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KUSH L.A. 5
 Inside Kush L.A.
Prohibition - by Sam McCommon 10 Letter from the Editors
A Marine’s Story - by Leanna Harshaw 12
Cannabis And Medical Marijuana For Pain
- by Mark Rose 16 W elcome to our 3rd issue of Kush LA Magazine.
The response from our adver tisers and readers
alike has been nothing shor t of amazing. It is our mission
Downside of the Drug War - by Lisabeth Hughes 26
to produce the highest quality publication along with the
Stony Parker - By Joe Posner 30
most diverse distribution within the Medical Marijuana
The Bitter Taste of Chocolate - by Helga Douglas 34 industry.
Get More From Out of Your Vaporizer We hope you look forward to our magazine on the
- by Joe Greco 38 20th of every month! We want you to feel that Kush
215 Discrimination - by Andrew D. 42 LA is your magazine, so we urge you to get involved by
Dear Courtney - By Courtney Bee 44 submitting your thoughts, story ideas, ar ticles and anything
Legalizing Good Lady “Mary Jane” - by Tyler Hamme 46 else you would like to see in our upcoming issues or
online. You can send these to us at info@kushla.com.
Smoke Screen - By Jim Luksic 52
Hot on the heels of our premiere issue, we are
The Glitz the Glam and the Dark Side proud to introduce our website, www.dailybuds.com. The
- by Star Jasmine 56
traffic has been incredible and we hope you visit us often.
This is L. A. - by S. Donim 61 We will be updating the site regularly, wowing you with
Clean Green - by Chris Van Hook 64 some incredible technology and doing our very best to
My Opinion: Party Like it’s 1999 - by Jack LeBlanc 68 make dailybuds.com your most informative and friendly
destination on the Web. With our simple locator, sharing
Staff tools and relevant media, we’re confident you will agree
Publishers & Editors that on www.dailybuds.com “it’s all right here!” Once again
Ron Dennis • Michael Lerner
we thank you for making us the number one premium Los
Associate Editors
Leanna Harshaw • Annie Belle • Charlotte Cruz Angeles publication.
Director of Advertising
Michael Lerner
Respectfully,
Account Executives Ron & Michael
Dina Davis • Molly Black
Business Office Manager
Ron Dennis
Director of Sales
Audrey Cisneros
Internet Sales Director
Heather Gulino
Administration
Leah Berman • Leanna Harshaw
creative director
Dave Azimi
Writers
Sam McCommon • Leanna Harshaw • Mark Rose
Lisabeth Hughes • Joe Posner • Helga Douglas
Joe Greco • Andrew D. • Courtney Bee
Tyler Hamme • Jim Luksic • Star Jasmine
S. Donim • Chris Van Hook • Jack LeBlanc
cartoonist
Dan Gibson
5737 Kanan Rd. #277, Agoura Hills, CA 91301
(888)9-KushLA • Fax (888)9-KushLA
Info@kushla.com
6 KUSH L.A.
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KUSH L.A. 7
 Letter to the Editor
The solutions to the ICO and hardship
issues facing us now are clear. There are
many of us who have tried as hard as
we can to take advantage of this time in
history and make a positive difference in
the industry of cannabis collectives. Now
is a time when some great new steps can
be taken and the communities that are
involved can benefit and not suffer the way
most have up to this point.
I am ashamed of our city council and
the fact that they are going to fumble this
opportunity. They have started by making
matters even worse and continue to create
huge, unnecessary obstacles. The fate
of this industry is not safe in their hands
and it’s time we fought back and showed
them that we are the intelligence behind
these issues. They have struck many blows
against us which are ridiculous since we
are simply citizens, trying to exercise some
of our harmless, God given rights.
And I’ll argue with anyone to show me
where cannabis has been more harmful
to our communities than cigarettes or
alcohol. I am not saying that cannabis does
not come with its negatives. Many have
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8 KUSH L.A.
abused the system and could care less about
patients. The rest of us love helping people
who really need help, and at the same time
we should be able to make a living doing it.
How can we spend our lives helping if we
can’t live ourselves?
There’s as much greed in our system
as there is in the government system or
in our city council. They really should be
ashamed that they are going to blow their
chance to really make this issue succeed for
all involved. The cities, the states and the
collective members can all benefit from a
properly structured and well run operation.
Our own council isn’t even paying
attention to those of us who are different
and positive and those of us who are not.
They are failing the power of that office and
it’s time they felt the sting of all of us as
we defend our rights. We need to mobilize
and come together to file suit against the
city. There are a handful of collectives with
hardships turned in and we should band
together to file a lawsuit against the city for
the illegal operation of the ICO and hardship
application process.
The city has made many mistakes. This
is a fact and not my opinion. These mistakes give us the only ways, imprinted from their relic of a society who destroyed the
open wound where we can attack. We have legal council ready usefulness of cannabis for monetary gain in the timber and
to act and the proper plan of attack is all ready to go. Please textile world. This is the movement that will make history on
join us and come see how we can achieve some success in what these issues.
should be getting done. Not like these insulting Mickey Mouse Please find the courage to stand with us and take a giant
circuses of council meetings. step forward. We have a collective willing to lead the march and
Seriously, I’ll say again how ashamed I am to watch how the rest can be openly or silently involved as all will benefit.
grown human beings can show such coldness and carelessness Anyone with losses, which is all of us, can create turmoil in the
to others who are asking simply for a way to succeed. They once city. They wouldn’t try our way, so we’ll show them how we play
begged us for those positions. We voted them in. Now they look their game. It’s about time that the law is actually on our side
down on us, simply for the cause we back. THEY HAVE FAILED and can kick in and help us out. For information on how to get
US, AS WELL AS THEMSELVES. involved contact:
We can stand up for our rights and not only embarrass
The Law Offices of Eric Shevin
the city for the insult they’ve given us by not openly accepting
(818)784-2700
our rights concerning these issues, but we can make the city
15260 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 1050
work with us to come to a proper and positive goal. I’ve been
Sherman Oaks, CA. 91403
downtown, a lot, and I’ve seen how these people work. They
are lost and they don’t even care to be burdened with the task
of helping us be a safer, happier civilization. They are horrible
politicians, not because they don’t care about our side of the
issues, but because they don’t even give us the respect to care
that we have an issue.
We are being pushed through with arrogance and disrespect
and the issue is being handled with foolishness and stupidity.
Cannabis can save a declining economy. It can help people with
their medical issues and it can have a place in this world. Life is Editor’s note
about making a place for everything that helps us survive and The editors invite you to submit your letters
move forward positively. or articles to be published in Kush LA.
I’m disgusted that we are being made to fight for OUR They can be sent to Ron@KushLA.com
place. They are biased and unintelligently set against our

KusH L.A. 9
 Prohibition
The similarities between
the prohibition of alcohol
and the current prohibition
of marijuana are uncanny.
by Sam McCommon

The
prohibition of alcohol in the United States between reasons. First, from the government’s point of view the liquor
1920 and 1933 was a failed social experiment that had industries were siphoning precious grain and man-hours of labor
drastic consequences for the nation and its citizens. from the war effort. Second, there were strong racist currents
Not only did the crime rate in the country increase significantly, in the country against its German-American population, which
revenue was lost from the brewing and distilling industries and both consumed and produced a disproportionate share of the
an even greater sum was lost on the ultimately fruitless attempts nation’s alcohol. Propaganda showed that drinking was the vice
to enforce the 18th amendment, which constituted the new law. of the evil Hun and this stigma stuck to alcohol.
But prohibition wasn’t just an accident. Nothing of historical Prohibition didn’t succeed in destroying demand for
importance happens inside a vacuum, and alcohol by destroying its supply, though
there was indeed popular momentum this was the official strategy. Most statistics
behind the movement. But where did that Prohibition clearly from the prohibition era cite that alcohol
momentum come from, and how did it find
willing ears? What were the effects of the
didn’t work, and consumption throughout the nation dropped
by 30% for the first few years. However,
prohibition movement on American society
and American mentality? And last, how does
there’s not a soul both supply and demand rebounded and
steadily increased back to its pre-prohibition
the prohibition of alcohol compare to current who would dispute levels as bootlegging and home stills grew
drug laws in the United States? in popularity. In two situations, alcohol was
One could trace the historical roots of the that. If our nation’s considered decriminalized. Oddly enough,
prohibitionist movement to puritanical times, alcohol was legal for in-home consumption
but the movement first started gaining steam current drug policies though it could not be purchased, sold or even
in the early to mid-19th century. The first few
decades of the 19th century saw a massive
are this strikingly given as a gift. Furthermore, wine remained
legal for religious purposes, and this was
“awakening” in protestant communities that
expanded both church attendance and zeal,
similar to the failed an often-abused avenue to illegally obtain
alcohol. Ironically, the dangers of the excesses
thus greatly increasing churches’ powers policies of the of alcohol were dramatically increased due
to influence their members. The American to the lack of quality control over the liquor
Temperance Society is a prime example of the past, how can our produced in home stills and its overall higher
influence of moralistic thought at the time; levels of potency.
formed in 1826, within 12 years it claimed government expect The similarities between the prohibition
1.5 million members nationwide. The 1840
census boasted roughly 17 million souls in the
different results? of alcohol and the current prohibition of
marijuana are uncanny. First, and this should
United States. This means that, although it was make you grin, it was legal to obtain alcohol
indeed influential, less than 10 percent of the if you had a prescription from your doctor,
nation’s population belonged to this temperance organization which may sound familiar to many card-carrying Californians.
in a nation well-known for its civil societies. Second, like the war on drugs the lack of legal availability of
Although it consistently grew in power and influence in alcohol did by no means destroy supply of it or demand for
the second half of the 19th century, World War I helped to bring it. It simply coerced people to go through legal loopholes or
the prohibitionist movement to a fevered pitch. This is for two circumvent the law entirely to obtain what they desired. Third,

