Drugs & Prohibition

Shedding New Light On Basement Marijuana Technology

"I've known GGL for years, and I knew that even when it was illegal, he used marijuana for medical reasons. The whole grow-your-own was a new thing for him -- and me. Gardening is generally pretty low-tech. Growing plants in one's basement in order to maximize output while minimizing input is not, and it satisfies GGL's inner tech geek in ways that just cultivating plants would not. He gets the same way about brewing beer, about hunting for razor clams, and about re-engineering instruments for RockBand. GGL is a man after PopSci's geeky heart and brain if there ever was one." Continue reading →

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Florida pot grower busted for manufacturing ‘high-end assault rifles’

"Police in Port St. Lucie, Florida announced on Wednesday that they had arrested a couple on charges related to a 'weapons manufacturing warehouse' and a marijuana growing operations, according to TCPalm. WPTV reported that a traffic stop made by the Martin County Sheriff’s Office earlier in the week led to a marijuana grow house, which then led to a warehouse facility where 'high-end' weapons were being manufactured. At a warehouse on Northwest Settle Avenue, investigators found about 150 marijuana plants and ten guns, including an AK-47 military-style assault rifle." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFlorida pot grower busted for manufacturing ‘high-end assault rifles’

Why It’s So Hard For Scientists To Study Medical Marijuana

"Both the American Medical Association and the American College of Physicians have called for more research into the therapeutic uses of marijuana and for the U.S. government to reconsider its classification as a Schedule I substance. The University of Mississippi grows and harvests cannabis for studies funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, yet because NIDA's congressionally mandated mission is to research the harmful effects of controlled substances and stop drug abuse, the institute isn't interested in helping establish marijuana as a medicine." Continue reading →

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Are We Really “Going Dark”? — The DEA and Apple’s iMessage

"'Apple iMessage users should be aware that regardless of what they heard last week, their messages can be easily obtained by law enforcement pursuant to a warrant under the Electronic Communication Act [ECPA],' said Alan Butler, an in-house attorney with the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC). 'Even though the messages are encrypted by the phone company as they are sent by iMessage, Apple can decrypt messages and hand them over to law enforcement with a warrant!'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAre We Really “Going Dark”? — The DEA and Apple’s iMessage

Supreme Court strikes down warrantless blood tests in DUI cases

"Police following up on drunk driving investigations will no longer be able to draw their suspect’s blood without a court order authorizing the search, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday. In a 5-4 decision, with Justices Sonya Sotomayor, Antonin Scalia, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Anthony Kennedy and Elena Kagan making up the majority, the court ruled that the natural expiration of alcohol in the bloodstream does not constitute 'destruction of evidence,' which would otherwise give officers cause for a warrantless search." Continue reading →

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Hunt for Dollars Sends Argentines Into the ‘Cave’

"As the government restricts access to foreign currencies, Argentines seeking hard-to-get dollars have been pushed into cuevas, or caves—clandestine operations where customers pay dearly to exchange pesos for greenbacks. Buying dollars for savings is banned, and authorities make only small amounts of foreign currency available for travel abroad. Travelers must submit an online request to the national tax authority just days before leaving. Businesses need government approval to import equipment and materials at the cheap official exchange rate. Dollar-sniffing dogs are posted at border crossings to catch those traveling with undeclared currency." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHunt for Dollars Sends Argentines Into the ‘Cave’

Rick Steves: Well Traveled

"What started out as a small European tour outfit has, over the years, grown into an enterprise of some 80 employees organizing tours, writing guidebooks, and producing the public television series and radio programs that make Rick Steves a welcome guest in millions of American homes. Having just gotten back from another day at the office, the author of Travel as a Political Act carefully considers the ounce of marijuana procured for this photo shoot as he plays selections from Les Miserables on the baby grand he’s owned since the days when he made his living as a piano teacher." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRick Steves: Well Traveled

Rick Steves: Well Traveled

"What started out as a small European tour outfit has, over the years, grown into an enterprise of some 80 employees organizing tours, writing guidebooks, and producing the public television series and radio programs that make Rick Steves a welcome guest in millions of American homes. Having just gotten back from another day at the office, the author of Travel as a Political Act carefully considers the ounce of marijuana procured for this photo shoot as he plays selections from Les Miserables on the baby grand he’s owned since the days when he made his living as a piano teacher." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRick Steves: Well Traveled

Rick Steves: Well Traveled

"What started out as a small European tour outfit has, over the years, grown into an enterprise of some 80 employees organizing tours, writing guidebooks, and producing the public television series and radio programs that make Rick Steves a welcome guest in millions of American homes. Having just gotten back from another day at the office, the author of Travel as a Political Act carefully considers the ounce of marijuana procured for this photo shoot as he plays selections from Les Miserables on the baby grand he’s owned since the days when he made his living as a piano teacher." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingRick Steves: Well Traveled

Drug czar: No state can nullify federal marijuana ban

"President Barack Obama’s drug czar toed a strict line on marijuana Wednesday, saying federal laws will prevail regardless of state-level efforts to legalize pot. Gil Kerlikowske said enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 — which ranks marijuana as a Schedule One drug alongside heroin, LSD and ecstasy — remains in the hands of the US Department of Justice. 'No state, no executive can nullify a statute that has been passed by Congress,' the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy told a National Press Club luncheon." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDrug czar: No state can nullify federal marijuana ban