By kellymcgannahan, Alternet Blogs

I promised last time to talk about differentiating between medical and recreational marijuana.  With 14 states legalizing the use of medical marijuana and other states lining up behind, I think it is an important distinction to make.  There are plenty of us pot smokers who would use medical marijuana usage as an inside advantage to accessing legal marijuana.  It’s convenient, it would solve the problem of availability and it would give us partakers a certain level of protection against prosecution. But let’s not do that; let’s not use this important development to further the agenda of responsible recreational use.  Let’s declare our own front in the ongoing battle.  It will be the less popular front and the path of more resistance, but it will better serve the cause.

By ASHA BEH, NBC Washington

Same-sex marriage? Check. Medical marijuana? Check. President Obama? Check.

When it comes to "the progressive, activist social agenda being pursued by the D.C. Council," District residents are on board -- at least in the majority-white areas, according to a Washington Post poll conducted last month. 

The poll responses, along with sky high approval ratings for President Obama, help confirm the city's reputation as one of the most left-leaning jurisdictions in the country.

... But overall support masks racial divides on many of the new policies approved by the council, underscoring that residents in majority-white areas feel far different about a variety of issues than their counterparts in majority-black neighborhoods.

By Marla Miller | Muskegon Chronicle

Even though Michigan voters overwhelmingly approved the medical use of marijuana, and the state is receiving an average of 75 applications per day, there are definite loopholes in the law and kinks in the system.

Unwarranted raids and arrests, lengthy court battles and efforts to restrict growing rights appear inevitable as state and local governments grapple with the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act’s gray areas.

Local residents wanting to obtain marijuana for legal and appropriate medical purposes say it has been difficult to find doctors willing to help, although they say those same doctors are eager to pass out prescription pills.

By John Darling

ASHLAND — The man who opened the nation’s first “pot club” for medical marijuana users will come to town Tuesday to speak in favor of legalizing marijuana.

Dennis Peron, known as the “father of medical marijuana,” supports across-the-board legalization of marijuana. In a telephone interview, he said enforcing existing laws costs the criminal justice system a fortune.

Peron is scheduled to speak from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Tuesday in the Meese Auditorium in the Visual Arts Building at Southern Oregon University, 1250 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland. The free presentation is sponsored by Ashland Alternative Health, a clinic that helps people obtain medical marijuana cards.

By. ScienceDaily

The benefits of marijuana in tempering or reversing the effects of Alzheimer's disease have been challenged in a new study by researchers at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute.

The findings, published in the current issue of the journal Current Alzheimer Research, could lower expectations about the benefits of medical marijuana in combating various cognitive diseases and help redirect future research to more promising therapeutics.

Cottleville voters on April 6 will tell Missouri lawmakers whether they support legalizing medical marijuana.

"I realize a lot of people will not be in favor of this," said Cottleville Mayor Don Yarber. "We represent the people. Why put tape over their mouths and say you don't get to vote on this? Why not let them speak their minds and let their voices be heard?"

Proposition C, the first of two nonbinding referendums on the city's April ballot, asks voters if they support Missouri House Bill 1670, which would legalize marijuana for medical purposes and reclassify its status as a controlled substance. If passed by the Legislature, the House bill would trigger a statewide vote in November 2011.

By Anthony Papa, AlterNet

Who benefits from Cameron Douglas getting at least 10 years in prison? No one. But the government is hell-bent on punishing him for the crime of being an addict.

Cameron -- the son of Academy Award winner Michael Douglas -- took a guilty plea this week for dealing drugs that will land him in prison for at least 10 years to a maximum of life. This stems from a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigation based on information from unidentified informants who were methamphetamine users and drug dealers. In other words, these rats gave Cameron up to save their own hides. In exchange for agreeing to be cooperating witnesses against Cameron, they were allowed to plead guilty to lesser charges.

I am mad as hell! Why? In the 1980s, I faced a similar fate that led to my 15-to-life sentence for a first-time, nonviolent drug sale in New York. So I know too well the routine the DEA went through to rope Douglas into a corner forcing him to take a plea deal. They scared the living crap out of him, telling him he would never see the light of day if he went to trial. Why would anyone in their right mind plead out to a 10-year minimum sentence? In the U.S., this type of behavior is standard in procuring drug convictions of low-level drug offenders who wind up doing more time than a murderer or rapist.