Weekly Psychedelic Links - July 2022

7.1.22

Cannabis

• Fentanyl-laced marijuana is a myth. It’s time to end the hype (Leafly)

• Medical Weed Cards No Longer Required in Virginia Starting July 1 (High Times)

• Hemp, CBD get permanent legal status in NC after 11th-hour rescue (MSN.com)

• Scientists find THC in over 60% of CBD products they tested — and that may be a huge problem (ZME Science)

• UN Report Dramatizes Uptick in Global Cannabis Use (High Times)

• Louisiana Governor Signs Bill Providing Medical Marijuana Workplace Protections For State Employees (Marijuana Moment)

• Maryland Court: Cops Can Stop, Question Someone Who Smells of Pot (High Times)

• Nevada Cannabis Consumption Lounges Could Go Live By End Of 2022 (Marijuana Moment)

• Edibles, beverages infused with cannabis ingredient THC become legal Friday in Minnesota (Star Tribune)

• Inside The Process To Legalize Recreational Cannabis In Germany (Forbes)

• California Bill to Require Cannabis Warnings About Mental Disorder Risks Advances (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Lawmakers Advance Medical Marijuana DUI Protections And Cannabis Banking Reform Bills (Marijuana Moment)

• Texas Supreme Court Bans Smokable Hemp Production, Sales (High Times)

• Montana Lawsuit Challenges Marijuana Ban In State’s Third-Largest City (Marijuana Moment)

• House Panel Approves Amendment to Protect State Legal Cannabis Programs (High Times)

• Feds Fund Development Of Hemp-Based, 3D-Printed Materials To Build Affordable Housing (Marijuana Moment)

• New Vermont Guidance Looks to Eliminate Plastic Waste From State’s Cannabis Industry (High Times)

• Cannabis users are at greater risk for emergency and inpatient care: study (Fox News)

Magic Mushrooms

• These Mormons Have Found a New Faith — in Magic Mushrooms (Rolling Stone)

• New Jersey Senate President Files Psilocybin Legalization Bill That Includes Home Grow Option, Unlike Current Marijuana Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Tryp Therapeutics Strengthens IP Portfolio with Provisional Patent Application for Binge Eating Disorder Treatment (Psychedelic Alpha)

• Digging Up Druggable Targets: Psilocybin Efficacy in a Model of OCD (Psychedelic Science Review)

MDMA

• First-of-its-kind MDMA group therapy trial set to commence (New Atlas)

• Over One Hundred Years of MDMA Research (Drug Science)

Ayahuasca

• How the Shipibo Came to Be the Most Common Group Serving Ayahuasca to Foreigners (DoubleBlind)

Peyote

• Decriminalize Nature Targets Peyote: Drug Reform or Settler Colonialism? (Chacruna)

• Big business could wipe out Mexico’s sacred psychedelic peyote cactus (openDemocracy)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• How Did A Minnesota Honor Roll Student Die As Her Parents Were Sleeping Upstairs? (Oxygen)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• A Loophole in Japan’s Weed Laws Is Getting Tens of Thousands High (VICE)

Miscellaneous

• Colorado Activists Turn In Signatures To Put Psychedelics Legalization And Therapeutic Psilocybin Program On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• War on drugs prolonged Colombia’s decades-long civil war, landmark report finds (The Guardian)

• Is there a future for psychedelic treatment in Saudi Arabia? (Arab News)

• Do Bad Psychedelic Patents Matter? (Lucid News)

• 4 Recommendations for Disability Inclusion in Psychedelic Therapy Research (Psychiatric Times)

7.8.22

Cannabis

• WNBA Star Brittney Griner Pleads Guilty To Cannabis Charge As Russia Calls Out U.S. Hypocrisy In Maintaining Criminalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Make no mistake, marijuana edibles are legal now in Minnesota (Leafly)

• Washington, D.C. Mayor Signs Medical Cannabis Self-Certification Bill (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Bill Gives Medical Cannabis Patients DUI Protection (High Times)

• Oklahoma: Advocates Turn in Signatures to Place Adult-Use Legalization Measure on November Ballot (NORML)

• Study Shows Flower Still Reigns Supreme in U.S., Canada as Consumer Favorite (High Times)

