The Simple Thing You Can Do Right Now To Improve Your Mental Health
Your brain and your stomach are connected. By eating healthier, you can help yourself feel better and prevent negative mental health episodes.
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Nebraska voters may have a chance to legalize medical marijuana during this year’s election, but Governor Pete Ricketts has made it abundantly clear that he wants the Cornhusker State to say no to medical pot.
“There is no such thing as medical marijuana,” Ricketts claimed in a press conference held last week, KMTV reports. “This is not something that would be prescribed by a doctor. It’s not going to be distributed through a pharmacy. These are dispensaries that would be in your communities… This is not a benign thing. This is a dangerous thing.”
Of course, 33 other US states, hundreds of peer-reviewed clinical research studies, and dozens of other countries disagree with Ricketts’ offhand assessment. The federal government has even approved one cannabis-derived medicine to treat childhood epilepsy disorders.
The governor argued that “people show up to work stoned” in states where medical pot is legal, “and that puts them at greater risk for accidents on the job,” WOWT reports. Research studies have found that the exact opposite is true, however. Data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that workplace fatalities have actually decreased by as much as 34 percent in legal-MMJ states. Another recent study also found that off-hours use of recreational or medical cannabis has no impact on job performance.
Anti-legalization rhetoric is incomplete without an appeal to think about the children, and Ricketts heartily embraces this trope. “We know that this has a huge impact on children, their development, their you know their cognitive development, their development in their brain is impacted when they have access to marijuana,” he said, according to WOWT. While it is true that some research suggests that adolescent cannabis use could be risky, it is also true that underage pot use has actually decreased in states where weed is legal.
Governor Ricketts has also taken his personal war on weed online, posting an article entitled “Marijuana is a Dangerous Drug” on his official website. In this statement, the governor argues that “marijuana remains a federally banned controlled substance whose medicinal value has not been tested.” Ricketts cherry-picks two studies showing some potential risks of cannabis use, while continuing to ignore hundreds of studies proving that cannabis can effectively treat dozens of conditions without serious side effects.
Ricketts also tries to conflate the very real dangers of synthetic marijuana with natural cannabis in an attempt to confuse voters. The governor notes that a batch of synthetic marijuana, or K2, has resulted in hundreds of overdoses across the state this year. Ricketts calls this increase in K2 use “an informal medical experiment” and “yet another reminder of how dangerous marijuana can be.”
The governor’s attempt to confuse medical cannabis with synthetic marijuana is as dangerous as it is ignorant. Synthetic marijuana is created by spraying inert plant material with toxic chemicals, and has nothing to do with actual cannabis. People who use K2 are not using it for medical benefits, and no state has ever legalized this kind of synthetic marijuana, so its mention here only serves to spread fear and misinformation.
Local cops have already tried to shut down the legalization initiative by filing a legal challenge arguing that the ballot measure violated the state’s single-subject rule. Nebraska Secretary of State Robert Evnen shot down the challenge and qualified the measure to appear on the ballot, but the battle has now moved to the state Supreme Court.
Jimmy Carter’s Son Smoked A Joint With Willie Nelson On The White House Roof
In his 1988 biography, Nelson mentions a “companion on the roof,” but doesn’t identify the person by name.
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Pennsylvania Senator Calls Gov.’s Cannabis Store Idea A ‘Nightmare’
The governor said that he would like to legalize cannabis in order to bring in more revenue for the state and thinks that selling weed in the state liquor stores is the way to do it.
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It’s little wonder why we don’t see much diversity in the cannabis industry. Minority communities have been disenfranchised in the United States for centuries, and having little access to the business is yet another setback.
And through time, the government has been a major force in oppressing minority populations by using cannabis as a weapon. When commenting on the 1970s War on Drugs, President Nixon’s domestic policy chief, John Ehrlichman, infamously told Harper’s, “We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or Black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and Blacks with heroin, and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities.”
How can we expect healthy diversity when entire generations have been desecrated by their own country’s mandates and policy?
And it isn’t just insidious laws that are keeping people well behind the curve, it’s also everyday racism and microaggressions. It’s ignoring the insights made by Black employees and other minorities in company meetings, yet paying attention when a white coworker says the same thing just a few moments later, or deeming natural Black hair “unprofessional” in the workplace. These biases happen all the time. So how can the industry get past this? How can we uplift and promote minority voices throughout the cannabis world? How can we make change?
