recorded their pain on a scale from 0-10. 0 equaled no pain at all and 10 equaled the worst pain.

As you can imagine, the dose with 9.4 percent THC provided the most relief for patients, reducing their pain down to 5.4, where as the placebo had the relief at 6.1.

We get what you’re thinking. That doesn’t appear to be that much of a difference, but actually, “any reduction in pain is important” according to Ware. And any chronic pain patient would agree. So the next time your nerve pain is getting on your nerves, inhale, hold, exhale. Repeat three times.

5 Reasons Why People In A Committed Relationship Might Cheat

Maria Loreto
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5 Reasons Why People In A Committed Relationship Might Cheat

People and relationships are complicated, and cheating is more common than you think, affecting one in every three marriages according to statistics from 2017.

While most relationships start out from a place of love, after a couple of years it’s understandable when things grow complicated and developments start to get in between people’s relationship, affecting them and creating resentments.

There are a million reasons why people cheat, and each situation is as complicated and individual as the next. Psychology Today made a list of the most popular reasons that trigger cheating, and that put people in that mindset. Here are 5 of the most common ones.

Unmet Interpersonal Needs

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Interpersonal needs include emotional intimacy, sexual fulfillment, comfort and companionship, and when they aren’t met they can produce a lot of doubts within someone and their relationship. To avoid this you can confront your partner and discuss your feelings directly to find a solution that works out for both.

If these issues are ignored, people can look elsewhere as a way of subconsciously dealing with their problems, which could result in cheating and in falling in love with someone else who you think can save you from your current situation.

Cultural Context

Cultures greatly affect our behavior and relationships. If you live in a place where cheating and other forms of abuse are tolerated or accepted, it’ll make the pull of cheating much stronger because you think that it’ll be okay if it happens, and that you can get over it. A person’s morality and conscience is greatly affected by their culture, making them think that it’s not that bad to cheat, or that it’s inevitable.

Loneliness

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A very busy partner can make the other half of the relationship feel unfulfilled and lonely, seeking companionship elsewhere. According to Psychology Today, loneliness is one of the most common and hard to identify emotions that affects us, and it can be confused with boredom and other feelings.

Fear Of Commitment

A lot of people have trouble opening up to people and being vulnerable, fearing relationships and long term commitments. These feelings could begin in people since they were children and had trouble attaching to their parents. By cheating on someone you’re in a relationships with, you can avoid commitment and develop a lesser relationship with someone else that feels unthreatening to you.

Memories

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Running into a situation or a person that reminds you of your past can facilitate cheating, making you think of a simpler time, a different relationship, while also fueling your feelings of nostalgia.

Cannabis Business Employees May Not Qualify For TSA Fast-Track

Terry Hacienda
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Cannabis Business Employees May Not Qualify For TSA Fast-Track

If you are a frequent flier and also own a cannabis business, you may no longer qualify for the TSA’s PreCheck security program. It’s yet another example of the federal government digging in its heels as more states legalize marijuana.

The story came to light earlier this week when Aaron Herzberg, a Los Angeles-based attorney who owns several legal marijuana ventures, wrote on his Facebook page that “THE TSA REVOKED MY PRE CHECK AS I OWN A MARIJUANA BUSINESS!”

“They’re treating me like a criminal,” Herzberg said. According to the Orange County Register:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials say they’re simply upholding their policy of “zero tolerance for drugs.” The revocation is the latest example of the growing conflict between state and federal marijuana laws.

California and eight other states have legalized recreational marijuana, while 29 states permit medical marijuana. But the federal government still considers marijuana an illegal drug on par with heroin. That means cannabis consumers in pot-legal states can lose their jobs, insurance, gun rights and more because of federal pressure.

According to the story, Herzberg flies about 15 times a year and signed up for the Department of Homeland Security’s Global Entry Program. Under this system, “low-risk” travelers are allowed to bypass TSA screening lines.

