Grover Norquist, the founder of Americans for Tax Reform, is among the most powerful figures in conservative politics thanks to his “Taxpayer Protection Pledge” — a promise to oppose tax-rate hikes for individuals or businesses that 41 U.S. Senators and 238 U.S. Representatives have signed. In recent weeks, Norquist made…
Tomorrow is election day, and among the most contentious issues is Proposition AA, which would establish tax rates for recreational marijuana sales. Prop AA opponents say a special sales tax of at least 10 percent, in addition to a 15 percent excise tax (not to mention other state and local…
Editor’s note: This is the final installment of correspondent Shannon Brandt’s reports about the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Denver last week. To read part one, click here. To read part two, click here. To read part three, click here. For some in this movement, there is no opportunity…
It used to be that buying a bag of herb (medicinal or otherwise) was a simple transaction. Dollars went from one person to another, while the cannabis went the opposite way. But these days there are customer appreciation programs, daily specials and buy-one-get-one-free offers that complicate the process of simply…
With the election only days away, voters have been inundated with robocalls and the like about education-oriented Amendment 66 and more. But the hype for marijuana tax Proposition AA has been far quieter, with little activity for weeks. And even opponents, who grabbed September headlines with joint giveaway protests, haven’t…
Editor’s note: This is part three of correspondent Shannon Brandt’s reports about the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Denver last week. To read part one, click here. To read part two, click here. Down the street from the convention, a few hundred people slowly gathered for a bit of…
Dear Stoner: Where is all the marijuana for the recreational industry coming from? Stockpiling in Stapleton Dear SS: The rules haven’t been finalized yet, but what we do know is that the medical stores transitioning over to recreational stores will be able to designate half of their existing medical marijuana…
Editor’s note: This is part two of correspondent Shannon Brandt’s reports about the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Denver last week. To read part one, click here. A logo is often regarded as a condensed, compressed, symbolic summoning-up of everything that a big entity means to represent in everyday…
Which state will be the next to legalize marijuana? What do the Obama administration’s recent announcements about marijuana legalization and mandatory minimums really mean? What are some solutions to the national overdose crisis that takes more lives than car accidents or gun violence? Those were just some of the questions…
We recently reported about the controversy over an Arapahoe Basin executive announcing that skiers caught smoking marijuana in public at the resort could lose their lift ticket — a warning that stirred plenty of controversy. But one important factor may not have been fully considered by those on either side…
It’s a story as old as time: Man goes fishing, returns with no fish, but but manages to hook the tale of the one that just barely got away. Fortunately, an editor decided the results were newsworthy enough to make the September 7, 1901 edition of the Basalt Journal –…
The ink on the first recreational and dual-use marijuana retail applications has hardly even dried. And the licenses for such shops are still months away from being issued. But already, shops are making moves to shift to a new customer base of walk-in downtowners and discount-hunting tourists. Take, for example,…
The Colorado Department of Agriculture has released draft regulations for the growing of industrial hemp. The rules, which are on view below, specify that farmers must pay a fee of $200 plus an additional $1 per acre to grow hemp for commercial purposes, must disclose the location of their crop…
As we’ve reported, the International Drug Policy Reform Conference is taking place in Denver. And while the gathering will feature plenty of in-depth panel discussions and distinguished speakers (see the full program below), several events will feature a celebratory feel — among them today’s “No More Drug War Rally and…
Dear Stoner: The holidays are coming up, and I’m thinking about getting a seasonal job for extra income. Something with low responsibility, like retail or working with Christmas trees. I enjoy cannabis recreationally. Do you have any advice on how to surreptitiously find places of employment that do not conduct…
As we reported earlier this month, the number of children on the Colorado medical marijuana patient registry — with parental permission — nearly doubled from June to August this year, with sixty kids under the age of eighteen now on the list. This is the highest that figure has ever…
Yesterday, we posted about a new video intended to reassure members of the cannabis industry about the new and controversial Marijuana Inventory Tracking system, shorthanded as MITs. Looks like this clip will have to be amended, however. According to the Marijuana Enforcement Division spokeswoman who stars in the footage, complaints…
We wrote about worries over Franwell seed-to-sale technology intended for use in the Colorado MMJ industry way back in 2011. Two years later, with the Marijuana Inventory Tracking system (MITs) finally going on line, the worries aren’t over, with at least one advocate raising concerns about an alleged lack of…
This week, the Brown Palace is playing host to a three-day conference sponsored by the Inter American Press Association, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting the rights of the press in the Americas as a whole. Among the panels taking place as part of the conference, a tri-language mix of Portuguese,…
As William Breathes has reported, many ski towns are allowing recreational pot sales. But that doesn’t mean public weed smoking is any more legal at resorts than it is elsewhere in Colorado. Still, the idea that ski areas will crack down on those who light up in plain view definitely…
While a lot of the stories we’ve dug up for our Colorado Cannabis Time Capsule feature deal with the political side of pot and how it was used to single out ethnic groups, some just plain poked fun at cannabis and people perceived as lower-class. This 1904 gem about a…
Amendments to Denver’s marijuana ordinance have been decried by critics, including the ACLU, as a “sniff test” that would recriminalize behavior made legal by Amendment 64, which lets adults 21 and over use and possess small amounts of cannabis. Denver City Councilwoman Susan Shepherd also has grave doubts about the…
