Author: News Room

After a major media outlet sounded the alarm about Elon Musk’s suspected psychedelic use, officials at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) were called in, but quickly cleared the billionaire’s company of wrongdoing. This is just the latest round of NASA safety reviews of SpaceX after a series of pot- and psychedelic-related stunts by Musk. Thanks to a Jan. 6 explosive, snitchy report in The Wall Street Journal about Elon Musk’s alleged rap sheet of drug use, including ketamine, LSD, cocaine, MDMA, and shrooms, NASA was forced to investigate. The Wall Street Journal raised concern about Musk’s “mental-health issues”…

The founders of a Canadian hemp company who misappropriated funds and then threatened witnesses who testified against them have pled guilty in a New York federal court.Igor Palatnik and Vitaly Fargesen of CanaFarma Hemp Products Corp., Vancouver, were accused of soliciting investments in the penny stock company, by using a fraudulent business plan and marketing budget. Prosecutors said the pair swindled investors out of about $14 million, “failing to invest investors’ funds as promised; and secretly misappropriating at least $4 million of CanaFarma funds for their own benefit.”Palatnik, 49, is from Morganville, New Jersey; Fargesen, 54, is from Manalapan, New…

Rhode Island recreational marijuana purchases smashed the state’s monthly record in December, with more than $7.8 million in adult-use sales and patients buying another $2.4 million worth of medical cannabis products. Overall, 2023 saw more than $100 million in legal marijuana sales in the Ocean State, roughly two thirds of which were purchases by adult-use consumers. Of the $107.8 million worth of total cannabis sales from January through December last year, adult-use sales contributed $74.2 million, while another $33.6 came from medical sales, according to the latest data from Rhode Island’s Department of Business Regulation (DBR). While adult-use purchases have…

A new collegiate athletics proposal would remove marijuana from the list of substances included in drug screenings for National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship competitions, with officials set to vote on the matter in June. Proponents say the approach is consistent with designing rules to focus on reducing harm rather than punishing student athletes. The plan would build on a 2022 change that increased the allowable THC threshold for college athletes, aligning NCAA’s rules with those of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The latest proposal would effectively treat marijuana more like alcohol. While NCAA doesn’t intend for the change to…

“Criminalizing substance use disorder and the possession of drugs just disrupts more and more lives, making it harder for people to live healthy and productive lives.” By Evan Popp, Maine Morning Star Lawmakers and advocates kicked off a campaign last week to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of illicit drugs and invest in treating substance use disorder rather than punishing it—a push that comes as Maine remains in the grips of a deadly overdose epidemic. The bill advocates are supporting, LD 1975, was introduced last year but carried over to this year’s legislative session. If passed, the measure would…

Vivek Ramaswamy, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, says he would federally legalize Schedule I drugs such as marijuana and psychedelics for military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) if he’s elected. His plan involves having the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provide access to the currently illegal substances as an alternative to fentanyl. During a virtual town hall event ahead of the Iowa caucus, Ramaswamy was asked why medical cannabis hasn’t been federally legalized and took the opportunity to tout his broader drug policy plan for veterans. He gave a somewhat contradictory response, first saying that there’s a “patchwork” of…

The head of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says his agency has “communicated” the agency’s “position” on marijuana rescheduling to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and has continued to offer additional information to assist with the final determination. HHS for the first time confirmed that it had recommended moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) on Friday, releasing a trove of documents it submitted to DEA last year amid a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit initiated by attorney Matt Zorn. Xavier Becerra, secretary of HHS, told The New…

“It reduces barriers and streamlines processes so qualifying patients can access the medicines and treatment options that best serve them.” By Hunter Field, Arkansas Advocate A marijuana industry group on Friday proposed a constitutional amendment to improve patient access to medical cannabis and legalize the drug for recreational use in Arkansas if it becomes legal under federal law. Arkansans for Patient Access said it was submitting ballot language to Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin (R) on Friday for the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Amendment of 2024. The ballot initiative would make it legal for patients to grow their own cannabis at…

A new bill in Indiana would create a psilocybin research fund aimed at providing money to research institutions studying the psychedelic  as an alternative treatment for mental health and medical disorders, from PTSD to migraines. The proposal, SB 139, was introduced this week by Sen. Ed Charbonneau (R) and already has a hearing scheduled before the Senate Health and Provider Services Committee on Wednesday. If passed, the measure would not amend Indiana’s criminal laws around psilocybin but would instead help pay for clinical trials into the drug’s efficacy, especially among military veterans and first responders. The legislation would create a…

It’s “not too late” for the current Congress to pass sensible marijuana reform legislation and end the “insane” prohibitionist policies of the war on drugs, Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) says. In an impassioned speech on the House floor on Thursday, the founding member of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus said he is both “sad” and “angry” over the continued federal inaction on marijuana reform, arguing that it’s “time for Congress to stop making this problem worse.” “I’ve been working for 50 years leading the effort to end the failed, unfair, cynical, dangerous war on drugs that targeted Black people, that discouraged…