10 KusH L.A. Continued on page 72

A Marine’s
Story by Leanna Harshaw
Greg Meguerian sits in his office calmly going through the day’s
mail. His girlfriend wants to know which bills to pay and Rex,
his pit bull puppy, sits by his side. This scene is a far cry from
Greg’s former life – he was a Marine. He was there when U.S.
troops invaded and liberated Baghdad. Greg is a hero who has
finally found some peace since his medical discharge from the
Marines in August 2007.
His story begins when he was just 20 years old. It was the
end of 2000 and Greg joined the Marines. He graduated boot
camp and combat training before he was sent for NBC (Nuclear
Biological Chemical Warfare Defense) training.. He was plan-
ning to go home on leave when terrorists sent this country into
turmoil. It was September 11, 2001, and there would be no leave
for Greg.
Instead, he found himself in Afghanistan. At 21, Greg saw
some really grisly things for such a young man. He made it
home after a six-month deployment for some more training and
to spend some time with family, which included a young son.“I
missed three of his birthdays and three Christmases while I was
with the Marines.”
In December 2002 and Greg was in Kuwait. From Kuwait,
he and his fellow Marines made their way into Iraq. In March
2003 Greg helped liberate Baghdad, which
took about two weeks. “I saw some re-
ally bloody battles during this
time,” he said.
Greg counts him-
12 KUSH L.A.
self lucky – he
has all of his
limbs. But while
a Marine, he was
hurt several times. He
recalls that a bomb explod-
ed near him and shrapnel
hit him in the head. Fortunately,
Greg was wearing his Kevlar helmet, but he was still wounded.
He couldn’t see out of his left eye due to all the blood caused by
the big gash in his head.
“I should have been medavacked, but I was a sergeant
and I wasn’t going to leave my Marines behind,” he said.“They
packed the wound with gauze and gave me Motrin. There were
lots of guys worse off than me.”
Though he was wounded, Greg thought everything was
fine. But then he began falling asleep at odd times and at the
drop of a hat, a result of his head injury. “When I get really
stressed-out, my brain shuts off and I fall asleep.”
This injury leaves Greg with a dent on the left side of his
head – a reminder of all he has been through. When he touches
it, he can’t help but think of how close he came to dying for his
country.
Greg was no longer considered combat-ready by the Ma-
rines. He was home and his new job was to recruit more Ma-
rines.“I never lied,”he comments.“Only a couple of the people I
recruited went to infantry, I gave all the others technical jobs.”
During this time, Greg was drinking heavily and smoking a
few packs of cigarettes a day. He was also on lots of prescription
drugs. He had one of those pill cases that had a compartment
for every day of the week that he filled up so he didn’t forget to
take any. But the drinking and smoking and prescription drug
weren’t a good combination. Greg recalls that he was full of
rage and anger that didn’t have an outlet.
“Every month someone I knew was dying – sometimes ev-
ery week. I was stuck here and I couldn’t go back,” he said. “I
felt like I was letting my Marines down. The Marines were ev-
erything.”This feeling of helplessness made his anger intensify.
Greg says he was a loose cannon waiting to go off.
Greg went to the VA for help. “It’s very important to sup-
port veterans – actual support,” he said.“While you are in, they
(the military) take care of you. But when you’re out, it’s just the
VA. It’s the lack of funding.” Greg knows there are lots of vet-
Continued on page 54
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KUSH L.A. 15
 CANNABIS
AND
MEDICAL
MARIJUANA
FOR PAIN
by Mark E. Rose, BS, MA
Licensed Psychologist
History and background
Pain is a complex sensory and psychological experience, and although many
of the critical focal points involved in pain have been identified, the precise
mechanisms underlying the perception and modulation of pain are not fully
understood. Chronic pain is more complicated than acute pain and is a major
health problem.
Various cannabis preparations have been used as a medicinal therapy for
pain for thousands of years. Anti-inflammatory claims for cannabis date back to
the Sumerians binding the head with the herb. Crude preparations of cannabis
were recommended for a variety of painful conditions in the 1800’s, and were
considered especially effective in conditions with a prominent psychological
component to the pain such as migraine, dysmenorrheal and pain from terminal
illness.
Cannabis eventually lost favor to the more potent opiate-based drugs
because its pain-relieving properties were milder and less predictable. However
it was also noted that compared with opiates, cannabis possessed less toxicity,
created less functional impairment, and had a negligible addiction liability. Recent
identification and synthesis of delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (delta-9 THC) as
the primary psychoactive constituent has reawakened interest in the therapeutic
potential of cannabis. In the past decade numerous studies investigating the
effectiveness of synthetic cannabis derivatives and smoked marijuana (MJ) in
the treatment of pain have been published.
A large body of literature indicates that cannabinoids suppress behavioral
responses to acute and persistent noxious stimulation in animals. Also
cannabinoid receptors (receptors for the active molecules in cannabis) found
in the central and peripheral nervous systems in humans have been shown to
modulate the perception of pain. Additional pain-relieving properties of cannabis
are explained by delta-9-THC inhibition of the cyclooxygenase (COX) enzyme,
an effect that is selective to the COX-2 enzyme. THC has also been shown to
increase beta-endorphin levels.
Surveys of medical marijuana use have found that marijuana is smoked
to alleviate symptoms of pain by roughly 15% of chronic pain patients, and
10-12% of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. The reasons for use include pain,
sleep, mood (including stress), appetite, nausea and spasms. Many analgesic
effects of cannabinoids cannot be reproduced by opiates, particularly in cases of
neuropathic pain.
The cannabinoids evaluated in the following research on pain treatment
were nabilone (a synthetic cannabinoid), dronabinol (synthetic delta-9 THC),
an oromucosal spray delivery of two synthetic cannabinoids marketed as Sativex
(approved in Canada, pending in the US), and herbal smoked cannabis. Although
many of the studies used synthetic cannabis derivatives, it is important to view
the results as applicable to smoked cannabis.
Continued on page 22
16 KUSH L.A.
18 KUSH L.A.
Cannabis for Pain Continued from page 16
Neuropathic pain
Neuropathic pain occurs in 3 to 8% of individuals in
industrialized countries and is often refractory to existing
treatments. Drugs currently available to target neuropathic pain
are, at best, moderately effective. Despite management with
opioids and other pain modifying therapies, neuropathic pain
often compromises the quality of life and daily functioning of
afflicted persons.
A study of patients with HIV-associated neuropathic pain
found that smoking marijuana reduced pain by 34%, compared
with a 17% reduction in patients who were provided with
placebo cigarettes in which THC was removed. Adverse events,
including sedation, dizziness, and confusion, occurred more
often among patients smoking the active treatment. In a study
of painful HIV-associated sensory neuropathy, twice as many
patients given smoked marijuana reported significant pain
reduction than those assigned to placebo.
Patients with HIV-associated neuropathic pain resistant to
at least two previous classes of painkillers continued their pre-
study analgesic and received either smoked cannabis or placebo.
Pain reduction was significantly greater with cannabis than the
placebo. Smoked cannabis was generally well tolerated and
effective when added to concomitant analgesic therapy. Among
patients with chronic neuropathic pain, MJ containing 9.4%
THC significantly reduced pain compared with MJ containing
0%, 2.5%, or 6% THC.
In comparing nabilone with MJ in neuropathic pain,
nabilone was more likely to cause dysphoria, and patients
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tended to report better pain relief with smoked cannabis and
fewer side effects. Nabilone was also estimated to cost 10 times
as much as street cannabis.
Pain associated with multiple sclerosis
Debilitating pain occurs in 50 to 70% of MS patients, the
most common manifestation being extremity pain accompanied
by burning, aching, pricking, stabbing, or squeezing. Painful
spasms of the extremities have also been classified as a pain
phenomenon. Pain in MS is often refractory to treatment.
Sativex was found superior to placebo in reducing the
average intensity of pain and sleep disturbance. Sativex was
generally well tolerated, with side effects of dizziness, dry
mouth, and somnolence, and the cognitive side effect limited to
long-term memory storage.
Two studies of patients with MS found that average pain
intensity and average pain relief were significantly improved
during dronabinol treatment compared with placebo.
Dronabinol also raised the threshold for patients’ perception of
pres­sure pain that was administered with an auto­mated device.
Adverse events, including dizziness, were more frequent with
dronabinol.
Migraine
Opiates may actually aggravate some pain conditions such
as migraine. Therapeutic doses of morphine are often unable to
relieve migraine attack and can lead to increased sensitivity to
pain from long-term use when administered during headache-
free intervals.
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 Mechanisms involving the brain chemical serotonin are
implicated in migraine causation, and have been specifically
targeted in the development of the triptan class of anti-migraine
drugs. THC stimulates the synthesis and release of serotonin,
and increases the brain content of the neurotransmitter, possibly
explaining its effectiveness in the treatment of these types of
headaches.
An extensive review of cannabis treatment of migraine
concluded that cannabis, whether ingested or smoked, has
a long history of safe and effective use in the treatment and
prevention of migraine; has a mild but definite analgesic
effect in its own right; may interact with serotonin and other
pathways implicated in migraine; possesses anti-nausea and
anti-vomiting properties, both of which are very useful in
migraine treatment; possesses a very low addiction potential;
and when inhaled, is rapidly active and eliminates the need for
gastrointestinal absorption (impaired markedly in migraine),
with the dose easily adjusted by the patient for symptom relief.