Herzberg was about to board a flight at Los Angeles International Airport and when he checked in at the gate, he was given a notice that Customs and Border Protection had revoked his clearance.

“We have a very strict ‘Zero tolerance for drugs’ policy and he is a partner with CalCan (sic) holdings which owns medical Marijuana businesses,” the letter reads.

Herzberg, who has no criminal record, can’t understand the rationale behind the rejection. “I have absolutely no risk factors other than owning a marijuana business,” he said. Herzberg said he intends to ask Customs and Border Protection to reconsider the decision.

Former NFL Star Ricky Williams Launches ‘Real Wellness’ Cannabis Product

Brendan Bures
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Former NFL Star Ricky Williams Launches ‘Real Wellness’ Cannabis Product

Ricky Williams has followed in the footsteps of other former athletes by launching his own cannabis product line. Williams is calling the brand Real Wellness, which features six products ranging from vape cartridges to tonics, and salves. The goods will contain “hemp-derived cannabidiol (CBD), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or a mix of both,” according to the company. In addition, they will include extracts like arnica, lavender, and turmeric.

For the former football star and Heisman trophy winner who became a trailblazer for athletes advocating for marijuana, Williams couldn’t be happier.

“It’s a dream come true for me to merge my passion for healing and my fascination with plant medicines with my entrepreneurial spirit. Cannabis has played an important part in my healing journey, and I feel a responsibility to share what I have learned in the process,” Williams told NBC San Diego.

Williams will serve as RW’s founder and brand leader. With Williams’ home state of California allowing legal marijuana sales this year, he considered the timing right for him to combine his passions of wellness and herbalism. To produce his line of goods, Williams will work with OutCo, a Southern California medical marijuana dispensary and consulting firm.

Beginning immediately, the products will be sold in marijuana shops in Los Angeles, San Deigo, and the Orange County area. Starting this spring, you can purchase Real Wellness online. Prices will range from around $35-$70.

Because of his passion for marijuana, Williams missed two NFL seasons while still in his prime.

“In 2004 I retired from the NFL and failed a drug test, and the story became ‘Ricky Williams deserts team and went to smoke pot.’ That’s part of the story, but there’s more to it,” he said. “When I left I started to train as a healer, I started to study and learn about herbs, so it dawned on me cannabis is an herb and these are other herbs, so I started playing with herbs and creating formulas to help myself and family and friends.”

Williams believes his product will stand out in the cannabis spaces because he’s adding holistic and Eastern medicine into his product with the herbs.

“I’m being a pioneer in this space, adding medicinal herbs to treat specific medical issues that people are struggling with,” Williams said. “We’re taking medicinal herbs that have been used traditionally to treat headaches, insomnia and anxiety and combining them with cannabis to have powerful effect.”

The Best Things To Do With CBD Water This Weekend

Danielle Guercio
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The Best Things To Do With CBD Water This Weekend

CBD is a popular treatment for anxiety and pain relief, but other than traditional cannabis applications, it wasn’t always easy to dose. Now that the technology is finally becoming more than basic, it’s easier than ever to get the treatment you need. There’s loads of products out to bring cannabidiol into the mass market, but the idea of having water soluble and completely life compatible access is much more appealing to both the casual and committed user.

CBD Living Water is actual water with added electrolytes and CBD; you can use the product in ways you can’t use other cannabis products. Here are three innovative ways to work CBD water into drinks that you have to try.

Carbonate And Mix With Cocktail

There’s absolutely no reason you can’t dunk a liter of CBD water in your Sodastream and go to town. If you’re big on alcoholic cocktails, mixers are not always healthy. Though you might want to add flavors, this bubbly base is sure to help you enjoy your cocktails that much more.

Try it: Carbonate 1 liter of CBD water. Shake together 2 oz Rum, 1 oz green tea syrup, and ½ oz lemon juice over ice. Pour into a glass and top with sparkling CBD water. Garnish with a mint leaf.

