Modern Culture

I spent my morning in a psychedelic library…

The fact that the library has been sitting right under my nose… without me knowing about it? A marriage of passion, hard work… and devotion to a craft… is all about hanging out with humans in person, inside the same room… while talking about mushrooms [and psychedelics, entheogens, ethnobotanicals and other substances including integration practices]. Original…

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Biography/Memoir

Cannabis industry groups merge… Oregon…

Two major trade and lobbying groups for Oregon’s cannabis industry are merging… The Oregon Cannabis Association and the Cannabis Industry Alliance of Oregon said… the boards of each group unanimously voted to merge the trade associations, effective immediately. The newly merged Cannabis Industry Alliance of Oregon represents more than 500 member businesses in the state’s…

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Psychology

…effort to address… Oregon…

Oregon no longer ranks as the top state in the nation when it comes to rate of substance use disorder and lack of access to treatment, according to the most recent national survey data… Insite [safe injection site] remains open after Supreme Court of Canada dismisses federal government appeal… in a unanimous ruling, the Supreme…

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Biography/Memoir

California Governor Gavin Newsom [vetoes] cannabis cafes…

California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed… A.B. 374, which would have authorized Amsterdam-style cannabis cafés. …would have expanded the options for California residents and visitors who want to consume cannabis in a social setting. The bill, which passed the Legislature last month by a 66–9 vote in the Assembly and a 34–3 vote in the Senate,…

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Biography/Memoir

US Presidential candidate… says legal psychedelic therapy should be paid for with universal healthcare system

Marianne Williamson, a 2024 Democratic presidential candidate, says the federal government should “fully legalize” certain psychedelics like psilocybin for therapeutic use and cover the costs for patients under a universal healthcare system. “In states where psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy has been legalized, it is still so costly that many cannot afford it. We cannot allow cost to impede…

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Spirituality

Muslim women and psychedelics: a look at the past, present, and future

…the use of psychedelics falls somewhere in between social acceptance and outright prohibition among Muslim communities… and cultural perceptions of the psychedelic plant Peganum harmala. …the present study explores the historical as well as the current perspective on the use of plant medicine in Muslim communities and cultures, specifically focusing on Sufism… Original Article (Springer):Muslim…

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Politics

God, magic mushroom, and me

As Priest positioned himself on a sofa, Richards asked, “How do you feel?” “I’m a little nervous,” Priest told Richards, who held a degree in theology and was an ordained minister. Richards said with a smile, “You’re about to meet God.” He offered Priest a tablet of psilocybin in a chalice, as if it were…

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Spirituality

Judaism’s psychedelic…

My introduction to the intersection of psychedelics and Judaism came some five years before that best-ever Purim. The energy of Purim alone is enough to engender a psychedelic experience; but as we are commanded, substances like alcohol – or trippier substitutes – are an integral part of the program. I started to feel the blessed…

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Politics

…SAFER banking to aid cannabis businesses

Oregon cannabis sales have totaled nearly $6 billion since the fall of 2016, according to data from the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission. Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum… joined a coalition of 22 Attorneys General in urging congressional leaders to advance the SAFER Banking Act of 2023, which passed out of the Senate Banking Committee… and…

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