Alcohol is the most popular recreational drug in the world and the most dangerous with 100,000 people dying annually in America from the direct health effects of drinking.

Alcohol use is also associated with half of all violent crime including vehicular homicide.

Marijuana is the second most popular recreational drug on our planet and the safest. No one has ever died from the effects of smoking weed. No statistics are available for marijuana-related violence because it almost never occurs.

news-press.com

Despite the monetary promise of increased state and local revenues, and lowered costs for an already strained justice system, the Tax Cannabis Act still has some Californians worried.

Fox News' San Francisco-based correspondent, Claudia Cowan writes that "Critics, including most law enforcement groups, say legalizing pot will only hurt California."

caivn.org

Medical marijuana activists and advocates are making a push this week to convince New York Gov. David Paterson and the legislature to include medical cannabis in the state’s budget. The state Senate passed a measure in March that calls for the inclusion of medical marijuana in the state budget. However, New York’s legislative session ends this week so the window for New York to become the 15th state to allow the use of medical marijuana is closing.

hightimes.com

Traditionally Fox News is not known for being liberal on any topics. Legalizing marijuana is definitely a very liberal opinion so the fact that they made an hour debate is a refreshing surprise. John Stossel explores the facts about marijuana legalization and pretty much wipes the floor with the prohibitionist propaganda here. This is a really great piece with a debate, information, statistics, and pretty much all the evidence you need to compile to show what a failure the war on drugs has become. Well worth blazing and taking an hour to watch. Check the videos after the jump.

hailmaryjane.com

The debate over medical marijuana started in earnest 14 years ago, when Californians passed Proposition 215. That allowed people with a doctor's recommendation to possess and grow marijuana for personal medical use.
Today, medical marijuana is legal in 14 states and voters in Arizona and South Dakota will decide on the issue in November.
California voters face another historic vote this fall on whether to legalize pot for everybody over the age of 21.

foxnews.com

Marihuana grow operations appear in homes or outbuildings in both residential, rural or commercial/industrial areas. Often larger homes or buildings are selected, as they will support a larger growing capacity. From the outside, they often appear normal, however, the interiors may have received significant structural, electrical and heating system modifications not in accordance with applicable building, natural gas and electrical codes.

bclocalnews.com

This is what a medical-marijuana class looks like. Twenty-five or so students — men, women, young, middle-aged — listen attentively as an instructor holds up a leafy green plant and runs down the list of nutrients it needs. Nitrogen: stimulates leaf and stem growth. Magnesium: helps leaf structure. Phosphorous: aids in the germination of seeds. Michigan's Med Grow Cannabis College is one of several unaccredited schools to have sprung up in the 14 states and the District of Columbia that have legalized medical use of marijuana. Many of its students suffer from chronic pain. Others are looking to supply those in need of relief.

time.com

Taking their inspiration from "The Federalist Papers," a group of Illinois reformers have penned a series of 36 essays to detail the role of cannabinoids in Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

opendemocracy.net