Arizona residents can vote to legalize recreational marijuana with Proposition 205 on Nov. 8. If passed, Proposition 205 would decriminalize marijuana, regulating the substance like alcohol, legal for individuals over 21. 

Carlos Alfaro, deputy campaign manager for the Yes on 205 Campaign, supports this decriminalization.

"I support Prop. 205 because I believe in personal liberty," Alfaro said. "I think it's unnecessary and ridiculous that we're arresting 15,000 adults in Arizona for simple marijuana possession. Prop. 205 is the best way to help that because not only would it be legalizing it, it would be ending prohibition and [it would be] giving money to our public schools by taxing marijuana."

Daniel Cermak, 22, is a proper New Yorker, born and raised in Manhattan. His mother is American, and his father emigrated to the US some 30 years ago from what was then Czechoslovakia in the dying days of communism. At first Daniel’s dad sold hot dogs. Eventually he became a businessman in the construction industry. He never forgot his homeland, though, and regularly brought the whole family to Czechia.

People in nine states, including California, Florida and Massachusetts, will vote Nov. 8 on ballot proposals permitting recreational or medical use of marijuana. These initiatives could give a big push to legalization, prompting the next president and Congress to overhaul the country’s failed drug laws.

This is a big moment for what was a fringe movement a few years ago. A Gallup poll released on Wednesday showed 60 percent of Americans support legalizing marijuana, up from 31 percent in 2000 and 12 percent in 1969.

Marijuana dispensaries in Oregon sold more than $160 million worth of recreational marijuana products in the first nine months of the year, sales tax figures released Monday by the state Department of Revenue show.

The agency received $40.2 million in recreational marijuana sales tax payments from dispensaries between the start of January and the end of September, suggesting that about $160.8 million worth of recreational pot products were sold in Oregon. State-regulated medical marijuana dispensaries selling recreational marijuana charge a 25 percent sales tax to customers for all flower, edible and other marijuana items.

Business owners are replacing idealists in the pot-legalization movement as the nascent marijuana industry creates a broad base of new donors, many of them entrepreneurs willing to spend to change drug policy.

Unlike in the past, these supporters are not limited to a few wealthy people seeking change for personal reasons. They constitute a bigger coalition of business interests. And their support provides a significant financial advantage for pro-legalization campaigns.

“It’s mainly a social-justice movement. But undoubtedly there are business interests at work, which is new in this movement,” said Kayvan Khalatbari, a one-time pot-shop owner and now head of a Denver marijuana consulting firm.

Ever since recreational cannabis was legalized in Colorado, Washington and Alaska, there’s been heated debated as to the way in which cannabis edibles are manufactured, packaged, marketed and sold. As far as some are concerned, plain packaging with nothing eye-catching whatsoever is the best way to avoid tempting tots. For others, it’s a case of following the same rules as alcohol – package and market them as lavishly as you like, just be sure to stay away from anything that might appeal to younger crowds.

As Massachusetts voters get set to decide if recreational marijuana should be legalized, millions of dollars have been flowing into the state seeking to sway the result.

And as Nov. 8 approaches, look for the commercial airwaves, and your social media feed, to contain more and more advertisements for and against Question 4.

For the last two years, proponents of Question 4 have been amassing nearly $4 million advocating for legalization. Last month, more than 80 percent of expenditures went straight into television ads.

Cannabis gummy firm Americanna is taking advantage of the soaring infused gummy market and is set to dominate the edibles space in the future. 

BDS is a market research firm for the cannabis industry that tracks adult-use sales in Colorado, Washington, and Oregon, which represent about 50% of the national market.

Last year, gummy candies only made up 13% of the total edibles sales compared to the 26% owned by chocolate bars, according to BDS data.

“2016 is looking like a great year for edibles,” the market research firm said.

Cannabis gummies are not functional gummies

Regardless, the MTV series is at the forefront of a new wave of "must smoke TV."

"The future of marijuana is female," says Deborah Kaplan, co-creator of MTV’s stoner comedy Mary + Jane. "Even marijuana is a female plant. The part you smoke is female."

She pauses.

"You may have to fact-check that," she says. "But I just think the future is female in general."

It’s in the billions.

Legalizing recreational marijuana could be a smart financial move for California.

A new study from the University of the Pacific in Stockton suggests legalizing recreational marijuana in California would create jobs and generate billions of dollars worth of business. The study was commissioned by Truth Enterprises, which is an investment fund focused on the legal cannabis industry.