Oakland Approves Nation's First Cannabis Business Tax Last night's landslide victory for Oakland's cannabis business tax, Measure F, by 79.9% mirrors

Oakland Approves Nation's First Cannabis Business Tax
Last night's landslide victory for Oakland's cannabis business tax,
Measure F, by 79.9% mirrors the historic 79.6% victory of San
Francisco's path-breaking medical marijuana initiative, Prop. P, in
1991. Like Prop P, Measure F seems destined to serve as a model for
cannabis reform elsewhere in the state and country.
Measure F would impose a 1.8% tax on the city's medical cannabis
businesses, raising an estimated $300,000 for the city.
Kudos to James Anthony for having proposed and authored this
measure; to Rebecca Kaplan for having shepherded it through City
Council; and to medical cannabis collective directors Steve
DeAngelo, Richard Lee, and Keith Stephenson for their enlightened
support of this landmark measure.
Thanks too to the voters of Oakland, who approved Measure Z to "tax
and regulate" marijuana in 2004 and have kept their city on the
forefront of cannabis law reform.
- Dale Gieringer, Cal NORML

http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0722/p02s07-ussc.html
Christian Science Monitor, Jul 22, 2009
Oakland voters approve marijuana tax
It is the first US city to assess such a tax, which could raise
almost $300,000 in revenue next year. Opponents of the measure say it
opens the door to more crime and heavier drug use.
LOS ANGELES - Oakland, Calif., on Tuesday became the first city in
the US to assess a tax on marijuana.
State and national advocates of the tax say the victory is a
significant turning point in the history of cannabis use, paving the
way for taxation in other communities and states and establishing
more social acceptance of marijuana use.
Opponents say an irreversible threshold has been crossed, opening
the door to more crime and heavier drug use.
By a wide margin of 80 percent to 20 percent, Oakland voters
said "yes" to Measure F, which asked: "Shall City of Oakland's
business tax, which currently imposes a tax rate of $1.20 per $1,000
on 'cannabis business' gross receipts, be amended to establish a new
tax rate of $18 per $1,000 of gross receipts?"
"The voters of Oakland have sent a message to the nation that
cannabis is better treated as a legitimate, tax-paying business than
as a cause of crime and futile law-enforcement expenditures," says
Dale Gieringer, California state coordinator for the National
Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
The city estimates that the measure will raise $294,000 in
additional tax revenue in 2010 and more in future years. Some say the
measure will provide funds to help offset the city's current $83
million deficit as well as allow police to direct their limited
resources to more serious crimes and drug offenses.
"The public is more interested in having money to preserve social
services and fight more important crimes," says Sam Singer, a
Berkeley resident and well-known PR consultant.
Mr. Singer and others say that since the passage of Proposition 218
in 1996 - which made marijuana available by prescription to relieve
pain and nausea - marijuana use in California has existed behind a
"false front": Users can go to a doctor, complain of symptoms, and
for about $100, get the doctor to write them a prescription for the
drug. A state-issued card lasts for one year.
"It's so easy to get a card that it's almost as if physicians will
help lead you to your story of chronic pain, insomnia, fatigue,
etc.," says John Diaz, editorial page editor of the San Francisco
Chronicle.
Oakland has not so much cleared up the marijuana issue so much as
found a way to contain it, Mr. Diaz says. The city is giving permits
to only four clubs, compared with a few dozen in San Francisco and
about 800 in Los Angeles.
Federal law still prohibits the use and sale of marijuana,
although US Attorney General Eric Holder has said that federal law
enforcement will no longer conduct raids in the states that have
legalized medical-marijuana use. Nationwide, about 775,000 people
were arrested for marijuana possession in 2007.
"It takes a lot of time, attention, and money to bust, prosecute,
and then incarcerate marijuana users," Singer says. "Given the
economy, this is a move that will be welcomed not just in Oakland,
but most likely in major urban cities across the nation."
Some residents in nearby communities are not happy with the Oakland vote.
"I am happy to forfeit the tax money and keep it illegal," says
Trygve Mikkelsen, a Norwegian immigrant living on the
Berkeley-Oakland border. The owner of a wine-rack business, Mr.
Mikkelsen worked on the San Francisco waterfront in the 1970s and
'80s around some people who used cannabis every day. "I preferred not
to work next to them, preferred to have conversations with other
individuals since they were affected by the drug," he says.
The father of three is convinced that younger people will have more
access to marijuana. "I prefer that it is difficult to get a hold of
and an illegal substance," he says.

