One of the biggest questions surrounding marijuana legalization is whether it will make the drug much more affordable and accessible — and therefore increase use.

Well, some early data is coming out of Washington state, which legalized marijuana in 2012 and began sales in 2014. And it looks like, as drug policy experts long suggested, marijuana's price drops after legalization. Keith Humphreys of Stanford University explained in the Washington Post:

Leading drug researcher Dr Chris Wilkins from Massey University’s SHORE and Whariki Research Centre is calling for the adoption of a not-for-profit club model for cannabis, allowing regulated cannabis products to be sold legally. His proposal foreshadows an annual international conference on drug policy being hosted by Massey next week.

Under the proposal, Cannabis Incorporated Societies (CIS) will be permitted to legally sell approved cannabis products to registered adult members, but will also be required to pursue cannabis health objectives such as disseminating information on the health risks of cannabis, information on local treatment and counselling services, preventing the sale and use of cannabis by minors and minimising cannabis related harm and dependency.

 California voters will decide again this November whether to decriminalize the recreational use of marijuana by adults, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Wednesday, calling the looming vote a "pivotal moment" in the national debate around pot legalization and the 45-year-old war on drugs.

Newsom and other leaders of a coalition behind the Adult Use of Marijuana Act announced they have collected enough signatures to place on the Nov. 8 ballot a measure that would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess, sell or transport up to an ounce of pot. California voters rejected a similar measure in 2010.

Although a wide variety of extracts, concentrates and edibles are sold at medical dispensaries such as Little Amsterdam in Southwest Portland, edibles are not yet available for purchase to recreational customers in Oregon. That changes on June 2.

Oregonians interested in purchasing marijuana edibles have to wait less than a month until they can get their fix. The Oregon Health Authority issued rules Wednesday for the sale of marijuana edibles under the state’s early recreational marijuana sales program.

According to a new report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) Icelanders are one of the world's biggest users of cannabis, with over 8% of Icelanders using the drug. 

According to Þórarinn Tyrfingsson, director of Vogur drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre he warns of taking such international comparison literally. "It does however tell us that we are at least using similar amounts to cannabis to other countries. 

"We only have official documentation of cannabis users who seek help for addiction," says Arnar Jan Jónsson, doctor and one of the directors of a society in Iceland which aims to educate the public about the effects of cannabis and have set up the website cannabis.is. 

The Global Marijuana March returns to North Texas this Saturday in Hyde Park in downtown Ft. Worth and libertarians will be in the thick of it once again as usual. Last year an estimated 2,000 cannabis freedom supporters flooded the streets and organizers hope to top that with 3,000 participants this year.

Britain’s youngest candidate for police and crime commissioner has a radical plan for slashing drug crime – stop prosecuting drug users. Ben Twomey is standing as an independent in Warwickshire and, although he’s only 22 years old, observers are already saying that he may be one of the best qualified candidates in the country.

Last week, this column was pretty pessimistic. Apologies, but when a state in my own beloved Northeast decides to put the kibosh on a law that would reduce the number of prisoners in their jails in and increase the amount of tax dollars in its coffers, it grates at the nerves. New Hampshire did it, and Vermont did too, but to the East, Maine has given New England a new hope for legalization. 

Legendary blues singer, Louis Armstrong is quoted as saying,  “It really puzzles me to see marijuana connected with narcotics….dope and all that crap. It’s a thousand times better than whisky – It’s an assistant – a friend.”

And a large number of Bengalureans seem to agree with him.  Over a thousand in the city are reportedly lining up to join the Million Marijuana March (MMM), popularly known as the Global Marijuana March held annually on the first Saturday of May, since 1999 in different cities across the world.

A GROUP promoting medicinal cannabis use has today said the organisation can help Dundee’s drug problems.

The Tele was alerted to a sign promoting a “Dundee Cannabis Club” outside a store front on the city’s Strathmartine Road.

Concerns have been raised about the club — which operates out of the shop — with fears it could promote illegal cannabis use.

However, Nik Brown, manager of the club, said that the group is a “medicinal cannabis advice centre”, adding: “We are here so that people can come in and find out how they can use medicinal cannabis. We believe that cannabis should be legalised for medical uses.”

Nik told the Tele that the group has been giving advice to hundreds of people in the nine months that they have been open.