The medical value of cannabis has been hotly debated for years. Its use as a relaxant or a pain reliever is widely accepted now.
Alastair Leithead reports from California.
Alastair Leithead reports from California.
Tuesday, 24 March 2015
Monday, 23 March 2015
States ban on medical cannabis to be challenged in court?
Two Islanders saw their petitions to allow them access to the drug, or cannabis-based drugs, rejected by the Assembly last year.
JEP readers overwhelmingly support legalising cannabis
A DECISION by the States not to allow Islanders with chronic illnesses to use cannabis for medicinal purposes could be challenged in court.
Islander who was denied access to cannabis were seeking a judicial review to overturn the decision made by the Assembly in December.
The States to deny three chronically ill Islanders special licences to the use the class B drug for pain relief as 'irrational'.
Two Islanders saw their petitions to allow them access to cannabis or cannabis-based drugs rejected by the Assembly last year.
Ann Hill who suffers from painful muscle spasms caused by multiple sclerosis
And a 72-year-old widow suffering from multiple-sclerosis also had her petition to be prescribed the cannabis-based drug Sativex withdrawn after it emerged the Health Minister did not have the power to issue such a licence.
Now, the pro-cannabis campaigner said people needed to move away from a 'fear' of making cannabis legal and added that due the Island's autonomy from the UK it had the chance to be a pioneer in the legalisation of the drug.
Continue reading: http://jerseyeveningpost.com/news/2015/03/06/states-ban-on-medicinal-cannabis-to-be-challenged-in-court/
Thursday, 19 March 2015
Doctor explains how medical cannabis relieves pain and reduces anxiety
Dr. Ian Mitchell says knowledge of CBD and THC is essential in properly
prescribing cannabis to patients suffering from pain linked to cancer,
AIDS, arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. He points out that some
people’s stomachs can’t tolerate traditional anti-inflammatory
medications, which can cause gastrointestinal bleeding.
“I have a few little old ladies in my practice,” he reveals. “They have a cookie every night and say, ‘I don’t take my Percocet anymore.’ I would consider that a success because that’s a far less harmful way to treat their pain.”
Dr. Ian Mitchell (pictured) says that in an ideal world, physicians would learn about the medicinal properties of cannabis in medical school. Doctors would be trained about different extracts from marijuana plants, including cannabidiol, aka CBD, and tetrahydrocannabinol, aka THC.
Mitchell says that CBD is normally about one to two percent of a marijuana plant, whereas the psychoactive agent THC is over 10 percent and getting closer to 20 percent.
Drug prohibition has led to plants being grown with a higher THC percentage because that’s what buyers prefer. The downside, he says, is that plants with higher THC levels often have drastically lower levels of CBD.
“You don’t have the antipsychotic and anti-anxiety properties,” Mitchell explains. “So all of the sudden, you’re smoking this very intense stuff that in the U.K. they call skunk. That probably does make people a bit psychotic and probably does make people very anxious, but this is because of prohibition.
“That’s part of the argument for proper regulations—so that you could choose stuff to have cannabidiol,” he adds. “I consider that essential in a medical-cannabis situation. I want to know what my patients are getting as far as the THC and CBD content.”
Research planned into PTSD and cannabis
He's part of a team awaiting approval from UBC and Health Canada to launch a study into the effect of different preparations of cannabis on posttraumatic stress disorder. He points out that PTSD is taking a tremendous toll on military families in particular.
"This is a huge deal in America," Mitchell says. "Right now, there are 22 veterans a day who commit suicide."
Paxil is the only medication that's approved for treating PTSD, but according to Mitchell, it doesn't work for most people. He says that there is "very good preliminary evidence that cannabis can be effective".
"Some of the synthetic cannabinoids like nabilone have been shown effective for nightmares associated with PTSD," Mitchell states.
