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https://hightimes.com/

Thailand Leaders Scramble To Backpedal Law as 6,000 Pot Shops Open

Thousands of cannabis shops opened across Thailand after the nation became the first in Asia to decriminalize cannabis, and there are no signs of a slowdown as opposition to the industry grows, led by the country’s new prime minister. On June 9, 2022, Thailand removed cannabis from the nation’s list of banned drugs, making the country the first Asian nation to decriminalize pot. Government officials claimed that the move does not legalize cannabis for recreational purposes. Under Thailand’s new regulations, marijuana and hemp cultivation and commerce are no longer illegal. Restaurants and cafes are permitted to sell foods and beverages infused with cannabis, but only if they contain no more than 0.2% THC. Products with higher concentrations of THC are allowed for medical purposes. Thailand’s new prime minister, Srettha Thavisin, declared war on drugs as a national agenda in his campaign, Bangkok Post reports, focusing on meth, but with part of the plan to scale back the country’s cannabis policy. “A consensus has been reached among the 11 coalition parties as well as all other parties in the opposition that the need to tackle the drugs problem is high on the agenda,” he said. “Let’s make today the start of a new fight to stamp out drug problems from society.” The falling price of meth in the country led to a surge in use. He also vowed to reclassify cannabis as a narcotic. Thailand’s new leadership is rushing to rewrite the nation’s cannabis policy after around 6,000 cannabis shops opened up, and people found legal loopholes to sell psychoactive cannabis despite the country’s low limit on THC. The Strait Times reports the new law created a “regulatory vacuum,” following last year’s decriminalization measure, and it created a green rush with over 6,000 dispensaries spanning across the country. Some in favor of cannabis, however, argued that adding new regulations, such as a track and trace system used for narcotics, could actually benefit consumers. The massive growth isn’t being ignored, but leaders say the industry policies have to be revised. Health Minister Cholnan Srikaew said in a statement late on Tuesday, “Between economic and health benefits, we put health first.” A new draft of Thailand’s cannabis bill failed to clear parliamentary hurdles before an election in May. The bill was significantly rewritten due to concerns that misuse of cannabis could lead to addiction. The Guardian reports that Thavisin, has said his administration will “rectify” the country’s cannabis law and limit its use to medical purposes—all within six months. PM Srettha came into power last August, and ran his campaign under the Pheu Thai Party—with a hardline anti-drug agenda, promising to control the nation’s exploding cannabis market. Furthermore, the Pheu Thai Party is now in a coalition with Bhumjaithai Party led by Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, which led to the decriminalization of cannabis in the first place. “The law will need to be rewritten,” Srettha told Bloomberg reporter Haslinda Amin in an interview in New York, where he was attending the UN general assembly. Bloomberg posted a video of the interview on X, formerly Twitter. “It needs to be rectified. We can have that regulated for medical use only.” When asked if there will be a compromise for recreational use of cannabis, Srettha answered “no,” adding that problems due to cannabis use have been “widespread lately.” High Times covered exactly how widespread the industry is getting. A four-part series by High Times Vice President of Content Jon Cappetta, starting with Part 1, covered the new cannabis scene in Bangkok, Thailand. There, dispensaries dotted the streets all over and strip malls were home to as many as 20 cannabis businesses. Thanet Supornsahasrungsi, group executive director of Sunshine Hotels and Resorts in Pattaya, said most of the cannabis shops that are open sell products meant for recreational use. “If we would like to use it for medical purposes, law enforcement should be stricter to make sure we can offer them medical treatment which is safe for their health,” Thanet told Bangkok Post in September. Things have been shaping up to loosen cannabis laws for years in the country. In 2018, Thailand became the first Southeast Asian nation to legalize cannabis for medical use. Two years later, the Thai cabinet approved amendments to the country’s drug laws to allow for the production and sale of medical cannabis, including flower. Thailand remains an island of tolerance of cannabis, amid other countries like Singapore and Malaysia that impose strict corporal and capital punishments for cannabis-related offenses. The country’s new prime minister aims to change that, ensuring that only medical dispensaries stay put. The draft bill will likely be submitted for Cabinet approval in December.

https://hightimes.com/

New Report on Cannabis M&A’s Highlights Industry-Wide Changes

A report, issued on Tuesday by Bianchi & Brandt, “assesses the current mergers and acquisitions environment, reflects on the impact of regulatory changes to federal legality—including access to traditional banking—and takes a deep look at the viability of U.S. cannabis operators and global investors who are fueling the industry,” the Arizona law firm said in a press release. Titled “A Corporate Law Perspective on The Great Correction in Cannabis M&A,” the firm’s proprietary trend report was “driven by the impactful insights of founding partners Laura A. Bianchi and Justin M. Brandt, who have more than 15 years of experience in the nascent cannabis industry.” “The Great Correction is really all-encompassing,” Brandt said in the press release. “It applies to the cannabis industry’s initial frenzy of loose valuations with handshake deals that marked the start of the cannabis boom. The industry has since been invigorated by possible reform in cannabis policy at the federal level for the first time.” The 15-page report opens with a section called “The Green Rush Is Over,” which details the diminishing returns in the once-bullish cannabis industry. The decline, the law firm says, has thrust small and medium sized cannabis businesses into the spotlight when it comes to mergers and acquisitions. “The economic boom began in 2012 when Washington and Colorado legalized cannabis for adult use, jumped in 2018 when California recreational sales started, and surged dramatically again when legal cannabis was deemed “essential” by many states during the pandemic’s early lock-down phase in 2020. That script has since flipped to a scenario of oversupply, widespread layoffs, investment failures and plummeting stock prices. The type and scale of cannabis M&As that the industry enjoyed prior to and during the pandemic was “corrected” in 2022 after the recent industry crash, and market conditions have returned M&A activity to a more grounded environment. Small and midsize businesses (SMBs) are now the focus of most of the activity,” the report says. But the authors of the report assert that it “is not all doom and gloom,” and “this is not abnormal.” “Market corrections are a necessary pathway to the long-term health and sustainability of the cannabis industry—and we’ve been working with our clients and partners to anticipate The Great Correction at hand so we can be prepared for where the market is headed next,” the report said. A subsequent chapter deals with recessionary fears. “Despite the old axiom that vice products are ‘recession proof,’ the global inflationary woes and macroeconomic issues the U.S. is dealing with continue to leave their mark on cannabis. The current recessionary thinking has investors getting cold feet, and those feet are even more frigid when they’re talking about investing in the federally illegal cannabis industry. That illegality translates to limited access to all types of capital—including the most basic banking services, which businesses in other industries take for granted,” the report said. “The failure of Silicon Valley Bank justifiably made headlines and enforced investors’ wary outlook because of the services the bank provided to ancillary cannabis businesses. Their risk-averse or ‘risk-off’ strategy is only increasing the difficulty of raising capital in cannabis.” Since Washington and Colorado made history by passing recreational cannabis legalization in 2012, dozens of states and cities have followed suit. But another chapter in the Bianchi & Brandt explains how regional policy shapes mergers and acquisitions, and that “no two state markets are the same.” According to the report, factors that may vary from state to state include: “Caps on statewide licenses (including local restrictions) vs. open markets”; “Licensing structures (including vertical or horizontal integration)’; ‘Medical cannabis program requirements’; and “Allowable product categories, including edibles and concentrates.” The report goes on to provide specific examples across various states. “In Utah, licensed medical operators are enjoying great success primarily due to the newness and restricted size of the market. In Illinois, caps on licenses and their scarcity make them highly valued and highly coveted. In a head-to-head comparison, Arkansas’ 38 medical dispensaries servicing its 3 million residents are worth significantly more in acquisition value than Oklahoma’s 2,800 medical dispensaries servicing the state’s 4 million residents. Investors are currently doubling down in Florida, betting on a potential adult-use vote in the coming year or two,” the report said. “New York, which is positioned to be one of the largest cannabis markets globally, is an instructive case of access fueling M&A activity. Capital raises and M&A transactions surged after New York legalized recreational sales. The recent announcement of 1,500 new cannabis business licenses and extended application deadlines will only increase the M&A enthusiasm pervading the Empire State.”