• Arkansas Activists Set To Turn In Double The Signatures Needed To Put Marijuana Legalization On Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Nebraska Medical Marijuana Activists Turn In Ballot Signatures After Campaign Suffers Legal Setback (Marijuana Moment)

• Albania Prompted to Implement Medical Cannabis Reform After U.N. Criticism (High Times)

• U.S. Army Wants To Make Sniper Uniforms Out Of Hemp (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• A man whose daily headaches felt like an ice pick in his eyes says he tried 12 treatments but only found relief after taking LSD (Insider)

Magic Mushrooms

• New Study Shows Mood, Mental Health Improved by Microdosing Psilocybin (High Times)

• Indiana Nurse Faces Ten Years in Prison for Microdosing Psilocybin Mushrooms (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• Two Cancer Patients Battle to Make Psilocybin Accessible for Palliative Care (Scientific American)

• Rural Oregon counties are lining up against psilocybin launch (OPB)

MDMA

• Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Pushes for Psychedelic Reform in Congress (DoubleBlind)

• GOP Congressman’s Amendment Would Direct Military To Study Psilocybin And MDMA Benefits For Service Members (Marijuana Moment)

DMT

• Algernon Pharmaceuticals Provides Update on Its Phase 1 DMT Stroke Study (Psychedelic Alpha)

Iboga

• ‘To Heal and to Care for’: Protecting Iboga and Indigenous Voices in the Face of Corporatisation (Volteface)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• DEA Announces Hearing On Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelic Compounds Following Significant Pushback (Marijuana Moment)

• Mindset Pharma Receives Allowance for Patent Application Covering its Short-Duration Novel Psychedelic Medications for The Treatment of Central Nervous System Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Ketamine

• PharmaTher Announces Positive Results from Study For Ketamine Microneedle Patch (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• The Never-Ending Psychedelic Trip of Michael Pollan (Rolling Stone)

• Journey Colab scores $12M to move psychedelics-based addiction treatment into clinic (Fierce Biotech)

• User perceptions of the benefits and harms of hallucinogenic drug use: A web-based questionnaire study (Drug Science)

• Tripping the Reward Circuit: Psychedelics for Substance Use Disorders (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Psychedelics Give a Glimpse of Enlightenment (Psychology Today)

7.15.22

Cannabis

• Feds Must Defend Historical Rationale Of Banning Guns For Medical Marijuana Patients, Revised Lawsuit Argues After SCOTUS Ruling (Marijuana Moment)

• ‘Green way of life’: Thailand sees cannabis boom after law change (Al Jazeera)

• Washington DC just legalized weed for all adults—but it’s locals only (Leafly)

• Oklahoma, North Dakota, Arkansas, and Nebraska submit signatures to put cannabis on November ballot (Leafly)

• Study Shows Decrease in Heavy Truck Crash Rates Since Cannabis Legalization (High Times)

• NYPD Will Keep Testing Officers For Marijuana, Reversing Course Hours After Announcing Policy Change Mandated By City (Marijuana Moment)

• Cannabis Laws in France Have Disproportionately Affected Muslims (High Times)

• New York Firefighters Won’t Be Tested For Marijuana, Department Says Following NYPD Leak (Marijuana Moment)

• Argentine Supreme Court Endorses Medical Cannabis Home Grow (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Governor Signs Marijuana Banking And Insurance Reform Bill Into Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Portland Weed Demand Hits Three-Year Low (High Times)

• Pennsylvania Police Arrested Over 13,000 People for Marijuana Possession in 2021 (NORML)

• The Fight for Medical Cannabis in Indonesia (High Times)

• Weed, Like Change, Nourishes The Soil To Regenerate The Cannabis Industry (Forbes)

LSD

• Why David Bowie wasn’t a fan of LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

• DEA May Find Itself In Federal Court Again Over Refusal To Provide Psilocybin Access To Terminally Ill Patients (Marijuana Moment)

• Oregon therapeutic psilocybin program sparks some confusion (OPB)

MDMA

• World's first ecstasy 'shop' set to trial in the Netherlands (Mixmag)

• Luxury Champagne Recalled Again Over Ecstacy Contamination (Newsweek)

• MDMA: Rolling from Counterculture to the Clinic Counter (Psychedelic Science Review)