Freeze And Use As Wellness Ice

Having wine with ice is my favorite way to pretend I’m hydrating enough when it’s hot outside and the icy tart swill is going down too easily. CBD ice cubes, tasteless and balancing, are probably the smartest thing you could ever put into a chilled wine. With a boost of not only cannabidiol but magnesium, you may not have to tap out so soon.

Try it: Freeze a tray or two of ice cubes filled with CBD Living Water. Dispense four per drink, rejoice.

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Recovery Beverage For Workout/Hangover

It’s been said over and over but even those without complete relief from various ailments notice improvement when incorporating cannabidiol into their regimen. This makes it’s water based iteration so suited to helping hurting bodies from less serious concerns. Chugging a bottle (or two) of this good stuff without getting intoxicated from additional THC or having to taste, smell, smoke or chew anything is a complete paradigm shift. After a long workout or a bad hangover, you’re steps closer to feeling fully charged than with plain water.

Try it: Keep a bottle in the back of the fridge where its coldest. Sweat (or party) hard, and then drink every drop.

Being able to suddenly dose anything you make with your needed meds is going to be life changing for some people. Having the tools to make a simple water based drink into something that makes your day less difficult is a medical user’s dream. Many people want to have the benefits of cannabidiol without any intoxicating effects whatsoever, and CBD Living Water finally provides that chance.

Photos: Maria Penaloza; Danielle Guercio

Many Californians Are Shut Out Despite Marijuana Legalization

Terry Hacienda
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Many Californians Are Shut Out Despite Marijuana Legalization

Marijuana is legal in California, but many residents are having a difficult time finding it. Just three months into the state’s cannabis retail program, nearly 40 percent of Californians are more than an hour away from the nearest regulated store.

Call it the NIMBY Effect. According to the Sacramento Bee:

The reason for the dearth of dispensaries across much of the state is simple local control. The legalization initiative, Proposition 64, gave local government the authority to ban or regulate commercial cannabis. Many communities have chosen to ban.

Industry officials say the local bans harm patients, threaten the financial viability of California’s nascent commercial market and do not reflect the will of voters, who approved Prop. 64 by 57 percent. Local government officials say not all communities with bans expect them to be permanent.

The industry is hoping to improve the situation with a bill, SB 1302, that would allow cannabis delivery in communities with local bans. The bill, by Sen. Ricardo Lara, D-Bell Gardens, could face opposition from local governments that see their control as an essential component of Prop 64.

The situation is creating three major unintended consequences:

  • The illicit market is filling the void created by these NIMBY local laws.
  • Patients in dire need of medical marijuana are finding it difficult to access their medicine.
  • Illegal farms are thriving in areas denying retail shops to open.

The Bee analyzed 284 dispensaries licensed across the state and found:

  • 30 percent of the state is within 30 miles of at least one dispensary. These are mostly the metro areas for the state’s biggest cities, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento.
  • 29 percent of the state is between 30 and 60 miles of a dispensary.
  • The biggest part of the state, 38 percent, is between 60 and 120 miles of a dispensary.

All The Deets On Prince Harry And Meghan Markle’s Magical Wedding Cake

Maria Loreto
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All The Deets On Prince Harry And Meghan Markle’s Magical Wedding Cake

The highly anticipated wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will take place on May 19, and everything suggests that the decorations and flower arrangements will take advantage of the spring season.

According to CBS News, the royal wedding cake will be unconventional, and it’ll bring sunshine to the celebration. Different sources suggested that the cake would be banana flavored, because that’s Harry’s favorite fruit. On Tuesday, however, Kensington Palace announced that the cake will be made with lemon and elderflowers, and topped with fresh and brightly colored flowers, embodying the season and staying away from royal traditions, which normally favor fruit cakes.

The couples’ cake will be prepared by Claire Ptak, a well renowned pastry chef from California who now has a bakery in East London. According to InStyle, the chef was interviewed by Markle a while ago, while she was still running her lifestyle blog The Tig.