Cannabis Delivery, Co-op, Collective, Dispensary - Work for yourself or work with others?

Want to open a medical marijuana dispensary? Have you thought it was for you? Do you want to make money? Well Think again!


Legal or not, you must have a passion for pot.
Also besides passion you must have the proof that you need the cannabis:)
Thanks to the voters, state laws, and even the attorney general..
Although still since the news and changes the feds can come at any time...Do you want that Stress? Legal Risk, and more??

As usual everything is at your fingertips. Well if you have more questions...contact me!!! NO BULL,PLAN FOR BAIL!!



Do you own a California Compassionate Club, Collective, Dispensary or Co-op? Give us your feedback.

"The Best part is seeing the patients happy, relieved, and thankful"- PCC

"I love working for myself. When you work for yourself, you work when and where you want to, and it is your choice as to how much you want to make."- Brandon


It's not for everyone...

"You should never start a business if you do not have your heart and soul in the business," "I have seen many put in the money investment but never truly put in the physical investment needed for their business to succeed. ... You have to love what you are doing."-BJM

Stanislaus County Medical Marijuana ID Cards

Newshawk: http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm
Pubdate: Mon, 12 Jan 2009
Source: Modesto Bee, The (CA)
Webpage: http://www.modbee.com/1618/story/560876.html
Copyright: 2009 The Modesto Bee
Contact: letters@modbee.com
Website: http://www.modbee.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/271
Author: Tim Moran
Cited: Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors http://www.co.stanislaus.ca.us/board/index.shtm
Cited: Americans for Safe Access http://www.americansforsafeaccess.org/
Cited: Marijuana Policy Project http://www.mpp.org/
Cited: California NORML http://www.canorml.org/
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/Proposition+215
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topic/dispensaries
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal)

MARIJUANA ID REVIEWED BY COUNTY

Stanislaus One of Dozen Without a Card Program

A medical marijuana identification card program will come before the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors sometime in the next few months. It's a program that has been in the works for more than 2 1/2 years.

Stanislaus is one of just 12 of the state's 58 counties that does not already have an identification card program, which is required by state law. The programs issue identification cards to medical marijuana users who ask for them. The cards can then be shown to law enforcement officers when patients are stopped and questioned about possession of the drug.

The cards, like the whole issue of medical marijuana, have been controversial. Two years ago, then-Stanislaus County Supervisor Ray Simon called the program "a huge fraud perpetrated on us by the state of California." Modesto Police Chief Roy Wasden also criticized the program, saying it should go through a formal U.S. Food and Drug Administration trial and be dispensed by prescription through pharmaceutical companies.

Proponents, however, point out that medical marijuana use was approved by the state's voters in 1996 in Proposition 215. The federal government still considers any marijuana use to be illegal, but proponents of Proposition 215 point out that issuing the ID cards violates neither state nor federal law -- and not issuing them would violate state law.

Stanislaus and several other counties delayed issuing the cards while legal challenges played out. Now that the ID cards have cleared legal hurdles, most counties have launched programs. San Joaquin County announced its card program last week.

The Stanislaus ID card program is under review to make sure it complies with state law, said Deputy County Counsel Dean Wright. The program will require the county to acquire camera equipment to take pictures of applicants, along with paperwork to ensure that the applicants have a doctor's recommendation. The information would then be forwarded to Sacramento, where the cards will be issued.

Some of the delay in getting the program before the Board of Supervisors has been caused by the small staff in the California Department of Public Health dedicated to overseeing the program, Wright said.

When it gets on the supervisors' agenda is still in question, because the county is wrestling with midyear budget adjustments, said Cleopathia Moore, associate director of the county Health Services Agency, which will administer the program.

The cards are completely voluntary -- medical marijuana users don't have to get them in order to comply with the state law. The cards in theory will prevent them from being arrested if police officers find them in possession of marijuana.

When the medical ID card program comes before the board, members will be faced with a decision to approve or reject a specific program. Rejecting the idea of an ID program carries a legal risk: Solano County was sued last week by Americans for Safe Access for failing to implement a card program.