https://hightimes.com/

Study Shows People Are Ditching OTC Sleep Aids, Using Cannabis Instead

A recent peer-reviewed study has produced data showing that people who struggle with sleep might be favoring cannabis over other common prescription and over the counter sleep aids. The study, published in Exploration of Medicine found that 80% of cannabis users with sleep issues reported no longer needing prescription or over-the-counter sleep medication. Sixty percent of people who used cannabis alone were able to fall asleep and stay asleep for at least six hours, compared to only 20% of people who used alternatives. The study was conducted by analyzing responses to surveys by a Canadian cannabis data company called Strainprint. The researchers looked at data from 1,216 participants who all self-reported that they use cannabis to help them fall asleep or stay asleep. Senior author of the study and associate professor of psychology at Washington State University, Carrie Cuttler, said in a written statement that some of the study participants actually sought out particular strains with particular terpenes specifically to help them sleep. “One of the findings that surprised me was the fact that people are seeking the terpene myrcene in cannabis to assist with sleep,” Cuttler said. “There is some evidence in the scientific literature to support that myrcene may help to promote sleep, so cannabis users seemed to have figured that out on their own.” According to the study, most of the survey participants reported smoking or vaping cannabis flower as their primary method of ingestion. Thirty-three-point-eight percent of participants used edibles to help them sleep and 14.1% of participants reported using capsules containing THC oil. The study presumed that these options were sought after for longer-lasting effects, but chosen less often due to the near-immediate effects that the user gets with smoking or vaping. The study found that cannabis use at night did not inhibit work performance or cause drowsiness the next day, unlike comparable prescription and over-the-counter sleep aid alternatives like benzodiazepines, melatonin, or antihistamines. However, some of the tell-tale side effects of cannabis were, predictably, reported as well. “Comparisons of the self-reported effects of cannabis to conventional sleep aids revealed that participants reported feeling more refreshed, focused, better able to function, fewer headaches, and less nausea the morning after using cannabis for sleep than after using more conventional sleep aids or no sleep aids,” the study said. “However, they indicated they were more sleepy, anxious, and irritable in the mornings following the use of cannabis relative to other sleep aids. Participants were more likely to report red eyes and thirst and less likely to report nausea, anxiety, paranoia, and racing heart as side effects of cannabis relative to other sleep aids.” Some background information on the study participants has been included here for posterity: 82.2% of survey participants self-reported that they regularly experienced difficulty falling asleep and 61.6% said they had difficulty falling back asleep if they woke up in the middle of the night for no reason, which 67.1% of participants said they did. Sixty-eight-point-eight percent reported feeling tired the next day and 53.9% reported difficulty functioning the next day due to poor sleep. Sixty-four-point-nine precent of study participants self-disclosed that they had been experiencing these sleep-related issues for five years or more. Sixty-eight percent reported using cannabis every night to help them sleep and 70% had been using cannabis to go to sleep for over one year. While the findings of this study might suggest that cannabis helps people fall asleep and stay asleep, there are noteworthy caveats to the information due to the way the information was collected and analyzed, which the authors of the study acknowledged. There was a strong selection bias because they only talked to people who use cannabis. The study also looked at data exclusively from people in Canada, so the sample may not be wholly representative. Regardless, the authors of the study said the data seems to indicate that cannabis might at the very least be a viable alternative for people who don’t respond well to alternative solutions. “In general, the use of cannabis for sleep-related issues was perceived as more advantageous than over the counter medications or prescription sleep aids,” Cuttler said. “Unlike long-acting sedatives and alcohol, cannabis was not associated with a ‘hangover’ effect, although individuals reported some lingering effects such as sleepiness and changes in mood.”

https://hightimes.com/

Sublime with Rome’s Rome Ramirez Talks Tangerine Skies, Growth, and Weed

Temperatures might be dropping –– even in SoCal –– but listening to Tangerine Skies, Sublime with Rome’s latest EP, it feels like summer. It’s been 12 years since Sublime with Rome’s debut, Yours Truly, which served as the world’s formal introduction to Rome Ramirez, who, by the way, is not trying to be or replace the late Bradley Nowell, frontman of the OG Sublime. Head to any of the band’s live shows and you’re sure to hear the Sublime hits you’ve sung along to at least 420 times. BUT, with catchy beats, infectious grooves, and straight-talk lyrics, Sublime with Rome originals can sure as hell hold their own. “I feel like over time, we’ve been able to grow as musicians and artists and listen to different stuff and find different inspiration, but at the same time, still make it sound like home –– still paying homage to the formula that Brad, Bud, and Eric started,” Ramirez tells me. Quick history lesson if anyone’s new here: Bradley Nowell, Bud Gaugh, and Eric Wilson are the original members of Sublime. Wilson is currently the only original Sublime member in Sublime with Rome. He’s also the one who hand-selected a then-teenaged, Sublime mega-fan Ramirez to join him and Gaugh on their new venture. However, Gaugh has since left the band, and the current SWR lineup is comprised of Ramirez on guitar and vocals, Wilson on bass, and Joe Tomino on drums. And now you’re all caught up. This “formula” that Ramirez mentions is what gives the four songs on Tangerine Skies that familiar summery California reggae/ska/alternative rock/beachy-stoner-music vibe we all know and love. The EP starts off strong with “Cool & Collected,” the band’s collab with Slightly Stoopid –– featuring horns and feel-good lyrics, including, of course, some lines about weed. The two recently toured together, and Slightly Stoopid is a band who’s also got strong ties to Sublime. In fact, they were originally signed to Nowell’s record label, Skunk Records, back in the ‘90s. Next up on the EP is “All I Need,” a light and vibey tune addressing the undeniable pain in the world, but knowing love and good things will still come your way. “My favorite takeaway from Sublime was like, no matter how rough it got, there was always a way out,” Ramirez says. “And if there wasn’t, you just have a good time while you’re going through it.” And yeah, against your mother’s wishes, getting drunk and/or high likely helps in that department. The third song, “Battle Scar,” complete with fun, bouncy, syncopated guitar (a ska/reggae staple, of course) is about growing up in a crappy place, and trying to find your way out of it. “It’s kind of like parting your own sort of paradise out of hell, and then if you’re lucky enough to crawl out of that and get to a better place, you’re usually left with a battle scar or two,” he says. While he was growing up in “the hood,” as Rome says, he knew that no matter what, he was going to have a career in music, but he just wasn’t sure exactly how that’d play out. “I knew I would be playing music for a living, but you know, obviously, I didn’t think I would ever join my favorite band,” he says. “I never thought that I would be as quote-unquote successful as I am today or whatever. I just wanted to devote myself to playing music, and whatever came from that would be good enough for me.” Don’t you just love when things turn out way better than anticipated? Lastly, title track “Tangerine Skies,” a mellow close to the EP, is Ramirez artfully reflecting on growing up and starting over –– looking back on how his priorities shifted when he became a husband and father, evolving but also not wanting to completely ditch the person that he was. Balancing work, family, weed, and wine. Life is certainly different now for Ramirez than it was back when he first started this project. If you’re wondering about the name of the track/EP, twinning with cannabis strain Tangerine Sky was just a happy coincidence, Rome says. We’re talking about the color of unbeatable California skies here, after all. “But also… Tangerine is one of the best,” he confirms. And while we’re on the topic of weed, it should go without saying that cannabis plays an integral role in Ramirez’s creative process when he’s writing new material for the band. But of course, I had to ask. “It helps me kind of quiet down the voices and focus on things that are a little bit less tangible,” he says. “I’m able to kind of explore a little more –– that’s something that I don’t think I’ll ever move away from. In the studio, it allows me to just get over some of my self-conscious thinking and be a little bit more creative.” Because yes, even this far into his career, Ramirez still gets self-conscious when he writes. As for what he’s smoking these days, now that he’s “getting older” (his words, not mine –– he’s only in his mid-30s, but I digress) it’s mostly about vapor and concentrates rather than “blazing a bunch of blunts” –– but don’t worry, there’s a time and a place for that too. Ramirez says in the past, his favorite music was how he was able to make it through tough situations, and with Sublime with Rome’s music, he hopes to reciprocate that energy. “Sounds really hippie-ish, but I swear it’s from a really genuine place, you know? It’s been an amazing, amazing life, and I’ve been really gifted by getting this opportunity to sing and play for my favorite band,” he says. “I just want to be able to help inspire a new Sublime listener.”