Pain associated with spasticity

About 30% of patients with chronic upper motor neuron
syndrome (UMNS) suffer from disabling spasticity-related pain
not sufficiently correctable by conventional treatment. Nabilone
was found to significantly decrease pain in these patients,
although spasticity, motor function and activities of daily living
did not change. Nabilone was a safe and easily applicable option
in patients with chronic UMNS and spasticity-related pain that
was otherwise uncontrollable.
Pancreatitis
Pain management is the cornerstone of conventional
therapy of acute pancreatitis and still represents a major clinical
challenge. Insufficient pain control significantly delays recovery
and may worsen the course of the disease. The use of opioids is
effective but frequently leads to serious and difficult to manage
side effects. A synthetic cannabinoid, HU210, completely blocked
abdominal pain in experimentally-induced acute pancreatitis,
suggesting the therapeutic potential for cannabinoids in
abolishing pain associated with acute pancreatitis and in
partially reducing inflammation and disease pathology.
Cancer pain
A group of 10 patients with advanced-stage cancer were
given either dronabinol or placebo. High doses of dronabinol
were effective at relieving pain, but the sedation and mental
clouding limited the value of the drug. Lower doses showed a
trend toward improved pain relief compared with placebo. The
pain reduction appeared to be independent of the anti-anxiety
and euphoriant effects of the drug.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA)
Compared with placebo, Sativex produced statistically
significant improvements in pain on movement, pain at rest,
quality of sleep, and current pain. A significant analgesic effect
was observed and disease activity was significantly suppressed
following Sativex treatment.
Fibromyalgia
Patients who received nabilone for 4 weeks experienced
KUSH L.A. 23
significant improvements in pain, disability, and anxiety. After
a 4-week wash-out period at the end of the trial, all benefits
were lost in the nabilone group, which returned to previous
levels of pain and quality of life. Patients who received placebo
experienced no change throughout the study. Side effects
among nabilone patients included drowsiness, dry mouth, and
vertigo.
Studies on mixed populations of pain patients
Experience with Sativex in clinical trials with over 2000
subjects demonstrated marked improvement in reports of sleep
among patients with a wide variety of pain conditions including
MS, peripheral neuropathic pain, intractable cancer pain, and
rheumatoid arthritis, with an acceptable side effect profile. No
tolerance to the benefit of Sativex on pain or sleep, or need for
dosage increases were noted in studies of up to four years, with
40-50% of subjects attaining good or very good sleep quality,
a key source of disability in chronic pain syndromes that may
contribute to patients’ quality of life.
A group of 30 patients with chronic pain treated with
smoked cannabis were followed for 1–5 years. Ninety-three
percent of the patients reported moderate or greater pain
relief. Side effects were reported by 76% of patients, the most
common being increased appetite, a sense well-being, weight
gain, and slowed thoughts.
Acute pain
In postoperative pain, low dose cannabinoids did not
differ from placebo in pain reduction, and at high doses were
associated with adverse effects or worsening of pain intensity.
24 KUSH L.A.
Alternative delivery systems
A delivery system is now available that vaporizes marijuana,
making it possible to deliver even high doses of THC to the
lungs far below the flash point of the cannabis leaf and bud,
thus reducing smoke, tar and other possible carcinogens.
However, the standard marijuana joint remains as effective as
any smoking device, including those employing water filtration,
in providing a favorable ratio of THC to tar and other undesirable
by-products.
Precautions
Cannabinoids should be avoided in patients with a history
of psychoses and other major mental illness, and in patients
with unstable ischemic heart disease. Patients ingesting any
form of cannabis should avoid driving or operating heavy
machinery. Approximately 9% of persons who try recreational
marijuana will develop a dependency syndrome at some point.
The risk among medical marijuana users is unknown, but is
probably much lower.
Conclusion
Data from several well-designed studies show that
cannabinoids are effective in reducing several forms of chronic
pain with side effects comparable to existing treatments,
suggesting that cannabinoids can play a useful role in
the management of chronic pain. Cannabis seems to lack
effectiveness in the treatment of acute pain.
The management of chronic pain often requires a polydrug
approach, and cannabinoids are a potential addition to
Continued on page 36
 Downside of the Drug War
by Lisabeth Hughes
In these uncertain times, everyone is wondering what the solution to our current
economic downturn could be. While the topic is on the tip of everyone’s tongue,
even the highest levels of our government don’t seem able to offer a viable solution
without the prospect of spending more and more money to offer what may be
merely temporary solutions. While it has been said that wars tend to strengthen
the economy by providing more jobs, the government’s War on Drugs takes people
out of the workforce, leading to a depletion in consumer spending
According to the World Prison Population List (fourth edition), right now
664 out of every 100,000 U.S. citizens are incarcerated. The Department of Justice
Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) published in 2002 that the prison population had
exceeded 2,000,000. That’s more than the entire population of Phoenix, AZ! Why
has the United States of America, the so called paragon of democracy, been waging
war on its own citizens for decades? The government spends twice as much on
law enforcement each year as on prevention, rehabilitation and education. In fact,
on average, the combined efforts of the state and federal governments to enforce
arcane and ineffective drug criminalization laws cost around $49 billion per year,
not including the cost of imprisonment, while 61% of this cash is spent on law
enforcement alone. (What Does the Drug War Cost? New Times June 24 1999).
Do we really need more police officers and drug task forces or do we need less
“criminals?”
With a considerable part of our workforce whiling away the hours performing
menial and meaningless tasks behind a triple layered electric barbed wire fence, is
it any wonder consumer spending has steadily declined? Even when these inmates
are released, the odds are against them ever returning as a profitable member
of society because of the stigma placed on them by government regulations and
social discrimination. Contrary to popular belief, a study published by the Robert
Wood Johnson Foundation in the 2001 Southern Economic Journal reported that,
“Non chronic drug use was not statistically related to either of the labor supply
measures, indicating light or casual use did not lead to negative effects on the labor
supply.” But the drug war does. When self-defeating laws and misled perceptions
make it nearly impossible for ex-cons to obtain housing, jobs and driver’s licenses,
is it any wonder the majority end up back behind those impenetrable walls rather
than contributing to their communities? It’s a vicious cycle.
U.S. law enforcement seized billions of dollars worth of illegal drugs last
year. According to NORML (National Organization for Marijuana Legalization)
statistics, in 2006 nearly 28,000 people were doing time in state and federal prisons
for a marijuana charge which translates to an estimated loss of $600 million dollars
per year. If marijuana was legalized, regulated and taxed like alcohol, tobacco
and prescription drugs, all of which have more serious potential side effects
and resulting deaths, think of what that could do for our economy! With more
government revenue, less spending on drug criminalization and a larger labor
force we may be able to turn the current recession around much more quickly.
In addition, marijuana legalization would create jobs, which is good news for
the approximate 9% of Americans currently unemployed. A whole new industry
would be opened up, and a very lucrative one at that.
Continued on page 28

According to NORML (National Organization for Marijuana

Legalization) statistics, in 2006 nearly 28,000 people were
doing time in state and federal prisons for a marijuana
charge which translates to an estimated loss of $600
million dollars per year.
26
26KUSH
KUSHL.A.
L.A.
Drug War Continued from page 26
For the past several years the medical marijuana debate It is our right and our responsibility to be informed as a
has been in the spotlight, and now that state and local society and to question our government when their policies
governments are seeing their revenues drop like stones are detrimental to our continued well being. Albert Einstein
down the Grand Canyon and their coffers growing just as gave us his first impression of the USA in 1921, saying,“The
dry, we are witnessing more support from public servants prestige of government has undoubtedly been lowered by
such as Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger the prohibition law. For nothing is
who is urging consideration of more destructive of respect for the
marijuana legalization as a solution
to California’s fiscal crisis.
Former President Jimmy government and the law of the land
than passing laws which cannot be
Former President Jimmy Carter Carter advocated enforced. It is an open secret that
advocated marijuana legalization the dangerous increase of crime in
in his speech to Congress in 1977, marijuana legalization this country is closely associated
attesting that, “Penalties against the with this.” The Drug War creates
possession of a drug should not be in his speech to Congress “criminals.”
more damaging to the individual
than the drug itself; and where
in 1977, attesting that, Clearly, a nation at war with
itself cannot function effectively. If
they are they should be changed. “Penalties against there is a War on Drugs underway in
Nowhere is this more evident to me America, then the ones imprisoned
than in the laws against marijuana the possession of a because of it can certainly be
in private for personal use.” He called prisoners of war. We do have
went on to recommend that federal drug should not be the power to change the current
law be amended to eliminate all
criminal penalties for possession
more damaging to the situation in dramatic and beneficial
ways. We own the system, we are
of up to one ounce of nature’s individual than the drug not owned by it. Let’s speak up and
pharmaceutical. The fight to legalize educate those who are unaware
marijuana, and the government’s itself; and where they are by dispelling the outdated and
response by declaring “war,” is not
a new one. It is time to stop looking they should be changed.” outrageous propaganda of an out of
touch government.
at our own citizens as criminals and
make peace.

28 KUSH L.A.
 Stony Parker in...
Escape to the Present
When we left our hero, young USC
journalism student and counterculture
reporter Stony Parker, it was November
1973. Parker, who could smoke ANYBODY
under the table, had unexpectedly run out of pot.
In a desperation move, Stony smoked a meteorite
fragment in his Buddha pipe. After three hits, Stony
fell into ... The Big Nap.
In his dreams, Stony was falling down a long, wide
dark tunnel. Periodically, images from his past appeared
below him like color still pictures projected on a movie
screen. As Parker fell through them, new images from his
life would eventually appear.
Mom and Dad giving him a beagle puppy for his
birthday. Young Stony proudly tying his shoes by himself.
That first ride on his shiny red Schwinn bike WITHOUT
the training wheels on. Stony continued to fall.
Very gradually, Stony Parker woke up. He felt very
stiff. Stony noticed Buddha on the floor. He picked up his
beloved pipe and the small meteorite fragment off the
carpet. Parker walked them over to the Uncle stash box
and put them away.
Stretching and looking around, Stony was surprised
at how dusty things were and the huge spider webs that
hung down from the ceiling. “When did that happen?” he
wondered.
He pushed the button on his gold, Pulsar digital
watch. Red numerals appeared briefly on the dark watch
face: 3:33 p.m. “What the ...?” Stony thought. It had been
9 p.m. when Stony started his spacey smoke odyssey. “I
slept for 18 hours?”
Shaking his head, Stony put on his brown, corduroy
jacket and USC ball cap. Almost as an after thought,
Parker took what remained of the bigger meteorite rock
from the gold box and put it in his jacket pocket.
Stony hurried to the door. He turned the doorknob
and and pulled. Nothing. Tried again. The door still
wouldn’t open. Frustrated, he remembered something
30 KUSH L.A.
a fiction by Joe Posner
Robert Culp used to do in “I Spy”TV
episodes in the ‘60s.
Stony stepped back 12 feet from the door. Running
toward the door, Parker leaped in the air and kicked out
with his right, sneaker-clad foot hard.
Out in the hallway, a cute brunette coed, wearing a
tight USC T-shirt and short shorts, was unlocking the door
to her room as Stony’s door cracked loudly and fell down
into the hallway.
She turned toward the sound. “What the hell? she
exclaimed “Who are you?”
“Bruce Lee,” Stony quipped, racing past her down the
hall. He flew down the stairs, taking the steps three at a
time. Parker was out the front door, on the sidewalk, and
out of view down Adams before the freaked out coed ever
got to the front door.
Being a great runner, on and off the track, was a
useful talent. When he figured he was safe, Stony slowed
to a brisk walk. “What was happening?” Stony thought.
Several people passed him on the sidewalk, talking into
flip-top cell phones. “Communicators,” Stony thought. “I
guess the Star Trek convention is in town.”
Stony kept walking quickly, passing the Second
Church of Christ Science with its Southern-style pillars
and majestic copper dome. Turning left on Hoover Street,
Stony headed toward the SC campus a few blocks way.
Something wasn’t right. Where the 32nd Street
Market Street should be was a laundromat. And a brand
new Denny’s had, somehow, sprung up overnight.
Stony approached the Los Angeles Times newspaper
rack out front of the Denny’s. He read the bold, black
headline: IS UNCLE SAM BROKE?
What caught Stony off guard, stunning him, was what
he read above the headline:
July 20, 2009.
Stony gripped the side of the newspaper rack.
“How was that possible?” Stony wondered. He suddenly
realized he was hungry enough to eat TWO horses. Parker