Most Dispensaries Banned

In the meantime, the medical marijuana environment in California and the Northern San Joaquin Valley continues to evolve. Most of the cities in the northern valley have banned marijuana dispensaries. That leaves patients with a doctor's recommendation a choice of either driving to the Bay Area, where there are many dispensaries; seeking the drug in the underground illegal market; or growing their own, which is allowed by law in limited quantities.

Medical marijuana advocates say most patients don't want to grow their own. It takes time and some expertise, as well as a place to grow it, said Aaron Smith, California policy director for the Marijuana Policy Project.

Driving to the Bay Area is also inconvenient if not impossible for some patients, Smith said. Some patients are undergoing chemotherapy and are physically unable to cultivate plants or drive for hours to get marijuana, he said.

Sources Will Deliver

"Many are going into the black market. It's readily available in the black market, but part of the intent of Prop. 215 was that they not have to go to the black market," Smith said.

"They are pushing the market into the dark corners of society instead of open, licensed and inspected dispensaries."

The Web site of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, another marijuana advocacy group, lists several sources that will deliver marijuana to the Modesto area, but the group doesn't vouch for the reliability of the sources, said Ellen Comp, a board member and volunteer for California NORML.

Doctors are more willing to recommend marijuana to patients since a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that it was a First Amendment right of doctors to make recommendations, Smith and Comp said.

In Modesto, a MediCann clinic at 725 18th St. provides patient evaluations and marijuana recommendations. MediCann is a San Francisco-based group with 12 clinics throughout the state dedicated to helping patients with medical marijuana referrals and other alternative medical treatments.


For a local county packet and information email cacaregivers @ aol.com
If you have any cannabis related questions please contact your local co-op 209-818-2932

A look at cannabis, CBD, and blood pressure

A look at cannabis, CBD, and blood pressure
Ask MedicalCannabisMD.com
By David Ostrow, MD
This issue’s column responds to two related questions sent in by readers that illustrate the complexity of understanding how the 100+ active ingredients in whole cannabis produce different effects depending on the genetic strain, how and where it was grown and harvested, an individual’s sensitivity to these different compounds, how much and by what route it was ingested and, as always, the setting in which it is used and what other drugs it may be combined with. To help answer these complex questions, Sunil Aggrawall, PhD, has provided most of the following information from his recently completed thesis on The Medical Geography of Cannabinoid Botanicals in Washington State: Access, Delivery, and Distress, available at sunilaggarwal.net.

Question 1: What is Cannabidiol (CBD) and do its effects on the body differ from THC?

A: There are over 100 compounds in whole cannabis — including at least 108 different cannabinoids (which, structurally, are 21-carbon terphenophenolics), flavonoids, sesquiterpenoids, and phytosterols — all pharmacologically active to varying degrees. A good general rule is that indica strains produce more CBD, and are better for chronic bodily pain and sedation; while sativa strains produce more THC and are better for antidepressant and energizing effects. But, as indicated above, these are only the two best-studied components of whole cannabis and the actual properties and effects of a particular strain or preparation, such as hash or kief, may depend more on the interplay between the total set of active ingredients — what Dr. Ethan Russo calls the “entourage effect.”

That is why medicinal cannabis users often find relief from not just depression or pain, but also inflammation, nausea/vomiting, and muscle spasticity. In addition, basic and clinical researchers are testing whole cannabis and its components for anti-cancer and anti-aging properties.

Question 2: Is cannabis good for controlling blood pressure? Since it can make your heart beat faster, is there a risk of heart attack with cannabis use? A friend once passed out from using cannabis while drunk on wine. It was very scary and made me afraid to combine cannabis with alcohol.

A: Any drug that can lower blood pressure in some individuals and at specific doses, but produce the opposite effect in others or at different doses, is considered “biphasic.” Most often, this is related to dose — one phase of the drug effect predominates at lower doses while the other phase predominates at higher doses. But with whole cannabis, we are dealing with over 100 active compounds, so it is difficult to impossible to predict what dose will have what effect beforehand. Your friend who passed out was probably reacting more to the wine they consumed than to the cannabis. When used alone, cannabis usually causes a mild increase in heart rate (tachycardia) and an insignificant rise in blood pressure.

