|
|
|
Steve Speaks
Wellness and Recreation
By Stephen DeAngelo, Co-Founder and Executive Director
My brother and I have gotten ourselves in trouble again. This time was during our recent whirlwind publicity tour in New York City, to promote Weed Wars. We faced a line-up of heavy TV hitters like Bill O'Reilly and Dr. Drew- neither of whom is exactly friendly towards medical cannabis. And, of course, even though our mission is dedicated to medical cannabis, we got the inevitable question: "Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes?"
Our answer, which we delivered with varying degrees of effectiveness, was that it is not our mission to advocate for the legalization of cannabis for recreational purposes. In fact, we don't really believe that cannabis consumers do- or should-use cannabis as a form of recreation.
Recreation is something you do, not something you ingest. You cannot smoke recreation, or swallow it, or rub it on your skin. It is an experience, not a commodity. The act of ingesting cannabis does not in itself produce recreation. It can produce relaxation, and thereby facilitate a transition from the world of work to a recreational experience. Or it can help manage pain or anxiety or nausea, and thereby enable recreational activities that might otherwise be impossible. But the ingestion of cannabis alone is not sufficient; some other additional step is required to attain recreation.
Read Full Article
back to top
|
 |
Andrew's Bullhorn
A humorous meditation on all things Harborside...
By Andrew DeAngelo, General Manager, Harborside Oakland
The Brothers Take a Bite
About three weeks ago I got an email from Gaynell Rogers, our amazing publicist. The message said: You and Steve will be going to New York City to appear on The O'Reilly Factor and do other media appearances to promote Weed Wars.
I jumped out of my chair with excitement. I did a little dance in front of my computer. I laughed out loud and pumped my fists. I knew I'd worked hard shooting Weed Wars, but I didn't know how big a part I would have until I got this email. If they were sending me to NYC along with my brother... man, I must have hit the big time!
I ran into my brother's office. He had a big grin on his face as he munched a gingerbread 20-dose edible. Steve has always taken to strong medicine and, with Harborside and all our patient vendors, strong medicine is easy to get. "Did you see the email from Gaynell?" I asked. "Yeah, Bro," he said. "It's going to be a great trip!" We embraced and looked at each other in such a way that no more words needed to be said. I turned around and went back to my desk. Read Full Article
|
|
|
Cannaseur Corner
Rick Pfrommer, Purchasing Manager, Harborside Oakland
Before Steve Deangelo even opened Harborside, he recognized the need for medical cannabis to be tested. He contacted all of the testing labs in the Bay Area and couldn't find any that would test cannabis. When Fred Gardner from O'Shaughnessy'sJournal introduced David Lampach and Addison DeMoura to Steve, they all realized they had been onto the same idea. Steve came to tell me about it in a state of extreme excitement, recognizing yet again the advent of an innovation that would fundamentally change the medical cannabis industry- first in California, and ultimately, the rest of the world. With his guidance, Steep Hill Lab was born. The concept of testing cannabis suddenly moved from the conceptual to the concrete.
What Steep Hill proposed and Harborside helped facilitate was nothing short of revolutionary. Four years later, what began as an idea has rapidly become the norm for any legitimate medical cannabis dispensary. Now a new innovation from Steep Hill, developed along with Harborside Health Center, is poised to revolutionize the medical cannabis industry once again. Instant-well, almost instant-testing for THC is now happening. Steep Hill has produced a testing unit that allows for cannabinoid analysis to happen right in the dispensary. The newly named QuantaCann™ cannabis analyzer brings a host of new abilities. Read Full Article
|
|
PARC Action
The latest on news from Harborside's Patient Activist Resource Center
 
Harborside's community efforts in Oakland and San Jose are in full swing, and extremely successful. This month alone, we've dropped off over 750 coats, jackets and blankets to various churches and homeless shelters-including the City Team Ministries Shelter, Re-Generations Church, and East Oakland Community Project. If you know of a church or shelter that could use clothing, please tell our Ombuds Department and we will make a donation happen. And remember, every item brought into Harborside Oakland gets a ticket for our raffl e on December 30, when we will award over an ounce of cannabis!