Ayahuasca

• Study suggests ayahuasca users tend to eat healthier, get more exercise, and experience physical and mental health benefits (PsyPost)

Ketamine

• PharmaTher Announces Notice of Allowance for U.S. Patent Covering Ketamine for the Potential Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease and Motor Disorders (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• Ann Shulgin, Forerunner of Today's Psychedelic Re-Emergence, Dies at 91 (Transform Press)

• House Approves Marijuana And Psychedelics Amendments As Part Of Must-Pass Defense Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• What Ethnographers Have Learned from People Who Use Drugs (Undark)

• Inside the Chemistry Lab Where the MDMA Godfather Synthesized Novel Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• The Tory Leadership Candidates on Drugs (Volteface)

• Filament Health Issued Third Patent By United States Patent and Trademark Office (Psychedelic Alpha)

• Doctors Urge Access to Psychedelic Therapies in New Mexico (TIME)

• Can Psychedelics Treat Inflammation and Eye Disease? Eleusis Thinks So. (Lucid News)

• Villain Or Victim? Understanding The Role of Women In The Latin American Drug Trade (TalkingDrugs)

• San Francisco’s New DA Vows to Ramp Up City’s Drug War (Filter)

• The Battle for Psychedelic Patents (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• How To Become a Psychedelic Therapist (DoubleBlind)

• 5 Countries Where Psychedelics are Legal (Psychedelic Spotlight)

7.22.22

Cannabis

• Senate Leadership Introduces Legislation to End Federal Marijuana Prohibition (NORML)

• District of Columbia: Mayor Signs Legislation Prohibiting Most Employers from Discriminating Against Cannabis Consumers (NORML)

• Legal cannabis is producing more plastic waste than pot (Leafly)

• Colorado Company To Research Cannabis As A Treatment For Parkinson’s Disease (Forbes)

• Biden Says He’s ‘Working On’ Bill To Release Cannabis Inmates (High Times)

• Germany, Luxembourg, Malta And The Netherlands Discuss Marijuana Legalization At Historic Joint Meeting (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Springs Recreational Cannabis Initiative Qualifies for November Ballot (High Times)

• Minnesota Is Home To America's First Cannabis Disc Golf Course (MIX 108)

• House Passes Bill Permitting Weed Ads on TV and Radio (High Times)

• Colorado's New Lead Marijuana Monitor Treks Through Heavy Issues (Westword)

• Cannabis Telemedicine Launches in Montana (High Times)

• Montana Marijuana Businesses Face Seemingly Endless Cycle Of Local Votes On Allowing Them To Operate (Marijuana Moment)

• People Busted for Weed in the U.K. Could Lose Passports Under Proposed Rules (High Times)

• Missouri Marijuana Legalization Measure In Danger Of Not Qualifying For Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Denver officials want to save struggling cannabis delivery businesses (The Denver Post)

• Study Finds Australians Support Cannabis Use Over Smoking Tobacco (High Times)

• House Will Not Vote On Marijuana Amendments For Veterans And Public Housing Residents After Committee Snag (Marijuana Moment)

• Marijuana use is higher among US states that have legalized recreational cannabis use (News-Medical)

LSD

• The Doors of Expression: LSD Alters Epigenetics and Protein Induction (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Science Feature: MindMed’s LSD Trial for ADHD (Microdose)

• Watch John Lennon explain that 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' was not about LSD (Far Out)

Magic Mushrooms

• The Sloppy Science of Psilocybin Microdosing Surveys (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• A single dose of psilocybin has long-lasting antidepressant-like effects in fruit flies (PsyPost)

• Restrictions on Psilocybin ‘Magic Mushrooms’ Are Easing as Research Ramps Up (Scientific American)

MDMA

• Patient safety issues halt trial for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy during Health Canada review (CBC)

• 'Corrective' measures ordered, but Health Canada says 2nd MDMA trial can continue (CBC)

DMT

• Teenager Used LSD And DMT To Help Overcome Trauma, Case Report Says (IFLScience)

Ayahuasca

• Churches sue to use hallucinogenic tea in religious practice (UPI)

• The Global Ayahuasca Boom: What About the Conservation of the Ayahuasca Vine? (Chacruna)