went into Denny’s.
Stony always thought better on a full tummy. As
he ate and drank it came to him. That weird meteorite
fragment he smoked had somehow catapulted him 36
years into the future. Boy, that stuff makes Maui Wowie
seem like a Girl Scout cookie!
Back outside, Stony saw the Von KleinSmid Center’s
brick tower, with its golden sphere perched atop it, in the
near distance. The familiar landmark calmed down our
stoner chrononaut just a bit.
Soon, Stony was on the SC campus. The Doheny
Library, Bovard Administration Building and the Tommy
Trojan statue remained largely the same. Many new
buildings, however, had sprung up in the intervening
years and some of the older ones were bring refitted,
refurbished or renovated.
On a kiosk near the center of campus, a brochure
caught his eye:
“Emerald City Compassionate Cannabis Caregiver”
Below the address and hours was some copy that
stated if you brought a California I.D. and a doctor’s note
to their office, they would provide you with “legal” pot for
whatever ailed you, for a cash donation to their collective.
“Marijuana is legal now?” Stony pondered. “Cheech &
Chong must be stoked!”
Eventually, Stony wandered back in the direction of
Hell House.
He was only half a block away when Parker noticed
the two campus security officers standing near their
electric golf cart on the sidewalk outside Hell House. They
were talking to the coed who had seen him break out of
his room earlier.
When the girl pointed at Stony, the guards hopped on
their cart and raced toward him. Stony turned on his heal,
running down Severance Street and through Fraternity
Row, on his way back toward campus.
With the security guards in hot pursuit on their golf
cart, Stony zigged and zigged, jumping hedges and bike
racks with equal ease.
Stony looked back once.
Although he was still in the lead, the
campus cops were catching up. They
talked into their walkie-talkies.
Before too long, Stony was trapped:
Two security guards AND two LAPD
officers, all now on foot, occupied the four
points of the compass.
They all moved toward Stony. Parker
reached in his pocket and pulled out the larger
meteorite fragment. Breaking off another small
chunk, he reached in his other pocket, pulling out
his second favorite pipe: The bearded, hollow and
bespectacled head of the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia,
which served as the bowl, looked particularly dazed and
confused.
“What do you have in your hands?” the nearest cop
asked.
My ticket home,” Stony replied.
Before the LAPD could unholster their guns, and the
campus cops their flashlights, the ever nimble Parker lit
the pipe and inhaled. There was a tremendous explosion of
light.
Sometime later, Stony woke up in the bushes outside
the Administration Building. From his low down angle, he
could see both the moon and the Tommy Trojan statue on
its pedestal. Parker pushed the button on his watch: It read
2:02 am.
As Stony got up, and dusted himself off, he noticed a
partially crumpled Daily Trojan paper nearby. He picked it
up. The date read:
November 21, 1973.
“I’m back,” Stony said with enthusiasm. “I’m back.”
Stony made his way back to Hell House without incident.
When he was finally alone in his room, Stony hung his
corduroy jacket on the back of the chair that faced his
writing table.
Parker exhaled, stretched, cracked his knuckles and
reached for a piece of typing paper off the stack. Rolling it
into his Flintstone-era typewriter, Stony began to type:
The Big Nap
by Stony Parker
When the sun came up, and the birds began to sing,
Stony Parker, a broad smile on his face, was still happily
typing away.
KUSH L.A. 31
32 KUSH L.A.
KUSH
KUSHL.A.
L.A.33
33
 The Bitter Taste
by Helga Douglas
of Chocolate
For many of us, chocolate is a delicious part of life, a delightful
pleasure which is often attached to fond memories. However,
for the children who are caught up in the chocolate slave trade,
their life is a living nightmare.
Each year, billions of dollars are spent by consumers on
chocolate, chocolate ice cream, chocolate cookies and other
chocolate products. The majority of the world’s cocoa to make
these goods is produced in West Africa, with Ghana and Côte
d’Ivoire supplying 70% of the world’s cocoa. There are more
than 2 million cocoa farms across West Africa and each year
many young boys, especially between the ages of 12 to 16,
are sold into slave labor and forced to work
in them. Here they harvest the cocoa beans
from the pods of the cocoa plant in order to In 2002, the
produce chocolate while being subjected to
inhumane working conditions and severe International
abuse.
Many of these children are preyed upon Institute of Tropical
by trafficking agents who find them alone or
begging for food. They are then lured away Agriculture
with promises of paid work and a better life
for themselves and their families. However, reported that nearly
when they reach the farms, they are forced to
work for very little or no pay and confined to 284,000 children
prevent escape. They are beaten regularly and
are subjected to the dangers of using machetes were working in
and applying pesticides and insecticides with
no protection. unsafe conditions.
These children are given very little to eat,
work over 12 hour days and are sometimes sexually abused.
They must endure working with wounds, broken bones and
snake bites and often develop severe back pain as a result of
carrying extremely heavy loads while working. It is difficult
for authorities to know where children are being exploited, as
these farms are tucked far away into the jungle. This also poses
a challenge for manufacturers who usually do not deal with
the farms directly and therefore don’t have any evidence as to
what conditions the cocoa was produced, unless they seek it
out themselves.
34 KUSH L.A.
In 2002, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
reported that nearly 284,000 children were working in unsafe
conditions. That same year, chocolate makers started the
International Cocoa Initiative to address international concerns
regarding child slavery in the industry. It was agreed that by
July 2005, they would eradicate slavery from the cocoa farms.
When this time came, they had been unable to achieve this
goal so they extended the deadline to July 2008.
In a report issued recently in 2009 titled “The Cocoa
Protocol: Success or Failure,” the International Labor Rights
Forum presented various findings pointing to the fact that the
original intent of the protocol has not been
achieved. It stated that “consumers today
have no more assurance than they did eight
years ago that trafficked or exploited child
labor was not used in the production of their
chocolate.” It also mentions that “reports from
West Africa point to the continued use of the
worst forms of child labor as well as trafficking
of children.”
Recently there has been a growing
awareness of this situation and many
manufacturers and consumers are demanding
slave free chocolate products. Thankfully
there are several brands that offer Fair Trade
chocolate as an alternative. In the Fair Trade
system, purchasers of cocoa beans agree to
pay above market prices for the products. The
farms selling the cocoa then commit to
grow and produce goods in accordance with rigorous
standards in relation to worker rights, community
empowerment and environmental sustainability.
Often the money goes towards schools, hospitals and
other community infrastructure. The products can
then be labeled “Fair Trade Certified” so consumers can
be sure that their chocolate was produced in an ethical,
humane manner. It should be noted that organic chocolate
is also slave free as farmers receive a premium price for
their chocolate.
 Some examples of companies that offer slave free
produced chocolate are Dagoba, Green and Black’s,
Endangered Species and Newman’s Own Organics. Also,
in March 2009,
Cadbury Chocolate, one of the major chocolate
manufacturers in the UK, stated that by the end of summer
2009 they would certify that their dairy-milk chocolate is
Fair Trade. This is a major step forward in the industry as
this alone will increase the amount of Fair Trade chocolate
in the market by three fold.
Now the power lies in our hands, the consumers.
It would not make sense to boycott cocoa as 40 to 50
million people depend on this industry for their livelihood.
However, we must prove that Fair Trade Certification has
a competitive advantage over non Fair Trade Chocolate to
ensure that this exploitation will come to an end once and
for all. The only way this can be done is by always choosing
Fair Trade or organic products and refusing to purchase
chocolate which has been produced by slaves. So next time For more information on how you can help, please visit www.
you reach for that chocolate bar, remember to ask yourself slavefreechocolate.org
if you really know where it came from.
Helga Douglas is a certified Green Consultant and President and
Founder of Green Gaia Consulting.
Her website is www.greengaia-la.com
and she can be contacted at
helga@greengaia-la.com

KUSH L.A. 35
 Cannabis for Pain Continued from page 24
the arsenal of treatment options. Synergy between opiates
and cannabinoids may reduce the need for opiates, extend
the duration of pain relief and reduce opioid tolerance and
dependence.
Although much of the data comes from studies using
synthetic cannabis derivatives, it seems reasonable to
extrapolate these results to smoked marijuana. And there is
some evidence that smoked cannabis is more effective than the
synthetic derivatives, with fewer unwanted side effects, more
accurate dosing (and the elimination of accidental overdosing)
and greater patient acceptance.
The bottom line is not whether medical marijuana is
superior to other painkilling drugs in large groups of patients
under experimental conditions, but whether some patients
obtain added or superior pain relief from marijuana, either as a
sole therapy of as augmentation to their existing pain-relieving
regimen. And in this capacity medical marijuana can serve a
vitally important role.

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Ashton JC, et al. Curr Opin Investig Drugs. 2008 Jan;9(1):65-75.
Berlach DM, et al. Pain Med. 2006 Jan-Feb;7(1):25-9.
Blake DR, et al. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2006 Jan;45(1):50-2.
Ellis RJ, et al. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2009 Feb;34(3):672-80.
Hosking RD, et al. Br J Anaesth. 2008 Jul;101(1):59-68.
Hosking RD, et al. Br J Anaesth. 2008 Jul;101(1):59-68.
King SA. Psychiatric Times. February 1, 2008;25(2).
Martín Fontelles MI, et al. CNS Drugs. 2008;22(8):645-53.
Narang S, et al. J Pain. 2008;9:254-64.
Nurmikko TJ, et al. Pain. 2007;133:210-20.
Rog DJ, et al. Neurology. 2005 Sep 27;65(6):812-9.
Russo EB, et al. Chem Biodivers. 2007 Aug;4(8):1729-43.
Skrabek RQ et al. J Pain. 2008 Feb;9(2):164-73.
Svendsen KB, et al. BMJ. 2004 Jul 31;329(7460):253.
Ware MA, et al. Pain Res Manag. 2002 Summer;7(2):95-9.
Ware MA, et al. Pain. 2003 Mar;102(1-2):211-6.
Wilsey B, et al. J Pain. 2008 Jun;9(6):506-21.
Wissel J, et al. J Neurol. 2006 Oct;253(10):1337-41.
Wright S, et al. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2006 Jun;45(6):781.
Zajicek J, et al. Lancet. 2003;362(9395):1517-26.