https://hightimes.com/

Petition Calls For Canadian Regulators To Allow More Potent Edibles

Canadian cannabis advocates are calling on the federal government to relax strict limits on the potency of cannabis edibles with a petition seeking a tenfold increase in maximum permitted THC levels. Canada legalized cannabis through an act of Parliament in 2018, and retail sales of cannabis extracts and edibles were authorized for licensed operators one year later. Regulations on edibles set strict potency limits, however, with a cap of 10 milligrams of THC per product. In contrast, California, the largest regulated market in the United States, limits THC to 100 milligrams per package, with a per-serving cap of 10 milligrams. Last year, an Independent Expert Panel began a mandated review of Canada’s cannabis regulations. Advocates for the regulated industry see the review as an opportunity to push lawmakers to increase the THC limit on edibles, launching a petition last week calling on the federal government to increase the limit to 100 milligrams per package. Jennawae Cavion, the executive director of the Canadian chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML Canada) told the National Post that regulations that strictly limit the potency of edibles make it difficult for licensed businesses to compete with illicit operators. “It’s driving the market to the unregulated market, which (licensed) cannabis retailers cannot compete with,” Cavion said. Sam Gerges, the owner of the licensed retailer Mary Jane’s Cannabis, agreed that the THC limit on edibles hinders the regulated market from competing with unlicensed operators. “No one who buys 100 to 1,000 mg edibles on the streets is going to buy edibles from legal retailers,” he said. “That’s like selling non-alcoholic vodka and saying it’s the real deal.” The authors of the petition note that a government agency charged with maintaining a competitive business environment and Ontario’s sole authorized cannabis distributor have called for an increase in the THC limit for weed edibles. “Both the Canada Competition Bureau and the Ontario Cannabis Store have called upon Health Canada to increase THC limits,” the petition reads. “The Competition Bureau has stated that ‘restricting THC levels may not be necessary to achieve the government’s objectives,’ while the Ontario Cannabis Store has emphasized the need to ‘revisit the current THC limits.’ These endorsements from reputable organizations highlight the importance of reconsidering the current restrictions.” The Independent Expert Panel began its work in 2022 and issued its first report last month. Many of those interviewed for the report recommended against making “large-scale changes” to regulations so soon after they took effect, with some even suggesting that the minimum age for purchasing and using cannabis should be increased to 21 from the current 18. “Many public health stakeholders and some provincial and territorial government officials focused on reinforcing the value of existing regulatory controls, such as the THC quantity for edible cannabis products and promotion restrictions, to reduce harms,” the report reads. The review panel’s report also noted that 10 milligrams was established as a “reasonable upper-limit” to avoid overconsumption by inexperienced consumers and that more experienced users tend to prefer smoking or vaping cannabis over edibles. The report also noted that some disputed the notion that the THC cap on edibles is driving consumers to the unregulated market. “Some researchers suggested that it is rare that higher dose edibles drive consumers to purchase illicit cannabis, as consumers often cite convenience, price and quality as reasons for purchasing illicit products,” the report notes. Cavion disagreed, saying that low-potency edibles are indeed a factor driving consumers to illicit operators. She also noted the regulations are inconvenient and promote unhealthy eating. “The other part of it is the amount of sugar you have to consume to get your regular dose,” she said. “I shouldn’t have to eat 10 fun-sized chocolate bars when I can just have a few squares of one chocolate bar — if it has to be chocolate at all.” Michael DeVillaer, an assistant professor at McMaster University’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neuroscience, argued against hiking Canada’s THC limit on cannabis edibles. “Given the potential public health risks, I would place the onus on the petitioners to provide market research that shows there is truly high consumer demand for higher THC product,” said DeVillaer, who is the author of a book on Canada’s legalization of cannabis. “But even if there is such demand, that does not mean we should imperil public health protection for the industry’s interests in market expansion.” “If the cannabis industry and government are sincere about wanting to compete with the unlicensed trade, they need to clean up the licensed one which is fraught with regulatory violations, including poor product integrity which includes use of unauthorized pesticides, mold, microbial and chemical contaminants, incorrect labeling, and misrepresented products,” DeVillaer added. “These are the historical liabilities of the unlicensed trade that the licensed trade was supposed to fix.” Cavion countered that strictly regulating cannabis industries will encourage consumers to seek the products they like from unlicensed businesses. “If we want legalization to be a success, we can’t be limiting the creativity of licensed producers,” she said. “This isn’t an institutional product — it’s recreational cannabis, it’s literally meant for us to have fun.” Canada’s House of Commons began accepting signatures for the petition to increase the THC limit for cannabis edibles on November 8. The signature collection is scheduled to end on March 7, 2024, at 11:31 a.m. EDT.

https://hightimes.com/

Smoker Sesh App Wins Cannabis Start-Up Competition at Boston University

In last week’s seventh annual Cannabis Start-Up Competition at Boston University (BU) in Massachusetts, on the same night Ohio became the 24th state to legalize adult-use cannabis, a stoner-friendly app JoinME took home the grand prize. It enables users to locate and meet up and join with stoners who share the same goals and interests. Now in its sixth year, the BU alumni-founders behind Green Lion Partners sponsored an annual start-up competition for current BU Terriers and alums who are developing innovative cannabis-adjacent companies. BU Today reports that student- and alumni-led teams pitch their business concepts Shark Tank–style to a panel of judges for a chance to win $10,000 and free consulting services. After listening to a series of speakers, each team had six minutes to pitch their start-up concept, and judges had six minutes to ask questions. Former judges include Shaleen Title, Kris Kane, and Jaime Lewis. This year’s winner was JoinME, an app designed to meet and toke up with other stoners, “the brainchild of Marco Rotella and Claudio Bettini,” BU Today reports, who became friends a few years ago attending BU Italian Students Association meetings. “We are very proud of what we are doing, and hopefully with everybody’s help we are able to develop our idea even more,” Bettini said after accepting the award and the oversized check. “We’ve put a lot of work into the app so far, and we’re happy it showed tonight,” Rotella added. “We have identified two main problems: cannabis consumers want and need partners,” Rotella said. “Social consumers have a much lower correlation with psychological side effects, such as social anxiety and agitation.” Cannabis advocate, author, and local Peter Grinspoon, M.D., tweeted in support of the competition winner on X. The application period for the competition closed Oct. 8, and the finals took place last week at the Rajen Kilachand Center for Integrated Life Sciences and Engineering at the BU campus. The event is co-organized and sponsored by Green Lion Partners, a cannabis-industry business strategy firm founded by former BU classmates Jeff Zucker and Mike Bologna. Green Lion Partners is a Denver, Colorado-based business strategy firm focused on early stage development in the regulated cannabis industry. BU student- or alumni-led ancillary cannabis start-ups are eligible to enter the competition, so long as they don’t touch the cannabis plant. Zucker said the cannabis industry is built on the “backs of advocates, people fighting against the War on Drugs. So many people have gone to jail over this plant, yet there are these thriving businesses that are being built around it,” he noted. “I always want to [remind] everyone involved how important it is to be involved in advocacy, continue to work to end the War on Drugs, continue to end racially disproportionate enforcement around cannabis. It’s been great to have this platform, and that BU has been supportive of our vision for the industry.” Attendees also heard from previous competition winners Marion McNabb, president and cofounder of the Cannabis Center of Excellence, and Carl Palme, founder and CEO of Boundless Robotics. Rotella and Bettini plan to set up a university ambassador program and advertise in local smoke shops and dispensaries, BU Today reports. They also plan to monetize their app. The topic of social equity entered the conversation, something the judges wanted to see in the roster of aspiring start-ups. “I think you guys had a great presentation and immediate application in terms of what you’re offering,” said Kim Napoli, one of the night’s three judges. Napoli is an industry consultant and advocate, a Massachusetts Cannabis Advisory board member, and chief diversity officer at Soulstar Holdings, LLC. “If I can make one point, it would be to ensure that those pieces of inclusivity and diversity happen, that you hire someone to be the prime accountability position for diversity inclusion within the app and within your company as well.” The other finalists were software company GreenCloud, developed by Eloise De Jarne; hemp company IPNPC, created by Ziwei Huang, Zhe Huang, and Xingxin Gu; and cannabis delivery service Smoking.com, created by Ethan Davidman and Bradley Magram. The university is adopting cannabis business with open arms. Boston University defaults to federal law on campus, so cannabis use is illegal on campus, per its drug policy. But rapidly changing laws are pushing the school towards change. Boston University School of Law Professor Jay Wexler’s new compelling book, Weed Rules (University of California Press, 2023) argues that now cannabis has been legalized in nearly two dozen states, it needs to be normalized. The university is also involved in medical cannabis research to some degree, while not allowing it on campus. Meanwhile, researchers from Boston University joined other researchers from Brown and the University of Minnesota to find data to suggest that cannabis improves physical activity from people living with HIV.

https://hightimes.com/

Ellen’s Bud Break: Fruit, Earth & Fuel

It’s a cool fall morning in California, and the aromatic steam from my cup of orange spice black tea is blending with the wisps of smoke from my bong. The taste pairing of cannabis flower and tea works well. The weed, OC Oranges, accurately mimics oranges in the smell and the smoke. It’s an Orange Sherb x Oz Kush F2 paired with The Menthol in a new line of The Menthol crosses from Compound Genetics, and I’m enjoying the balance it’s bringing to the morning. Cannabis and tea are herbal medicines; with both, aromas and tastes go a long way in steering the effects. The cultivars below represent taste and flavor profiles from three common categories found in pot: fruit, earth, and fuel. Lime Juice This strain has an astringent nose-biting bouquet. With a bright citrus aroma Lime Juice smells like there was a mix up in the medicine cabinet and the vitamin C pills got splashed with pine cleaner. Hunted by Esensia Gardens, Lime Juice is a phenotype of Subcool’s Chernobyl and is rich in terpinolene, a terpene also found in pine trees and citrus. Its taste and flavor profile draws from its lineage containing older classics such as Trainwreck and Jack’s Cleaner. Whitethorn Rose Comedian Bert Kreischer has raved about Whitethorn Rose, calling it the “perfect weed” on the Hawk vs. Wolf podcast, and recently met with its creator, Johnny Casali of Huckleberry Hill Farms, to explore the fruits of this year’s harvest together. Named one of our best strains of the year, Whitethorn Rose combines Paradise Punch and Lemon OG and smells remarkably similar to the lemon and berry aroma in Froot Loops cereal. It has won various awards as a concentrate, and the flowers from the 2023 harvest, which display a deep purple shade intermixed with a pale green tone, smell and taste amazing. This strain is reminiscent of one of our favorite fruit-forward flowers, Forbidden Fruit. Mazlo Created by combining Biovortex genetics, Mazlo has the ability to slow time by producing a relaxing old-school stone. Mazlo tastes like the weed of the past, combining woodsy and earthy flavors that originated in the Hindu Kush Mountains with the subtle sweetness of a dark red maraschino cherry. Cultivated by Moon Made Farms Mazlo smells like sandalwood incense with a backing of sweet gas. The primarily hashy taste reveals the Lolab lineage, a wild primorial landrace originating in Indian Kashmir sourced by Deepak and Irrazinig of the Indian Landrace Exchange. Biovortex’s Jesse Dodd combined the Lolab with a Cherry Lime Dog BC1 F2 and a Mazar x Black Dog BC6. Then Tina Gordon at Moonmade— a longtime collaborator with Biovortex—combined the result with Biovortex’s Orange Valley Sun (Orange Zkittlez x (SFV OG x Black Dog BC4)). The Black Dog backcrosses highlight the fermented cherry myrcene flavors. Mazlo is an opportunity to enjoy the nostalgic, earthy, and resinous pot associated with the original Kush family, combined with the dense flower production and fruity element of more modern-day cultivars. Motorbreath x Coffin Candy This one’s for the smokers who recognize that gas never left the building. Sense grew out a Motorbreath x Coffin Candy cross, bred by Duke of Erb and Doja, and introduced the phenotypes at a recent members-only event held at Chronic Culture in San Francisco. Motorbreath x Coffin Candy smells gassy and tastes like the toasted sugar caramel top of flan. It would work well as a wake-and-bake smoke paired with coffee, except for its sky-high stoney effects. Gas was what started CEO Steve Griffith down the path as a cultivator and he’s hoping for a resurgence in consumer preference for that cannabis profile. “While we have enjoyed the wave of candy profiles over the past several years, we’d like to see the Chems and the OGs make their way back to the market,” Griffith said. Also on deck for the Sense pheno tasting were several versions of Tea Time, a Zkittlez x RS11, from Wizard Trees Genetics that cut through the wall of the other samples like a piping hot cup of Earl Grey. Tea Time has a citrusy bergamot taste backed by a malty black tea flavor.

