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Every week, Psychedelic Times will bring you a few of the most interesting, overlooked cannabis stories that we come across. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to keep in the loop on marijuana and psychedelic news.
Which state legislatures could legalize recreational, medical marijuana in 2018? — Marijuana Business Daily
By the end of next year, three or more states could join the eight that allow for recreational marijuana: New Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont, according to an interview with MMJ industry experts. In fact, in New Jersey, there is already a bill pending that would legalize weed for those 21 and older. Plus, anti-pot Governor Chris Christie has only six months left on his term. Also, maybe Michigan will get recreational?
On the medical marijuana front, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Utah (?!) are seeing some progress with various initiatives. Already, more than half the country has approved state medical marijuana programs, totaling twenty-six states and Washington, D.C.
New York City Taxi Driver Wins Medical Marijuana Discrimination Case — Merry Jane
After a New York City cab driver tested positive for cannabis, his license to operate was revoked. But NYC’s Office of Administrative Trials And Hearings (OATH) ruled in favor of the cabbie because he was a medical marijuana patient.
The Taxi and Limousine Commission, who authorize cab drivers in the Big Apple, seemed to have missed the part of the New York Compassionate Care Act that protects cannabis patients from being “subject to penalty or denied any right or privilege solely for the certified use of medical marijuana,” according to National Law Review.
This is part of a growing trend of cases where medical marijuana patients who are punished by their employers for using prescription cannabis win in court, which hasn’t always been the case.
California Tribes Form Cannabis Association — Indian Country Today
Recreational marijuana laws will come into effect in California January 1st, but Native American groups say the law lacks provisions pertaining to Indian nations’ sovereign rights. Thus, the California Native American Cannabis Association was formed to ask Governor Jerry Brown to protect tribes’ rights to self-regulate.
Vandals Hit First Church of Cannabis — Fox News
Vandals in Indiana targeted a pro-marijuana church, breaking gutters and spray painting over the congregation sign. This isn’t the first time this has happened to the First Church of Cannabis, which opened in 2016. Pastor Bill Levin described this targeting as a “hate crime.”
Cannabis website Herb raises $4.1M — TechCrunch
Herb.co, a cannabis-related publication, recently raised $4.1 million in seed funding from various investors from Slow Ventures, Buddy Media, Bullpen Capital, Liquid 2 Ventures, Shopify and others. The site aims to be a tech platform that will offer more than just cannabutter tutorials—they also want to someday be the Uber of weed, delivering joints right to your door. It’s part of their native advertising strategy and makes them another huge player in the growing cannabis media market.
Does anyone else remember when it was just High Times or am I just old?
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