Despite the city's ban on sales, you really can get recreational marijuana in Colorado Springs. You just need to join the right club.

Private cannabis clubs got their start in Colorado Springs, which banned recreational marijuana sales after Amendment 64 legalized them in 2012.

Denver doesn't have such clubs; it has recreational pot stores galore.

And Colorado Springs residents can drive a few miles to Manitou Springs and choose their favorite flavors at Emerald Fields or Maggie's Farm retail outlets.

But public consumption of marijuana isn't allowed anywhere in Colorado.

For the second year in a row, the U.S. Cannabis Cup — the largest event in High Times magazine’s portfolio — kicked off Saturday at the Denver Mart with speakers and vendors from throughout the country, and plenty of free marijuana.

DENVER (AP) — Breaking from decades of "Just Say No"-type messaging about marijuana use, Colorado law enforcement officials are starting a new campaign designed to promote safe marijuana use.

The revised campaign starts this weekend, when tens of thousands are expected at public rallies and concerts in observation of the 4/20 marijuana holiday. A few things to know about the new effort, along with some backstory:

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GOING TO THE SOURCE

The Colorado Department of Transportation is taking its campaign to the demographic most likely to use pot and then drive, according to surveys. That's men aged 21 to 34.

A pungent cloud of marijuana smoke will be wafting over many parts of Canada on Monday. Yes, it’s 4/20 again, the unofficial holiday that openly celebrates pot, reefer, ganga, weed, Mary Jane or whatever you like to call it.

In most places, though, you’re unlikely to see police swooping in to corral the tokers. Even though pot possession remains illegal, the narcs probably won’t be busting anyone except dealers.

Part of the reason is practical; charging dozens, if not hundreds of people is a logistical nightmare. Another part is a reflection of the times, the increasing tolerance, if not acceptance, of marijuana as a part of mainstream culture. It’s no longer on the fringe.

Recreational marijuana is now legal in Washington, D.C. and four states, a multi-million dollar legal industry is emerging, and marijuana’s mainstreaming is the topic of dozens of daily news stories, but there are very few photos that reflect this changing environment.  To combat the outdated (yet still predominant) stereotypic images of people who use marijuana, and encourage news outlets to instead run photos that reflect real modern-day marijuana consumers, the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) is releasing new stock photos today.  These brand new images are available open license and free of charge for non-commercial editorial purposes.

In all of recorded history, not one person has ever died from consuming marijuana, says a public interest litigation that objects to the ban on cannabis or marijuana in India, saying that the move is not backed by scientific evidence.

Marijuana should therefore be legalised in the country so as to help patients, says the petition filed by Aditya Barthakur, a 34-year-old lawyer.

Barthakur added that marijuana has several “benefits” including helping cancer patients by easing their pain.

A small, yet significant development in his case, the petitioner says, is the Bombay High Court’s recent issuing of notices to the Central and state governments.

If you want to talk about marijuana, you need to speak the language. We've laid out some key phrases and questions that come up frequently in the marijuana debate.

Definitions:

Marijuana: The dried leaves and flowering tops of the pistillate (female) cannabis plant that yield THC.

Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC): The principal active chemical in marijuana that supplies its narcotic and psychoactive effects.

Hemp: A cannabis plant containing very low amounts of THC, generally grown for its fiber.

Strains: Varieties of marijuana containing specific characteristics such as certain THC levels, physical effects, smells and colors.

The blue states have legalized marijuana for only medical purposes, while the red states have legalized it for both medical and recreational purposes. In all, 23 states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana in some form.

It's been almost 20 years since the first state legalized medical marijuana, but conflicting regulations between the states and the lack of federal direction on its rules and regulations have left the industry fractured and stunted.

In the small back courtyard of his marijuana dispensary on East Hastings Street, Dana Larsen, a well-known pot activist, talks candidly about a subject he knows well: B.C. bud.

It’s four days out from one of the premier local events for marijuana enthusiasts and Larsen, the author of several pot-themed books whose past political involvement includes a run for the B.C. NDP leadership, sketches out some of the preparations for the annual massive toke-up known as 4/20.

Monday’s event outside the Vancouver Art Gallery, which marks the 20th anniversary of the smoke-out, is expected to draw a crowd of 20,000 to 30,000.

There will be bands, DJs, speeches, lots grass to buy from an expected 200 or so vendors, and, course, an incredible amount of pot smoking.

From the website run by investigative journalist Ben Swann:

On March 24, cannabis oil activist Shona Banda‘s life was flipped upside-down after her son was taken from her by the State of Kansas. The ordeal started when police and counselors at her 11-year-old son’s school conducted a drug education class. Her son, who had previously lived in Colorado for a period of time, disagreed with some of the anti-pot points that were being made by school officials. “My son says different things like my ‘Mom calls it cannabis and not marijuana.’ He let them know how educated he was on the facts,” said Banda in an exclusive interview with BenSwann.com. Banda successfully treated her own Crohn’s disease with cannabis oil.