https://hightimes.com/

The Harmonious Intersection of Cannabis and Music

The creative symphony of music and cannabis has played for decades, if not centuries. The duo have a captivating history, blending rhythm, harmony and consciousness alteration in an exquisite bespoken dance. Join us as we explore the intricate connections between cannabis and music. The links between cannabis and music trace back to ancient civilizations. In India, cannabis has been used for centuries as part of spiritual rituals and celebrations, often accompanied by rhythmic drumming and other music. The mystical blend of cannabis and music was—and continues to be—a way to transcend the ordinary and create a bridge to the divine. Fast forward to the 20th century, and cannabis was making its way into the vibrant global music scenes of jazz, blues, and rock ‘n’ roll. Legendary musicians like Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday and Bob Marley openly embraced cannabis, incorporating it into their creative process and stage performances. The improvisational nature of jazz, in particular, seemed to resonate with the free-spirited, mind-expanding qualities of cannabis. The 1960s brought about a cultural revolution that deeply intertwined cannabis and music. As the counterculture movement gained momentum, artists and musicians began to experiment with not only the sound but also the mind-altering effects of cannabis and other psychedelics. Bands like The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath and the Grateful Dead produced iconic albums that were significantly influenced by cannabis-fueled jams and psychedelic journeys. Woodstock, the legendary music festival of 1969, became a lasting symbol of this union between music and cannabis. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered to celebrate peace, love and music, and cannabis played a central role in the communal experience. For many musicians, cannabis has served as a muse, unlocking new dimensions of creativity and introspection. Songwriting sessions often involve a joint or two, hits from the bong, or perhaps a few dabs. Artists attest to the enhanced flow of ideas and emotions that cannabis can generate. The cannabis-induced state of relaxation and altered perception can help artists tap into their innermost thoughts and feelings, inspiring poetic lyrics and truly remarkable music. Artists such as Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Willie Nelson have openly acknowledged their creative debt to cannabis. They have credited the plant with helping them break through barriers like writer’s block and explore uncharted musical territories. Beyond its role in the creative process, cannabis has also been used by musicians to enhance their performance on stage. Some artists claim that cannabis helps alleviate stage anxiety and allows them to connect more deeply with their audience and their music. The plant’s ability to induce a sense of flow and immersion can translate into more captivating live performances. Notable musicians like Cypress Hill, Snoop Dogg and Wiz Khalifa are known for their unabashed love of cannabis and frequently incorporate it into their stage personas. Their advocacy has helped destigmatize cannabis use within the music industry and beyond. Cannabis and music have their own unique rituals of consumption. Just as there are countless genres, styles and instruments in music, there’s a boundless array of cannabis strains and consumption methods. Some prefer the energizing and uplifting effects of a sativa-based strain before playing, while others opt for the calming and introspective qualities of an indica-leaning strain when listening to music. Of course, the act of sharing cannabis with a group of friends or fellow concertgoers can enhance the communal experience of the music. The tradition of passing a joint (or a vape) can create a sense of unity and connection and amplify the emotional impact of the music. As cannabis legalization continues to sweep across the globe, the intersection of cannabis and music is poised for a new era. Cannabis-friendly music festivals, such as Northern Nights and Desert Daze are on the rise, providing a safe and celebratory space for music enthusiasts to enjoy their favorite bands while indulging in cannabis. And as more states embrace legalization, cannabis-infused events like the High Times Cannabis Cup, where attendees can see what’s fresh in concentrates, edibles, and everything in between, are becoming increasingly accessible. These events offer a novel way to combine the sensory pleasures of music with the multidimensional experience of cannabis. There’s an incredible power in the universal languages of cannabis and music. Together, they have shaped cultural movements, inspired generations of artists, and elevated the human experience. As we journey into the future, the harmonious interplay between cannabis and music will continue to evolve, creating new melodies, rhythms, and stories for generations to come. Whether through the creative process, live performances, or shared rituals, the synergy between cannabis and music will forever remain a timeless bond. Alpine Hemp Company produces the highest quality hemp headwear. Creating fully custom hemp hats for your business or organization has never been easier. Our in-house design team has over 20 years of experience to ensure every stitch is in place. Don’t stress, your brand is in good hands.

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Horse Tests Positive for Cocaine, Meth, Ketamine After Winning Race

The owner of a racehorse that won a race last month in Malta has been fined after the horse tested positive for several different drugs. According to the Times of Malta, The Malta Racing Club has fined the owner of a six-year-old mare named Halina Jibay €350 after the horse tested positive for cocaine, methamphetamine, ketamine, and stanozolol which is a synthetic steroid. The owner, whose identity was not released, was also barred from entering any other races for at least two years. Halina Jibay reportedly outran nine other horses at the Marsa racetrack on October 1. A urine sample was taken the day of the race and sent off to Laboratoire des Courses Hippiques, a French laboratory, for testing as part of regular anti-doping measures set forth by EquestriMalta, the regulatory body for Maltan equine sports. That urine test came back with a positive reading for the aforementioned list of drugs. Drug tests are routinely carried out on the winners of races and the other contenders are chosen via a random lottery system. At least two of the substances found in the urine analysis, cocaine and methamphetamine to be exact, were considered to be among the most serious rule breaches of the Malta Racing Club. EquestriMalta told the Times of Malta that they took specific measures to ensure incidents like this did not happen, including an increase of the number of required anti-doping tests and financial assistance to the Malta Racing Club to ensure testing regulations could be easily followed. The owner was given until Monday to contest the findings of the urine analysis and present a counter analysis. If the owner chose not to contest, a report was to be filed with Maltan law enforcement. According to the Times of Malta, the horse was born in France in 2017 and has raced 13 other times this year. She placed first in two of those races and placed second in four of them. Apparently, cocaine works very similarly on horses as it does on humans in that it gives them increased bursts of energy and numbs any muscular pain they might be experiencing. The Times of Malta article said horse owners using cocaine to cheat races is actually somewhat common but it does not happen in Malta as often. Malta, which is a small island tucked in the Mediterranean Sea between Sicily and the North African coast, has seen four cases involving horses testing positive for illegal substances in the last eight years. The rest of the world, however, is apparently feeding cocaine to their horses like hot cakes. A cursory Google search showed me way more stories of similar horse-drugging incidents than I was expecting. The most recent example was a 3-year-old Queensland horse named End Assembly that tested positive for cocaine after winning the $200,000 grand prize at a feature race in December of 2022. The horse’s trainer and his son, Mark and Ben Currie respectively, were both found guilty of being in charge of a racehorse with a prohibited substance in its system, according to ABC Australia. Another horse trained by the Curries had previously tested positive for cocaine as well. There are countless more examples of horses being accused or found guilty of being on drugs that, in Google terms, go back as far as 2016. Beyond that, cases of humans using drugs on horses go all the way back to the Roman Empire when crucifixion was handed out as a punishment for treating horses with hydromel, which is essentially beer. Arsenic doping of horses was also somewhat common in the 1800’s. A stable boy was even hung for giving arsenic to a horse in 1812. In 1912, swabs were made available that tested racehorses for common stimulants and painkillers at the time like caffeine, theobromine and morphine. Horse doping really took off after pool betting was legalized in 1933 as well, with some estimates putting the number of doped up racehorses well over 50% at the time. The owner of Halina Jabay was ordered to return any prizes won, suspended from the Malta Racing Club and banned from transferring the horse while under suspension. Halina Jibay was suspended from racing for one year following the incident, which seems a little unfair because as far as I know, horses are not capable of preparing and ingesting drugs. But with how often it seems to be happening…

https://hightimes.com/

Missouri Expunged Nearly 100K MJ Convictions in a Year, Despite Missing Deadlines