5-MeO-DMT

• The Story Behind a 1984 Hallucinogenic Pamphlet From Denton Is Just as Trippy as Its Subject (Dallas Observer)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• Mydecine Files Full Patent Application Covering MYCO-006 Family of Novel Short-Acting MDMA Analogs (Psychedelic Alpha)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Weed vapes probably sending a toxic gas to your lungs, study finds (Salon)

• Cannabis getting stronger with synthetic versions added leading to psychosis, report warns (Independent.ie)

Ketamine

• Largest-ever clinical study of ketamine therapy shows that at-home model can be a safe, effective treatment for anxiety and depression; 62% fewer patients report suicidal ideation after four sessions (PR Newswire)

• Ketamine Beneficial For Treating Neonatal, And Pediatric Epilepsy: Study (Medical Dialogues)

Miscellaneous

• The Long, Strange Relationship Between Psychedelics and Telepathy (VICE)

• DEA Sued Over ‘Unlawful’ Delays On Psychedelic And Marijuana Public Records Requests Through FOIA (Marijuana Moment)

• Colorado Psychedelics Legalization Measure Qualifies for November Ballot (DoubleBlind)

• Keeping the Hippie Dream Alive (The New York Times)

• Accessibility Is Key for the Psychedelic Revolution (Pharmacy Times)

• Podcast aims to raise awareness about future of psychedelic treatments (CBC)

• Skip the trip – does the world need non-hallucinogenic psychedelics? (leafie)

• New Regulations for Psychedelics? Here's What Investors Need to Know (The Motley Fool)

7.29.22

Cannabis

• Weedmaps again advertising illegal marijuana retailers and products, complaints allege (Marijuana Business Daily)

• Singapore Executes Man for Cannabis Trafficking (High Times)

• House Passes Bipartisan Marijuana Research Bill, With Senate Expected To Send It To President Soon (Marijuana Moment)

• Zimbabwe OKs First Medicinal Cannabis Sales (High Times)

• Secret Australian marijuana facility exposes location after turning sky pink (The Washington Post)

• Biden Administration Proposes Prisoner Swap To Free Brittney Griner (High Times)

• Over 850 Doctors in Thailand Protest Pot Legalization (High Times)

• Senator Files Bill To Allow Marijuana Advertising On TV And Radio In Legal States (Marijuana Moment)

• The 'World's Biggest Cannabis Scam' Is Totally Unravelling (VICE)

• Bronx Cannabis Hub Fosters Opportunity in Communities Hit Hard by Arrests (Filter)

• Cannabis Users Less Likely to Face Complications After Spinal Fusion Surgery (High Times)

• 15 State Attorneys General File Brief Opposing Lawsuit To Help Put Medical Marijuana On Nebraska Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Thai businesses cash in on cannabis, from milk tea to toothpaste (Reuters)

• Missouri Marijuana Legalization Initiative Short Of Signatures Needed For Ballot In County Reviews (Marijuana Moment)

• New Hampshire stands alone in New England as only state without legal marijuana (WMUR)

LSD

• New Zealand Government Grants $650K For LSD Microdosing Trials (Benzinga)

• Operation Julie: Rural Wales LSD bust becomes a musical (BBC)

Magic Mushrooms

• DEA Sued Again Over Refusal To Allow Psilocybin Access For Patients Despite Federal Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Why some of Colorado’s foremost shrooms advocates won’t be voting to legalize psilocybin (The Denver Post)

• Legal psilocybin prescriptions in Canada (Drug Science)

• Project Solace: The World’s Largest Medical Psilocybin Access and Data Project (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• COMPASS Pathways launches phase II clinical trial of psilocybin therapy in anorexia nervosa (Psychedelic Alpha)

DMT

• U.S. Patent Grant to Strengthen Small Pharma’s DMT Patent Strategy With Injectable Formulation (Psychedelic Alpha)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• DEA Cancels Proposed Ban Of Five Psychedelics, Giving Scientists More Time To Research Therapeutic Benefits (Marijuana Moment)

• Working with Indigenous allies is the ethical way to develop psychedelic-based pharmaceuticals (STAT News)

• Festival drugs: Warning over 'imposter' substances threat (BBC)