He reveals that in the pending research study—the first trial of its kind—one group of research subjects would receive cannabis with CBD but no THC. Another group would consume cannabis with CBD and THC. Another would get cannabis with THC but no CBD and others would receive a placebo.
continue reading: http://www.straight.com/news/413971/kamloops-physician-ian-mitchell-explains-how-cannabis-relieves-pain-and-reduces-anxiety
“I have a few little old ladies in my practice,” he reveals. “They have a cookie every night and say, ‘I don’t take my Percocet anymore.’ I would consider that a success because that’s a far less harmful way to treat their pain.”
Dr. Ian Mitchell (pictured) says that in an ideal world, physicians would learn about the medicinal properties of cannabis in medical school. Doctors would be trained about different extracts from marijuana plants, including cannabidiol, aka CBD, and tetrahydrocannabinol, aka THC.
Mitchell says that CBD is normally about one to two percent of a marijuana plant, whereas the psychoactive agent THC is over 10 percent and getting closer to 20 percent.
Drug prohibition has led to plants being grown with a higher THC percentage because that’s what buyers prefer. The downside, he says, is that plants with higher THC levels often have drastically lower levels of CBD.
“You don’t have the antipsychotic and anti-anxiety properties,” Mitchell explains. “So all of the sudden, you’re smoking this very intense stuff that in the U.K. they call skunk. That probably does make people a bit psychotic and probably does make people very anxious, but this is because of prohibition.
“That’s part of the argument for proper regulations—so that you could choose stuff to have cannabidiol,” he adds. “I consider that essential in a medical-cannabis situation. I want to know what my patients are getting as far as the THC and CBD content.”
Research planned into PTSD and cannabis
He's part of a team awaiting approval from UBC and Health Canada to launch a study into the effect of different preparations of cannabis on posttraumatic stress disorder. He points out that PTSD is taking a tremendous toll on military families in particular.
"This is a huge deal in America," Mitchell says. "Right now, there are 22 veterans a day who commit suicide."
Paxil is the only medication that's approved for treating PTSD, but according to Mitchell, it doesn't work for most people. He says that there is "very good preliminary evidence that cannabis can be effective".
"Some of the synthetic cannabinoids like nabilone have been shown effective for nightmares associated with PTSD," Mitchell states.
He reveals that in the pending research study—the first trial of its kind—one group of research subjects would receive cannabis with CBD but no THC. Another group would consume cannabis with CBD and THC. Another would get cannabis with THC but no CBD and others would receive a placebo.
continue reading: http://www.straight.com/news/413971/kamloops-physician-ian-mitchell-explains-how-cannabis-relieves-pain-and-reduces-anxiety
Wednesday, 18 March 2015
Turmeric Extract Kills Highly Lethal Pancreatic Tumors, Preclinical Study Reveals - If tumeric can do this - imagine what medical cannabis does and can do
Considering that the conventional treatment of advanced
stage pancreatic cancer can result in as little as a 1% 5-year survival
rate, new preclinical research on a liposomal turmeric extract that
inhibits pancreatic tumor growth by 42% is all the more amazing.
A promising new study published in the journal Anticancer Research, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the International Institute of Anticancer Research, reveals a unique turmeric extract known as liposomal curcumin may provide an ideal chemotherapy alternative in the treatment of highly lethal pancreatic cancers.[1]
Curcumin is the primarly polyphenol in turmeric, and has been the subject of extensive research demonstrating its ability to kill cancer cells, with over 1,500 studies available to view on Greenmedinfo.com relevant to over 100 distinct cancer types, including 24 studies demonstrating its anti-pancreatic cancer properties. [View all the curcumin studies.]
Liposomal curcumin utilizes a successful lipid-based drug delivery system, with some liposomal formulations having already received FDA approval. Owing to curcumin's low water solubility and subsequent low systemic bioavailability, its encapsulation into liposomes (artificially-prepared vesicle composed of a lipid bilayer) greatly improves its ability to gain entry into the body by passing through the 'glucoronidation barrier' in the liver.
