Now that 2016 is over, it is slowly dawning on the world that its horrors are far from finished. We all knew it, of course, but few were brave enough to admit it. The year that brought so much pain and suffering, eroded what we’ve taken to be sacred for so long, and killed our darlings by the boatload, was no self-contained aberration. It was just the beginning.

Due to federal illegality, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office refuses to register trademarks for products that contain cannabis.

As cannabis makes itself safely at home in 28 different states now, federal illegality has remained the biggest thorn in the side of the recreational and medical marijuana industry. Not only have unchanged federal laws prevented cannabusinesses from obtaining adequate banking services, they also caused problems for those seeking to register trademarks for their marijuana-based products. 

Marseille elected on Sunday (January 8th) to legalize the consumption of cannabis. This subject, has divided the left for 20 years, is again being debated between candidates at the primary level.

Legalize, decriminalize or penalize the consumption of cannabis?

The question has resurfaced in recent weeks. On Sunday, 8 January, one hundred and fifty Marseilles, including PS Patrick Mennucci and Marie-Arlette Carlotti, launched an appeal in the JDD for a "controlled legalization" of cannabis.

Gov. Eddie Calvo is preparing to submit legislation related to the use of recreational marijuana within the month, according to his senior advisor, Troy Torres. Legislation may appear as early as next week.

Calvo began discussing the legalizing of recreational marijuana in late December 2016 around the time he vetoed Bill 344-33, a measure that would have allowed for home cultivation of medical marijuana. At that time, the governor cited concerns with additional cost and oversight the measure would have created.

A bill expanding the use of medical marijuana has just been introduced in South Carolina, and on Tuesday supporters talked about why they are behind what's being called the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act.

In 2014, South Carolina lawmakers overwhelmingly passed a bill allowing cannabis oil for medical use, but lawmakers didn't realize interstate commerce laws wouldn't let people bring it into the state.  Use was very limited, and many turned to black market suppliers to find the product.  

Leslie Jurado, of Rock Hill, has found the 2014 law frustrating, to say the least. Her daughter, Isabel, 14, suffers from a rare genetic condition, called Sanfilippo syndrome, which strikes one in 70,000  people.  

The nation’s fast-growing marijuana industry remains cautiously optimistic but uncertain about how the Trump administration will handle cannabis enforcement across the country.

Attorney General nominee Jeff Sessions, testifying at the start of his confirmation hearings on Tuesday, pointed out that marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, but that the federal government has limited enforcement resources. Eight states — Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon and Washington — have legalized recreational marijuana, as has the District of Columbia. And 29 states permit some form of medical marijuana use.

Tick Segerblom told us the story of his own strain, smoking weed on the White House roof, and more.

By now, Tick Segerblom has attended a lot of conferences where careful politicians frame their support for recreational marijuana use with a boilerplate disclaimer.

I've never smoked marijuana, but… 

Segerblom is different. A state senator who hails from downtown Las Vegas, he is the rare politician who will say, "I have smoked marijuana, and I loved it." That helps explain why he's also the rare politician—at least in the United States—who has a pot strain named after him: Segerblom Haze.

The DEA pointed to the tobacco model as a success. But tobacco is legal.

The Drug Enforcement Administration heads the nation’s drug war. As part of that, it’s done a lot to push messaging that marijuana is dangerous — at times struggling to admit that pot isn’t as dangerous as heroin.

On Tuesday, the DEA’s Twitter account put out a chart making the case for why this kind of messaging is, in its view, necessary:

Backers of marijuana legalization on Monday stepped up their pressure on the U.S. Senate to block the confirmation of Alabama Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions as the next attorney general.

Sessions, a staunch opponent of legalization, angered proponents in April when he called pot “dangerous” and said that “good people don’t smoke marijuana.”

Marijuana backers want the issue aired Tuesday when the Senate Judiciary Committee begins Sessions’ confirmation hearing.

New Jersey's Rutgers University is breaking ranks with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) on cannabis. Last summer, RU quietly revamped their marijuana policy for school athletes. The new rules - which took effect on August 1, 2016 - separate cannabis from performance-enhancing substances and hard drugs like heroin and cocaine.  

Marijuana will remain a prohibited substance, but student athletes at Rutgers will receive lighter punishments for using it compared to taking PED's and hard drugs. The new policy was developed in collaboration with coaches, legal counsellors, medical personnel and administrators at RU.