• Ecstasy for the 21st Century: Designer Drugs to Improve MDMA Therapy (Psychedelic Science Review)

Synthetic Cannabinoids

• Easy On The Eyes — This Company Reports Using a Unique Synthetic Cannabinoid Derivative To Treat Glaucoma (Benzinga)

Nitrous Oxide

• Doctors warn ‘dangerous’ laughing gas is becoming an ‘epidemic’ amid rise in hospitalisations (The Independent)

• A Law will Prohibit the Sale of Nitrous Oxide or “Laughing Gas” to Minors in Bulgaria (Novinite.com)

Ketamine

• At Home Sublingual Ketamine Exhibits Rapid And Significant Antidepressant And Anxiolytic Effects (Medical Dialogues)

• Ketamine found to be unlikely to lead to addiction (Medical Xpress)

• Silo Pharma Announces Positive Results from its Topically Administered Formulation of Ketamine (Psychedelic Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• Biden Administration Plans For Legal Psychedelic Therapies Within Two Years (The Intercept)

• San Francisco Launches Bid to Decriminalize Psychedelics (Filter)

• Your Genes May Determine How You React To Psychedelic Drugs (IFLScience)

• The Psychoactive Substances Act on Trial (Volteface)

• The High-Stakes Race to Engineer New Psychedelic Drugs (WIRED)

• Trump Urges ‘Very Quick Trial’ and Death Penalty for Drug Dealers (High Times)

• The Psychedelics Industry’s Next Hurdle Is How to Go Mainstream (Bloomberg)

• One in four Americans say they’ve tried at least one psychedelic drug (YouGov)

• Microdosing: Scientists tackle psychedelic trend becoming ‘creative enhancer of choice’ (The Sydney Morning Herald)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this month’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 1.14.22

Cannabis

• Oregon State research shows hemp compounds prevent coronavirus from entering human cells (Oregon State University)

• Polls Funded By Marijuana Prohibitionist Group Show Big Support For Legalization Policies It Lobbies Against (Marijuana Moment)

• Top German Government Official Previews Marijuana Legalization Plan Details (Marijuana Moment)

• First-dose vaccinations quadruple in Quebec ahead of restrictions at liquor and cannabis stores (CTV News)

• Mississippi Senate Votes To Legalize Medical Marijuana, Defying Governor’s Veto Threat (Marijuana Moment)

• Oregon: New Rules Increase the Amount of Cannabis Adults Can Purchase Per Transaction (NORML)

• Ohio Marijuana Activists Turn In More Signatures For Legalization Initiative After Temporary Setback (Marijuana Moment)

• Delaware Lawmakers File New Marijuana Legalization Bill With Key Equity Revisions (Marijuana Moment)

• Kansas lawmaker wants to refer medical marijuana legalization to voters (Marijuana Business Daily)

• Austin Officials Certify Local Marijuana Decriminalization Initiative For May Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Wyoming Activists Prepare Cannabis Reform Initiatives (High Times)

• Virginia Lawmakers Divided On Releasing Marijuana Prisoners Following Legalization Taking Effect (Marijuana Moment)

• South Dakota Governor Wants Marijuana Activists To Pay Legal Bill For Her Lawsuit That Blocked Legalization (Marijuana Moment)

• Florida Marijuana Activists Pivot To 2024 For Legalization Ballot Initiative (Marijuana Moment)

Magic Mushrooms

• Global Coalition Launches Push To Reschedule Psilocybin Under International Rules (Marijuana Moment)

• Italian Officials Certify Signatures For National Marijuana And Psilocybin Referendum (Marijuana Moment)

• Rollups: The Emerging Magic Mushroom Monopoly (The American Prospect)

• Numinus Submits Clinical Trial Application for Phase 1 Trial on Proprietary Psilocybin Product (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Psilocybin Clinical Trial for Depression Launches at Pacific Neuroscience Institute (PR Newswire)

MDMA

• MAPS Publishes Open Science Approach to Synthesizing MDMA (Lucid News)