Continue reading: http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/curcumin-extract-kills-highly-lethal-pancreatic-tumors-preclinical-study-revealed
A promising new study published in the journal Anticancer Research, a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the International Institute of Anticancer Research, reveals a unique turmeric extract known as liposomal curcumin may provide an ideal chemotherapy alternative in the treatment of highly lethal pancreatic cancers.[1]
Curcumin is the primarly polyphenol in turmeric, and has been the subject of extensive research demonstrating its ability to kill cancer cells, with over 1,500 studies available to view on Greenmedinfo.com relevant to over 100 distinct cancer types, including 24 studies demonstrating its anti-pancreatic cancer properties. [View all the curcumin studies.]
Liposomal curcumin utilizes a successful lipid-based drug delivery system, with some liposomal formulations having already received FDA approval. Owing to curcumin's low water solubility and subsequent low systemic bioavailability, its encapsulation into liposomes (artificially-prepared vesicle composed of a lipid bilayer) greatly improves its ability to gain entry into the body by passing through the 'glucoronidation barrier' in the liver.
Continue reading: http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/curcumin-extract-kills-highly-lethal-pancreatic-tumors-preclinical-study-revealed
Tuesday, 17 March 2015
Welsh conference calls for drugs to be decriminalised
A national drug conference held in Swansea will hear later how the war
on drugs is failing, and that the UK should consider changing drug
policies.
Supplying medical cannabis can currently result in a sentence of up to 14 years in prison.
Supplying medical cannabis can currently result in a sentence of up to 14 years in prison.
It follows calls last week from the deputy Prime Minister Nick
Clegg and entrepreneur Richard Branson for most drugs to be
decriminalised.
Speakers at the conference, including a former policeman and drug worker, will say current drug policies are ineffective and are failing to keep the public safe.
Instead they are echoing the call for decriminalisation, arguing that it wouldn't increase drug usage and it doesn't mean using substances is legal.
Advocates of decriminalisation say it simply means it is possible to deal with drug users outside of the criminal system, meaning young people are less likely to get criminal records and those with drug problems are more likely to ask for help.
They also say decriminalisation would reduce the level of profits criminals are able to make from illegal drugs.
Continue reading: http://www.itv.com/news/wales/2015-03-12/swansea-conference-calls-for-drugs-to-be-decriminalised/
Speakers at the conference, including a former policeman and drug worker, will say current drug policies are ineffective and are failing to keep the public safe.
Instead they are echoing the call for decriminalisation, arguing that it wouldn't increase drug usage and it doesn't mean using substances is legal.
Advocates of decriminalisation say it simply means it is possible to deal with drug users outside of the criminal system, meaning young people are less likely to get criminal records and those with drug problems are more likely to ask for help.
They also say decriminalisation would reduce the level of profits criminals are able to make from illegal drugs.
Continue reading: http://www.itv.com/news/wales/2015-03-12/swansea-conference-calls-for-drugs-to-be-decriminalised/
Monday, 16 March 2015
Treat cannabis the same as alcohol and tobacco, says British MP Stephen Williams
Bristol West MP Stephen Williams says it's his personal wish to give cannabis the same legal status as alcohol and tobacco.
Stephen Williams MP
He argues that if you look at the hierarchy of harm caused by substances, you could not say cannabis was more harmful than alcohol.
"It terms of the damage alcohol does, in terms of domestic violence and crime, its far more harmful than cannabis," he says.
On whether this could lead to an increased culture of drug use, comparable to alcohol, he said that the main problem behind binge drinking was a pricing issue, with supermarkets able to sell alcohol too cheaply.
Stephen Williams MP
He argues that if you look at the hierarchy of harm caused by substances, you could not say cannabis was more harmful than alcohol.
"It terms of the damage alcohol does, in terms of domestic violence and crime, its far more harmful than cannabis," he says.
On whether this could lead to an increased culture of drug use, comparable to alcohol, he said that the main problem behind binge drinking was a pricing issue, with supermarkets able to sell alcohol too cheaply.
