The ‘stoner’ stereotype of cannabis is over, and it’s our responsibility as seasoned journalists, researchers, and politicians to give the plant the seriousness it deserves. That means using real names and asking tough questions.
Questions like:
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Who and how much money is behind the anti-marijuana lobbying groups?
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How much longer will the federal government, under the Controlled Substances Act, contradict state-level medical marijuana programs?
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Which cannabis industry leaders are taking it upon themselves to begin self-regulation?
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When will the federal government remove barriers to clinical studies?
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Why won’t legislators allow legal cannabis businesses equal access to banking and tax codes?
It’s a journalists’ dream, actually. The cannabis beat has unlimited stories to tell. From science, banking, and politics, to culture, accessories, and technology. It’s these types of stories that I’ll bring to The Weed Blog as their newest contributor.
I started off my career in journalism at one of the largest cable news networks, CNN. I left CNNPolitics.com as their digital political producer to pursue my insatiable appetite for answers to where there are none. I’m doing this for a future generation that may one day know which strain to take for what ails them, for the scientists who will one day be barrier-free to study cannabis’ compounds. I want the option for a drug addict to use a non-life threatening plant to replace and ultimately end the opioid epidemic. The undue prohibition of a plant, which has proven health benefits, yet remains a Schedule I Substance with “no accepted medical use” just doesn’t make sense.
Since 2010, The Weed Blog has been an online source for news on all things marijuana. I’m proud to be using my real name to bring you the latest in cannabis news, because the benefits of cannabis, as we know them today, are only the tip of the iceberg.