Just over a year ago, Missouri voters approved Amendment 3 to legalize cannabis possession and sales for adults over 21. While witnessing how quickly the market found its footing, with sales beginning less than three months later on Feb. 3, 2023, perhaps more impressive is the state’s commitment to cannabis-related expungements. Under Amendment 3, all nonviolent cases related to cannabis are required to be expunged, meaning that the case record is sealed or destroyed and involved persons are cleared of their charges. While fully completing expungements is unlikely to happen under the deadlines indicated in the new law, the state has expunged nearly 100,000 cannabis convictions from government records according to a KMBC 9 report. The law includes a June 8 deadline for misdemeanor expungements and a Dec. 8 deadline for felony expungements, with an exception for those still incarcerated or currently under supervision by the Department of Corrections. Dan Viets, a Missouri attorney with a focus on defending cannabis cases, wrote parts of the constitutional amendment. Speaking with KMBC 9, he nodded to these missed deadlines and highlighted the sheer amount of work involved in expunging Missouri’s cannabis-related cases. “We have always said that as long as the courts, the circuit clerks in particular, are making a good faith effort to comply with the law, to get those cases expunged, that we’ll be satisfied,” Viets said. “They have not technically met the deadline. But on the other hand, we’re dealing with a century of marijuana prohibition in Missouri. So, there are hundreds of thousands of cases.” The progress is evident, as reports from June 2023 show that the state had expunged about 44,000 cases at the time. And even over the summer, experts had already theorized that the deadlines imposed by the amendment were unlikely to be met. Stephen Sokoloff, senior counsel for the Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys, believed that the deadlines were destined to fail from the beginning, calling the amendment “very poorly written” and drafted without Missouri law in mind. “So it doesn’t actually track a lot of the aspects of Missouri law,” Sokoloff told St. Louis Public Radio in June. “As a result, it makes it a lot more difficult for compliance because there’s some mashing of square pegs into round holes that has to go on.” Tackling the entirety of the state’s nonviolent cannabis-related offenses is made even harder given the way expungements are treated throughout the state. Some counties are quick to clear cannabis convictions, while judges and prosecutors in other counties have resisted and further delay expungements. Viets spoke to this reality over the summer to Missouri NORML, where he also works as a coordinator. “It is clear that many counties have made no serious effort to comply with the requirements of the Missouri Constitution,” he said. “It should not be necessary to seek a court order in order to force our courts to comply with the Missouri Constitution, but if that is what is required, we may pursue that option. There is no reason why these counties should be dragging their feet and failing to comply with the law as passed by the voters of our state.” John Mueller, co-owner of 31 Greenlight Dispensary stores with 15 in Missouri alone, told KMBC 9 that revenues have tripled since making the switch from medical to recreational. That increased revenue from adult-use cannabis sales generates tax dollars for municipalities and the state, which in turn could be used for the expungement process, he pointed out. “That’s one of the things that I think the industry is the most proud of,” Mueller said in the report, “is getting that in the Constitution.” While 100,000 cases in a year is worth celebrating, Missouri is only just getting started. Viets told KMBC 9 that lawsuits are possible if specific communities don’t put in the work to expunge cannabis-related offenses covered by the new law. Even with the current progress, Viets added that he expects the entirety of expungements to take years to fully complete.

https://hightimes.com/

Massachusetts Governor Unveils Veterans Psychedelics Research Bill

Massachusetts Governor Maura T. Healey last week filed legislation to increase benefits and modernize services for the state’s military veterans that includes a proposal to study the medical benefits of psychedelic drugs. The bill, known as an Act Honoring, Empowering and Recognizing Our Servicemembers and Veterans (HERO Act), was unveiled on November 9 by Healey and Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll at the Massachusetts Executive Office of Veterans Services. The Healey administration said in a statement that the legislation would positively impact the lives of hundreds of thousands of military veterans living in Massachusetts, including nearly 30,000 women and LGBTQ+ vets. At a ceremony marking the bill’s introduction, Healey said that the legislation is the first time in 20 years that a Massachusetts governor has “introduced a comprehensive and expansive legislative package dedicated to the welfare of veterans.” “Our veterans have sacrificed so much for our country, and this transformative legislation marks an important step toward ensuring that Massachusetts supports them in return,” said Healey. “From day one, our administration has been committed to revitalizing veterans’ services in Massachusetts and ensuring that every one of these heroes receives the benefits, resources and support that they deserve.” Among its many other provisions, the HERO Act would establish a working group to research the “health benefits of psychedelics as treatment for veterans suffering from physical or mental health disorders related to their service,” according to the governor’s office. The legislation has the support of representatives from several veterans service organizations, including Bill LeBeau, Adjutant for Massachusetts Veterans of Foreign Wars. “We’re grateful to Governor Healey and her team for recognizing the need for giving back to the heroes who have served our country, both at home and overseas,” LeBeau said in a statement. “With this bill, the Healey-Driscoll Administration demonstrates a real commitment to accomplishing outcomes for our Veterans that will be meaningful and impactful in so many ways; it also sends a signal that more needs to be done to support them.” Other key provisions of the HERO Act include expanding access to behavioral and mental health treatment, increasing benefits for disabled veterans, improving support for employers that hire veterans, updating the definition of a veteran, expanding the scope of the Veterans Equality Review Board, initiating a pilot program for LGBTQ+ couples denied IVF reimbursement by the Veterans Health Administration, and codifying the state’s medical and dental benefits for military veterans. “By promoting inclusivity and expanding benefits, we’re not only showing our gratitude to veterans but also addressing their evolving needs,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “This legislative package represents a significant step forward in the care and support we provide to our veterans, particularly for women and LGBTQ+ veterans.” Research has shown that psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy can have a positive effect on many mental health conditions commonly experienced by the nation’s military veterans. Studies conducted by Johns Hopkins and other researchers have shown that psilocybin has the potential to be an effective treatment for several serious mental health conditions, including PTSD, major depressive disorder, anxiety and substance misuse disorders. A study published in 2020 in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA Psychiatry found that psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy was a quick-acting and effective treatment for a group of 24 participants with major depressive disorder. Separate research published in 2016 determined that psilocybin treatment produced substantial and sustained decreases in depression and anxiety in patients with life-threatening cancer. Federal agencies including the Food and Drug Administration are currently reviewing the potential for psychedelics to treat serious mental health conditions. In May 2022, the head of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration wrote to U.S. Representative Madeleine Dean, a Pennsylvania Democrat, that FDA approval of psilocybin to treat depression was likely within the next two years. As the nation faces rising rates of substance use and mental health issues “we must explore the potential of psychedelic-assisted therapies to address this crisis,” Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon, assistant secretary for mental health and substance use, wrote to Dean. The ongoing research has prompted several states to consider legislation to ease the prohibition on psilocybin and other psychedelic drugs, particularly for therapeutic purposes. In May, Oregon officials issued the state’s first license for a psychedelic therapy treatment center following the legalization of magic mushrooms for therapeutic use with the passage of a 2020 ballot measure. A similar initiative was approved by Colorado voters in 2022. Healey’s proposal is not the only plan to reform laws prohibiting the use of psychedelics in Massachusetts. Supporters of a proposed ballot measure to legalize the possession and supervised use of psychedelics began collecting signatures in September. The campaign has already reportedly collected more than 75,000 signatures on petitions to bring the initiative to a vote, which could come as soon as next year. State lawmakers have also taken legislative steps to achieve psychedelics reform. At least two bills, https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/S1009 in the Massachusetts Senate and another in the state House of Representatives, would remove criminal penalties for some natural psychedelics. Under the bills, adults would be permitted to grow and use small amounts of certain psychedelics, including psilocybin mushrooms.