However, persons with a variety of heart conditions, particularly those with irregular heart rhythms (dysrhythmias) or uncontrolled abnormal blood pressure, can experience more severe changes in heart rate and blood pressure from cannabis, and thus should consult with their cardiologist (who, hopefully, is knowledgeable about the pharmacology of cannabis) before using it. While there are no reported deaths due to cannabis use, there have undoubtedly been persons whose abnormal blood pressure or heart rhythm was worsened by it. This can rarely, if not recognized, lead to a heart attack, stroke or even death.

Major HIV/AIDS research findings on cannabis

Major HIV/AIDS research findings on cannabis
The Lab Bench
By Jahan Marcu*
Promising research demonstrates that cannabis could be used for neuropathic pain, inhibiting HIV replication, and fighting drug-resistant bacterial infections.

Two clinical studies on smoked cannabis for HIV neuropathy

A study published by a research team at UC Davis Medical Center [1] was conducted as a double blind, placebo-controlled crossover study of 38 patients with HIV neuropathic pain. The Participants smoked medicine with a THC content of seven percent or 3.5 percent. They were scheduled for three 6-hour sessions, which were separated by at least 3 days. Their pain was significantly alleviated and the side effects were well tolerated.

Another study was conducted and published by researchers at UC San Diego [2]. This study began with 34 patients who were not responsive to other pain medication. Over the course of the study, participants received both real and placebo cigarettes. The THC content ranged from one to eight percent and was smoked four times daily for five days. Treatment phases were interrupted by two weeks of no medication. The patients continued to use their regular pain medication during the whole study. The team found that 46 percent of the 28 patients in the study gained pain relief of more than 30 percent. These studies follow previous research findings on the same topic (Abrams et al. 2007).

Cannabis-extract component inhibits HIV replication
Research efforts to find new HIV treatments often focus on viral particles that are essential for HIV replication. Plant-derived natural products are emerging as potent anti-HIV compounds which can interfere with viral particles. Researchers from Germany and Spain investigated cannabis tinctures and found extracts that inhibited HIV replication [3]. Denbinobin, a single compound, was demonstrated to be mostly responsible for the ability of the extract to inhibit HIV replication. Denbinobin was shown to directly interfere with a replication protein called NF-KB (NF-kappa B), which is considered a good target for HIV therapies because it contributes to a wide variety of cellular processes.

Cannabinoids kill antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria
Multi-drug resistant and extremely drug-resistant forms of bacteria have created a strong demand for new antibacterial drugs. In the US such strains are causing more deaths each year [4].

Developing a new antibacterial is very challenging. Only one has been introduced in the last 30 years. The antibacterial effects of cannabinoids have been documented for over 50 years, inspiring researchers in Italy to re-examine the effects of cannabinoids on these new and more dangerous forms of bacteria. The research team found that the five most common cannabinoids THC, CBD, CBG, CBC, and CBN had potent antibacterial effects. The authors conclude that mixtures of cannabinoids could also be used as cheap and biodegradable antibacterial agents.

* Email: cannabispodcast@gmail.com

Source notes for the above:

1. Wilsey, B., et al., ‘A randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover trial of cannabis cigarettes in neuropathic pain.’

J Pain, 2008. 9(6): p. 506-21.

2. Ellis, R.J., et al., ‘Smoked medicinal cannabis for neuropathic pain in HIV: a randomized, crossover clinical trial.’ Neuropsychopharmacology, 2009. 34(3): p. 672-80.

3. Sanchez-Duffhues, G., et al., ‘Denbinobin, a naturally occurring 1,4-phenanthrenequinone, inhibits HIV-1 replication through an NF-kappaB-dependent pathway.’ Biochem Pharmacol, 2008. 76(10): p. 1240-50.

4. Appendino, G., et al., ‘Antibacterial cannabinoids from Cannabis sativa: a structure-activity study.’ J Nat Prod, 2008. 71(8): p. 1427-30.

Botanist battles Federal marijuana monopoly

Botanist battles Federal marijuana monopoly
By Fred Gardener O’Shaughnessey’s Journal
The “final” DEA decision issued Jan 12 in the case of Craker v. DEA might not be final after all. Lyle Craker is the UMass-Amherst botany professor who applied in 2001 for a DEA application to grow cannabis for use by FDA-approved medical researchers.