Earlier this month, the American Red Cross brought their bloodmobile to Harborside Oakland, and we held our fi rst Community Blood Drive-Harborside San Jose actually led the way with community blood drives after it opened two years ago. Harborside Oakland was able to assist Red Cross in collecting over 25 pints of blood. This is a crucial effort that directly saves lives; everyone who came and donated, got informed or just chatted, should be very proud of themselves! Look out for more coordinated Harborside blood drives in the future.
Throughout winter, Harborside Oakland and San Jose will continue to support our communities with these efforts, as well as involvement in neighborhood/park cleanups and homeless shelter dinners. These service projects will be ongoing, so look out for opportunities to be involved!
Finally, we would like to commend the brave actions of two governors for our movement. Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire (a Democrat) and Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee (a Republican turned Independent) have asked the federal government to remove cannabis from the Schedule I section of the Controlled Substances Act. Cannabis is currently classifi ed by the federal government as a Schedule I controlled substance, which has "no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States." There is overwhelming evidence to the contrary, and these two state governors have taken the necessary steps to reverse this ignorant policy. In California, we should all let Governor Jerry Brown know that we want him to join Governors Gregoire and Chafee in this battle, and put California on the frontline along with Washington and Rhode Island. Please visit the Harborside Patient Activist Resource Center to help focus a campaign to encourage Governor Brown's alliance.
Again, we would like to send a big "thank you" to everyone who has donated any of their goods, blood, time or participation in any aspect of our current drives and support for the movement. Our volunteer efforts- which are so vital to Harborside's mission-positively
affect our community, and fortify the medical cannabis industry at large.
Happy Holidays!
- Sugam Soni, Ombudsman,HHC Oakland |
JB's product pick of the month:
Cold Water Bubble Hash
Water-processed hash, commonly referred to as "cold water hash," is the most popular cannabis concentrate we see at Harborside Health Center. Cold Water Bubble Hash is a concentrated form of cannabis that contains less plant matter and therefore, typically has a higher percentage of THC and CBD than its originating flowers. To make cold water hash, plant material is agitated with cold water and ice. The resulting slurry is passed through an increasingly smaller set of silkscreens. Amongst the cold water we have several different designations. "Full melt hash" does exactly that; it melts into a liquid under heat. "Bubble hash" will bubble but not melt completely. Hash will burn but not bubble or melt, although it can still have a high percentage of THC.
Cold Water Bubble Hash theoretically allows patients to consume a small amount of medicine in order to feel the same effects as they would by smoking flowers of the same strain. Often this means that a patient might smoke less actual product or just smoke less often. And because Harborside always strives to obtain the highest grade concentrates at reasonable prices, patients can always find a good deal for their pocketbook. Next time you're at Harborside and looking at one of our medicine display cases; don't pass up on those small concentrate containers next to the "top shelf" meds. With prices sometimes as low as $10 per gram, you can always find your next best value at Harborside Health Center!
Candy Apple Bubble |
|
Volunteers step up fight against IRS attack on Harborside
By now we've all heard that Harborside owes the IRS $2.4 million in back taxes. It was even the main storyline of one of the Weed Wars episodes! This astronomical number came from the IRS after they decided that medical cannabis dispensaries-unlike all other businesses-could not deduct standard expenses like rent, insurance and payroll. It's a determination made by the federal government that essentially equates the distribution of medical cannabis to the actions of trafficking cocaine cartels. This incorrectly appointed tax code threatens the existence of safe, regulated and nonprofit health centers like Harborside, and the safe access of medicine for all patients. To correct this injustice, Harborside is leading the way for the fair taxation of our industry. With the help of many volunteers within our team, joined by hundreds of others from across the country, the 280e Reform Campaign is well under way.
Our goal is to protect safe access to our patients at all costs. But this isn't an easy fight and we need the continued support from all of you. You can help by simply talking to friends and family about the benefits medical cannabis has had on your life, or by jumping online and donating to the cause. Every dollar helps us pay for educational material, professional lobbyists, advertising and so much more. This is going to be an ongoing fight-but we feel confident we're poised to win.
Each Friday we hold a weekly conference call so that all interested parties from across the country can get an update on our progress.
You can attend the call by dialing 209.647.1000 and entering password 154639 at 12pm each Friday.
Come on-join the
Reform for Safe Access
and FAIR taxes!
www.280eReform.org
- Greta Carter, Project Manager,
280e Reform Campaign
|
|
|
|
|
|