The wedding cake is one of the few bits of information that Kensington Palace has released regarding the celebration on May 19th. The guest list and the designer of the wedding dress are still unknown by the public.

Patrick Stewart Is Fighting For 6-Year-Old To Receive Medical Marijuana In UK

Brendan Bures
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Patrick Stewart Is Fighting For 6-Year-Old To Receive Medical Marijuana In UK

Sir Patrick Stewart has emerged as a major advocate for a six-year-old to gain access to medical marijuana.

Alfie Dingley has an extremely rare form of epilepsy and can suffer up to 150 potentially life-threatening seizures per month. Dingley’s conditions improved in Holland, where he could treat his symptoms with cannabis oil and didn’t experience a single seizure in 27 days. But since returning to the UK, Dingley has been in the hospital three times in four weeks.

Marijuana remains taboo in the UK. Most medical patients cannot use medical marijuana to its fullest potential, as it’s essentially impossible to touch the plant itself, due to its illegal status under Parliament law. Patients have increasingly gained access to CBD oil, but Dingley’s case has raised support to legalize medical marijuana with nearly 400,000 people signing a petition.

Among those fighting for Dingley is Stewart, a noted cannabis user and activist.

“How could one not support Alfie?” Stewart told the Independent. “Hearing what his life has been and the benefits given to him by being able to use medicinal marijuana.”

Stewart revealed to GQ last year he uses medical marijuana to help deal with his arthritis. While living in the UK, his only solution was painful steroid injection between his knuckles:

I mean, my main problem is my hands don’t work very well. But thanks to cannabis they work much better than they used to. Thanks to the law in California now, it’s just a spray that I put on.

In support of Alfie Dingley’s case, Stewart reiterated his stance on medical marijuana and its benefits:

There has never been a stronger case for the legalization of medical marijuana. I have been registered for medical marijuana in California for over three years and have found it immensely beneficial for my arthritis.

The Home Office rejected the Dingleys’ license for the drug this month, citing its illegal status meaning it cannot be provided to the public. However, ministers have said that he could obtain a legal prescription for marijuana under a possible clinical trial.

“Without this medication, we know that he will be going back to having steroids every four to 10 days,” said Alfie’s mom, Hannah Deacon. “He is a six-year-old little boy and he deserves to be safe, and well, and this will help him to be safe and well. And I will not stop until he has what he needs.”

Glen ‘Big Baby’ Davis Arrested For Weed, Responds Like A Supervillain

Brendan Bures
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Glen ‘Big Baby’ Davis Arrested For Weed, Responds Like A Supervillain

It was announced last weekend that former NBA player Glen “Big Baby” Davis had been arrested for marijuana possession, though the incident in question occurred in February. Police said they’d found 126 grams of marijuana, or almost one-fourth of a pound, and cash in the Maryland hotel room Davis was occupying. According to a local cable news report, Davis allowed cops to search the room after a hotel manager smelled marijuana emanating from his room.

Davis was instrumental in the 2008 Boston Celtics national championship and last played for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2015.

The real story, however, revolves around Davis’ response to these reports. In a stunning turn of events, Davis recorded an Instagram video claiming his innocence and his excitement to “have my day in court. They’re just mad because a black man got money, man. Just trying to keep a black man down.”

Davis says this while aboard a private jet munching on Popeye’s chicken beside an open briefcase of money, with his Celtics championship ring adorning the cash, like a cherry atop an ice cream sundae. To clarify, those are some things you normally don’t see in a video claiming one’s innocence; it’s more akin to a Marvel villain revealing his dastardly plans right before the superheroes catch him. That might explain why Big Baby removed the video from his account, but it has been recorded on Twitter for your viewing pleasure.

“Don’t believe all that s*** on the Internet, man,” Davis says.

The former NBA player is estimated to have made $33 million from his playing days. His Bel-Air court date is schedule for early April.

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