To better understand the issues many people face when starting out in the industry, we spoke to My Green Network‘s CEO James Shih. From their website, My Green Network “is a California cannabis compliant manufacturing facility designed to provide an all-inclusive solution to enter the legal cannabis manufacturing market without hassle.”
Currently, My Green Network is running Green Quest 2020, a contest where they will grant a “deserving minority-owned business a California Type-S cannabis manufacturing license.” Green Quest is a great opportunity for budding entrepreneurs. Shih noted of the winner, “We’re going to pay for their license, we’re going to subsidize their rent. We’re going to move them along the process, mentor them, and put them in the cannabis network.” Applications for Green Quest are open until September 15.
If you’re serious about starting a cannabis business, there’s one thing you need first and foremost: money. A lot of money.
You need money for a license, a manufacturing facility, a dedicated team to oversee social media and advertising, technical employees, day-to-day work and management — you need money for just about every step of the process. On average, opening a new cannabis business can range anywhere between $50,000 to $2,000,000 on up — just to start.
Shih began his career as a lawyer, shifting into the cannabis licensing business in California. Once on the inside, he saw what kind of funding was needed to break into the industry. “We were realizing that we had to charge $100,000 for someone — in just the legal aspect — for getting a license,” Shih said.
So if you don’t have a couple of money trees growing in the backyard, what options are available to you? Shih and his team formed Green Quest because “the process to get into the industry is painful. It’s basically inaccessible for 95—99% of people purely based on the money.” The winner of the contest will have their costs covered, along with open and free access to the company’s manufacturing facility.
But aside from My Green Network’s generous offerings, entrepreneurs who have been disproportionately impacted by cannabis reform and the War on Drugs may have access to social equity programs in their legal states. For example, the City of Los Angeles’ Department of Cannabis Regulation runs a social equity program, granting funding and access to communities most devastated by governmental oversight in cannabis. Massachusetts also provides programs offering education and training in the cannabis industry for those with past cannabis convictions.
Though these programs tout helpfulness, there is a warning to be wary; some of these programs have been met with mixed results, with funding moving at a glacial pace or having been circumvented into other city outlets like transportation or police departments.
The cannabis business has never been as expensive as it is now. Gone are the days of growing your own plants or baking a few infused goodies to share with the greater community. You now need business plans and analytics to break in. Shih added, “We saw that it is inaccessible, and what we do now is revolutionizing access for cannabis manufacturers.”
According to a Marijuana Business Daily report from 2017, “the percentage of minorities holding executive positions at cannabis businesses stands at 17%.” A low number for an industry built on minority oppression up until very recently — and arguably still.
With so much devastation felt by these communities due to decades of political warfare on cannabis and countless convictions, granting fair and open access for marginalized communities should be a right. Shih has also seen how certain companies have been dancing around these issues, “there are a lot of people passively talking about the need for equality. Green Quest was our way of saying, ‘We don’t want to be passive — we are going to take action.’ It’s an active process for us. We decided that if, in order to create real access for minority-controlled cannabis businesses, and really change a social, racial, and economic field, we have got to take steps — that’s it.”
But My Green Network is only one pathway, “it doesn’t just start with us, we’re just trying to lead one. We need everybody on board to really highlight it, and everyone to start taking action — not just us.”
Last year, Steve Hawkins, the executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project told MarketWatch, “the most pressing issue facing minority entrepreneurs is obtaining the capital necessary to run a cannabis business.” Not only that, but minority-owned companies face larger hurdles when attempting to access loans or grants in general — or they’re completely ignored regardless, due to years of predatory redlining and discriminatory practices.
Shih’s team has seen the kind of greatness that comes with expanding the market and opening their facilities to diverse voices, “when you give opportunities to minorities — and other people that have been disproportionately impacted — those people have fantastic ideas, and cultures that support them — they are able to see current topics around the world.” This kind of knowledge may collectively impact cannabis on a global scale in years to come, with innovation and unique insights leading the way.
Change in the industry must come from every level because every level is affected by racial politics. And though there is a risk when attempting change, it’s what’s needed in order to create acceptance and inclusion. When asked about what the industry can do to help, Shih said, “all these huge funded companies with millions or hundreds of millions of dollars behind them, if each one of them just allowed one person to come in that is a minority, and they focus on that, that would create change immediately across the entire industry.”