36 KUSH L.A.
 Part 2:
by John W. Greco
Remember the last issue of Kush L.A. Magazine?
Amongst the dozens of interesting articles, comics
and other engaging information about marijuana and
the associated movement, there was a little article
entitled “Get More From Your Marijuana.”The article
spoke about the vaporizer – a great smoking
apparatus which allows you to heat marijuana
to temperatures where vapors are produced,
but out of the range of combustion where
harmful smoke is formed. This is a great way
of obtaining the high we all know and love
while preserving higher amounts of THC
in comparison to conventional smoke.
At the end of the article was a sentence
that read, “Stay tuned for the next article
about how to use the vaporizer to the
best of its ability.” Drum roll please…
If you were expecting something
really life changing or mind altering it
will soon become clear that that’s an
entirely different article. But let’s be
honest, using something and using
something to the best of its ability are
two completely different things. So if
you’re a first time user of a vaporizer
or are interested in picking one up,
here are some pointers to make your
smoking more enjoyable.
Make sure your vaporizer is clean.
When you’re smoking a steady amount
of marijuana in your vaporizer, like any
smoking apparatus, the effects of the
sticky green goodness are apparent;
weed residue, and resin build up in
both the bowl and bag are just a couple
effects that commonly take place. Make
sure you clean the components of the
vaporizer with a recommended cleaner
every 4 – 6 weeks. This will not only help
maintain the unit, ensuring a clean vapor
session, but it will also help in preserving
the weed’s natural flavor and aroma.
Set the temperature correctly. Nine
times out of 10, we’ll meet folks who don’t
like the vaporizer because the vapors don’t
have the same feel going down as a good old
38 KUSH L.A.
fashioned joint. Make sure you set the temperature
correctly and don’t worry, it’s not that complicated.
It can usually be set in the form of a dial from 1 –
9, one being the lowest temperature and nine
being the highest. After all, there are many
different kinds of marijuana, right? Some
wet, some dry. You’re not going to vaporize
dry weed and get the same taste and feel
as you would wet weed at the same
temperature. The drier your marijuana
is, the lower the temperature. The
wetter your marijuana is, the higher
the temperature. But remember big
guy, you’re the one operating that
vaporizer, so if you want harsh
vapors turn that puppy up!
Well I guess those are a
couple pointers I’ve learned in
my countless encounters with
the vaporizer that I wanted to
share with you. I know what
you’re all thinking, ”That’s it?!
Two pointers? Shouldn’t any half
decent article written by a two-
bit, wannabe writer at the very
least include three pointers? Just
to round things off a little and
make them more complete?”
The answer is yes. I thought so
too. But I just couldn’t think of
another novel pointer. Perhaps
I will at a later date. But in the
meantime, let me take a second
to ask any of you if you had a
chance to read an article in the
last issue of Kush L.A. Magazine
by S. Domim entitled, “Have Bong
Will Travel”? I did and I thought it
was pretty funny. Hats off to you
S. Domim. So as I sit around my
vaporizer trying to think of more
useful pointers for my friends reading
Kush L.A., maybe I’ll try and write
something a little funnier next time.
Something a little more entertaining if
you will.something more complete.
KUSH L.A. 39
40 KUSH L.A.
KUSH L.A. 41
215 Discrimination?
by Andrew D.
Los Angeles is a great place to be if you’re a medical
marijuana patient. There are storefront dispensaries galore
with dozens of types of kush.  There are doctors to write you a
prescription for weed if you’re going through chemo, sprained
your ankle or if you have some trouble sleeping at night.  Kevin Hermes of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) said,
While some of this may ring true, in reality this is the case
for only a small portion of Los Angeles County’s ten million
residents.  To those not already in the know, a quick Google Map
search will show that to be a 215 patient with adequate access
to a doctor and medicine one really must be in the Hollywood,
San Fernando Valley or the Westside.
While the aforementioned areas enjoy a close proximity
to these services that leaves South Central, the South Bay, the
Harbor area, East L.A., Watts, Compton and many cities at the
east edge of the county are sorely lacking in the physician/
dispensary department.
In the South Bay, the cities of Hawthorne, Hermosa
Beach, Lawndale, Manhattan Beach, Torrance, Redondo Beach,
Rancho Palos Verdes and Palos Verdes Estates have all enacted
bans or moratorium’s on storefront collectives. Because of the
lack of availability to physicians, a lot of possible 215 patients
aren’t aware of their rights or don’t even bother to get a 215
recommendation.
Life-long South Bay resident Phil Larner said, “I’ve had a
42 KUSH L.A.
full knee replacement and it’s hard for me to get around.  I had
to drive all the way to the (San Fernando) Valley to see a doctor,
and then obviously I have to drive out of the South Bay to get
my medicine.”
“There are more than 100 cities that have banned outright the
dispensing of medical marijuana: ASA believes such bans to be
a violation of state law, especially after the California Attorney
General issued guidelines in August 2008 recognizing the
legality of dispensaries under state law. This is another way
that localities in California can skirt the full implementation of
state law. There are also rogue cops that refuse to uphold state
law, but they are a dying breed due mainly to the fact that they
have less and less legal basis to refuse to abide by California’s
medical marijuana laws.”
In the mostly black and Latino areas of South Central Los
Angeles there exists a physical lack of services, as well as a lack
of awareness of rights afforded to them by laws such as Prop.
215 and S.B. 420.
Akil, a medical marijuana activist in the South Central area
said, “You can come down Crenshaw Boulevard and see a CVS
and Walgreen’s across the street from each other, and within
200 yards of that you could get to a Rite-Aid.  On La Brea there’s
a CVS and a Rite-Aid across the street from each other, and an
Albertson’s with a pharmacy. There definitely needs to be more
physicians and dispensaries available in the South Central area,
the black and Latino communities,” Akil continued.  “Many
people have been self-medicating for years but are afraid to
express themselves, because they still think they’re doing
something illegal. 
In May, the City of Los Angeles closed a “loophole” in
the laws that may have allowed more dispensaries to open in
minority areas of the city that lack them.  Activists believe more
studies need to be done on the demographics and geography of
the medical marijuana program to get a more accurate analysis
of patients’ needs.
Kris Hermes said,“It is difficult to determine whether or not
discrimination exists in terms of patient access to medical
marijuana dispensaries because a thorough demographic
analysis has not been conducted to make such a
determination. There seem to be fewer dispensaries
in rural areas, with a higher concentration in urban
areas.” Hermes believes a bigger discrimination
occurs along socioeconomic lines. “The most
prominent way that discrimination occurs is the
sheer cost of becoming a patient, obtaining an state
ID card, growing medical marijuana indoors and/or
buying it from a dispensary. It can be prohibitively
expensive to become a legal patient and to purchase
medicine outside the normal healthcare system.
Thankfully, the State of California has reduced
the cost of obtaining an ID card by allowing
those on Medi-Cal to pay half of the cost they
would otherwise have to pay. But, the ID card is
not mandatory, so many patients simply choose
not to pay anyway. It is very expensive to grow
indoors and it is also expensive to purchase medical
marijuana from a dispensary compared to the cost
on the illicit market, forcing many patients to use
the illicit market at great risk to their health and
safety,” said Hermes.
Comparisons of the cost of traditional
medicine versus that of medical marijuana
is an entirely different debate.  But it is
ironic that the mostly minority, lower
middle-class to poor citizens with limited
access to traditional goods and services, (education, health
care, etc.) and who are so often stigmatized as the main
sources of drug abusers in the city, are being left out of access
to 215 physicians and collectives as an alternative to traditional
medicine that may be unaffordable for or unavailable to
them. 
Scientific analysis on geography withstanding, it is much
better to be a 215 patient with a serious condition (HIV, cancer,
wheelchair-bound, etc.) living in Hollywood than it is to be a
patient in need of medicine living in Watts or Redondo Beach.

Kevin Hermes of Americans for Safe Access (ASA) said,

“There are more than 100 cities that have banned outright
the dispensing of medical marijuana: ASA believes such
bans to be a violation of state law...
 Dear Courtney,
Pleasing my girl in the bedroom has been a bit of an ongoing struggle. I’ve tried
everything to get her to climax but no dice. Lately she’s been insisting that we throw a
vibrator into the mix and I’m a little offended. She says that it’s her preferred method
of masturbation and that the vibrator helps her orgasm, but I was kind of hoping that
would be my job! I don’t like the idea of an inanimate object with batteries stealing my
thunder. Is it wrong to banish her sex toy from the bedroom, or am I overreacting?
Vibrator Hater, West Hollywood, CA

Dear Vibrator Hater,


There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be your girlfriend’s sticky pleasure god, but throwing out Mr. Buzzy
isn’t going to do your sex life any favors. A small percentage of women are able to get off through intercourse
alone, but the majority sometimes needs a little extra help to get to O-town. Oral sex, manual stimulation and
sex toys with adorable bunny ears can make orgasm less elusive, and the fact that your girlfriend knows exactly
what she needs and isn’t afraid to ask for it is a good thing—not a sign of failure on your part. And forbidding
sex toys during your mattress sessions is just going to make her feel guilty or resentful. Imagine if you said,
“Honey, there’s this amazing, surefire way to bring me a massive explosion of pleasure that I’d like you to try”
and her reply was an immediate veto. The truth is that no tongue or penis can generate 2,500 rpms of consistent
vibration (and don’t try or you’ll sprain something). There’s nothing “off” about a girl that can’t achieve orgasm
without a vibrator; consider this technology a gift that can make carnal ends meet.
My suggestion is to make the little bugger your ally.
Think of the toy as your special helper rather than your
nemesis. Example: While you’re having fun with your
girlfriend’s breasts, the vibrator can keep her genitals
warm for you. And when you’re plundering her from
behind, she can heighten the sensation by allowing
the vibrator to stimulate her clitoris. It’s a win-win!
The act of choosing and playing with new sex toys
can bring couples closer together, so consider visiting
your local adult goody shop with your girlfriend. And
while you’re there, you might as well pick up some
snazzy new anal beads for yourself. However you
choose to handle your girlfriend’s vibrator preference,
it’s important that you  avoid forbidding something
that brings her pleasure. Remember how sad you felt
when that bucktoothed neighborhood bully stole your
favorite G.I. Joe? Don’t be that bully. Don’t steal your
girlfriend’s G.I. Joe.

