This Week in Cannabis: Marijuana shrinks brain tumors, Washington State picks up the purveying pace, Washington D.C. gets some unfortunate international heat, CA gets a legal shake at 2016, and CO to mix things up (potentially).
Marijuana Shrinks Brain Tumors
With research into the efficacy of marijuana and the cannabinoids it holds as a medical alternative being somewhat stymied in the U.S., it’s not surprising that it was in London that yet another breakthrough into the effects of cannabis on cancer was made.
The Huffington Post is reporting that researchers in St. George’s University of London have demonstrated that a cocktail of THC, CBD and radiation treatment will shrink glioma tumors — an aggressive form of brain cancer. In many cases, a combination of radiation and the THC and CBD compounds found in marijuana shrinks brain tumors to 1/10 the size of the tumors in the control group.
The findings are promising for cancer patients. Beyond simply providing relief, perhaps in the near future marijuana will be given more of a role in combating rather than just ameliorating afflictions.
U.N. May Undo D.C.
Much to the glee of Maryland Rep. Andy Harris whose crusade it to stop marijuana legalization in Washington D.C. is well noted, it seems that last week’s U.N. saber-rattling tactics regarding marijuana legalization in the U.S. has taken seed, the Washington Post is reporting.
The Congressional Research Service analysis of the potential outcome of the U.N.’s investigation suggests that because of the oversight that U.S. Congress has over implementation of the District’s laws, allowing Initiative 71 (recreational pot legalization in the nation’s capital) could land the U.S. in some international treaty violation soup — namely the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, which pledged international cooperation to limit the spread of illegal substances.
Most noticeably it is Sen. Rand Paul (that’s the ranking Republican on the Senate committee to you) who has publicly stated that the will of the people (reads: two thirds of the voting public) should stand, saying “I haven’t really taken a stand on that, but I’m against the federal government telling them they can’t.”
It should be interesting to see if an antiquated international agreement will be the blunt instrument to stop legalization in D.C. or if the voting public’s determination will stand.
CA a Go?
According to the current California Attorney General, Kamala Harris, the answer is “yes.” Well, not entirely. Harris was quoted by the Huffington Post as saying there was a “certain inevitability about it.” This sentiment would seem to be mirrored by the results of recent polls that show Californians are in favor of recreational legalization.
The Attorney General may have stopped short of patting marijuana on the back, but she did say that she doesn’t “have any moral opposition to it.”
Coming from the state’s “top cop,” it looks like the Golden State’s all out legalization push for 2016 bodes well.
Winds of Change in CO
According to Denver Post opinion piece, it seems that Colorado’s pioneering marijuana legalization market is set to undergo some changes. The fledgling system has thus far been heralded as a success, and has been the basis for other states legalizing possession and use; but it has been suggested that some changes will be forthcoming to limit black market activity.
Suggested change would be directed at the medical marijuana system, more specifically the taxation system and the caregiver model of licensing and growing. Fine tuning the system could prove helpful in keeping the already twitchy Washington powers-that-be out of Colorado’s burgeoning bud business.
Washington Sales Sparking Up
In a fairly short article, the Marijuana Business Daily is reporting that recreational sales in Washington State are showing a positive upward trend. October’s numbers are coming in at $12.2m in sales, which is up from September’s $8.7m.
The state has banked $7.9m since recreational sales began in July, and with the projected 12-month sales looking like they could crest $200m, those reserves will be bulging by the end of next summer.
Family