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Avoid ‘Diet Weed,’ Johns Hopkins Expert Says

The hemp-derived cannabinoid market is hotter than ever but experts warn that people should educate themselves about the fundamental differences between delta-8 THC and delta-9 THC products. High Times previously reported that delta-8 THC was first partially synthesized in 1941, yet there’s still a lot of controversy surrounding the ingredient, due to the way it’s extracted and converted. Nextar reports that a Johns Hopkins School of Medicine professor and other experts want to educate people about the choices they should make with cannabis. “Chemically, they’re almost identical. But that one little difference in that chemical structure results in a different way that it interacts with your body … with your [cannabinoid] receptors,” explains Ryan Vandrey, Ph.D., a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine who specializes in the behavior pharmacology of cannabis. The majority of delta-8 on the market is converted from CBD, using a natural solvent and an acid as a catalyst, but people inside and out of the cannabis industry cannot seem to agree whether delta-8 should be defined as synthetic or natural. Vandrey also added that delta-9 THC is stronger, so why would consumers go to delta-8? “The reason people call delta-8-THC ‘diet weed’ [is because] that chemical difference is a little less potent at what it does at the receptor,” Vandrey said, adding that delta-8 is “about half as effective” at producing the same high as delta-9. “Does delta-8 THC get you high or is it a scam?” a popular Reddit thread in r/weed asked. The consensus appears to confirm that it has fewer psychedelic effects compared to delta-9 THC. Sales of hemp-derived cannabinoids like CBD outpace adult-use cannabis and are comparable to the craft beer industry, Whitney Economics found. There are no signs that the industry is going to slow down. Representatives from NORML have told High Times that delta-8 is not a primary concern, but it’s more about residual chemicals and other byproducts in gas station hemp products you should be worried about most. Dale Gieringer of Cal NORML specifically warned about THCO, which he thinks is instead one of the more particularly problematic compounds with the potential for real injuries. Peter Grinspoon, M.D.,a primary care doctor at Mass General Hospital and an instructor at Harvard Medical School, supports medical cannabis but says state medical cannabis programs do a much better job at vetting ingredients than shops selling delta-8 products. Grinspoon clarified that the confusion caused by the federal government itself makes it hard to distinguish what’s safe and what’s not regarding hemp-derived cannabinoids. “In addition to lack of regulation, we have regulatory incoherence from different branches and levels of government. … That’s going to make it even harder to get any coherent regulation on things,” he told Nexstar. Legal experts noted that the FDA had no intention of legalizing delta-8 when the 2018 Farm Bill was passed, so time’s ticking for the hemp-derived cannabinoids industry. But sellers have it practically everywhere. “Delta-8 is so close to delta-9, it’s probably relatively safe,” Grinspoon said. “But even if we figured out that delta-8 is safe—the delta-8 you’re buying at your local smoke shop, we have no idea what’s in it.” The 2018 Farm Bill paved the way for the Ninth Circuit Court to rule that certain low-THC cannabis derivatives were exempt from the Controlled Substances Act. This left a loophole for hemp-derived products that produce a psychoactive effect, but the feds never intended to do so. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned that delta-8 and similar cannabinoid derivatives, have “psychoactive and intoxicating effects that may be dangerous to consumers” and urged Congress to act and set up regulations. These hemp-derived cannabinoids leave room for the potential of harmful contaminants, the FDA says. Delta-8 THC is only found in minute amounts in the wild, therefore in order to get enough to infuse products, it must be converted from CBD. Roger Adams and a team of researchers at the University of Illinois were the first to report partial synthesis of delta-8 in 1941. High Times reported on exactly how it’s done: The publication Chemical and Engineering News (CEN) described the process as “refluxing CBD in an organic solvent, such as toluene or heptane, with p-toluenesulfonic acid or another acid that serves as a catalyst.” In a controlled, regulated environment, these reactions would be done by PhD chemists to ensure there are no harmful by-products left in products sold to consumers, but the hemp industry is notoriously under-regulated with no requirements for lab testing. CEN also described the rise of delta-8 THC “a concern.” It’s up to every consumer to adhere to “buyer beware,” or at least know the differences between delta-8 and delta-9 THC, which are significant.

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Philippine Court Grants Bail to Critic of Duterte’s Brutal Drug Crackdown

Leila de Lima was granted bail on Monday by a Philippine court, freeing the former senator who had been jailed for more than six years. According to the Associated Press, de Lima “was detained as an opposition senator in February 2017 in what they called political persecution by Duterte and his allies and a major blow to Philippine democracy.” “It’s really an indescribable feeling. I’m starting from zero the life that they tried to destroy,” de Lima, 64, told the Associated Press after her bail was approved. “This is freedom. It’s so precious.” The AP reported that de Lima “immediately called her ailing 91-year-old mother and, with her voice breaking, told her she was coming home.” Her arrest and detainment had long drawn international condemnation, with human rights groups and various governing bodies decrying it as an act of political persecution by Duterte, whose tenure as president ended in June after he was elected in 2016 on a fiercely anti-drug platform. Police records suggest that Duterte’s crackdown on illicit drugs in the country at least 6,000 individuals dead, although other estimates place the number much higher than that. The International Criminal Court has opened a probe into the killings. A former senator in the Philippines, de Lima “has said the charges were an act of revenge by Duterte, who she described at the time of her arrest as ‘a murderer and a sociopathic serial killer,’” according to the Guardian. “She had long criticised his governance. In her former role as chair of the national Commission on Human Rights, De Lima had sought to expose killings by so-called ‘death squads’ in Davao City, where Duterte was mayor for more than two decades,” the Guardian reported. “De Lima was considered the most prominent political prisoner under his administration. In prison she continued her work as a senator, issuing handwritten statements from detention, often condemning Duterte’s governance. She was unable to campaign in the 2022 election, however, and lost an attempt to run again for a senate position.” For years, United Nations human rights experts decried de Lima’s ongoing imprisonment. In 2021, on the fourth year anniversary of her detention, those experts once again called for her release. “As today marks four years of Senator De Lima being arbitrarily deprived of her liberty, we urge the Government of the Philippines to give effect to the Opinion, including by releasing Senator De Lima and reinstating her in the positions from which she was ousted,” the experts said in a statement. They reiterated those calls in June of this year, calling on the country’s current president, Bongbong Marcos, to release her. “We have long called for the immediate release of Leila de Lima,” the experts said. “The decision to deny bail comes after more than six years of arbitrary detention. It is high time for the administration of President Marcos Jr. to close this case once and for all, provide compensation and other reparations, and investigate the circumstances that allowed this to happen in the first place.” “We are deeply concerned that after six years of arbitrary detention, Leila de Lima will now continue to be detained after her bail application was denied on 7 June 2023,” they added. On Monday, presiding Judge Hon. Gener M. Gito decided to grant de Lima bail at a court in Muntinlupa City. According to CNN, “bail conditions were set at roughly $5,300 (300,000 Philippine pesos), and her legal team is expected to file the paperwork later on Monday evening.” “I have to rebuild my life. My life that they have tried to destroy,” de Lima told CNN at the courthouse. CNN has more on her case: “De Lima had been acquitted of two out of the three charges laid against her, which all stemmed from allegations made by Duterte that she received payoffs from convicted drug gangs to fund her 2016 senatorial bid…Court proceedings against de Lima have been marked by undue delays, including the failure of prosecution witnesses to appear in court and changes in judges handling her cases.” Amnesty International on Monday urged the courts to make her freedom permanent. “The court’s granting of Leila de Lima’s bail application is indeed a welcome development. Allowing her temporary liberty should be a step toward justice for Leila, beginning with the dismissal of this last charge against her,” said Butch Olano, section director of Amnesty International Philippines, as quoted by CNN. “Leila has been targeted by the government for her criticism of the murderous ‘war on drugs’ and other human rights violations. She should have never spent even a single day in detention. This last remaining drug case against her must be dismissed expeditiously, and those behind her arbitrary detention and other violations of her human rights must be brought to justice,” Olano said.

