The U.S. government inched closer to recognizing marijuana as medicine earlier this month when a federal research organization changed its tune on cannabis. The National Institute on Drug Abuse - which controls cannabis research in America - offered a more progressive stance on medical marijuana in a recent update to its webpage.

Recent polling shows majorities of nearly every demographic in the U.S. favors changing federal law regarding marijuana.

A recent poll from Quinnipiac University found a big division among Americans about legalizing marijuana at the federal level.

A large majority favored the idea. Asked if marijuana “should be made legal in the U.S.”, 59 percent said “yes” while 36 percent said “no.”

However, the poll found a real dividing line when it came to two groups:

I was asked to speak on a panel this morning to give the case for cannabis legalisation, and found it a useful exercise in tidying and focusing my thoughts. My overarching point was that, if it does happen, it’s probably going to be because of a fundamental shift in public opinion of the kind that’s taking place in some parts of the United States, so at this stage it’s most useful to consider how we might want to approach decriminalisation or full legalisation. Still, the broad case for cannabis legalisation is worth making, and I tried to do so.

Wednesday's big legislative hearing on legalizing pot in Connecticut may have more to do with the state's huge money problems than with the issues surrounding marijuana use.

The bill to legalize recreational cannabis calls for a total state tax on pot sales of 30 percent, and the plan's supporters say that could bring in $100 million a year to help solve projected billion-dollar deficits.

Jodie Emery has returned to Vancouver after being arrested for running recreational marijuana stores in Ontario, and says she thinks the charges she's facing are politically motivated.

The self-described activist called her and her husband Marc's arrests the latest salvo in a battle between what she calls the grassroots industry and government licenced producers.

"In the future, it would be great to see cannabis normalized and easily available," said Emery on her motivation for opening a chain of recreational weed shops across the country.

"That’s why we were demonstrating what legalization should look like: storefronts where adults can walk in and access cannabis."

Vaping: You've seen it everywhere. You've seen vapers blow dense clouds with great satisfaction. You've seen vape shops, which advertise "e-juice" and strange-looking accessories. 

You know what's deadlier than weed? Well, almost everything. But for the sake of comparison, let's put the slandered plant up against SWAT raids involving suspected weed dealers. According to data put together by the New York Times, at least 20 such raids since 2010 have turned deadly.

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission has issued its first recall of recreational marijuana.

The OLCC says samples of Blue Magoo marijuana contained a level of pesticide residue that exceeds the state limit.

The Capital Press reports the marijuana was grown by Emerald Wave Estate and sold at Buds 4 U in Mapleton, a community 45 miles west of Eugene. The OLCC said people who bought the pot should dispose of it or return it to the retailer.

At least, that’s the news coming out of Washington state.

So far, marijuana legalization isn’t having a big effect on the number of teens using pot in Washington state.

That’s the takeaway from a recently released state-run survey of 38,000 high school students in Washington state. Based on the state’s numbers, teen pot use remained relatively flat after Washington voted to legalize marijuana in 2012 and allowed legal pot shops to open in 2014.

California law enforcement officers now possess the tools and wherewithal they need to crack down on drivers that consume cannabis. On St. Patrick’s Day weekend, San Diego Police Department began using two Dräger DrugTest 5000 machines which detect for a total of seven drugs. The San Diego Police Department is the first law enforcement agency to use the tests in San Diego County.