Weekend News Update
There were some interesting stories that came out the last few days. Did you know US cannabis related companies are looking north for investment opportunities since the federal government is dragging their feet on this new industry opportunity. It looks as Canada is willing to fill the gap.
Banned from Wall Street, US cannabis companies go north
By Aaron Smith
MedMen, a Los Angeles-based chain of marijuana dispensaries, can’t trade on Wall Street because cannabis is illegal in its home country.
So it listed in Canada.
MedMen started trading this week on the Canadian Securities Exchange, or CSE.
They’re not alone. US cannabis companies are heading north to list on stock exchanges in Canada, where there’s no federal ban on marijuana sales. Medical marijuana is legal there, and the country is in the process of legalizing recreational marijuana, too.
It’s a two-way street. Some Canadian cannabis companies have come south to list on Wall Street exchanges, because they’re not subject to the same restrictions that keep US pot growers away.
In the US, medical marijuana is legal in 30 states, and recreational is legal in 10. But US cannabis companies can’t list on US stock exchanges or even get basic financial services, because marijuana is prohibited by the federal government. Read more here.
It looks like one of the largest illegal markets in the world is trying to legitimize it’s industry. Hopefully, their approach will open more doors for cannabis to reintegrate with societies around the world. It would be interesting to see what a legal dispensary in the Middle East operates.
Researchers in Lebanon Hope to Study Medical Benefits of Cannabis
By Burgess Powell
Lebanon is one of the world’s top illegal weed producers. Now, one of its major universities will be studying medical marijuana.
The Lebanese American University will be the first university in Lebanon to study medical marijuana. This week, the university president announced the foundation of the Medicinal Cannabis Research Center. Joseph G. Jabbra put forth big plans for medical marijuana research and de-stigmatization, suggesting it could bolster the national economy. Here’s a look at the university’s plans, and why Lebanese marijuana may be some of the best in the world.
The Unique Benefits of Lebanese Hash
According to the BBC, Lebanon’s marijuana industry is worth $4 billion. This makes it the fifth-largest cannabis marketplace in the world. Not only is it big business, Lebanon is internationally recognized for producing the world’s best hash. It has a climate perfectly suited for growing, and Lebanese hash makers use tried-and-true harvesting and refining methods.
According to the Lebanese American University, the region’s marijuana is resistant to severe heat and drought. It is thought that cannabis produces more THC when subjected to environmental stressors. Read more here.
Where is the line in the sand? The NCAA should not force students to choose between playing a sport or their individual health. Talent is talent. Haven’t we ruined enough lives by limiting opportunities for our youth in the name of cannabis prohibition?
A football recruit uses medical cannabis for epilepsy. He says it cost him a roster spot
By Jacob Bogage
A Georgia high school football player who takes medically prescribed cannabis oil to treat epilepsy was denied a spot on the Auburn football team after coaches told his family the medication violated NCAA rules.
C.J. Harris, a defensive back and linebacker at Warner Robins High School, had his first seizure as a seventh grader in 2013 and didn’t have another until three years later, when he was in high school, he told the Macon Telegraph in May. But when the episodes returned, he’d sometimes have multiple seizures each month.
Doctors prescribed Keppra, an anticonvulsion medicine, but the substance made Harris irritable and a missed dose could result in more episodes. Harris soon switched to cannabis oil, which he squirts beneath his tongue with a syringe and waits for it to dissolve. He takes a dose every six hours. He hasn’t had a seizure since, he told the Telegraph.
The substance is legal in Georgia for patients on a state registry. It is also legal in Alabama, where Auburn is located. But the NCAA bans consumption of marijuana or THC, the plant’s active chemical, and does not have a medical exemption for the substance, which it classifies in its drug-testing handbook as an “illicit drug.” Read more here.
H/T: CNN, High Times, Washington Post