The US State Department has published today its report on the fight against narcotic substances and states that Albania is a major source country for the production of marijuana and a transit point for shipments of cocaine and heroin destined to the European markets.

During 2015, the report says, Albanian authorities carried out several arrests and seized a significant amount of narcotic substances by producers and drug rings that operate in the country, continuing the 2014 tendency. This success is mainly attributed to the ongoing cooperation with Italian authorities and the growing efforts of the political leadership and police.

Can you smoke danger zone weed?

There are warnings about eating food grown in the danger zones in Portland near glass factories. I live near one. Can I smoke the weed I grew in my backyard last summer?
—Urban Farmer

Having nearly been purged in the Great Fluoride Pogrom of 2014 (aka Crestallnacht), I'm reluctant to wade too deeply into any new mineral-based civic controversies, but what the hell. #yolo

Vice, the media company with a stronghold among millennials, launches its new Viceland TV channel this week with a slate of shows including "Weediquette," a series that examines marijuana culture. 

And Krishna Andavolu knows what you're thinking — of course Vice would have a show about weed.

Still, it's not the marijuana — not even the THC or the cannabis oil — that the series seeks to truly illuminate.

The District recently marked the first anniversary of its legalization of recreational marijuana. And as the city is home to so many fitness-minded people, it’s likely that at least a few of them are wondering whether it makes sense, or whether it’s even safe, to incorporate pot into their exercise regimens.

Given the long-standing illegality of marijuana, there is not a large body of evidence about its effects on the human body. However, I spoke with a professional athlete who offered his own large body as testimony to the benefits of engaging in physical activity while stoned.

“Next time you go to jail, David, ask for a kosher meal. They have to give it to you, and the food is better.” This was the advice that Diane Goldstein, a retired police officer, gave to David Bronner, an activist in the movement to legalize marijuana, over dinner one night at an Upper East Side organic vegan restaurant.

Tommy Chong has played many roles throughout his life. He’s one half of the duo ‘Cheech & Chong’, a pair that brought marijuana into the mainstream back in the late 1970s and early 1980s. While the mainstream media was all talking about the dangers of marijuana Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong were churning out comedies in Hollywood for the burgeoning stoner crowd of America. Tommy Chong’s been a life long advocate of marijuana legalization, a musician, a stand up comedian, an actor, and recently he’s amassed an enormous following on both Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter as millennials have flocked to his unique brand of stoner humor.

The NFL began testing for marijuana and other substances of abuse in 1982, the same year quarterback Jim McMahon arrived in the league from a Mormon university that frowns on various behaviors far more innocuous than smoking weed. Long retired from football, McMahon relies on marijuana for medicinal purposes. Recently, he suggested that he and other Bears were smoking it while playing — and that the team’s legendary head coach knew it.

Drinking marijuana tea is a lesser-known method of consuming cannabis that elicits a more delayed, prolonged high than smoking the drug and can also be considered a safer alternative as smoking anything can be harmful to the lungs and respiratory system. 

In states that have already legalized medical marijuana, patients come in all shapes and sizes, and they seek relief for a host of physical and psychological disorders. To gain insight into patients in California, a new report from HelloMD — a digital healthcare platform — compiled a comprehensive profile of their cannabis use, preferences and perspectives.

GIPHY - GIPHY.COM

Ribelle's Timothy Maslow is having an strange weekend

One of Boston's top chefs is out on bail this weekend after being arrested at the Canadian border. According to the Boston Globe, Timothy Maslow of Ribelle was allegedly caught reentering the United States at 4:44 a.m. on Friday with 22.5 pounds of THC edibles and a pipe in his vehicle.