Word Wars: Language Politics and Medical Cannabis There have always been regimes of truth underpinned by churches or political economies, and supported by laws and law enforcement. Reefer madness comes to mind. But so does the notion that gays are insane (in North America, officially so listed until 1973); that women are not fit […]
Judith Stamps
Judith Stamps holds a doctorate in political theory from the University of Toronto, and has taught political science at the University of Victoria. She is author of Unthinking Modernity: Innis, McLuhan and the Frankfurt School, as well as numerous journal articles and letters to the editor. From 2013-2018, she served as editor of Cannabis Digest, and wrote weekly blogs for Cannabis Digest Blogs. Her current writing focuses on cannabis history, science, and culture, and the concept of prohibition. She is a guest writer for The Daily Hive: Grow; Post Media's TheGrowthOp; and BotaniQ Magazine.
10 Reasons Medical Use of Cannabis Will Prevail
Legalization Could Boost the Use of Medical Cannabis Although Canada’s federal Liberals provide only negative reasons for legalizing cannabis, namely, protecting kids, and medical associations remain skeptical about its worthiness as medicine, there are solid reasons to expect that, post-legalization, it may be medical use that will grow most in popularity. Here are ten. […]
Importance of Home Cannabis Gardens
Allowing Home Gardens Must Be Foundational To Any Future Cannabis Regulation Policy The title you’ve just read is the conclusion to today’s blog. To arrive at it, I followed this series of thoughts. PROPERTY: In the early modern era—17th and early 18th centuries—political theorists asked themselves this question: If land, food plants and […]
What is Being High?
Being High Is Not a Variation on Being Drunk Newfangled fears hang heavily over the just-about-legal cannabis scene. They include ‘driving high,’ ‘working high,’ and in BC, ‘public intoxication,’ an offense created by the Province’s recent cannabis legislation. The fears have a common source: their purveyors confuse being high with being drunk, or if […]
Cannabis, Sensationalism, and W. R. Hearst
Historical Rambles on Cannabis It is instructive to re-visit the role that news sensationalism has played in demonizing cannabis. I paid the topic a visit this week. Sensationalism, we will recall, is the conscious use of exaggeration, manipulative language, dramatic photos, lies, and fabrications, the news equivalent, we might say, of using explosives. Some […]
What to Call Cannabis Sales People
I WOULDN’T CALL THEM BUDTENDERS—IF I HAD MY WAY, THAT IS… A glance online will tell you that it is too late to eliminate the term ‘budtender’ from the cannabis industry. Definitions are offered in Urban Dictionary, Wiktionary, the Marijuana Glossary, and Merriam Webster. Budtender is a blend of ‘bud’ and ‘bartender.’ The budtender, […]
The Politics of Growing Your Own Cannabis
Weedy Blues III: Silly Logic: Fun with Numbers In 2001, in response to a court challenge, Medical Marijuana Access Regulations (MMAR) was implemented in Canada, allowing patients to grow their own medicine. This law gave them a level of peace. But the federal government remained hostile to the idea, and so were a number […]
Who Can Teach About Cannabis to Doctors in Canada?
Teaching Cannabis Medicine in Canada: Interviews with Dr. David Hepburn and Dr. Robert Sealy. In every five years of their professional lives, family physicians and specialists in Canada must complete 250 credit hours of Continuing Medical Education (CME.) To fulfill this requirement they trudge off faithfully to lectures, study sessions, and educational conferences. In […]
Timeline: 1894-1997; Cannabis and Other Phenomena
Absurdities in the War on Drugs and Other Phenomena:1894-1997. 1894. The Indian Hemp Drugs Commission. (Commissioned by the UK) It states: “In regard to the physical effects…the moderate use of hemp drugs is practically attended by no evil results at all. 1920. Canada. There is no domestic use of marijuana. No one knows what it […]
Legalization Woes/ On using Myclobutanil
The Enigma of Myclobutanil for the New Legal Market © By Judith Stamps; informed by interviews with: Geoff White at CanGenX Labs; John Coleman at Anandia Labs; and Alan at Strainly. Myclobutanil (myclo), a fungicide sold commercially as Nova 40, or Eagle 20, came into public view in 2016. That year, BC Licensed […]