Bill Weinberg's blog

Canada's Le Dain Commission: Vindicated at Last

Posted on October 19th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , .

Canada legalizationCanada's course to cannabis prohibition closely followed that in its southern neighbor. As in the United States, cannabis a century ago was widely available in tincture form as a medication before being banned in a campaign that blatantly harnessed racism and xenophobia. Yet now Canada is legalizing coast to coast, while the US federal government remains intransigent.

An early harbinger of Canada's enlightenment was the 1969 Le Dain Commission, which studied illegal drugs at the order of Ottawa, in response to then exploding use—especially of cannabis. The Le Dain Commission cut through the propaganda to recommend a common-sense policy—which Canada's government is actually now going beyond.

UK approves prescriptions for medical marijuana products

Posted on October 12th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , .

extractPhysicians in the United Kingdom will be able to legally prescribe medical marijuana products to their patients starting next month. The policy shift follows a public outcry over cases of young epileptic patients who were denied the only treatments that worked for them. 

Industry leader Justin Cooper speaks on Canada's cannabis future —and the world's

Posted on October 11th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , , , , .

Justin CooperJustin Cooper is co-founder and CEO of British Columbia-based Green Planet, which supplies equipment to all of Canada's Licensed Producers of cannabis as well as producing its own line of fertilizers. He speaks with Cannabis Now about the fast-growing legal industry in his country, and what it means for the world.

Multi-billion dollar legal cannabis industry foreseen for Latin America

Posted on October 9th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

leafOver the past two years, the Latin American cannabis industry has "emerged from the shadows" to command the attention of international firms and investors. Legal cannabis sales within the region are on track to reach $125 million in 2018—but that figure is expected to rise to $12.7 billion by 2028.

Mother Courage in Peru

Posted on October 3rd, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , , .


The woman behind the South American nation's new medical marijuana law may yet face prison time. Her crime? Providing the only medicine that worked for her ailing son.

In the working-class Lima district of Pueblo Libre, I make my way to an apartment complex and up to the flat of Ana Álvarez—the unlikely woman almost singly responsible for Peru’s groundbreaking new medical marijuana law.

In a bedroom, 18-year-old Anthony watches a noisy Spiderman movie, occasionally interrupting through the open door as I chat with his mom in the living room. Anthony suffers from tuberous sclerosis, a severe form of epilepsy, and was the voiceless central figure behind the events that led to a major reform of Peru’s drug laws in 2017.

Manhattan DA Cy Vance speaks on cannabis legalization

Posted on September 19th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , .

New York CityWeeks after instating a new policy of not prosecuting for low-level marijuana violations, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr addressed a meeting of New York cannabis industry investors and entrepreneurs, where he discussed his vision for fairer policing in the city—and his study calling for legalization to be explored at the state level.

China's factory zones serve global cannabis industry —but don't try getting high there

Posted on September 18th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , .

ChinaThe global cannabis industry is increasingly dependent on factories in China's industrial zones—and fears being impacted by Trump's trade war with Beijing. Chinese pharmaceutical firms meanwhile explore potential applications of cannabis. Yet possession of herbaceous cannabis can land you before a firing squad in China. Human rights groups express alarm about the furious pace of executions in the People's Republic—outstripping the rest of the world combined. And drug offenses—including pot possession—top the country's capital crimes.

Glyphosate case casts light on pesticide dilemma in cannabis industry

Posted on September 7th, 2018 by Bill Weinberg and tagged , , , , , , , , .

CaliforniaA verdict against glyphosate producer Monsanto in a case brought by a cancer sufferer has brought world attention to the dangers of pesticides and herbicides. This is a question with implications already felt in the cannabis industry—both legal and illegal.

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