From above, the bushy green plants in backyard after backyard resemble English topiary gardens, neat and tidy.

But a closer look at the gardens hidden from passersby behind tall fences tell a different story: cannabis crops mushrooming under the umbrella of the 1998 Oregon Medical Marijuana Act.

mailtribune.com

Hippies and hempsters from high and low are coming together at the biggest hemp festival in the United States this weekend, August 21-22.

The Seattle Hempfest celebrates it's 19th year by remembering the late, great Jack Herer, a moniker of hemp events whose absence is greatly felt throughout the cannabis community.

For over forty years, Jack Herer, the Emperor of Hemp, shouted from the rooftops, "Hemp will save the world!" He spoke to advocates and critics alike, filling in the gaps created by propaganda and misinformation. Jack was wholly committed to ending cannabis prohibition, and never ceased sharing the story of hemp to any one that would listen. Jack left this world on April 15, 2010, but the quest for cannabis freedom lives on.

salem-news.com
hempfest.org
No marijuana allowed at hempfest
Planet's Largest Pot Festival
Hempfest attracts crowd of serious marijuana supporters, plus some stoners
Scenes from Seattle Hempfest
Seattle Hempfest 2010 on Video

The nominees for the 10th Annual High Times Stony Awards have been announced. Three Top CelebStoners are up for Stonette of the Year. We hear that Cheech & Chong will be headlining the show.

celebstoner.com

Moroccan maritime police seized some 2.7 tonnes of cannabis resin bound for Europe off the north African country's Mediterranean coast, local authorities announced Saturday.

Two powerboats carrying the drugs were intercepted on Friday by coast guards of the royal police in the region of Nador, authorities said.

zawya.com

Authorities in Humboldt County have been especially busy this week in finding marijuana gardens.

Sheriff's officials say during a series of raids between Monday and Thursday, deputies and officers from other agencies discovered more than 60,000 marijuana plants.

mercurynews.com
dailydemocrat.com

Biloxi police arrested a Baton Rouge man Thursday night for possessing close to 300 pounds of spice.

Police stopped Hasan Zaben, 31, on Interstate 10 for careless driving. That's when an officer noticed a small amount of Spice in plain view. During a search of the vehicle, officers said they found about 300 pounds of spice packaged under several names.

wlbt.com

4:20 statt Spice

Corruption among Mexican police is fueling violence in Mexico, a top U.S. official said Friday at the 7th Annual Border Security Conference.

Gil Kerlikowske, head of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, was one of the speakers at the conference at the University of Texas at El Paso.

elpasotimes.com

Police in Mexico say members of a drug cartel blocked off at least 13 major roads in Monterrey on Saturday.

Drivers were dragged out of their vehicles by armed men and their cars used to cut off the roads in the north-eastern city.

The blockade happened after a shootout between the Mexican army and alleged members of a drug cartel, in which four people were killed.

bbc.co.uk