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Dr. Carl Hart, Dr. Wendy Chapkis, Philippe Lucas, and Paul Armentano (among others) discussing medical marijuana’s future at the DPA Reform Conference in Albuquerque.
Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 12:25 pm | By: Radical Russ
Show 012 This Saturday, 9pm Eastern / 6pm Pacific
My deepest apologies to those of you who tried listening last Saturday to Show 011, the Grand Opening of the Oregon NORML Cannabis Café. We were beset by technical difficulties and could not complete the show.
I will solve the technical issues and return this weekend to Oregon’s first Cannabis Café. Oregon’s law does not allow for marijuana sales, but does allow patients to medicate “out of public view”. Any cardholder may freely exchange medicine with any other. So Madeline Martinez and Oregon NORML have created a private, members-only club for the social benefit of medical marijuana patients.
However, this is not a medical marijuana dispensary with a café; this is a café for medical marijuana patients. Patients can visit the smoke-free vapor bar where a budtender will load up one of six Volcano Vaporizers, fill the bag with the vapor of any one of more than twenty of the strains available, and cap it with a sterilized mouthpiece. Others bring their own pipes or papers and request a small ceramic bowl filled with their choice of freshly-ground cannabis strain and roll a joint as they play pool or smoke a bowl as they join in a card game. All sorts of café food and drink are available, though not alcoholic beverages (the owner surrendered his liquor license rather than fight with the commission over the use of cannabis in the café.) Many have questioned how this café can operate due to Oregon’s smoke-free laws, but the actual statutes in question specifically reference “tobacco smoke”. Thus, no tobacco smoking is allowed in the café.
Most amazingly, all the cannabis is provided free through the donations of local area medical marijuana growers. Oregon’s law provides for six mature plants, eighteen seedlings, but only twenty-four ounces of dried, cured marijuana. I say “only” and people’s jaws drop, wishing they could possess 24 grams, much less a pound and a half of marijuana. But that works out to four ounces per mature plant, which some growers are able to surpass, so they donate their excess to Oregon NORML for distribution to patients. In fact, on the day of the Grand Opening, the café had more marijuana at the end of the day then they had started with, thanks to generous donations.
While I attended on Saturday night, two officers from the Portland Police Bureau stopped by to investigate the operations. They were very friendly and just wanted to know where the medicating was taking place and how Oregon NORML was controlling the situation. They were pleased to learn how relentlessly ID’s and medical cards were being checked and that the front entrance was closed as a measure to help control the smell from permeating the public area. The police let everyone know that they had no intention of harassing the club or its patrons and that absent any complaints from neighbors the Cannabis Café would be free to operate.
Annual membership in Oregon NORML is required, since it is a private club, as well as monthly club dues, which go to support Oregon NORML’s lobbying and outreach efforts and pay the overhead of running the club, respectively. This Saturday, November 21, we’ll return to the café and speak to Madeline Martinez and these patients and hear their medical marijuana stories, as well as taking questions about the café from the live audience and our callers. It’s live talk radio from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Hosted by “Radical” Russ Belville, NORML SHOW LIVE features a recap of the week’s top stories in medical marijuana, consumer cannabis, and industrial hemp; interviews with the top cannabis activists, politicians, scientists, doctors, actors, musicians, and comedians; and your calls live at 347-994-1810. Join us every Saturday Night, live, at http://live.norml.org from 9-11pm Eastern / 6-8pm Pacific.
Thursday, October 29th, 2009 at 10:31 am | By: Radical Russ
America's longest serving non-violent marijuana offender, Robert Platshorn, a.k.a. The Black Tuna, served 29 years in prison for marijuana smuggling
We’re back in studio this Saturday for our special Halloweed show! Our guest is ROBERT PLATSHORN, a.k.a. “The Black Tuna”. We’ll be discussing his life as America’s longest-imprisoned (30 years) non-violent marijuana offender, once referred to by President Carter’s attorney general as one of the “slickest, most sophisticated pot smugglers of the 70’s.” Read all about it in Platshorn’s book, “The Black Tuna Diaries”.