Courtney Bee
Got Bud?
44 KUSH L.A.
www.dailybuds.com
KUSH L.A. 45
 Legalizing Good Lady “Mary Jane”
By Tyler Hamme
Day by day and little by little, marijuana is slowly becoming
accepted legally into this world. Take the United States
for example; the topic is hotter than ever, and our U.S
government is finally realizing that no matter what they
do and how hard they try the people who already love the
hobby will not stop doing it just because it’s illegal. Not to
mention that marijuana is getting more and more new fans
everyday. Our very own United States President, Barack
Obama, has said himself that he is open to the topic of
legalizing the good lady “Mary Jane” (Town Hall “Open for
Questions conference”, March 26, 2009). So far, 12 states in
the U.S. has decriminalized laws on marijuana, and once
that train catches on with the rest of the nation, it is only a
matter of time before we are able to walk around smoking
“joints” in the public without having to have one of those
fancy medical cards.
One of the main advantages to legalizing marijuana
worldwide is it’s ability to help in medical challenges. All
over the world people are finding small cures, suppressants,
and other new ways to help the body on a daily basis by
using tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). For example: asthma
patients and/or some marathon runners use certain strands
of THC to exert dilating effects in human airways (temporary
expansion of bronchial tubes), letting more air and oxygen
into the circulatory system. Body builders use THC to
decrease the buildup of lactic acid in their muscles after
working out. THC also reduces nausea from chemotherapy
for cancer patients, reduces problems with glaucoma, and
is a safer form of therapeutic relief than antidepressants,
just to name a few of so many.
You may already know about the
medical shops all over the United
States… that’s only a step to what is
Since the early 90’s,
to become, but it’s a big step. Having
legal medical shops nationally will
5.9 million American
help prove the medical and economic
advantages of the “drug.”
citizens have been
The other main topic and in-
centive to legalizing marijuana is the
arrested on marijuana
government monopoly and the ability charges. In the year
to tax marijuana sales. This is good
news to some and bad news to others. of 2000 alone,
The good news is that marijuana will
be legal. The bad news is that this will 734,498 people
put a kink in all of the underground
business. Whether a consumer buys were arrested for
from an underground seller or not,
they would have to pay a little bit marijuana violations.
more than what they have been use to.
As you know, our nation has been in
46 KUSH L.A.
a bit of a financial crisis in the last year or two and legalizing
marijuana, then being able to tax it, would put an estimated
$7.7 billion annually into our economy. Other similar reports
estimate close to if not the same numbers.
The war on drugs greatly emphasizes arresting citizens
for possession and smoking marijuana. Since the early
90’s, 5.9 million American citizens have been arrested
on marijuana charges. In the year of 2000 alone, 734,498
people were arrested for marijuana violations. Taking
marijuana or any other substance use out of proportion and
doing obvious stupid and unacceptable acts will certainly
and without a doubt have it’s consequences. If the huge
previous mentioned numbers of arrested people were all for
trafficking to minors and students, and driving while under
the influence, then the efforts for the arrest would be fully
and greatly appreciated. Wasting time and money on minor
misdemeanors for under 28 grams seems to be adding to
our economic problem. Keeping the marijuana prohibition
going and penalizing its users costs approximately $7.6
billion per year (that says a lot for itself). The money used for
investigation and prosecution for misdemeanors and minor
marijuana violators could be used elsewhere, perhaps the
DEA could focus on more dangerous aspects of the drug
trade. There is more than one way that marijuana could
help the U.S and world revenue -for instance, the fast food
industry all over the world already gets a financial boost
from different pot smokers everyday. The ‘Miron Report’
estimates that legalizing cannabis would put in $6.2 billion
in annual revenue if taxed, which is more than what alcohol
and tobacco produce.
Speaking of alcohol, some
people believe that if marijuana
were to be legal, then the majority
of consumers would leave the
drinks and take up smoking (if
either hobby are of interest). This
would be a good idea. If more
people were users of marijuana
than consumers of alcohol there
would be less drunk drivers to
cause accidents and deaths and
less alcohol related violence.
Granted, people would be under
the influence of marijuana
instead, but will not be aroused
to the stimulation of fighting OR
driving anywhere, and by law will
still not be allowed to operate
heavy machinery or to drive while
under the influence. Marijuana
effects different people in different
ways. Some have a high tolerance
to THC, some have a low tolerance.
Got Bud?
www.dailybuds.com
Some people feel like staying in,
some feel like being active, and
sometimes it just depends on the
strand of marijuana being smoked.
But, to most smokers (not all) when
under the influence of THC, a feeling
of just wanting to stay put and “chill
for a little bit” takes place. A lot of
good ideas, plans, and creativity
takes place when a person is under
the influence of THC (helping to
put into a deeper trance of thought).
Marijuana has been here naturally
from the beginning, and will remain
with us for the rest of our lives. With
the help of added activist every year,
grad school subject studiers, and
scientist’s revealing more helpful
truth and advantages from the
cannabis plant... the states, and
maybe even the rest of the world
will have one more thing in common
with each other.

KUSH L.A. 47
48 KUSH L.A.
KUSH L.A. 49
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 SMOKE SCREEN
Too hot outside? New and worthy DVDs abound.
by Jim Luksic
Movie theaters are known as cool, dusky respites from the
sweltering summer heat.
During the more oppressive days of July and August, however,
the mere notion of stepping outside is less than tempting: Who
wants to feel like they’re cloaked in damp wool?
If film-going truly is the second-most fun you can have in
the dark, watching DVDs in the sanctity of your home ought to
rank third. In recent weeks, a few big-name pictures – released
at cinemas in the spring – have entered the DVD realm: State of
Play, Watchmen, The Soloist, and I Love You, Man are among this
season’s choices poised to find themselves under your roof.
My favorite of the recent batch is actually a decade old,
its upgraded DVD having resurfaced after slipping out of
circulation. The Last Days of Disco, set in the early 1980s, follows
the nightclub path of freshly minted yuppies: The lovely Kate
Beckinsale, Chloe Sevigny (best known these days for HBO’s Big
Love), Chris Eigeman and Robert Sean Leonard (the sacrificial
lamb in both Dead Poets Society and TV’s House). At first glance,
it may seem filmmaker Whit Stillman is spinning his wheels
in Metropolitan mode, but with Disco he serves up stronger
solutions. It remains a breezy, plausible and insightful meditation
– minus stuffy plot mechanics – about the end of an era.
Fast-forward to the contemporary front and you’ll find other
considerable keepers on the DVD shelves around Los Angeles:
State of Play, a gritty throwback about journalism in the vein
of All the President’s Men, pits Russell Crowe as a gritty reporter,
Rachel McAdams as the upstart blogger and Helen Mirren as
their old-school editor. Primary pursuit: The mysterious death
of a young lady, possibly at the hands of an unfaithful politician
(Ben Affleck). For director Kevin Macdonald, it has been nearly
10 years since the documentary A Brief History of Errol Morris
put him on the map. Now, he again shows a flair for ingrained
artistry, setting up viewers as silent eavesdroppers during staff
meetings about the newspaper’s purpose and its industry’s fate.
The intelligent, chatty narrative tends to meander, but proves
fortifying.
The Soloist marks downtown Los Angeles’ latest spark of
inspiration, the well-chronicled (and oft-delayed) true tale
of Nathaniel Ayers, a gifted musician found on skid row by a
crusading Times columnist. Jamie Foxx portrays the former,
Robert Downey Jr. is the latter, while “indie” favorite Catherine
52 KUSH L.A.
Keener stirs up tension as the scribe’s love interest (“By all means,
don’t take full responsibility.”) Amid the lead actors’ flavorful
friendship, the sentiment soon becomes sugary. Director Joe
Wright, a peculiar choice to traverse L.A. if only because of his
British heritage, conjures up enough images that ring true – even
though he doesn’t know when to quit.
Its title notwithstanding, I Love You, Man needn’t frighten
homophobes: John Hamburg’s worthy comedy about male
bonding amounts to a step up from his modest Along Came
Polly, and is more redolent of his Meet the Parents screenplay.
As the protagonist, Paul Rudd surprisingly demonstrates he’s
capable of carrying a movie, doing the heavy lifting with assists
from Jason Segel (he of Forgetting Sarah Marshall notoriety)
and ubiquitous J.K. Simmons (Burn After Reading, Juno and the
upcoming Extract!). This comedy could’ve been a disaster, but
the sensible-minded Hamburg and his ear for dialogue put its
commodities to good use.
Although wickedly amusing, Watchmen proceeds at a glacial
and repetitious pace, before collapsing at the finish line just
short of three hours. An abbreviated summary of this convoluted
story: A vigilante looks into the murder of an ex-superhero. Billy
Crudup won’t go unnoticed as the massive azure creature Dr.
Manhattan (think Mr. Clean meets Blue Man Group), while
Carla Gugino and Jackie Earle Haley (best remembered from
the original Bad News Bears) labor to lend credence. Director
Zack Snyder’s similar function with Dawn of the Dead (2004
version) should’ve been an agreeable match for Watchmen and,
for the most part, that’s the case. But his interminable take on
comic book heroes was beaten to the punch a year ago, by the
engrossing if equally arduous The Dark Knight.
Jim Luksic has been a professional writer and editor for
20 years, and a film critic for nearly that long -
but nobody has stopped him yet.
 A Marine’s Story Continued from page 12
erans who aren’t as lucky as he is– veterans who are homeless,
without limbs, addicted to drugs and alcohol. Greg is one of the
lucky ones. He actually gets the help he needs to get clean and
deal with his anger.
“Thank God, they (the VA) sent me to counseling,” com-
ments Greg. “I’m more open now. I’m talking. I’m also lucky
because I have a good family.” With the help of his counselor
and his family, Greg stopped smoking and drinking hard liquor.
“I also dumped all my pills. The drugs were bad.”
Greg was, however, secretly smoking marijuana. “What
was my family going to think? I didn’t know about the medical
marijuana movement. I even got arrested for having an ounce
of marijuana. I went to court in my dress uniform which im-
pressed the judge.”
In August 2007, Greg was medically discharged from the
Marines. He started working as an armed guard at a medical
marijuana dispensary. He also started learning about the move-
ment and he even got a medical marijuana card so he didn’t
have to smoke in secret anymore.
Greg’s parents are old-school. They don’t necessarily agree
with the marijuana, but they see the benefits. “The marijuana
helps me to focus, calms my nerves and helps with my anger
management,” he said. “I’m so happy now. I went from taking
seven pills a day, drinking and smoking cigarettes to just smok-
ing medical marijuana and having an occasional glass of wine.
They should provide all the veterans with medical marijuana. I
don’t know where I’d be with out it.”
Currently, Greg runs a collective in North Hollywood. “It
keeps me busy and active,” he said. “When I’m with patients, I
sit there and talk with them. Sometimes talking with a stranger
is easier. I don’t judge. Nobody cares about your background
here. Medical marijuana brings people together.”
In the smoking room, Greg puffs with his patients.“We talk.
People just need to get it out.” He likens it to a group therapy
session.“We all have our demons.”