It is imperative for cannabis companies, especially, to offer means to diversify and lift up minority communities and employees, and to offer avenues to success. “People don’t realize that the cost to produce innovative products is really high because it’s a risk and [these products] may not be easy to make,” Shih said. “Not many people are able to take that risk. You could be an entrepreneur who makes a fantastic product that no one’s ever really seen — that can be a huge entry point. But what’s happening is that most people can’t do it because they can’t access it.”
Outside the occasional office diversity training programs — which tend to backfire when most people go back to their inherent biases just days or even hours later — hiring Black and POC candidates and offering them deserved merit and promotions is one step in the right direction. Larger cannabis companies have the funds to develop spaces for diverse voices along with inclusive (and better) training for non-Black and POC folks, but the companies themselves must be aware enough to take these steps.
Cannabis is progressing in other countries at a phenomenal pace, and opening access to different perspectives, markets, walks of life, can all add to the expansion and explosion of the global market. And there’s never a better time than now to start lifting up and helping. “We think that the time right now — for everyone — is really good because it’s an opportunity where people can talk about it,” Shih said. “But we need to have people take that extra step and be active about it. That’s really what people can do.”
Featured image by Reiana Lorin/Cannaclusive
The post The cannabis industry fails minority professionals. It's time to do better. appeared first on Weedmaps News.
DEA Doesn’t Want You To Worry About Its New Hemp Rule—Don’t Take The Bait!
In order to justify its existence, the DEA must ensure that the War on Drugs continues.
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How CBD Helps Seniors Exercise
By interacting with our endocannabinoid system, CBD can be effective as an option to relieve pain.
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The cannabis legalization movement has had an immeasurable impact on society. It’s shifted the public’s perspective of weed and plant medicine at-large. It’s given us 20/20 hindsight to see how pot has historically been used as a weapon of oppression, which in turn, has given us a lens to understand how those tactics are being wielded against us now. It’s led to the expungement of thousands of non-violent criminal records and given people the opportunity to live normal, above-ground lives. Legalization has also spawned a massive industry that’s increased access to cannabis around the country.
But, perhaps the most mindblowing result of widespread legalization is the explosion of cannabis tech. No, we’re not referring to the rise of companies like Eaze or Weedmaps. We’re talking about the nitty-gritty weed technology that’s changed how we interact with the plant. No longer do we have to grind up and pack (or roll) a nug into something to get high. No longer are we eating mysterious weed brownies with unknown amounts of THC that might leave us stoned for three days straight.
Now we have edibles with precise dosage, bongs that don’t knock over and break easily, salves and creams that treat pain topically, THC strips that go under your tongue, and effervescent weed drinks that redefine what it means to sip bubbly. There are dozens of ways to enjoy cannabis and interact with the plant that simply didn’t exist before legalization. That’s why we decided to create this list: So our dope readers can maximize the benefits of cannabis.
Enjoy!
Wide Base Water Pipe by GRAV
GRAV’s Wide-Based Water Pipe has always been a must-have. But, the new and improved version has taken the piece to the next level. With a classy combo of clear and smoke glass, the piece shows-off curves in all the right places. It’s an intelligent piece of craftsmanship infused with elegance and comes equipped with a wide base to keep it stable and bottom-heavy — ya know, so you don’t knock it off the coffee table. The wide conical perc diffuses smoke gently through the water, while the narrow neck prevents splashback. And with 32 mm borosilicate tubing construction, the pipe is sturdy and compact enough to pack it up and take it to your next destination.
Beyond its functionality, however, the pipe has aesthetic value. The greyish-green smoke color at the perc, base, and stem draws attention to its unique shape. The unusual color combo makes this water pipe stand out among a collection of clear or solid colored scientific glass. With about an inch of water, the Small Wide Base Water Pipe packs a big punch in a little package. It’s smooth enough to be your daily driver, but sexy enough to earn a place of honor on the mantle. The pipe comes with an efficient 14mm cup bowl, or you could sub out a higher capacity bowl for bigger rips.
For more information visit: Grav.com
The Vault Extract Battery and Storage Chamber by Ooze
The Ooze Vault battery is the easiest way to enjoy both your oil carts and concentrates on the go! This 510 thread battery is a cross between a palm and pen-style battery, with a shape that comfortably fits right in your palm. Adjust your temperature with the dial on the bottom, where you can fine-tune your voltage to get just the right amount of heat.