https://hightimes.com/

Exploring Delta-9 Gummies: Your Gateway to Relaxation

In partnership with Paradigm Media In the fast-paced world of the 21st century, we are constantly seeking new ways to manage stress, unwind, and find moments of relaxation in our busy lives. One trend that has caught our attention is the use of Delta-9 gummies. Delta 9 gummies have taken the wellness world by storm, offering a natural and relaxing alternative for those seeking stress relief. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore the benefits, dosage recommendations, and the legal landscape surrounding Delta 9 gummies. Whether you’re a seasoned user or completely new to this exciting trend, this article will provide the essential information you need. Delta-9 gummies are a form of edible cannabis product that contains Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta-9-THC). Delta-9-THC is the psychoactive compound in cannabis that is responsible for the “high” people associate with the plant. Unlike Delta-9-THC, Delta-9 is slightly different in its molecular structure, which can lead to a less intense psychoactive experience, making it a popular choice for those looking for relaxation without an overwhelming high. Binoid Delta 9 THC Gummies Binoid’s amazing Delta 9 THC gummies deliver a potent one of a kind uplifting and motivating feeling with a calming body sensation. Comes in 20 gummies of delicious Black Raspberry, Mango Madness, and Fruit Punch flavors. These Delta 9 gummies are infused with a premium Live Resin Full Spectrum mix of Delta 9, other powerful hemp compounds and beneficial terpenes to give a well-rounded and powerful effect. Get a great uplifting and relaxing mood from the best Delta 9 gummies. BUY HERE – $33.99 Indacloud GRAPE FUNTA Delta 9 THC Gummies Through cutting-edge technology Indacloud are able to provide true Delta 9 Gummies. Like all of their incredible products, these are federally legal as they are hemp-derived. 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BUY HERE – $49.99 cbdMD Delta 9 Gummies – Relax Any day is perfect for a little tropical punch! cbdMD Relax Delta 9 CBD gummies offer a soothing Indica-style experience perfect for kicking back and chilling out. This gummy packs a fruity punch of flavor and the calming relaxation you crave after a long, busy day! As with all of our hemp-derived Delta 9 products, we start with our premium, full spectrum CBD carefully crafted with Delta 9 THC to provide the full plant profile. You’ll experience the soothing calm and steady chill while enjoying all the wellness benefits of CBD. Bring some chill to your day with these delicious Delta 9 THC gummies! BUY HERE – $34.99 Green Roads Strawberry Sunset THC Relax Gummies Kick waaay back with these double-strength gummies. Bite into a euphoric combination of THC and CBD with Green Roads’ Relax Gummies. They’re the ultimate formula for relaxation when you’re off-the-clock. 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We’ve packed every single one of our 15 years of cannabis industry experience into one gummy by carefully curating a hemp-derived, full-spectrum delta 9 gummy that contains 11 major cannabinoids. Each piece is carefully crafted for the cannabis connoisseur, as each gummy creates a unique, potent, and synergistic cannabis experience. Their full spectrum gummies allow each of the cannabinoids to work together as an entourage to create an experience that can only be described as the whole cannabis flower packed into one gummy. BUY HERE – $49.99 Delta-9 THC: Unveiling the Psychoactive Compound Delta-9 THC, or Delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, is the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis. It’s responsible for the euphoric “high” that users experience when consuming marijuana. Delta-9 THC interacts with the endocannabinoid system in the body, specifically with CB1 receptors in the brain, leading to altered perceptions, mood changes, and other effects. Delta-9 THC is typically smoked, vaporized, or consumed in edibles, and its effects can range from relaxation to increased creativity and heightened sensory perception. However, it can also cause anxiety, paranoia, and impaired motor skills, particularly at higher doses. Delta-9 Gummies: A Different Experience Delta-9 Gummies, on the other hand, are a specific type of edible cannabis product. These gummies are infused with Delta-9 THC, but they offer a different experience compared to smoking or vaporizing. The distinction lies in the way Delta-9 is metabolized in the body when ingested. When Delta-9 THC is consumed in an edible form, it must first pass through the digestive system, which significantly delays the onset of effects. This can make for a smoother, less intense experience, allowing users to avoid the immediate “rush” associated with smoking or vaping Delta-9 THC. In conclusion, Delta-9 gummies have quickly become a favored method for enjoying the benefits of Delta-9 THC. Their precise dosage, discreet consumption, extended effects, delightful flavors, and reduced health risks make them an attractive choice for both recreational and medicinal users. While these gummies offer a more accessible and enjoyable way to experience the effects of Delta-9 THC, it’s essential to approach them responsibly, especially if you’re new to cannabis. Delta-9 gummies can provide a sweet path to relaxation and potential relief for a variety of ailments.

https://hightimes.com/

Gallup Poll Reveals Record High American Pessimism Over U.S. Handling of Illegal Drug Crisis

According to a recent Gallup poll, there’s a significant change in Americans’ sentiment toward the nation’s handling of the illegal drug problem and its casualties. According to this survey, which has been tracking public opinion since 1972, a majority of U.S. adults, a whopping 52%, now believe that the country is falling behind in its efforts to manage the illegal drug issue, Gallup reports. While High Times readers may think, well, of course, the feds are failing; this poll marks the first instance in its history where such a negative majority opinion has been recorded. Before 2019, their polling showed that Americans were optimistic that the country was making progress combating illegal drugs, with the approval stats clocking in at 41%. The latest results reveal that only 24% of the participants maintain that the U.S. has made progress in this area, setting a new low in the trend. Additionally, 23% of respondents believe the situation has remained static. The central villain in this story is fentanyl and other synthetic opioids, which has caused drug overdose fatalities to spike. According to USAFacts, in 2022, 73,654 people died from a fentanyl overdose in the U.S. This is more than double the amount of deaths from three years prior in 2019. Fentanyl deaths have increased every year for the past decade. However, as much as drug enthusiasts would love to blame fentanyl, there are other culprits in play. Gallup reports that since 2019, there has been an escalation in overdose cases associated with other drugs, including cocaine and methamphetamines. America’s view on handling illegal drugs shows a divide among political parties — and presidents. Republicans do not think that progress is being made. A mere 12% of Republicans responded that they felt we were headed in the right direction, while 75% feel we’re regressing. The Democrats were much more optimistic. 40% answered that they consider the situation improving, compared to 27% who think it’s worsening. Independents clocked in somewhere in the middle, with 22% seeing progress and 52% feeling that the situation is going down the drain. Gallup reports that voters may be more likely to respond positively based on who is in the White House, which explains why the Democrats were more glass-half-full than the Republicans. And, of course, Republicans are historically more conservative about drug use. Even though some of the liberal’s most loathed figures, such as Matt Gaetz, a U.S. representative from Florida, are joining leftist hero Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, aka AOC, the U.S. representative for New York’s 14th congressional district, in the right to help pass pro-psychedelic and cannabis legislation. Most recently, Gaetz proposed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization to cease cannabis testing for military members. Conservative Dan Crenshaw of Texas, a former Navy SEAL, is also pushing for changes to drug policy. In July 2023, Crenshaw and AOC hosted a press conference recognizing progress with a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that directs the Secretary of Defense to conduct a clinical report on psychedelic treatment in military treatment facilities. Despite a tendency to feel better about things when your party is president, the Democrats aren’t thrilled with Biden. The same data from Gallup shows that Democrats responded less positively reading the illegal drug situation under Biden than Republicans did under Trump in 2019. Biden has been careful to walk the tightrope of acting pro-cannabis legalization without following through. “I believe the president has displayed a regressiveness for cannabis policy,” said AOC in July. “And if there’s a regressiveness toward cannabis policy, it’s likely to be worse on anything else,” she added. While both voters and lawmakers are let down by Biden’s failure to reschedule cannabis, according to the Gallup poll, 74% of U.S. adults see the government’s failure to address casualties from illegal drugs as “extremely or very serious.” This is up from 64% in 2021. The highest concern was recorded in 2000, when the question was first asked, clocking in at 83%. Interestingly, while Americans are upset with the national handling of illicit drugs, they voice less concern in their local areas. 35% rate it as extremely serious (19%) or very serious (16%). This figure is almost equivalent to the record 34% in 2000. In light of the terrifying increase in overdose deaths from fentanyl and other opioids, in addition to deaths from substances such as cocaine, the American public has never been more pessimistic regarding the government’s handling of illegal drugs, even if they don’t carry that same concern in their hometowns, where it may be harder to criticize. Perhaps most importantly, this data shows that drug policy will shape the upcoming 2024 presidential election in numerous ways. To start, there is pressure to decriminalize cannabis on a federal level. A new Gallup poll published on November 8 showed that an estimated 68% of Americans, or seven out of every ten individuals, said “yes” to the poll questions, “Do you think the use of marijuana should be legal, or not?,” as High Times reports. And now, additionally, as this latest poll shows, voters also want a leader who can stop the deadly drugs from taking any more American lives. If AOC is right about Biden, and he isn’t cut out for the task, voters must consider that Trump could once again find his way into the White House.

https://hightimes.com/

New AI Model Can Identify Designer, Research Drugs on the Fly

A prestigious science award has been given to a man who created a new generative AI language model capable of identifying the exact chemical structure of designer drugs, even drugs that have not been tested on humans yet. The winning entry for the 2023 NOMIS & Science Young Explorer competition was a new AI language model trained by Princeton biologist Michael Skinnider. This new AI model can reportedly identify the chemical structure of research chemicals or “legal highs,” terms which refer to any number of chemical compounds which produce psychoactive effects but have not yet been scheduled by the FDA. The speed at which these compounds can be synthesized has created a legislative loophole where chemists and labs can more or less sell and ship dangerous drugs to people with a label on it that says “not for human consumption” without fear of legal repercussions. As a result of this loophole, law enforcement professionals are often faced with a situation wherein they suspect someone is carrying dangerous drugs but can’t prove it, or someone is experiencing adverse effects from a drug that they are unable to identify and thus, unable to properly treat. Traditional field testing kits can’t identify the drug because traditional field testing kits only look for the most commonly used psychoactive compounds (heroin meth, cocaine, the usual suspects), whereas Skinnider’s AI model is reportedly capable of generating and identifying entirely new chemical structures on the fly. “Conventional drugs of abuse such as cocaine or methamphetamine still dominate the market, but enterprising chemists have realized that with slight chemical modifications to these drugs, they can create new derivatives that are completely legal,” Skinnider said in an essay on Science. “And because these synthetic drugs have never been tested on humans, they can have unpredictable and damaging side effects.” Skinnider began his work by first training an AI language model on a simplified molecular input line entry system, otherwise known as SMILES, which is a fancy way of saying he taught the language model a new language which is used to represent different complex chemical structures in a simple text-based format. Skinnider taught the AI model a way of then identifying chemicals using a process called “mass spectrometry” which, god help me I’m probably butchering this, but according to Waters, mass spectrometry is a process of measuring the different ratios of electrical charges at the molecular level of whatever you want to test, drugs in this case, to determine the exact molecular weight of the particles in the sample. These molecular weights are used to identify and map the chemical compound. “As a MD/PhD student, I saw firsthand how patients could present with devastating symptoms of designer drug intoxications, but emergency physicians had few options to treat them. I wondered whether artificial intelligence could help,” Skinnider said. “Specifically, I asked whether AI could automatically elucidate the chemical structures of new designer drugs from mass spectrometry data. Scientifically, this was a tall order.” Skinnider then used information from existing research about commonly used designer drugs to further educate the AI model, using 1,753 known examples of such. What he found was the program could then generate examples of entirely new chemical structures that might have similar effects. Not only that, but it could also be used to predict what undiscovered chemicals are most likely to become popular in the future based on what drug users have responded well to in the past. Skinnider intimated that these advancements in drug identification technology have very practical real world applications in identifying and responding to drug crises. He also said his technology has already been used to identify new and dangerous psychoactive compounds. “I have now applied this technology to tens of thousands of patient samples and used it to discover several new designer drugs, such as a new analog of fentanyl that emerged last year. Currently, I am working with the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control to implement this AI technology in routine clinical practice to automatically discover new drugs as soon as they are introduced into the population,” Skinnider said. “Ultimately, my dream is that first responders, emergency physicians, and public health officials will all be able to take advantage of generative AI to make more informed decisions when treating patients and managing outbreaks.