54 KUSH L.A.
The Glitz the Glam
and the Dark Side

T
he glitz the glam and the dark side of the city.Los particularly useful pain relief medication, as well as its other
Angeles county has the largest number of medicinal known benefits, can have a vastly auspicious effect.
marijuana clinics in the state. We are sitting on the People that currently have a marijuana  prescription  are
forefront of a major awakening. We Angelinos have a unique going to set the stage for a new understanding. Being a script
opportunity to spread the word about legalizing marijuana. holder entitles you to the freedom of procuring, growing,
There are so many everyday people in this city using medicinal smoking and benefiting from the use of marijuana. We, as
marijuana and this writer believes there script holders, are going to show the
is a need for these “everyday” people world what it truly means to be mari-
to speak out on the subject. When the
subject is approached though, it is
An average of 150,000 juana smokers, bringing new aware-
ness of the fact that all people  using
usually met with a disagreeable, if not to 350,000 medical marijuana are not wild, distracted or
unwelcome reaction to the topic. If this dangerous people. We are just everyday
is not the case, then a tone of secrecy and marijuana smokers are citizens  choosing to  alleviate pain via
or a surreptitiousness nature is brushed the use of marijuana. However, this
over the whole conversation. in California according script is not to be misused or taken ad-
I believe that people react this way to City Beat’s 2007 article vantage of. Marijuana is a special
largely from the projection of societal “enlightenment,” in which
views. Common society beliefs see mar- “Card Carrying Smokers.” there are responsibilities
ijuana as a “Gate Way Drug” or a “Evil that need to take place
Drug.” Much of our beliefs are based on These people are those when on or in posses-
historic propaganda, largely formed from sion. Treating it as the true
campaigns starting in the forties and fif- you would not commonly medication it is, we should
ties, hoping to convince people of the
“evils”of smoking marijuana. If the topic
“stereotype” or “label” use it only in times where
we are not going to be
of legalizing, as well as the useful benefits as your normal operating a vehicle or
of both medicinal marijuana and hemp hindering anyone else’s
were more acceptable, people would marijuana users. chosen path. Re-
begin to have  important conversations spect must always
revealing the truth regarding the helpful be given  for
and healing aspects, as well as the distressing factors. There those who do not wish to partake.
is a huge need for honest and open discussion on the usage The most important thing
of marijuana. though,is to teach others about
Conversations need to begin to happen about what it what it truly means to be a
really means to be a marijuana smoker. An average of 150,000 “stoner.”
to 350,000 medical marijuana smokers are in California You may start to won-
according to City Beat’s 2007 article “Card Carrying Smokers.” der how each one of us
These people are those you would not commonly “stereotype” can begin to do our part
or “label” as your normal marijuana users. These everyday as a member of the 420
people do not want to be classified in categories like “Stoner,” Movement. The best way
“pot head” or most notorisly a “drug user.” This fear of being to help is to get the word
labeled keeps people from speaking their minds and shar- out even though many may
ing the wonderful impact marijuana has made in their lives. not want to be a known
This is a new time period of marijuana use and its impact is supporter. If you feel you’re
great. Functional smokers, not displaying the stereotypical ready to voice your option
behavior of a “marijuana smoker,” are around us all the time. or ask those important
I believe that the mentality is moving toward a more sophis- questions Latalkradio.com
ticated realm, bringing more understanding and acceptance is the haven you seek. Just
into the thought process. Understanding that marijuana is a recently a new radio show

56 KUSH L.A.
on Latalkradio.com has become a platform for this move-
ment. At 4:00pm each Friday, from their offices in Studio
City, “The 420 Show” has started to make its mark. Creator
Jamie Simon is host of the famous“Hold em Talk Radio”(8pm
Tuesday to Sunday) as well as “RT”The Twitter Show (Friday
7a.m.). This show has given supporters the chance to come
together on the topic of marijuana. This show includes such
co-hosts as Sheena Metal,  the fantastic talent of Sheena’s
Metal Show on Latalkradio.com on Friday’s following “The
420 Show,” and lastly myself Star Jasmine, co-host of “The
Sam in the Morning Show” (9am every weekday morning).
This venue gives just the right opportunity to expose
an in-depth look at marijuana, bringing people together to
relate their true feelings on the matters of hemp products/
collectives/legalization/medical uses/growing and curing, as
well as the smoking of marijuana. Get ready to share in a
new thought process long over due, a larger and more cor-
rect understanding of a healing plant that has long been
shamefully shunned. It is time to find a new way of thinking,
and of a stronger voice for speaking. All sides are welcome to
call in and communicate/exchange your thoughts and opin-
ions at Latalkradio.com every Friday at 4:00pm PST for the
New “420 Show”

KUSH L.A. 57
KUSH L.A. 59
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60 KUSH L.A.
This Is L.A.
We Know
What We Like.
by S. Donim
W
e like barrel-chested blonde knockouts in our clubs
and hotel lobbies. We like Porches gleaming in front
of coffee shops, free wi-fi, hazy summer Sundays and
fish tacos. We like buying our beer at supermarkets, our weed
at corner pharmacies, and our dogs in carry-on size. But one
thing we never tire of, as a city, is our sports teams whupping
the everloving crap out of our opponents.
Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to introduce your
2009 World Champion Los Angeles Lakers.
This city has a huge man-crush on the Lakers—much
like Boston has about Dennis Leary, but more so. Next time
you’re driving, take a look around. Not only do you see the
Laker flags waving by the dozens on the 405, but there’s also
the decals, the pennants, the Kobe jerseys duct-taped to the
back windows. Purple and Gold have become mandatory
uniform around here—even the 105 lb. girls with the table-
saucer sunglasses are rocking the uni.
I actually saw a low-rider bouncing with every
championship banner hand-painted on its side. It was like
the ghetto victory parade, all by itself.
But it’s more than that. The love is deeper.
You talk to the 105 lb. girl, and she’ll throw stats at you.
The low-riding driver will discuss our chances at resigning
Lamar Odom, and the clerk at the Coffee Bean will let you
know, forcibly, that Shannon Brown should be our full-time
backup point guard. This city is invested.
So it’s only fitting that when the Lakers won it all, we
partied like L.A. should.
Once the final horn sounded, I threw my lady-friend into
the car (“you are NOT missing this”) and booked it down
to the Staples Center, my own twin flags flying proud over
my black Saturn, matching my alternative black Kobe uni,
two sizes too big. We couldn’t make it to the first stoplight
without getting honked and screamed at. Even on the 10
freeway, fans were coming together, looking for others to
share in the glory while driving 70 into the night.
Once we exited off on Grand, things went
as expected. Dudes were
running into the streets,
We like buying our beer at supermarkets, our
weed at corner pharmacies, and our dogs in
carry-on size. But one thing we never tire of,
as a city, is our sports teams whupping the
everloving crap out of our opponents.
horns never stopped blaring (including my own), and the cars
that could burn out their back tires did so with gusto. The traffic
circled around Staples at a crawl, and for the first time, no one
cared that it was jammed. The music blasted in an impromptu
street festival, in the middle of traffic. We all shouted “Yeah!
Yeah! Lakerrrrrs!”for absence of a better way to convey our true
feelings.
It was manic, joyous, scary. It was a coronation, it was
unpredictable, and it was absolutely perfect.
The next Wednesday, my buddy and I packed up his Prius
in our full Lakers ensemble - talk about L.A.! - and booked it
to the Coliseum for the parade. We left a little late, and were
turned away at the gates, having been bested by 100,000 fans
who had their schedule more together than we. But that hardly
stopped the celebration. The remaining overflow took to the
streets, sang, drank, danced, and barbecued while the cheers of
the attendees flowed through the air.
It was the best time I ever had not attending an event.
For those few moments, driving around and around the
Staples center and cheering outside the Coliseum with our
brethren, the past six years became crystal clear to us Laker
fans. Together, as a fan base, we were unceremoniously booted
out of the Finals (twice), we tasted 100 proof mediocrity, we lost
one franchise player to Miami and nearly lost the other one to
the Clippers. Slowly, the young, inexperienced roster earned its
stripes, hit its shots, and began showing its teeth. We had come
a long way, and the city knew it.
Now, “NBA champion Pau Gasol” is throwing out the first
pitch at the Dodger game, all seven feet of him standing atop
the pitcher’s mound like the freaking Space Needle. Gotta say,
it feels good.
Not to say there aren’t haters out there. In honesty, the Lakers
could be the most polarizing franchise in sports. Recently, at the
NBA draft, when Commissioner David Stern congratulated Los
Angeles on their victory, all of Madison Square Garden let out
the pent-up boos that they’ve been storing through their harsh
winters and heat rash-inducing sauna summers.
But for the fans that ride through L.A., there was no sweeter a
feeling than seeing this city come together for its team. It was like
aVIP holiday - a jubilee for L.A. and L.A. alone. And that’s the way
it should be.
Let the haters be bitter…even Spike Lee became a
Kobe fan eventually.
KUSH L.A. 61
62 KUSH L.A.
LBOC inc.
A patient’s collective for patient compassion
HOURS:
Mon - Sat 10am - 10pm
Sunday 11am - 7pm