Ooze includes a wax atomizer with each Vault, which makes this a full wax set up. A secret storage compartment can be found right next to the temperature dial! This allows you to keep an extra cartridge on hand in case yours runs out while you’re out and about, or keep your atomizer loaded with wax to quickly switch between substances. This is also great for keeping both a sativa cart for daytime use, plus an indica cart on hand for when the sun goes down.
Get your dabs warmed up and ready to go by running a cycle of Preheat Mode before taking your hit. Click the button twice to activate, and your button will flash a rainbow of colors while heating your atomizer up without needing to hold the button down. Once the cycle completes, your dab should be the ideal temperature to give off a massive cloud as soon as you inhale!
For more information visit: oozelife.com
Eyce Breaker by Eycemolds
The Eyce Beaker is a resilient silicone water pipe that’s a true game-changer to the industry. Crafted from platinum cured silicone, the Eyce Beaker is the most durable product of its kind. The design features a 14mm borosilicate glass downstem and slide and is loaded with extras including a large hidden stash jar and rolling tray which can be found in the base of the product, a magnetic ring to hold your lighter right next to the bowl, a stainless steel poker and an ice catch in the neck of pipe to deliver smooth, cool hits. The Eyce Beaker comes in a variety of colors making it easy to pick the pipe that best fits your style.
The Eyce Beaker is the perfect water pipe for life on-the-go. Because it’s crafted from platinum cured silicone it’s a tough, flexible pipe that’s geared towards handling the wear and tear of everyday life. The Eyce Beaker is incredibly easy to throw in a backpack and take with you anywhere: Camping, hiking, beach trips, or vacation — this pipe can handle it all!
But if life gets the best of your Eyce Beaker, never fear! It’s backed by Eyce’s industry-leading lifetime warranty. “Break it, tear it, burn it — we’ll replace it,” is the motto Eyce lives by — which even includes glass! Between the durability, tons of extras, and the lifetime warranty, the Eyce Beaker may just be the last water pipe you ever need.
For more information visit: eycemolds.com
Ardent FX by Ardent Cannabis
The Ardent FX is an all-in-one, portable cannabis kitchen — aka the Easy Bake Oven — for cannabis! Ardent’s newest release fully activates any plant material (flower, kief, or concentrate), and has settings to infuse, cook and bake right inside.
Using a precision odorless process, the Ardent FX puts you in control to create accurate edibles, infused oils, topicals, tinctures, capsules, suppositories, and beyond, using just a small amount of cannabis. With the push of a button, you can decarboxylate THC, CBD, CBG, and infuse oils, milk, and creams, and bake your favorite edibles right inside — no kitchen needed!
Perfect for both the expert consumer and newbie, the Ardent FX doesn’t require any prior cannabis, cooking, or baking experience, and holds up to 4-ounces at a time. But it has no minimum material amount, so you can make edibles with just a gram of flower, too! After using, simply remove the detachable base from the power supply and place the Ardent FX into the dishwasher for easy cleaning.
The Ardent FX also features a stainless steel cavity, a patented thermal heating core, which wraps around the entire device, and two sensors and an algorithm to deliver precise heating every time. This must-have appliance is ideal for at-home or on-the-go (no need for an oven, double boiler, or crockpot — FX does it all in one single device). Effortlessly switch between modes by pressing the “M” button, and start the cycle by pressing the Ardent “A”.
For more information visit: ardentcannabis.com
The Firefly 2+
The Firefly 2+ is designed for people who love the plant. Our dynamic convection technology delivers phenomenal flavor and zero waste. It’s equally superb with flowers and extracts, ready to puff in three seconds, and is easy to load and clean.
You deserve the best vapor experience in the world. This is it.
For more information visit: firefly.com
Kin Slips’ Sublingual Strips
Our mission at Kin Slips is to inspire trust in the science and benefits of cannabis. We encourage this growth through meaningful conversations and education at the community level. Our goal here is to arm you with the best information available and help clarify why we believe that sublinguals simply work better.
THE DIGESTIVE TRACT’S DIRTY SECRET:
When you compare sublinguals to edibles, edibles are less predictable and consistent due to a chemical conversion occurring in your stomach and liver. We’re going to dive in, so put your thinking cap on. This part gets pretty science-y!