The original High Times cover of the Black Tuna story in 1981
We’re also broadcasting from the site of NORML’s West Coast Media HQ Halloweed party, with guests such as Oregon NORML’s Madeline Martinez and UrbAge Designs‘ Scott Gordon. Plus your calls about the scariest marijuana moments in your life. It’s live talk radio from the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
Sunday, October 4th, 2009 at 1:02 pm | By: Radical Russ
(KETV) SAUNDERS COUNTY, Neb. — Police officers in Ashland, Neb., seized 150 pounds of marijuana during a traffic stop Wednesday night on Highway 6.
The seizure was the largest in Saunders County history, said Ashland police.
He said the incident started when police stopped [a] conversion van driving erratically. When the officer approached the van and saw several bags of marijuana in plain view, he called for assistance, police said.
[Ashland Police Chief Mark] Powell said multiple agencies responded to that call. The drugs were in duffel bags found throughout the vehicle, police said.
Three men in the van were Christopher Ryan, Irvin Dana Beal and James Statzer.
All three are being held in Saunders County Jail and are suspected of drug possession with intent to deliver, officers said. They all face charges of possession with intent to deliver.
Beal is a political activist who has advocated for marijuana legalization in the U.S.
Authorities said Ryan and Statzer are being held on $100,000 bond each. Beal is being held on $500,000 bond.
Yes, it is the word of a police officer, but if indeed there were bags of marijuana “in plain view”, then add this story to our pile of Stupid Stoner Stories.
Few stories I’ve written have generated as much firestorm as this one. Check out the coverage on CelebStoner, where I’m being called “an asshole” (three times), “Smellville”, “a fool”, and being threatened with an assault-by-pie.
I even received a phone call from a New York activist who I met at the NORML CON last week. He was at least civil and explained to me that Beal has been providing very low-cost marijuana (”$3-$7 per gram”… that’s still $85 to $200 per ounce) for medical patients on the East Coast. So I apologize for any insinuation that Beal was making a luxury living as a weed dealer charging prohibition profits to average pot consumers.
What I’m upset about isn’t necessarily Beal in particular, but the general issue of a “record bust” of a prominent activist returning from NORML CON. Every day I beat back prohibitionists who say that medical marijuana, especially in California, is being abused by criminals that are hiding behind the lax statutes to cover their interstate trafficking. The average reader doesn’t know Beal has a history of altruism and support of desperately sick people; they just see “150lbs of marijuana” being trafficked by one of our own coming back from an activist conference in California. They see a “legalizer” and assume he’s getting rich by drug dealing and it taints the message we’re all trying to deliver.
Saturday, October 3rd, 2009 at 4:39 pm | By: Radical Russ
Show 005: Gary Storck, Jim Miller, & Jackie Rickert from Madison, WI; Paul Stanford in Oregon with Jack Herer update.
I hope you’ll join me tonight in the chat room and on the air for NORML SHOW LIVE, coming up at 6pm PT / 9pm ET. I’m streaming from the University Inn on the campus of the University of Wisconsin in room 207. There are young men staying in every room on the floor but me, and if tonight is like last night, they will be yelling and drinking and partying. Should make for an interesting show.
My guests tonight will include Paul Stanford from The Hemp & Cannabis Foundation to give us an update on the health of the Emperor of Hemp, Jack Herer. Paul has been at his bedside at Portland Emanuel Hospital and will squash all the internet rumors about Jack’s condition. You can help by donating to The Jack Herer Fund at ANY US Bank location.
My very special guests on this 39th Annual Great Midwest Harvest Fest edition are Wisconsin activist Gary Storck (http://immly.org), New Jersey activist Jim Miller (http://cmmnj.org), and medical marijuana patient and activist Jackie Rickert, for whom Wisconsin’s medical marijuana bill is named.
Cannabis Karri will bring us the latest news stories and we’ll be taking your calls live at 347-994-1810.