Ayahuasca

• A New Study Attempts To Quantify The Healing Powers Of Ayahuasca (Forbes)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• Mydecine Achieves Innovative Supercomputing Artificial Intelligence Modeling in Psychedelic Drug Development Enabling Quick Screening of Billions of Compounds (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Field Trip Receives Notice of Allowance for US Patent Application Covering FT-104 (Isoprocin Glutarate), its Novel Psychedelic Molecule in Development (Psilocybin Alpha)

Ketamine

• Trial of Ketamine Therapy for Alcohol Use Disorder Reports Positive Findings (Technology Networks)

• Osmind Announces Publication of the Largest Real-World Analysis of Ketamine Infusion Therapy for Depression (Business Wire)

• Institutional Review Board Grants Approval for Cybin-Sponsored Feasibility Study Using Kernel Flow Technology to Measure Psychedelic Effects on the Brain (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Peter Thiel-Backed Psychedelics Company Gets FDA Approval To Study Ketamine Therapy (Forbes)

• PharmaTher Announces FDA Approval of Investigational New Drug (IND) Application for Ketamine to Treat ALS (Psilocybin Alpha)

Miscellaneous

• How Beer and Drugs Empowered an Ancient Andean Empire (Gizmodo)

• These States Could Legalize Marijuana Or Psychedelics In 2022 (Marijuana Moment)

• Virginia Could Decriminalize Psilocybin And Other Psychedelics With Newly Filed Bills (Marijuana Moment)

• Social Media Attacks and Ethical Issues in the Psychedelic Sector — Why can’t we all get on together for the greater good? (Medium)

• Missouri Patients Could Use Psychedelic Treatments Under New GOP ‘Right-To-Try’ Bill (Marijuana Moment)

• ‘Microdosers’ of LSD and magic mushrooms are wiser and more creative (Daily Maverick)

• Promising Psychedelic Therapy Legislation Set to Make Waves in 2022 (Psychedelic Spotlight)

• Vermont Lawmakers File Drug Decriminalization Bill With Hopes Of Promoting Harm Reduction (Marijuana Moment)

• Announcing a Major Healthy Persons Trial to Investigate the Brain Activity Effects of Psychedelic Medicines (Mind Medicine Australia)

• University Of Ottawa To Offer Psychedelic Studies Master’s Program Beginning In Fall 2022 (Healing Maps)

• The Connection between Psychedelics and Christianity (The Institute for the Advancement of Psychedelic Christianity)

• Metaphysical Insight: Psychedelics, Noetic Experiences, and Spinoza’s God (Sam Woolfe)

• How to Come Out to Your Kids About Psychedelics (DoubleBlind)

• Psychedelics in Healthcare: The Psychedelic Pharmacists Association (Truffle Report)

• Can Western Medicine Include the Sacred in Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy? (Lucid News)

• How To Vet Your Psychedelic Guide (DoubleBlind)

• Mydecine to Launch Special Access Support and Supply Program in Canada Expanding Access to Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy For Patients (Psilocybin Alpha)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 6.18.21

Cannabis

• Louisiana Governor Signs Marijuana Decriminalization Bill Into Law (Marijuana Moment)

• Texas: Governor Signs Medical Cannabis Expansion Legislation into Law (NORML)

• Connecticut Marijuana Legalization Bill Heads To Governor’s Desk (Marijuana Moment)

• Poll: 92 Percent of Americans Say Marijuana Should Be Legal Under Certain Circumstances (NORML)

• Florida Supreme Court Kills Another Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure For 2022 (Marijuana Moment)

• Stoned Driving Is Far Safer Than Operating a Vehicle on Prescription Drugs, Study Says (MERRY JANE)

• Rhode Island Marijuana Legalization Bill Approved In Senate Committee (Marijuana Moment)

• Montana: Opponents Drop Lawsuit Challenging Voter-Approved Legalization Initiative (NORML)

• Two cannabis legalisation bills to be considered in Portugal (CanEx)

• Nebraska Marijuana Activists Plan ‘Mass Scale’ Medical Cannabis Campaign For 2022 Ballot (Marijuana Moment)

• Local Marijuana Decriminalization Efforts Launch In Ohio, South Carolina And West Virginia (Marijuana Moment)

• Wyoming Activists File 2022 Marijuana Decriminalization And Medical Cannabis Ballot Measures (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• Could LSD Really Be a Better Smart Drug Than Modafinil? (Sam Woolfe)