Friday, 13 March 2015
Limited bill to let medical cannabis extract be used to treat sick kids clears panel on 5-4 vote
The latest version of the bill to allow a non-psychotropic marijuana
extract, cannabidiol oil, to be used to treat children with a rare and
severe form of epilepsy in Idaho has narrowly cleared the Senate State
Affairs Committee on a 5-4 vote this morning, and headed to the full
Senate for amendments. Sen. Curt McKenzie, R-Nampa, the committee
chairman and the bill’s sponsor, said amendments he’s contemplating
include narrowing the possible uses to just intractable seizure
disorders; requiring that anyone stopped with the oil prove that they
suffer from intractable epilepsy or are the parent or guardian of
someone who does; have a written recommendation from a doctor to use the
oil; and have verification from an independent lab that the oil is
cannabidiol oil and contains little or no THC, the intoxicating
ingredient in marijuana.
McKenzie said the bill, SB 1146, wouldn’t legalize the oil, but would provide an “affirmative defense” for those found with it that it’s used to treat the child’s seizure disorder. The bill wouldn’t allow the extract to be produced in Idaho; parents would have to procure it from out of state. “There’s 14 states that have legalized cannabidiol oil but rejected medical marijuana,” McKenzie said. “There are limited supplies, but at least it gives them an opportunity to try to get it.”
Continue reading: http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/boise/2015/mar/13/limited-bill-let-cannabis-extract-be-used-treat-sick-kids-clears-panel-5-4-vote/
McKenzie said the bill, SB 1146, wouldn’t legalize the oil, but would provide an “affirmative defense” for those found with it that it’s used to treat the child’s seizure disorder. The bill wouldn’t allow the extract to be produced in Idaho; parents would have to procure it from out of state. “There’s 14 states that have legalized cannabidiol oil but rejected medical marijuana,” McKenzie said. “There are limited supplies, but at least it gives them an opportunity to try to get it.”
Continue reading: http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/boise/2015/mar/13/limited-bill-let-cannabis-extract-be-used-treat-sick-kids-clears-panel-5-4-vote/
Thursday, 12 March 2015
Marijuana bales tossed from car during Arizona police chase
Police in Arizona have released dramatic
dash-cam footage of a high speed chase in which bales of marijuana were
tossed from the car being pursued.
Wednesday, 11 March 2015
Keith Vaz to chair UK and global drug policies conference
Leicester East MP Keith Vaz will chair a conference on UK and global drug policies on Thursday.
The discussion comes after Uruguay and Washington State recently legalised cannabis.
The Home Affairs Committee will revisit the issue of drug policies on March 12th after a major inquiry on the subject was published in December 2012.
People in Leicester were asked for their opinions on drug policies in that inquiry with around 4,500 people voting on whether cannabis should be legalised in a Leicester Mercury poll.
Keith Vaz MP
The Home Affairs Committee will revisit the issue of drug policies on March 12th after a major inquiry on the subject was published in December 2012.
People in Leicester were asked for their opinions on drug policies in that inquiry with around 4,500 people voting on whether cannabis should be legalised in a Leicester Mercury poll.
Keith Vaz MP
Tuesday, 10 March 2015
Cancer battler Karen Roberts: I'm taking medical cannabis to save my life
A GRANDMOTHER who has terminal cancer is breaking the law by taking cannabis to keep her alive.
Karen Roberts has now stopped taking all her usual medication and has instead turned to cannabis oil. And since taking it, she says her tumours have started to shrink.
The 55-year-old, of Derby, has aggressive lymph cancer and insists she does not care that what she is doing is illegal.
Karen (pictured) lost husband Garry to leukaemia in January.
Continue reading: http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/Derby-cancer-battler-Karen-Smith-m-taking/story-26131709-detail/story.html#ixzz3Tzc22ln6
Karen Roberts has now stopped taking all her usual medication and has instead turned to cannabis oil. And since taking it, she says her tumours have started to shrink.