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009 at 11:55 am | By: Radical Russ
I love that you guys love the Stash so much that you go through withdrawals when I cannot produce them daily. I’ve received a few emails and seen some comments to the tune of “you need more help” and “why can’t you get someone to do the Stash while you’re out of the studio”?
Really, they warm my heart, even if a couple of you get a bit demanding for your free podcast. (You know other radio hosts require subscriptions as high at $5.95/month, right?) It lets me know how important this part of my outreach work is. For example, I got an email from “CMoney” who was bummed that I haven’t had many daily episodes lately and that he couldn’t catch the live shows from the conference and Boston. Then he discovered that when he misses NORML SHOW LIVE, he doesn’t really miss it, because there is a podcast feed available through iTunes. To date there have been 12,000+ downloads of our live feed.
More help is coming. As we raise revenue through advertising, I will be able to bring on my LIVE co-host, Karri, to help handle some of the secretarial work of NORML Outreach to free me up for more online media work. Please be patient and understand that we work entirely through donations and NORML’s budget is pretty tight. Also understand that as a non-profit public advocacy organization, we can’t offer competitive salaries to acquire the talent necessary to pull off some of the stuff I’m doing; my skills would garner me twice to thrice what I’m paid now in the commercial radio / podcasting world.
I do it out of love and duty and dedication to the cause of ending adult marijuana prohibition. I’ve made more money before but I had to be miserable to do it. Money’s tight for your house-renting, 11-year-old-beater-car-driving podcast producer, but smiles are plentiful.
Monday, September 21st, 2009 at 8:55 pm | By: Radical Russ
Show 004: Three special episodes live from NORML National Conference!
NORML’s new talk radio program, NORML SHOW LIVE, will be streaming for three days at the 2009 NORML National Conference, “Yes We Cannabis”, live from the Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Francisco. These special three-hour episodes will be available at live.norml.org at the following special times and archived for download later just fifteen minutes after broadcast:
Thursday, September 24
11:00am – 2:00pm Pacific Time
Friday, September 25
11:00am – 2:00pm Pacific Time
Saturday, September 26
3:00pm – 6:00pm Pacific Time
The show will be hosted by “Radical” Russ Belville, but with very limited commercial interruption and the occasional narration. After the shows broadcast remotely in the difficult wireless environment of Portland’s Kelley Point Park and the noisy backstage of the Boston Freedom Rally, Russ is excited to present an indoor event that will take its audio directly from the conference PA system.
Saturday, September 5th, 2009 at 9:59 pm | By: Radical Russ
What’s that song on NORML SHOW LIVE?
If you’re a fan of NORML SHOW LIVE and you can’t get those songs out of your head, you’re not alone. The songs are heard on our NORML Daily Audio Stash feature, Daily Toker Tunes, and are provided courtesy of Tokin’ Tam* at Marijuana Music Awards. They’re called podsafe, because the artists produce them independently and allow them to be used on internet podcasts for exposure.
Please support these fantastic musicians and songwriters who support ending adult marijuana prohibition – visit their sites and buy their albums! (And artists, if in any way we’ve misunderstood the podsafe nature of your music, or you just don’t want us playing it, just email me at stash@norml.org.)
Saturday, September 5th, 2009 at 2:56 pm | By: Radical Russ
Show 001: Steve Fox (MPP), Mason Tvert (SAFER), & Paul Armentano (NORML) discuss "Marijuana is Safer" book; NORML Exec. Dir. Allen St. Pierre; MMA Fighter Toby "Tigerheart" Grear
I am thrilled to be hosting our debut show tonight at 6pm PT / 9pm ET. I hope you all make it a regular Saturday night ritual.
