The marijuana movement, for lack of a better phrase, is growing like a weed.

Looking back only two decades we would not find a single state allowing marijuana to be legally sold in a shop or prescribed by a physician, and only a quarter of respondents in Gallup's national survey shared a favorable view of the drug.

Health officials fear legalization makes drug seem safe; council urges broader approach

Surveys of Boulder County teenagers show that a substantial majority view binge-drinking as a harmful behavior. A much smaller majority sees regular marijuana use in the same light.

Public health officials fear that the recent legalization of marijuana gives too many teenagers and parents the impression that it is safe.

Boulder plans to make up to $250,000 available next year for education efforts aimed at changing perceptions and reducing marijuana use among young people.

The smell near the Columbia Heights Metro station Wednesday night was unmistakable. A lit joint in hand, Tony Lee stood outside a residence talking with friends as the evening bustle passed them by, no one paying the group of men any special attention.

“The community I’m in, everyone engages in smoking,” said Lee, 34, a District resident who runs his own small construction firm. Plus, he said, if he’s not smoking, he detects the odor of other people getting high throughout the city on a daily basis anyway.

“I’ve grown accustomed to it,” he said.

This casual attitude to marijuana — and the distinctive waft that accompanies the smoking of it — seems to be the new norm in the District in the year since the city voted to legalize possession of small amounts of pot.

Along North-east Sandy Boulevard in Portland, Oregon, there’s a stretch known as the “Green Mile”. Here, medical marijuana dispensaries are budding. Almost two years ago, when Matt Walstaller opened Pure Green in the area, there was only one competitor. Today there’s close to 10.

In the beginning business was booming, recalled Walstaller. But last autumn, Pure Green’s traffic started to slow.

“Then we looked at the numbers. There was a couple thousand new medical cardholders, but two or three times as many stores as there had been the year before,” said Walstaller.

Men were more likely to support marijuana legalization than women.

It's been almost two years since Colorado regulated recreational marijuana for sale, and according to a Quinnipiac University poll released on Friday, a majority of the state's voters support the decision and say its outcome has been good.

Fifty-five percent of Colorado voters surveyed support the law that legalized marijuana in 2012 and officially regulated the sale of the drug in 2014. Forty-one percent stand opposed. Slightly over half of Coloradans think the outcome has been good for the state, while 39 percent say it's been bad. 

After the passage of Measure 91 and the beginning of early retail sales, the recreational marijuana market is booming, according to industry leaders, who told GoLocal last month that sales have doubled since stores could begin selling to the general public. Now, marijuana business groups are pushing for more growth by allowing business owners to let customers consume marijuana inside their walls.

Currently, Oregonians can only smoke marijuana while on private property. In October, Sgt. Peter Simpson, with the Portland Bureau of Police, told GoLocal that patrol officers will still be on the lookout for those who smoke in public places, such as parks, streets or outside bars or restaurants.

The Ford Motor Company has created a unique body suit that simulates the effects of driving under the influence of illegal drugs. The aim is to educate young people about the dangers of driving whilst under the influence of drugs.

Ford developed the suit together with scientists from the Meyer-Hentschel Institute in Germany to simulate some of the effects of popular drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin and MDMA (commonly known as Ecstasy). Physical effects include slower reaction time, distorted vision, hand tremors and poor coordination.

Worried too few consumers know about pot recalls, Denver officials require companies use social media to flag the public

Denver health officials are requiring marijuana companies that recall products tainted with unapproved pesticides to use websites and social media accounts to alert consumers.

The move comes amid concerns that few customers are learning about nine recalls the city has announced affecting tens of thousands of items across dozens of product names.

Just three of the companies involved told their customers directly, a Denver Post check of their social media accounts showed.

An overwhelming majority of Swedes think illicit drugs should remain banned, despite the legalization of narcotics being the subject of heated debate in recent years, a fresh poll has suggested.

A whopping 91 percent of respondents told major pollsters Sifo that they think consumption of narcotics should remain illegal. Seven percent opted against a ban and three percent said they did not know.