https://hightimes.com/

Study Shows Significant Brain Recovery Following Alcohol Abstinence

A study, published in August in the journal Alcohol, focused on how long-term abstinence can undo the effects of cortical thinning in the brain among those with alcohol use disorder. “Several cross-sectional investigations reported widespread cortical thinning in those with alcohol use disorder (AUD). The few longitudinal studies investigating cortical thickness changes during abstinence are limited to the first month of sobriety. Consequently, cortical thickness changes during extended abstinence in those with AUD is unclear,” the researchers said. As they explained, cortical thickness “is genetically and phenotypically distinct from cortical volume and surface area,” and that it reflects “the number and density of cells in a cortical column…and/or neuronal cell body size, the number of spines and synapses and the extent of myelination.” “Cortical thickness may show a differential pattern of recovery with abstinence in alcohol use disorder (AUD) compared to volume and surface area measures in the same brain regions…The cerebral cortex is primarily composed of neuronal and glial cells [i.e., astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia…and the ratio of glial cells to neurons is approximately 0.7:1; accordingly, cortical thickness may serve as a macroscopic surrogate marker of the cytoarchitectural integrity of cells comprising the cortex,” they wrote in the the study’s introduction. The researchers also noted that “few studies have investigated cortical thickness changes with abstinence in [alcohol use disorder].” In their study, the researchers studies participants with alcohol use disorder at one week, one month and a little more than seven months of abstinence. In this study, AUD participants were studied at approximately 1 week (n=68), 1 month (n=88) and 7.3 months (n=40) of abstinence. “Forty-five never-smoking controls (CON) completed a baseline study, and 15 were reassessed after approximately 9.6 months. Participants completed magnetic resonance imaging studies at 1.5T and cortical thickness for 34 bilateral regions of interest (ROI) was quantitated with FreeSurfer. AUD demonstrated significant linear thickness increases in 25/34 ROI over 7.3 months of abstinence,” the researchers explained in their summary of the results,, noting that the “rate of change from 1 week to 1 month was greater than 1 month to 7.3 months in 19/34 ROIs.” “After 7.3 months of abstinence, AUD were statistically equivalent to CON on cortical thickness in 24/34 ROIs; the cortical thickness differences between AUD and CON in the banks superior temporal gyrus, post central, posterior cingulate, superior parietal, supramarginal and superior frontal cortices were driven by thinner cortices in AUD with proatherogenic conditions relative to CON. In actively smoking AUD, increasing pack-years was associated with decreasing thickness recovery primarily in the anterior frontal ROIs,” they continued. “Widespread bilateral linear cortical thickness recovery over 7.3 months of abstinence was the central finding for this AUD cohort. Proatherogenic conditions were associated with decreased thickness recovery and thinner cortex after 7.3 months of abstinence in several ROIs; this suggests alterations in perfusion or vascular integrity may relate to structural recovery in AUD. These results support the adaptive and beneficial effects of sustained sobriety on brain structural recovery in those with AUD.” The findings were hailed as “groundbreaking” by PsyPost, saying that the study reveals “a remarkable potential for recovery.” “There is very limited information in the alcohol use disorder field regarding how human brain structure recovers over longer-term abstinence after treatment,” said Timothy C. Durazzo, a clinical neuropsychologist at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine who was one of the authors of the study, as quoted by PsyPost. “Our study is the first to demonstrate significant recovery of cortical thickness in multiple regions in those seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder over approximately 6-7 months of abstinence after treatment.” Alcohol use disorder is defined as a “a medical condition characterized by an impaired ability to stop or control alcohol use despite adverse social, occupational, or health consequences,” according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, which said that 28.6 million adults aged 18 and older had alcohol use disorder in 2021. Genetics, exposure at an early age, mental health conditions and other traumas are all identified as factors that increase the risk of alcohol use disorder. “It encompasses the conditions that some people refer to as alcohol abuse, alcohol dependence, alcohol addiction, and the colloquial term, alcoholism. Considered a brain disorder, AUD can be mild, moderate, or severe. Lasting changes in the brain caused by alcohol misuse perpetuate AUD and make individuals vulnerable to relapse.The good news is that no matter how severe the problem may seem, evidence-based treatment with behavioral therapies, mutual-support groups, and/or medications can help people with AUD achieve and maintain recovery,” the Institute explained.

https://hightimes.com/

Ohio Gov. DeWine Hatches Plan To Whittle Down Adult-Use Law Voters Approved

Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine called on state legislators to amend and whittle down the provisions of Issue 2, the law voters in the state just approved, before the bill takes effect on Dec. 7. And since Issue 2 is a citizen initiative, Ohio lawmakers could lawfully make changes to the law, but they only have about a month to do so. Ohio Capital Journal reports that less than two days after voters approved adult-use cannabis in Ohio, the governor wants to scale it back. “My recommendation to the General Assembly is that they take action to make sure that both rights are protected,” DeWine said Thursday. “People have a right to smoke it. People have a right to consume it. But also that everybody else’s who doesn’t choose to do so is also protected with their rights as well.” DeWine is “already plotting to change Ohio’s legal weed law,” Benzinga reports. The people who fought hard to campaign for Issue 2 are ready for a battle. “I can’t believe in 2023 we’re actually talking about elected officials not respecting the will of the voters and not respecting the outcome of an election,” Tom Haren, spokesperson for the Coalition To Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, which led Issue 2, told the Columbus Dispatch. The governor claims he’s not ignoring the will of his constituents. “We respect what the people have done,” DeWine said, suggesting that he’s not in fact going against the will of Ohio voters. “What the people have clearly told us is they want legal marijuana in Ohio. We are going to see that they have that. We’re also going to live up to our responsibility to all the people in the state of Ohio, whether they voted for it or voted against it. In doing so, he wants to make sure various protections are in place, starting with Ohio’s children.” The people in Ohio have already decided. Nov. 7, voters in Ohio approved a ballot proposal, Issue 2, to legalize adult-use cannabis, beating out voters in opposition to the measure. The election’s outcome makes Ohio the 24th state to allow adult-cannabis, 14 of which have done so via a public vote. Per the new legislation, adults ages 21 and up can legally buy and possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis and grow plants at home—up to six plants per person and 12 plants per residence, where at least two adults reside. A 10% tax will be imposed on cannabis purchases and will go toward administrative costs, addiction treatment, municipalities with dispensaries, and social equity and jobs programs. Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman, who also voiced opposition to the bill, said lawmakers could clarify language “regarding limits for THC and tax rates as well as other parts of the statute.” Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) agreed. “Now is the time for the legislature to lead on how best to allocate tax revenues while responsibly regulating the industry,” Stephens said in a statement. A similar scaled-back cannabis law took place in Utah in 2019. House Bill 3001, which lawmakers passed in a legislative special session, was installed by the Republican-dominated Utah Legislature in response to the voter-approved Proposition 2, which Utah voters approved in November 2018. HB 3001 was supposedly a “compromise bill.” But critics of the bill say that H.B. 3001 actually functions as a replacement to Proposition 2. Organizations and people such as Rocky Anderson sued the state for attempting to undo the will of voters. Could the same happen in Ohio? “One goal will be to make sure that they are protected from advertising in regard to marijuana,” DeWine said. “We want to do everything within our power to reduce the number of inadvertent consumption of gummy bears, cookies and other products that have marijuana.” Fueling the myth that adults are passing out edibles to trick-or-treaters, an actual incident re-sparked fears that cannabis is a threat to children. In 2022, a 10-year-old student at Upper Arlington elementary school brought her dad’s infused gummies to school and shared with them with fellow students at lunch. After eating the gummies, the students became sick and were all taken to a local hospital for treatment. “We have every responsibility to do everything we can to keep those [emergency room visits] numbers down as much as we can,” DeWine said. DeWine also wants to reduce the number of drivers who smoke cannabis. Opposition group Protect Ohio Workers and Families claim that if Ohio legalizes pot, it would be subject to an additional 48 fatal vehicle crashes and 2,298 more injury crashes per year if Issue 2 passed. “I would hope … that when Dec. 7 comes and goes that we will be able to inform the people of the state exactly how this program will roll out,” he said. “I think it would be good if that was all done by the 7th so that we’re not in a situation of taking something away from people.”

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