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Weeks in 2008 edit
- Week 10
Mary Jane Rathbun(December 22, 1922 – April 10, 1999), popularly known as Brownie Mary, was an American medical cannabis activist. As a hospital volunteer at San Francisco General Hospital, she became known for illegally baking and distributing cannabis brownies to AIDS patients. Along with activist Dennis Peron, Rathbun lobbied for the legalization of cannabis for medical use, and she helped pass San Francisco Proposition P (1991) and California Proposition 215 (1996) to achieve those goals. She also contributed to the establishment of the San Francisco Cannabis Buyers Club, the first medical cannabis dispensary in the United States. Rathbun was arrested on three occasions, with each arrest bringing increased local, national, and international media attention to the medical cannabis movement. Her grandmotherly appearance generated public sympathy for her cause and undermined attempts by the district attorney's office to prosecute her for possession. The City of San Francisco eventually gave Rathbun permission to distribute cannabis brownies to people with AIDS. Her arrests generated interest in the medical community and motivated researchers to propose one of the first clinical trials to study the effects of cannabinoids in HIV-infected adults.
- Week 11
"420" is the 12th episode of the seventh season of the animated comedy series Family Guy. It premiered on Fox in the United States on April 19, 2009. The title of the episode is a reference to the term "420" used in cannabis culture; "420" premiered the day before April 20 (4/20), on which a counterculture holiday is celebrated centering around the consumption of cannabis. "420" focuses on the character Brian after he is arrested for drug possession, which prompts him to launch a campaign to legalize cannabis with help from Stewie; the liveliness of their campaign convinces Mayor West to legalize the drug, and most of Quahog's population begins using it. The episode was written by Patrick Meighan and directed by Julius Wu. While it received positive reception from critics for its storyline and cultural references, it generated controversy from the Venezuelan government for its topic and received criticism from the Parents Television Council during a rerun. According to Nielsen ratings, it was viewed in 7.40 million homes in its original airing. The episode featured guest performances by Phil LaMarr and Kerrigan Mahan, along with several recurring guest voice actors for the series.
- Week 13
Cannabis in Oregon relates to a number of legislative, legal, and cultural events surrounding use of cannabis (marijuana, hashish, THC, kief, etc.). Oregon was the first U.S. state to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of cannabis, and among the first to authorize its use for medical purposes. An attempt to recriminalize possession of small amounts of cannabis was turned down by Oregon voters in 1997. From 1999 through 2005, the ratio of Oregonians using cannabis outpaced the general United States population by 32–45%. In surveys conducted in 1974 and 1975—one and two years after decriminalization—it was found that 2% of respondents said they did not use marijuana or cannabis because they were unavailable, 4% for legal or law enforcement reasons, 53% reported lack of interest, and 23% cited health dangers. The remaining 19% were using or had used it at one time. In 2012, the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act, an initiative to allow personal marijuana and hemp cultivation and use without a license was defeated in a state ballot.
- Week 18
"She Shoulda Said 'No'!" (also known as Wild Weed; Marijuana, the Devil's Weed; The Story of Lila Leeds and Her Exposé of the Marijuana Racket; and The Devil's Weed) is a 1949 exploitation film that follows in the spirit of morality tales such as the 1936 films Reefer Madness and Marihuana. Directed by Sam Newfield (using the pseudonym "Sherman Scott") and starring Lila Leeds, it was originally produced to capitalize on the arrest of Leeds and Robert Mitchum on a charge of marijuana conspiracy. The film was issued under many titles; it struggled to find a distributor until film presenter Kroger Babb picked up the rights, reissuing it as The Story of Lila Leeds and Her Exposé of the Marijuana Racket. Its relative success came only after the promotional posters were redone and a story fabricated that the film was being presented in conjunction with the United States Treasury. "She Shoulda Said 'No'!" was not well-received critically upon its initial release, but the film achieved some attention due to its B movie status over the years, being featured in a number of film compilations while continuing to focus on the salacious material as a selling point.
- Week 19
Medical cannabis refers to the use of the drug cannabis as a physician-recommended herbal therapy, most notably as an antiemetic.
There are many studies regarding the use of cannabis in a medicinal context. Cannabis was listed in the United States Pharmacopeia from 1850 until 1942. The United States federal government does not currently recognize any legitimate medical use, although there are currently seven patients receiving cannabis for their various illnesses through the Compassionate Investigational New Drug program that was closed to new patients in 1991 by the George H. W. Bush administration. Francis L. Young, an administrative law judge with the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, in 1988, declared that "in its natural form, [cannabis] is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known." However, smoked cannabis is today not approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Twelve state laws currently allow for the medicinal use of cannabis but the United States Supreme Court has later ruled that the federal government has the right to regulate and criminalize marijuana also in these states, even for medical purposes.
- Week 20
A gravity bong is a method of consuming smokable substances such as cannabis and tobacco. The term describes both a bucket bong and a waterfall bong, since both use gravity and water to develop smoke. The bucket bong is made out of two containers, with the larger, open top container filled with water. The smaller has an attached bowl and open bottom, and the smaller is placed into the larger. Once the bowl is lit, the operator must move the small container up, causing a pressure difference. Smoke slowly fills the small jar until the user removes the bowl and inhales the contents. A waterfall bong is made up of only one container. The container must have a bowl and a small hole near the base so the water can drain easily. As the water flows out of the container, air is forced through the bowl and causes the substance to burn and accumulate smoke in the bong. The bong is typically used for smoking cannabis and is generally not recommended for smoking tobacco or other herbal substances. The bong is, however, often marketed for use of tobacco. Internationally, the sale of gravity bongs is often prohibited in countries where marijuana is illegal due to its association with the herb.
- Week 21
"Medicinal Fried Chicken" is the third episode of the fourteenth season of the American animated television series South Park, and the 198th episode of the series overall. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on March 31, 2010. In the episode, the South Park KFC is replaced by a medicinal marijuana dispensary, and Cartman gets involved in black market selling the KFC chicken. Meanwhile, Randy Marsh gets a medical referral for marijuana by giving himself testicular cancer, which makes his testicles grow to grotesquely huge proportions. "Medicinal Fried Chicken" was first broadcast when Colorado was considering revising state medicinal marijuana laws and restricting fast food eateries. The episode provided social commentary against both types of laws, and suggested legislating lifestyle choices is ineffective and inevitably leads to black markets. The concept of a former KFC restaurant becoming a medicinal marijuana store mirrors that of a real life dispensary in Palms, Los Angeles, designed to resemble a KFC. "Medicinal Fried Chicken" received generally positive reviews, with many commentators praising the social commentary and sophomoric testicle jokes alike. According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by 2.99 million viewers, making it one of the most successful cable programs of the week.