851 Pine Ave. in Downtown Long Beach

Phone: (562) 495-2000
Recognition for New Patients and Patient Referrals
KUSH L.A. 63
Clean Green
Third party certification programs bring a measure
of product saftey to the growing of medical cannabis
as well as compliance with state laws.
by Chris Van Hook
As many people in the health Industries are aware, the USDA
has established an Organic Program to begin the certification of
agricultural products claiming to be“Organic.”This certification
process was conducted by companies who had shown enough
education, experience, and expertise to become accredited by
the USDA to issue Organic Certifications to crop producers
and processor/handlers. The goal of the program was and
continues to be, to monitor the growing methods, the inputs
used during production, and to verify the safe handling of
agricultural products claiming the Organic status.
Many in the medical cannabis industry saw the importance
of an organic, certified medicine for patients with compromised
immune systems, or for those who did not want synthetic
chemical based fertilizers and sprays used on their medicine. In
response to requests for a USDA Organic Certification of their
medical cannabis, the USDA issued a decision that “Medical
Cannabis was not eligible for USDA Organic certification
as it was not a federally recognized agricultural product.”
This rejection by the USDA was a disappointment but not
a complete set back for the medical cannabis community.
64 KUSH L.A.
Soon thereafter, medical cannabis community leaders and
forward thinkers requested that a parallel third party
certification program be set up to address the
needs of a safer medicine. Leading this push for a
certified medicine was Liz McDuffie. It was her
encouragement that lead to the development
of the only unconflicted third party certification
program available today for the medical cannabis
community. The program is called the “Clean
Green Certified” program and it is available to
both growers and handlers alike.
The Clean Green Program is based on
many of the same cornerstones of the
USDA Organic program, which for
growers are:
1). A review of all of the inputs
(fertilizers and sprays) used in the growing
of the certified medicine.
2). An environmental component requiring
that the medicine be grown in a sustainable

manner, minimizing environmental
impacts.
3). An annual on-site inspection of the
growing area, to verify that what the
applicant states they do, they in fact are
doing. This includes a full inspection
of their input cabinet, the taking of labels
for off-site product review where necessary,
as well as verification that the handling and
processing is being done in a safe and proper
manner.
After the on-site inspection, all of the
necessary records and documentation
is taken back to the Clean Green
office for another review to determine
the compliance of all inputs and procedures.
If approved for certification, the grower
receives a complete binder with a certificate.
All records and documentation are returned
to the grower for their safe keeping. No
records of the applicant are retained by the Clean Green staff.
Again, as under the USDA Organic program, handlers
(dispensaries) must also be certified to ensure that proper
safeguards are being taken while under the control of the
handler. These requirements include:
1). An application filled out explaining the handling and
tracking of product through the facility.
2). An on-site inspection verifying that the facility has the
ability to do what it was they said they are doing in the
application.
3). Mock tracking of product exercises to review the facilities
ability to monitor medicine into and out of the facility.
4). An inspection of the facilities cleanliness, and medicine
handling procedures.
5). The overall safety, cleanliness, and proper location of
the facility, as well as policies and procedures in place to
effectively screen their membership applications and to
verify member recommendations.
After the on-site inspection, any documentation and
applications are again taken back to the Clean Green main
office for an independent review, and if all is acceptable, a
complete binder is sent to the operation.
The binder includes a certificate, a compliance report
if applicable, the application and any documentation taken
during the on-site inspection for independent review off site.
As with the grower certification process, all applications and
documentation are returned to the certified operation.
In addition to the verification of the above items, the
KUSH L.A. 65
 a licensed California attorney familiar with both the medical
cannabis industry, as well as State and local laws. The on-site
inspection provides a safe opportunity for a grower, or handler,
to have an attorney walk through their facility with an eye for
compliance issues. It also provides an excellent opportunity
for a grower or handler to ask any questions, or to have any
documents they want to be reviewed looked at. For a handler/
dispensary it also provides an extra level of protection by
requesting that all of their grower/members become certified. In
this manner, a dispensary is contracting out to an unconflicted
third party that their member/growers are compliant with State
and local law and growing their medicine in a safe and proper
manner.
In today’s climate of changing laws and regulations
regarding the growing and dispensing of medical cannabis, a
third party certification program is one more way for growers
and dispensaries to stay ahead of the curve, and to further
differentiate themselves from operations that are clearly not
compliant.
Chris Van Hook Attorney at Law
P.O. Box 1394 ∙ Crescent City,
California 95531
Ph. (707) 218-6979
California State Bar No. 243550

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page 39

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 MY OPINION
by Jack LeBlanc
Party Like It’s 1999
I’ll never forget the first time I saw the music video for
Eminem’s “My Name Is” ten years ago. I chuckled as I
watched a bleached-blond goofball in a white t-shirt
bash everyone from the Spice Girls to his junior high
English teacher.
As I tried to wrap my brain around this new
model of Ritalin-fueled rap, I never in my wildest
dreams imagined that ten years later I’d still be
trying to figure out the real Slim Shady.
While his home town of Detroit has suffered,
the Real Slim Shady has flourished. After ten
years, countless controversies and numerous
breaks, Eminem is still on his game, topping the
U.S. album charts after a four year hiatus with his
sixth studio album “Relapse.”
And he’s not the only artist making a
comeback this summer.
If nothing else, this summer seems to
be a “remember us?” for those artists topping
the charts in the months before y2k. But,
have these artists gotten better with time, or
worse? Ten years later, are they reinventing
themselves and pushing the envelope, or
are these old farts still partying like it’s
1999?
68 KUSH L.A.
311: “Uplifter”
Back in the day, the veteran rockers were at the height of their
cult stardom, releasing “Soundsystem,” to professional and fan
praises. Propelled by the single “Come Original,” 311 reached
the apex of its commercial success.
After releasing “Evolver” to marginal success in 2003 and
“Don’t Tread on Me” to outright disappointment in 2005, many
began looking at 311 as a 90s band, but the guys weren’t quite
ready to retire.
The band took a break following “Don’t Tread on Me,” and
is trying to regain the trust or fans and critics alike with their
newest effort, “Uplifter.” Released on June 2, the album blends
a variety of styles from reggae to rock to hip hop to create a
true summer soundtrack, but I couldn’t help but be a little
disappointed by the simplistic lyrical content.
The first single from the album, “Hey y you”,
ou”, has been
playing on radio stations throughout the country since April
and has received mixed reactions from critics and fans. The
catchy tune is a summer hit, but will not garner the success of
“Come Original”
The album falls well short of anything released pre-2000,
but it’s a lot better than anything that came after.
The verdict: Better in ‘99.
Incubus: “Monuments and Melodies”
Back in ’99 the guys were riding the success of their break-out
album “SCIENCE” and preparing for the mainstream success
that came with “Make y yourself,” released in October
1999.
Ten years later, Incubus released its
first greatest hits album “Monuments and
Melodies” on June 16 following a year-
long hiatus. The two-disc album features
13 previously released singles from
past studio albums along with two
new tracks, “Black Heart Inertia” and
“Midnight Swim.” Also included
are rarities, including B-sides,
soundtrack cuts, alternate versions,
three previously unreleased songs,
and a cover of Prince’s “Let’s Go
Crazy”.
While the new songs may
not gain the commercial success
that hits like “Privilege” and
“Pardon Me” did in ’99, they are
nonetheless pretty damn good.
“Black Heart Inertia”peaked at #8
on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks
chart, the band’s fifteenth Top 10
track.
 Overall, the album is a decent Jack LeBlanc is a 21 freelance writer from south Louisiana. He’s currently trying to
representation of the band’s work. My figure out what to do with his life and is open to suggestions. If 6 turned
main complaint is that early albums out to be 9, I wouldn’t mind. Blog: www.if6wasnine.wordpress.com
“Fungus Amongus” and “Science” seem
a little underrepresented, but the songs
on these albums weren’t really “hits” in
the first place.
The progression from song to
song is weak, but that is expected on a
greatest hits album. Great b-sides and
rarities like “Look Alive,” “Pantomime”
and an acoustic version of “A Certain
Shade of Green” round out a pretty
decent greatest hits album.
The verdict: The best of ’99 and ’09
all on one album.
The Dave Matthews Band: Big
Whiskey and the GrooGrux King
Back in the summer of ’99, Dave and
the guys took part in the Woodstock
‘99 concert and then released their
third live album, “Listener Supported.”
The band was nominated for two more
Grammy’s, marking the band’s 6th and
7th nomination before 2000.
Their newest album, Big Whiskey
and the the GrooGrux king, was
released on June 2, 2009, coinciding with
a supporting summer tour, slated to run
through early October.
The album is the first without the
late saxophonist LeRoi Moore, who died
unexpectedly in August 2008 following
an ATV accident on his farm near
Charlottesville, Virginia.
Matthews, who did the cover
artwork for the album, portrays Moore
as a giant laughing head on a Mardi
Gras float, and Moore’s saxophone solos
mark the bookends and the beginning
and end of the album.
On this album, the band seems
to turn it up a notch and the drums
and bass just seem a little louder. The
strengthened backbone keeps Matthews
wandering voice on track, and the result
is one of my favorite DMB albums.
“Lying in the Hands of God”strongly
recalls the band’s earlier ballads, while
“Why I Am” showcases renewed energy
in the percussion section and some
bright horns.
The verdict: Good in ’99, better
in ‘09

KUSH L.A. 69
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 Prohibition Continued from page 10
the law was unenforceable in the long run. There were thousands
of speakeasies (bars that sold liquor illegally) in New York City
alone, and nowhere near enough police or funds available to
combat the distribution and consumption of alcohol. Fourth, it
instigated a massive wave of gang violence, think Al Capone,
that destabilized whole cities and took the lives of many innocent
people. Finally, the amendment became extremely unpopular
and ultimately served to undermine the government’s moral
standing in the public’s eye.
The Great Depression so greatly reduced the state’s ability
to enforce prohibition, while it simultaneously made lawmakers
desperate to find any taxable asset, that the law was quickly
repealed under the administration of President Franklin Delano
Roosevelt. In an open letter to Congress, industrialist John D.
Rockefeller stated, “When Prohibition was introduced, I hoped
that it would be widely supported by public opinion and the
day would soon come when the evil effects of alcohol would be
recognized. I have slowly and reluctantly come to believe that
this has not been the result. Instead, drinking has generally
increased; the speakeasy has replaced the saloon; a vast army
of lawbreakers has appeared; many of our best citizens have
openly ignored Prohibition; respect for the law has been greatly
lessened; and crime has increased to a level never seen before.”
Prohibition clearly didn’t work, and there’s not a soul who
would dispute that. If our nation’s current drug policies are this
strikingly similar to the failed policies of the past, how can our
government expect different results? How long are we going to
allow illogical, ineffective and unenforceable pot laws to continue
in this country?

72 KUSH L.A.
KUSH L.A. 79
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80 KUSH L.A.
KUSH L.A. 81