When you consume an edible, your body goes to work breaking it down in your digestive system and liver. This journey is known as First Pass Metabolism. Along the way some of the ∆9-THC is metabolized into 11-Hydroxy-THC, a psychoactive relative of ∆9-THC. 11-Hydroxy-THC has been shown to cause more psychoactive effects than ∆9-THC, which is why people become more uneasy from edibles than other consumption methods. Sublingual absorption bypasses the digestive tract thus avoiding First Pass Metabolism, making it one of the most efficient and reliable ways to consume cannabis.
For more information visit: kinslips.com
Canna Cola
Known as the “little drink that could,” Canna Cola is the World’s Most Recognized Brand in Medical Marijuana, and they’ve made a complete switch to CBD-only infused, ready-to-drink beverages. They started 2011 — nearly a lifetime ago in the history of the legalization movement — by providing tasty THC infused carbonated beverages for medical marijuana users. But the time is right for a shift.
For more information visit: drinkcannacola.com
Drift
Hurry up and relax, already! This sublingual is a fast-acting blast of joy and love. It works 4 times faster than a tincture, it’s 3 times more potent than your average spray, and each pump is precisely dosed to 1.6 mg of THC giving you full agency over your high.
For more information visit: mirthprovisions.com
*This article was made in partnership with the brands listed above
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Elected in 1976, President Jimmy Carter was truly a man of his time — and the 1970s were a high time, indeed.
In a new documentary, Carter not only confirms Willie Nelson’s story about smoking weed on top of the White House, he reveals that Willie’s rooftop smoking buddy was his own son, Chip Carter.
Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President is a joyful and (behind-the-scenes) joint-filled look back at Carter’s connection to the contemporary music and musicians of his day, both on the campaign trail and during the tenure of his administration.
“When Willie Nelson wrote his autobiography,” Carter says in the doc’s trailer, “he confessed that he smoked pot in the White House and he said that his companion was one of the servants at the White House. It was actually one of my sons.”
Carter smiles as he makes the revelation, and later in the film, he says it was Chip Carter, who was 28-years-old at the time and had been openly friendly with NORML founder Keith Stroup.
Willie himself broke the story in his 1988 memoir, Willie: An Autobiography. “Sitting on the roof of the White House in Washington, DC, late at night with a beer in one hand and a fat Austin Torpedo in the other,” he wrote. “My companion on the roof was pointing out to me the sights and layout of how the streets run in Washington… I let the weed cover me with a pleasing cloud… I guess the roof of the White House is the safest place to smoke dope.”
In his 2015 follow-up, It’s a Long Story: My Life, Willie gets more specific, describing how Chip “pulled out a joint” and said, “Think it’s time to burn one, Willie, if you don’t object.” We all know what happened next.
“I accepted the offer,” Willie wrote. “The smoke took the edge off my excitement. There I was smoking weed and watching the city lights flicker like fireflies… Getting stoned on the roof of the White House, you can’t help but turn inward. Certain philosophical questions come to mind, like… How the fuck did I get here?”
In addition to electrifying archival performances by Aretha Franklin, Paul Simon, Dizzy Gillespie, and Herbie Hancock, Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President also details the former president’s longtime close friendship with Bob Dylan, as well as his personal connections with Jimmy Buffett, Nile Rodgers, Garth Brooks, and, above all, the wild-and-wooly, deliriously drug-driven Allman Brothers Band.
The movie contains copious footage of Carter with the Allmans in concert throughout 1975 and ’76. Their partnership elevated both the Georgia-based band and the presidential hopeful, who was then governor of the Peach State.
“For a time,” CMT wrote of the team-up, “Carter, in effect, became the Allmans’ opening act. He was introduced, gave a short campaign speech, and then introduced the band — in the process raising his profile with young voters all over the country. And raking in campaign funds.”
Always idealistic, Carter also appealed hugely to youth by becoming the first president to proclaim that marijuana should be decriminalized (and the last to do so until Bill Clinton mentioned it in December 2000, on his way out the Oval Office door. Thanks, Bubba).
Carter even formerly asked Congress to enact decriminalization in March 1977, during his first 100 days in office. Obviously, he wasn’t able to make it happen.
Carter lost in 1980 to Ronald Reagan, the Commander-in-Chief who launched the War on Drugs. Since leaving office, Carter has repeatedly called for an end to that madness. Jimmy even came out in 2012 for full legalization — a prospect that’s not even on the table (yet) in the 2020 presidential race.
Jimmy Carter: Rock & Roll President premieres in theaters and online on September 9. See it. And then vote against Donald Trump in November.
A professor asked: Is smoking a joint in a Zoom class okay? The answers came by the thousands.
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