Magic Mushrooms

• Oregon’s psilocybin program starts to take shape (OPB)

• Filament Announces First GMP Batch of Pharmaceutical Grade Natural Psilocybin (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Psyence Group Announces Collaboration with the Scientific Research Council (SRC) of Jamaica for Psilocybin Product Development (Psilocybin Alpha)

Ayahuasca

• How Ayahuasca Can Help Gay Men Create Better Dance Parties (Chacruna)

Novel Psychoactive Substances

• Cybin Selects Anxiety Disorder Indications for Proprietary Psychedelic Molecule CYB004 (Psilocybin Alpha)

Nitrous Oxide

• Laughing gas could help people with hard-to-treat depression (Popular Science)

Miscellaneous

• Federal Drug Decriminalization Measure Introduced in the House (DoubleBlind)

• Introducing the Mormon Psychedelic Summit (DoubleBlind)

• The problem at the heart of modern psychedelic clinical research (New Atlas)

• This Summer Might Be a Psychedelic Dumpster Fire. Are You Ready? (Lucid News)

• West Coast Psychedelic Update (Dr. Bronner's)

• Toronto board of health to ask Ottawa to decriminalize drug possession in the city (Toronto Star)

• Clinics Seek to Widen Access to Psychedelic Therapy for BIPOC Communities (Lucid News)

• Can Psychedelics Help Make Dying Easier? (Rolling Stone)

• Hippie Girls in Yorkville: Canada’s Haight-Ashbury (Chacruna)

• Whole-Body Effects of Psychedelics – Part 1 (Psychedelic Science Review)

• The Brain’s Psychedelic System (Reality Sandwich)

• As the Pandemic Wanes and the Party Kicks Off, Drug Testing and Safety Are More Important Than Ever (Lucid News)

• Consent is Psychedelic. Here’s Why. (DoubleBlind)

• Psychedelics and Surfing (Reality Sandwich)

Think Wilder is reader-supported. If you enjoyed this week’s update, please consider helping out by becoming a patron, making a one-time donation, or sharing this post with a friend. Thank you for your support.

Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

This Week in Psychedelics - 1.8.21

Cannabis

• What The New Democratic-Controlled Senate Means For Federal Marijuana Legalization In 2021 (Marijuana Moment)

• These States Are The Most Likely To Legalize Marijuana In 2021 (Marijuana Moment)

• Incarcerated Patients Have A Right To Use Medical Marijuana, New Mexico Judge Rules (Marijuana Moment)

• Illinois: Governor Vacates Half a Million Past Marijuana Convictions (NORML)

• Virginia Lawmaker Introduces Bill To Legalize Marijuana In 2021 (Marijuana Moment)

• New Bill On Underage Marijuana Possession Could End New Jersey Legalization Stalemate Between Governor and Lawmakers (Marijuana Moment)

• Study: Marijuana Use Not Associated with Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease (NORML)

• Scientists Cite Obscure Federal Marijuana Memo In Scheduling Case Against DEA (Marijuana Moment)

• Mother fears son could die as Brexit stops medical cannabis supply (The Guardian)

• Biden AG Pick Merrick Garland Wants To Defer To DEA On Marijuana Science And Classification (Marijuana Moment)

• California: No Uptick in Frequency of Marijuana Use by Young Adults Following Adult-Use Legalization (NORML)

• New York Governor Unveils Updated Marijuana Legalization Plan For 2021 (Marijuana Moment)

LSD

• Here’s What Happens When Animals Eat LSD (DoubleBlind)

Magic Mushrooms

• This Former Latter-day Saint Politician Started a Psilocybin Church—But Is it Legal? (DoubleBlind)

• The Effects of Psilocybin on Morality and Empathy (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Alberta Palliative Patient Successfully Undergoes First Legal Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy in Alberta, Initial Outcomes Exceed Expectations (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Will psychedelic mushroom vacations come to the US? (The Washington Post)

• MycoMeditations' Psilocybin-Assisted Wellness Retreat Announces New Leadership and Its Early 2021 Program Calendar (PR Newswire)

• NeonMind Goes Public, Plans To Study Functional Mushrooms And Psilocybin As Treatments (Benzinga)

