Join Nydia Swaby as she answers this week's question: Does marijuana cause lung cancer? Have you considered signing up for our free emails? We'll keep you up to date on the latest breaking marijuana-related news nationwide.

Just one day before Michigan voters overwhelmingly approved their state’s medical marijuana ballot measure, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) falsely claimed that there are currently 98 medical marijuana dispensaries operating in downtown San Francisco. After drawing attention to the ONDCP’s boldface lie here on our blog, I decided to check in with San Francisco’s Health Department – the agency responsible for licensing medical marijuana facilities within the city. Sure…

A news story from a Bend, Oregon TV station bears the alarming headline, "Medical Marijuana's Link to Crime." As this is becoming a recurring subgenre of local news stories, it bears some comment. The gist of this and similar stories is that sometimes people who possess or grow medical marijuana get robbed. Well, sure. So do people who possess other items of value -- jewelry, cars, high-end electronics, etc. For example, 1995 Honda Civics were the most-stolen vehicle in 2007 according to the National…

Yesterday we told you about a bizarre new anti-marijuana ad campaign from the increasingly beleaguered shop of White House drug czar John Walters. Well, to paraphrase Alice in Wonderland, things just get curiouser and curiouser. It turns out the ad agency that put the new ads together is an outfit called McKinney. And according to McKinney's Web site, one of the agency's clients is Southern Comfort, a brand of liquor -- a drug that's not only more addictive than marijuana, it's vastly more toxic…

On Nov. 4, voters spectacularly rejected eight years of the most intense government war on marijuana since the days of "Reefer Madness," led by outgoing White House drug czar John Walters -- voting overwhelmingly for a variety of reform proposals, including marijuana decriminalization in Massachusetts and medical marijuana in Michigan. The Office of National Drug Control Policy has reacted with eerie silence, making no statements and issuing no press releases. But today on ONDCP's blog, the drug…

Yesterday marked the 12th anniversary of the passage of the first state law that effectively lifted criminal sanctions on the medical use of marijuana, California’s Proposition 215. In the years since 56% of California voters decided to stop criminalizing the ill, and public support for legal access to medical marijuana has grown to nearly 80%. That public sentiment has translated into policy reforms in at least 12 other states. One would think that California’s law enforcement officials would do…

Not only did Tuesday's election produce two major marijuana policy victories, but we also saw signs of progress in Washington, D.C. Barack Obama has consistently said that he does not support the federal government arresting medical marijuana patients in states where medical marijuana is legal. He also affirmed to MPP that he would not use federal resources to raid medical marijuana dispensaries in California, something his predecessor’s administration has done countless times. And the Politico reported…

Join Nydia Swaby as she answers this week's question: "Is marijuana a 'gateway drug'?" As always, please send us your questions about marijuana: [email protected] Subject line: Ask Nydia! Have you considered signing up for our free emails? We'll keep you up to date on the latest breaking marijuana-related news nationwide.

Consider this: As I write this, with 67% of precincts reporting, marijuana decriminalization is passing in Massachusetts with 65% of the vote. Obama, who is carrying the state handily, is getting 62%. In Michigan it's similar. With 40% of the vote in, medical marijuana is passing with 63% while Obama is carrying the state with 55%. And this is not just a blue state phenomenon. In 2004, George W. Bush carried Montana with 59% of the vote, while medical marijuana passed with 62%. Memo to the new Congress…

We'll have more on this soon, but voters in Massachusetts and Michigan appear to have passed both MPP ballot initiatives, making this one of the biggest nights for marijuana policy reform ever. Massachusetts is now the 12th state to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana -- and the first to do so by voter initiative in the world! -- and Michigan is now the 13th medical marijuana state and the first in the Midwest. That means that one in four Americans now live in a state that protects patients…