You can listen to the show live three ways (and no, regular terrestrial or satellite radio is not one of those ways… yet):
Point your web browser to http://live.norml.org and follow the links to Show 001. (Or use the link on the powder-blue BlogTalkRadio player you see there on the right…)
Point your mobile phone’s browser to http://m.blogtalkradio.com/norml. Click the link at the bottom of the page for Shows and Blogs. Click the link for Show 001. (I’m not completely sure the live show will play this way; it may only allow you to see the blog and comments. If so, try…)
Call 347-994-1810 on your mobile phone. (”347″ is a New York area code, so long distance charges, if any, would apply. Probably only an option if you’ve got unlimited minutes and free domestic long distance.)
The show will also be archived about one hour following the live broadcast. You’ll be able to hear it all week on the embedded player to the right or by subscribing to it as a podcast on iTunes.
In our 2nd hour, mixed-martial arts champion Toby “Tigerheart” Grear of True Warrior Fitness discusses being banned from fighting professionally in California because of positive tests for his legal medical marijuana.
We’re also taking your calls at the bottom of each hour. Dial 347-994-1810 to listen in on your phone and press 1 at any time if you’d like to speak to the host or guests. Your call will be screened and we remind you to have a question ready, keep it short and to the point, and avoid profanity (we’re not FCC regulated on the net, but if we want to take this to terrestrial radio, we need to act like it.)
RevRayGreen: I'll post a pic of me and my son....gimme a minute
Missippi Hippy: Guess what... I'm gonna be a new... ummmmm well, my pet piggie Ganja is in labor and they ain't mine in the same sense. See what your wife [...]
RevRayGreen: days they didn't talk back..or act disrespectful..
RevRayGreen: feel so lucky my son is 18 going 19 and my daughter 16 going on 17..relish the days that can't talk back
Urb Age: Congrats Spof thats awesome. My little Clara is about to hit 20 months. Im not the activist I used to be, but its made me a better man.
Urb Age: Heck I was gonna go up there, but just not feeling well this weekend..Dang it, I hate it when that happens..
RevRayGreen: wishing I was hanging at NORML cafe...
JohnH: Just a quick comment about tokin' and sperm motility....been tokin since age 14 and have 8 kids ranging in age from 30 to 9...(what can I say, I found 2 [...]
slash5city: really ..oprah 35 yr or more in the closet toker ...outed ....o my god !!
SneakerPimp: that would be huge news just imagen the headline
RevRayGreen: maybe Oprah smokes and keeps it on the DL...
SneakerPimp: and good afternoon
mr reuben: I could do without seeing Rob K. on tv. But Bruce and Eithan get a big thumbs up from me.
SneakerPimp: waitn for NSL and congrast for spofett.
mr reuben: I don't respect her opinion bluzguy.
Missippi Hippy: Something about the last year in a contract... folks become more ballsey... and Oprah has big ones.
Marijuana-Related Health Costs Minimal Compared To Those Of Alcohol, Tobacco; California Medical Association Says Pot Prohibition Is A "Failed Public Health Policy"; Oregon: State NORML Affiliate Opens First 'Cannabis Café'. […]
American Medical Association Calls For Scientific Review Of Marijuana's Prohibitive Status; Dutch Marijuana Use Lower Than European Average, Study Says […]
"Truth In Trials Act" Reintroduced In Congress; Maine: Voters Approve Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Measure; Colorado: Breckenridge Voters Overwhelmingly Decide To End Pot Penalties. […]
Some of the nation’s top athletes discuss why today's pros are turning to cannabis — and away from alcohol and painkillers — off the field, and question why pro sports leagues are continuing to sanction those who do. Moderator: Steve Bloom, Author, Pot Culture; editor, celebstoner.com * Toby Grear, MMA fighter * Sean Neumann, Documentary Filmm […]
Cannabis Law Reform's Missing Link: Law Enforcement Former Seattle Police Chief Norm Stamper; LEAP and NORML Advisory Board; Author of Breaking Rank Putting the Mexican Cartels Out of Business Mexican drug cartels now employ over 100,000 soldiers and are responsible for nearly ten thousand deaths per year. Their largest source of income is marijuana. […]
Stash for Fri, Nov 20, 2009
waitn for NSL and congrast for spofett.
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; is she incognito like me 
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