MDMA

• Field Trip Health Ltd. Announces Participation in a MAPS-sponsored Multi-Site Study of MDMA-Assisted Therapy to Treat Eating Disorders (Psilocybin Alpha)

DMT

• New Clinical Trial Explores Safety of DMT for Substance Use Disorders (Technology Networks)

5-MeO-DMT

• Hamilton Morris Synthesizes 5-MeO-DMT in “Pharmacopeia” (Psychedelic Science Review)

• A Look at: 5MEO: Are Some Doors Better Left Unopened? (Reality Sandwich)

Ketamine

• Repeated Ketamine Infusions Reduce Symptom Severity in Individuals With Chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (Newswise)

• Ethical Concerns About Marketing Ketamine as a Safe and Effective Antidepressant (Medium)

Miscellaneous

• Jake Angeli: The Psychedelic Guru Who Stormed The Capitol (Psymposia)

• Big pharma is about to tune in to the potential of psychedelics (WIRED)

• Clandestine chemistry and psychoactive drugs in film: Hamilton Morris talks about his career (Chemical and Engineering News)

• Best Music Playlists For Psychedelic Therapy Are Explored In New Johns Hopkins Study (Marijuana Moment)

• Mount Sinai Health System Launches Center for Psychedelic Research (Psilocybin Alpha)

• Tooth tartar could uncover the drug habits of ancient people (Science)

• Are the Subjective Effects of Psychedelics Necessary for Their Therapeutic Benefits? (Psychedelic Science Review)

• Oakland’s Next Step in Psychedelic Decriminalization Approved Unanimously by City Council (Lucid News)

• Neuroscientists believe deep neural networks could help illustrate how psychedelics alter consciousness (PsyPost)

• What Is Raphael Warnock’s Record on Drug Policy and Harm Reduction? (Filter)

• What do Alien Abduction and Psychedelic Experiences have in Common? Let Dr. John E. Mack’s Work Explain (Psychedelics Today)

• Mydecine Innovations Group Sponsors First Lab-Based Study of Established Microdosers at Macquarie University in Australia (Psilocybin Alpha)

• God's Factory Reset (Reset.me)

• NeonMind Appoints Trevor Millar as Chief Psychedelic Officer (Psilocybin Alpha)

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Disclaimer: "This Week in Psychedelics" does not censor or analyze the news links presented here. The purpose of this column is solely to catalog how psychedelics are presented by the mass media, which includes everything from the latest scientific research to misinformation.

A Former Mormon Politician Started A Psilocybin Church

Erin Hiatt, writing for DoubleBlind:

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, formerly known as the LDS or Mormon Church, makes its home and headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, at the heart of the Wasatch Mountains. With its complex of Church headquarters, conference centers, and flagship Salt Lake Temple and surrounding Temple Square, the Church literally and figuratively imposes over the topography of downtown Salt Lake City. However, many would argue that the Church dominates more than just the downtown area—exerting an oversized pull over politics at the state capitol, a mere fifteen minute walk from church headquarters.

Steve Urquhart is deeply familiar with both the state capitol and the internal life of a faithful member of the Church. As a Republican, he formerly served as a Utah State Representative in the deeply conservative southwest corner of the state. Today, he is neither a lawmaker nor Latter-day Saint. Instead, he is the founder and “protector” of The Divine Assembly, a Salt Lake City-based psilocybin church.

A practicing lawyer, Urquhart is a straight-and-narrow-path kind of guy: He served a mission for the Church to Brazil, married his wife Sara in a Church, and raised his four children in the faith. He never wandered far from that path until he and his wife had a life-altering experience with ayahuasca in Amsterdam.

What a ballsy move. Psilocybin mushrooms are not legal in Utah and although there is some legal precedent for the religious use of psychedelics for some groups, The Divine Assembly is a brand-new religion and there’s no guarantee the U.S. government will deem either it or its practices to be legitimate.

If Urquhart’s church is allowed to continue using psilocybin mushrooms as a sacrament, other religious and spiritual groups may follow suit. However, there is a real possibility that they may soon find themselves arguing their case in court.

Personally, I find the idea of communing with the divine via entheogens to be completely reasonable and wish Urquhart luck in his quest to further establish a religious right to use psychedelics.

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