Photo: CC/tanya petrova

The “death with dignity” crowd in the US is in a state over law enforcement’s efforts to quash would-be Jack Kervorkians:

The internet is being kept under close watch by law enforcement to find more victims to back up their dubious prosecutions in Georgia and Arizona. Thus this is a time to be extra cautious and discreet. At trial, the defendants will be rigorously defended.

This harassment is most likely a right-wing backlash to our movement’s law reform successes in Oregon, Washington and Montana. We shall proceed.

via Law enforcement searching America for ‘assisted suicide’ cases | Assisted-Suicide Blog.

Photo: CC/US Army

Nanoparticles being used in medicine are deadly if inhaled. But they’ve got a drug for that, already:

In a study published online today Thursday 11 June in the newly launched Journal of Molecular Cell Biology [1] Chinese researchers discovered that a class of nanoparticles being widely developed in medicine – ployamidoamine dendrimers PAMAMs – cause lung damage by triggering a type of programmed cell death known as autophagic cell death. They also showed that using an autophagy inhibitor prevented the cell death and counteracted nanoparticle-induced lung damage in mice.

via Scientists advance safety of nanotechnology.

Photo: CC/Chuck Coker

Globe columnist Judy Foreman has a fine piece on medical marijuana, and says, if she need to use the stuff, she’d vaporize:

Vaporizing vs. smoking: The push now among proponents of medical marijuana is toward inhaling the vapor, not smoking. Vaporizing is a safe and effective way of getting THC, the active ingredient, into the bloodstream and does not result in inhalation of toxic carbon monoxide, as smoking does, according to a study by Abrams published in 2007 in Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics.

via The pros and cons of medical marijuana – The Boston Globe.

Vaporizing is healthier than smoking. But, as I noted in a previous post, there is no free lunch: One study (and there have been far too few studies, altogether) found that vaporizing releases toxic gases.

Also, I am concerned about the quality of vaporizers on the market. These are effectively unregulated medical devices, made with parts that–when heated–may expose users to even more crap.

One of the Girls 4 Ganja. Photo: Scott Gacek

Scott Gacek has a stoner’s dream job: Taking pictures of attractive young women, and getting blazed with them on New England’s beaches, and in other interesting spots around Boston.

Gacek started his website to raise money for MassCann and others fighting to legalize pot in Massachusetts.

But Gacek, a professional photographer who’s shot for virtually every major Boston news outlet, is just not doing Girls 4 Ganja for the money–at least not for himself.

Gacek wants folks to know that the “girl next door” might just be a toker, too:

New additions to the G4G lineup. Photo: Scott Gacek

“They are courageous, willing to come out of the “cannabis closet” and tell the world “I SMOKE MARIJUANA”. And hell, they look great doing it.

The models featured on Girls4Ganja come from all walks of life. Some are students, some are working professionals. Like most marijuana smokers, they are contributing members of society, who are viewed as “criminals” only because of the plant they choose to smoke

via Girls 4 Ganja :: Real Girls. Real Ganja..

Gacek is also working on a 2010 G4G calender, which will feature a mix of his own photos, and self-submissions.