Cultural icon Tommy Chong’s voice is drifting out over a vast portion of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, uttering these silky words:

“Support MILegalize… I do.”

The message is born on the radio waves of WUPS; the issue is legalization of marijuana; the breakthrough is the acceptance of marijuana issues by mainstream radio stations. The Black Tuna, Robert Platshorn, just announced a similar accomplishment in a few other states where radio spots in support of his The Silver Tour are popping up.

Bob and Cathy Jordan say her ALS is relieved by medical marijuana, and are supporters of legalizing it in Florida.(Photo: WTSP)

PARRISH, Fla. -- When you pull up to the home of Bob and Cathy Jordan and see a FLCAN sign, you know exactly what they stand for.

"We're flat out legalization but regulate," said Bob.

Cathy has Lou Gehrig's disease or ALS. It's deadly and there's no known cure. But, she is a 30-year survivor of it. The married couple of 33 years attributes that to marijuana.

"It's a horrible disease, I think it's the worst disease out there," Bob said.

"She goes 10 days without cannabis, at the most 10 days, her twitching comes back, she starts drooling."

The Florida campaign to legalize medical marijuana received some great news this week. Below is more, via the United for Care campaign (please be aware that the donation matching is over, but you should still donate if you are able!):

We have just hit 73,713 VALIDATED PETITIONS – enough overall and in the required districts to trigger a Florida Supreme Court review of the petition.

Our work is not done, however:  We must get another 609,436 validated petitions (and Supreme Court approval, which we expect) to be placed  on the 2016 ballot.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the next phase – and we need every bit of support we can get to collect the ballots we need.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -

An amendment legalizing medical marijuana in Florida fell just short in 2014 and supporters are making a push for 2016, but a new group is pushing a recreational marijuana amendment.

The future of marijuana in Florida is shaping up to be a burning question in 2016. A medical marijuana initiative barely failed just last year, and now a new group is pushing a ballot amendment that would further expand access.

Shannon Stallings is the legal adviser for pro-pot group Floridians for Freedom.

"Ours focuses on responsible adult use," Stallings said.

The group plans to start circulating petitions for an amendment that would legalize marijuana for recreational use for those 21 and older.

Authorities say 20 people in southern Colorado were part of an illegal marijuana syndicate that collected pot at 8 buildings– more than 1,000 plants– and shipped it to Florida via the United Parcel Service.

Federal Drug Enforcement Administration agents and regional police officers have taken 28 weapons, more than $25,000 and 50 pounds of processed marijuana, according to court files filed Wednesday.

Search warrants were performed by U.S. Medication Enforcement agents and regional constable’s offices in Custer and Freemont counties near the towns of Cotopaxi and Westcliffe.

Twenty individuals have actually been charged and 17 remain in custody, according to a U.S. Lawyer’s Office, District of Colorado, media release.

BOCA RATON, FL / ACCESSWIRE / September 3, 2015 / Earth Science Tech, Inc., a unique biotechnology public company focused on nutraceuticals, bioceuticals and dietary supplements, announced today its creation of a new wholly owned subsidiary Earth Science Tech Bioceuticals, Inc. and concurrently elects Mr. Joseph Pavlik as President. Earth Science Tech Bioceuticals will be developing, bringing to market, and merchandising a number of breakthrough products and brands featuring the ETST High Grade Hemp CBD Oil. Some of these new products include a novel micronized spray series and an advanced active lifestyle nutrition series featuring ultra-premium hemp based formulations.

In normal circumstances, this would be handled at the state level.

But since the Florida Legislature is ruled by self-serving, ideological blowhards, it is being left up to individual municipalities to have grown-up discussions about marijuana.

And in recent months, two of the state's largest metropolitan areas have decided to all but decriminalize minor marijuana possession offenses.

The Miami-Dade County Commission was the first to approve a measure that gives police the option to issue $100 civil citations — sort of like a traffic ticket — instead of charging someone with a criminal misdemeanor for possessing up to 20 grams of pot.

Researchers at the University of Florida have found that the theory of a “gateway drug” is not associated with marijuana – results from the Guttman scale indicated that alcohol represented the gateway drug, leading to the use of tobacco, marijuana, and other illicit substances. Furthermore, students who used alcohol “exhibited a significantly greater likelihood of using both licit and illicit drugs”.

In an interview with Raw Story, co-author Adam E. Barry said that his studies were intended to correct some of the propaganda that has infected American culture since the “Reefer Madness” era.

CORAL SPRINGS, FL – Sep 1, 2015 – Cannabis, Hemp & Legal Marijuana business appears to be one of the fastest-growing sector in the U.S. and if the growth and expansion toward legalization spreads to all 50 states, the sector could become larger than the organic food industry, according to a new report obtained by The Huffington Post.  Active companies in the industry with recent developments of importance are Surna Inc. (OTC: SRNA), Cherubim Interests Inc. (OTC: CHIT), Plandaí Biotechnology, Inc. (OTC: PLPL), Medical Marijuana, Inc.’s (OTC: MJNA), Hemp, Inc. (OTC: HEMP) and Pazoo, Inc. (OTC: PZOO).

Petitions are hitting the streets soon for a new proposed constitutional amendment that would fully legalize marijuana use, possession and cultivation by adults in Florida.

A political action committee called Floridians For Freedom, associated with a longtime marijuana advocacy group called the Florida Cannabis Action Network, announced Tuesday it has gotten state approval to begin seeking signatures to get their measure on the November, 2016, ballot.

The measure is distinct from another constitutional drive, run by United For Care and led by Orlando lawyer John Morgan, because Morgan's group wants to legalize marijuana for medical purposes only, while Floridians For Freedom wants it legalized for all uses.