The 55-year-old, of Derby, has aggressive lymph cancer and insists she does not care that what she is doing is illegal.
Karen (pictured) lost husband Garry to leukaemia in January.
Continue reading: http://www.derbytelegraph.co.uk/Derby-cancer-battler-Karen-Smith-m-taking/story-26131709-detail/story.html#ixzz3Tzc22ln6
Monday, 9 March 2015
that cannabinoids inhibited glioma tumor growth in animals and in human glioblastoma multiforme (GBM)
Gliomas (tumors in the brain) are especially aggressive malignant forms of cancer, often resulting in the death of affected patients within one to two years following diagnosis. There is no cure for gliomas and most available treatments provide only minor symptomatic relief.
A review of the modern scientific literature reveals numerous preclinical studies and one pilot clinical study demonstrating cannabinoids' ability to act as antineoplastic agents, particularly on glioma cell lines.
Writing in the September 1998 issue of the journal FEBS Letters, investigators at Madrid's Complutense University, School of Biology, first reported that delta-9-THC induced apoptosis (programmed cell death) in glioma cells in culture.[1] Investigators followed up their initial findings in 2000, reporting that the administration of both THC and the synthetic cannabinoid agonist WIN 55,212-2 "induced a considerable regression of malignant gliomas" in animals.[2] Researchers again confirmed cannabinoids' ability to inhibit tumor growth in animals in 2003.[3]
That same year, Italian investigators at the University of Milan, Department of Pharmacology, Chemotherapy and Toxicology, reported that the non-psychoactive cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD), inhibited the growth of various human glioma cell lines in vivo and in vitro in a dose dependent manner. Writing in the November 2003 issue of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics Fast Forward, researchers concluded, "Non-psychoactive CBD ... produce[s] a significant anti-tumor activity both in vitro and in vivo, thus suggesting a possible application of CBD as an antineoplastic agent."[4]
Please continue reading : http://norml.org/library/item/gliomascancer
Thursday, 5 March 2015
CBD Oils UK Launches New Section on Website to Cover CBD Medical Studies and News
CBD Oils UK sell highly concentrated Cannabidiol
oils, extracted from hemp, for medical purposes; they have now begun to
track and report of medical studies and news stories about the compound.
The compound has been found to have amazing medicinal benefits, and is now available legally for sale in its own right. CBD Oils UK is an online store that specializes in providing the best quality CBD Oils to UK customers.
They have added a new section to their website to cover news stories and studies on the benefits of CBD in a medicinal rather than recreational context.
Read more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2474905#ixzz3TaOtkhU1
Wednesday, 4 March 2015
Stoned celebs, a nutty professor - the night that telly went to pot: CHRISTOPHER STEVENS reviews last night's TV
One solitary, sane
voice spoke up during Tuesday night’s spaced out experiment, Drugs Live:
Cannabis On Trial (C4).
Amid the stoned
hubbub of journalists, lawyers, doctors and businessmen, one man suggested
quietly that the chattering classes were not the ones at risk.
That voice belonged
to a senior London
policeman, retired Chief Superintendent Dal Babu. If marijuana is legalised, he
said, it’s not Piers and Thomasina in Notting Hill or Hampstead who will be in
danger, as they shop for joints from the drugs deli for their dinner parties.
The lives that are
sacrificed will belong to young people in the poorest parts of society, already
under intense pressure from drugs culture. Make cannabis legal, and for Britain’s
worst-off youngsters it might as well be compulsory.
ADMIN: STOPPING THOSE IN NEED OF CANNABIS FOR THEIR MEDICAL CONDITIONS BECAUSE OF THE RECREATIONAL USE IS MADDNESS
continue reading http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2980346/Stoned-celebs-nutty-professor-night-telly-went-pot-CHRISTOPHER-STEVENS-reviews-night-s-TV.html
Tuesday, 3 March 2015
Cannabis Smoke May Benefit Asthma and Lung Functions
That being said, vaporizing cannabis is clearly the superior alternative to smoking cannabis, as it provides the medicinal compounds of marijuana without the negative side effects of smoke (such as carcinogens and other cancer-causing chemicals).