After a three-and-a-half-year run-around he was turned down on the grounds that the nation’s one licensed grower, Mahmoud ElSohly, U Mississippi, was meeting all the researchers’ needs. Craker appealed and after a few more years won — in the opinion of the Administrative Law Judge who heard the case — but after another year-plus of ‘review,’ as the Bush gang was exiting stage right, acting DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart, issued a ‘final’ rejection of Craker’s application.

Craker, with legal help from ACLU and Julie Carpenter of Jenner & Block (working pro bono), filed a “motion to reconsider” that could extend the case until Obama appointees are running DEA. Caren Woodson of Americans for Safe Access convinced Rep. John Oliver (D-MA, whose district includes Amherst) and 15 co-signers to send a letter urging AG Eric Holder to grant the motion. Leonhart, perhaps sensing a shift in the political winds, then gave Craker’s lawyers additional time to file a response to the “final” ruling.

The best-case scenario, according to Craker’s longtime backer Rick Doblin of Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, would be that “DEA decides to reverse its final ruling and give Craker the license, before April 1 when the current Final Ruling becomes effective.”

Worst case? “We fail to gather sufficient political pressure and end up having to sue DEA in the DC Court of Appeals, which could take years, cost lots of money, and give the Obama Administration a reason to do nothing until the litigation is completed.... Unless there is a political decision to let research take place, we could bounce back and forth between DEA and the Court of Appeals for Obama’s entire first term.”

Doblin adds, “I’d say the worst case is more likely, but that our odds for the best case are improving. ... DEA is on the defensive and needs a new strategy.”

The federal monopoly on growing cannabis for approved research has held back work in the US, but not in other parts of the world. For the most current information, subscribe to O’Shaughnessy’s Journal online at oshaughnessys.com.

Harborside launches lab testing program

Harborside launches lab testing program
Concentrates found to contain more CBD than do flowers
By Shiloh Brotherman
In mid-December 2008, Harborside Health Center became the first dispensary in California to offer laboratory testing of its medicine. All flowers and concentrates distributed by the Oakland collective are now laboratory tested for safety and potency. It uses plate culture analysis to detect pathogenic molds invisible to the human eye, which may pose a health hazard to patients with compromised immune systems. Potency tests use gas chromatography/ mass spectrometry/flame ionization detection to measure the percentages of three major cannabinoids: THC, CBD, and CBN.

Harborside CEO Steve DeAngelo greeted the program with enthusiasm “For first time in the history of human cannabis consumption, patients have a scientific assessment of the safety and potency of their medicine prior to ingesting it.”

The program is the result of a long and painstaking development process, undertaken in partnership with the Analytical Laboratory Project. The seeds of the program were planted at the 2007 NORML conference, when ALP founders David Lampach and Addison DeMoura met lifelong activist DeAngelo.

“Everybody we talked to said it had been tried before, but that it was impossible” said Lampach, “We never believed that; and when we met Steve, he agreed and encouraged us to develop the testing program. So we took the plunge and started purchasing equipment.”

Over the course of the next 18 months, ALP developed analytical methods in partnership with a senior bio-chemist from one of the Bay Area’s most prestigious research institutions. Additional scientific oversight is provided by London’s Institute of Psychiatry and the University of the City of London, in a partnership with the internationally renowned Beckley Foundation.

The ultimate goal of the partnership is the development of a comprehensive database to compile patient evaluations of tested medicine samples. This database could one day identify the most therapeutically active components in the cannabis plant, and guide future development of cannabinoid medicines. Lady Amanda Neidpath, Director of the Beckley Foundation, commented, “It could very well be a scientific gold mine.” After a short beta phase at Harborside, ALP will extend the testing program to dispensaries, collectives, and growers state-wide.

Results so far show that most of the medicine presented to Harborside is free of pathogenic molds; but some samples have traces of the aspergillus mold — possibly fatal to patients with very seriously compromised immune systems. Harborside returns to the grower all items found to contain any aspergillus and any that exceed American Herbal Products Assn. standards for mold content. Harborside THC content has ranged from 5.18 to 87.60 percent (including care packages and concentrates), with most flower varieties falling between 15 and 25 percent, and most concentrates between 20 and 80 percent.

Levels of CBD, a cannabinoid of intense interest to researchers, vary markedly between flowers and concentrates. CBD levels in flowers generally have been less than 1 percent, while concentrates — often made from leaf material — have up to three times more. Because researchers and some patients believe CBD has great therapeutic potential, this may be the most important finding of the program so far.