Jeff Staker knows the new battle that lies ahead.

The Indiana Marine veteran has registered a nonprofit with the state, Hoosier Veterans for Medical Cannabis, and said he is committed to pushing Indiana lawmakers to legalize medical marijuana.

“There needs to be an alternative,” Staker said.

It’s in part his first-hand account of prescribing practices, with doctors in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Staker said that is promoting the new action.

“For me personally, it’s because for the past 10 years I’ve been on pain medication of one sort or another,” he said. “And a majority of that I was on oxycodone.”

NATE Diaz could be in trouble with USADA for potentially breaching a UFC anti-doping policy by vaping cannabis at the post-fight press conference in Las Vegas.

Diaz, who had just lost a majority decision to McGregor over five brutal rounds at UFC 202, was vaping on the rostrum and, when asked, said it was CBD or cannabidiol oil.

A VICTORIAN couple to be tried over supplying medicinal cannabis to the chronically ill have objected to charges against them being dropped.

Matthew and Elizabeth Pallett, of Carrum Downs, are due to face trial in the County Court in October for cultivating the illegal crop.

The pair, who are defending themselves, have formally pleaded not guilty to the claims.

But Mr Pallett this morning voiced displeasure at the prosecutors’ decision to drop trafficking and possession charges, to the amusement of Judge Mark Taft.

Mr Pallett said he and his wife had wished to call witnesses on the basis of the original set of allegations.

Gallup has estimated that at least 33 million adults in the United States are marijuana users right now — although government studies say the figure stands closer to 20 million. No matter what the actual number is, the fact is that a lot of people either smoke, vape or ingest weed in the land of the free.

In an article published on Harvard Health’s site, Wynne Armand, MD, shared a look into the effects the recreational and medical use of marijuana has on our health.

Medicinal cannabis supporters argue the drug eases suffering of patients all over the world and its safe use is dependent on practitioner support.

IT is with extreme disappointment that I read the opinion piece by Dr Jenny Martin ('Putting ice on hype over medicinal marijuana’, Herald, 12/8).

I am not a medical practitioner, but I have better knowledge than most on the medical benefits of cannabis for patients in extreme distress after watching my 25-year-old son succumb to bowel cancer last year. 

The rush to act on medical cannabis is driven by thousands of Australians, just like Dan, who do not have sufficient outcomes with pharmaceuticals and may turn to illicit cannabis as a matter of last resort. 

If the idea of lacing traditional Jewish foods — gefilte fish, challah, matzo balls, latkes and kugel — with marijuana makes you wince, then skip right over this. But if reading about what certainly must be the first cookbook to feature such dishes piques your interest, read on.

All of these Jewish classics and more can be found in “The 420 Gourmet: The Elevated Art of Cannabis Cuisine” by JeffThe420Chef (Harper Wave).

For former Council of Trade unions president Helen Kelly, having access to medicinal cannabis is a personal issue.

Kelly joined John Campbell's Checkpoint from her home in Wellington and shared the reason behind her opting for cannabis. 

"It's a mild, cheap and low-key medicine being denied," Kelly said during the interview with Campbell.

You don't have to smoke marijuana, eat it in a brownie or chew it in a gummy bear to reap the medicinal benefits of THC.

States have passed so-called “medical marijuana” laws under the theory that pot has medicinal benefits that can’t be produced by other, legal means.

But what if there was a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drug that gave you all the benefits of the active ingredients in marijuana, such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or cannabidiol?

What if that drug had been rigorously tested through clinical trials to make sure that it worked as promised, was properly dosed and had no unanticipated side effects?

And what if you could get that lawful drug from your doctor in pill or liquid form?

Some military veterans are embracing marijuana to treat their PTSD.

When photographer Balazs Gardi mentioned to army veteran Jose Martinez, 28, how California’s Apple Valley, located on the southern edge of the Mojave Desert, reminded him of Kandahar, Afghanistan, the two instantly clicked. Gardi had spent time shooting servicemen and women there over the years and the two could envision what Kandahar looked like.

“What helped me work with Jose is the understanding of the experience that he went through,” the photographer says.

When New Times sat down with medical-marijuana advocate and political consultant Ben Pollara earlier this month, Pollara said he wasn't concerned that Carol Jenkins Barnett, daughter of Publix founder George Jenkins, had donated $800,000 to a group trying to keep medicinal weed illegal. 

"I still think 'shopping is a pleasure,'" Pollara said, referencing the grocery store chain's famous slogan.