Regardless, many studies have shown that cannabis use may benefit asthma patients and enhance general lung function by acting as a bronchodilator, rather than a bronchoconstrictor. In fact, a new study in the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics provides yet further evidence of how cannabinoids could help protect the lungs.
How THC and THC-V Benefit the Lungs
Using guinea pigs, the study measured the ability of cannabinoids to inhibit bronchoconstriction induced by inflammatory proteins. The cannabinoids in the study included THC, CBD, CBG, CBC, CBD-A, and THC-V. Interestingly, THC and THC-V were the only phytocannabinoids shown to inhibit contractions, with THC being stronger. The other cannabinoids had no effect, and adding CBD to THC did not enhance the latter’s effects. In the conclusion, THC was stated to have anti-inflammatory and antitussive activity, at least partially through activation of presynaptic CB1 and CB2 receptors.THC-V is closely related to THC in chemical structure, being distinguished by its 3-carbon propyl side chain. It has no psychoactive properties, and may help a wide spectrum of disorders including Parkinson’s Disease. Interestingly, while THC activates CB1 receptors, THC-V blocks them without causing the negative effects (like nausea) associated with other antagonist-like compounds.
Remembering the Importance of THC
This study is particularly important, as it comes during a time when CBD is getting significant attention as the miracle cannabinoid. It is critical to remember that THC is therapeutically essential, and sometimes has benefits lacking in CBD. While CBD may be more powerful than THC in many cases, both are needed in varying quantities for different diseases.Although CBD was not found to be beneficial in this study, more research will almost certainly determine it contributes to lung health in several ways. Previous articles show CBD may fight lung cancer and treat a variety of inflammatory lung diseases.
http://www.medicaljane.com/2015/03/02/cannabis-smoke-may-benefit-asthma-and-lung-functions/
candidate to stand in the Westminster elections for the drug reform party Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol (CISTA).
Shane
is hoping to win a seat in the north London constituency of Holborne-St
Pancras. He will be running against Green Party leader Natalie Bennett
and high profile Labour candidate Keir Starmar.
Shane, a former Conservative Party member, defected from the party two weeks ago to join CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) and contest the Westminster Elections.
The party’s manifesto focuses upon the legalisation and regulation of cannabis within the UK.
- See more at: http://ulsterherald.com/2015/03/02/omagh-native-to-contest-westminster-election-on-cannabis-ticket/#sthash.QMMZVLs6.dpuf
Shane, a former Conservative Party member, defected from the party two weeks ago to join CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) and contest the Westminster Elections.
The party’s manifesto focuses upon the legalisation and regulation of cannabis within the UK.
- See more at: http://ulsterherald.com/2015/03/02/omagh-native-to-contest-westminster-election-on-cannabis-ticket/#sthash.QMMZVLs6.dpuf
Shane
is hoping to win a seat in the north London constituency of Holborne-St
Pancras. He will be running against Green Party leader Natalie Bennett
and high profile Labour candidate Keir Starmar.
Shane, a former Conservative Party member, defected from the party two weeks ago to join CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) and contest the Westminster Elections.
The party’s manifesto focuses upon the legalisation and regulation of cannabis within the UK.
- See more at: http://ulsterherald.com/2015/03/02/omagh-native-to-contest-westminster-election-on-cannabis-ticket/#sthash.QMMZVLs6.dpuf
Shane, a former Conservative Party member, defected from the party two weeks ago to join CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) and contest the Westminster Elections.
The party’s manifesto focuses upon the legalisation and regulation of cannabis within the UK.
- See more at: http://ulsterherald.com/2015/03/02/omagh-native-to-contest-westminster-election-on-cannabis-ticket/#sthash.QMMZVLs6.dpuf
Shane is hoping to win a seat in the north London constituency of Holborne-St Pancras. He will be running against Green Party leader Natalie Bennett and high profile Labour candidate Keir Starmar.
Shane O’Donnell
Shane O’Donnell
Shane, a former Conservative Party member, defected from the party two weeks ago to join CISTA (Cannabis is Safer than Alcohol) and contest the Westminster Elections.
The party’s manifesto focuses upon the legalisation and regulation of cannabis within the UK.
CISTA is fighting for a Royal Commission on the legalisation of cannabis and wants the government to take part in a full reform of the ‘war on drugs’ crusade in the UK
- See more at: http://ulsterherald.com/2015/03/02/omagh-native-to-contest-westminster-election-on-cannabis-ticket/#sthash.QMMZVLs6.dpuf
Monday, 2 March 2015
Howard Marks and Friends @ The Forum, London - 28/02/2015 'Back on the road for one last time, his reckless love of life undimmed'
A cannabis smuggler from the Welsh valleys who became the nemesis of the
DEA as the crack epidemic began. A physics scholar at Oxford who spent
most of his life developing a network linking, among others, pot dealers
in London, an IRA gun runner, prog rock bands, corrupt Mexican police
officers, Pakistani hashish exporters, the triads, a chum from MI6,
American crime families, a Philippine brothel-owning renegade member of
the House of Lords, Colombia’s Medellin Cartel and the Afghan mujahideen
via the CIA. An outlaw and gourmet hedonist whose skill at building up
his own legend was surpassed only by his own capacity to add to it.
The life of Howard Marks defies easy explanation.
Marks has been something like a hero of this writer since reading his autobiography, Mr Nice, as a teenager stuck in a suburban stasis, caught between the apathetic subcultures of nu-metal and garage. An amateur’s story of successfully merging hippy idealism – nonviolence, soft drugs, psychedelic mysticism – into the hidden and ugly world of drug traffickers and enforcers, Marks attracted tabloid notoriety in an age that might seem far more innocent than our own, with its twitterstorms of jihadist beheadings and gang warfare and drugs scares like crystal meth and krokodil rather than LSD and pot.
But this story had a dark ending too, in Marks losing his freedom to a DEA bust that also imprisoned his wife, inadvertently abandoning their three children to the care of his wife’s sister and her abusive, heroin-addicted boyfriend. Since his release from a high-security US prison in 1995, Marks has redirected himself towards the campaign to, as he puts it, “re-legalise” marijuana, securing the release of all those still left unjustly behind bars after him. He made a new trade for himself, peddling his celebrity by telling stories in one-man shows that have built his cult following among British stoners.
Now suffering terminal bowel cancer, he is back on the road for the last time, physically diminished and shorn of his shaggy hair, but his reckless love of life undimmed.
The life of Howard Marks defies easy explanation.
Marks has been something like a hero of this writer since reading his autobiography, Mr Nice, as a teenager stuck in a suburban stasis, caught between the apathetic subcultures of nu-metal and garage. An amateur’s story of successfully merging hippy idealism – nonviolence, soft drugs, psychedelic mysticism – into the hidden and ugly world of drug traffickers and enforcers, Marks attracted tabloid notoriety in an age that might seem far more innocent than our own, with its twitterstorms of jihadist beheadings and gang warfare and drugs scares like crystal meth and krokodil rather than LSD and pot.
But this story had a dark ending too, in Marks losing his freedom to a DEA bust that also imprisoned his wife, inadvertently abandoning their three children to the care of his wife’s sister and her abusive, heroin-addicted boyfriend. Since his release from a high-security US prison in 1995, Marks has redirected himself towards the campaign to, as he puts it, “re-legalise” marijuana, securing the release of all those still left unjustly behind bars after him. He made a new trade for himself, peddling his celebrity by telling stories in one-man shows that have built his cult following among British stoners.
Now suffering terminal bowel cancer, he is back on the road for the last time, physically diminished and shorn of his shaggy hair, but his reckless love of life undimmed.
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