Press Play with Madeleine Brand
What Can California Expect If Pot Becomes Legal?
On this 4/20, we’re reminded that recreational pot will likely become legal in California this Fall. What do the current ballot initiatives fail to address?
By Madeleine Brand • • 51m ListenThis time next year, 4/20 could have a whole new meaning in California since voters are expected to legalize recreational pot in November. We take a close look at all the marijuana-related ballot proposals and look at what California can learn from pot legalization in Colorado.
Also, a powerful drug that’s much more potent than heroin has been linked to recent overdoses, many fatal, across California. What are state public health officials doing about it?
Next, marine life on the West Coast is being impacted by changes in our oceans due to climate change. What do scientists recommend we do?
After that, the director of a new film The Invitation talks about making an independent thriller set in the Hollywood Hills.
And finally, bad news continues to roll in for Theranos, the Silicon Valley-based blood-testing company, which is the subject of two federal investigations.
Caption: What legal marijuana looks like in Amsterdam. Photo by nickolette/Wikimedia commons.
In this episode
5 storiesWhat Should California Expect If Pot Becomes Legal?
This time next year, 4/20 could have a whole new meaning in California since voters are expected to legalize recreational pot in November. At one point, 20 marijuana initiatives tried to get on the ballot, but the odds-on favorite is now the Sean Parker-backed “Adult Use of Marijuana Act”.
Read the story11 minOverdoses from Fentanyl Up in California, Public Health Alert Issued
A powerful drug that’s 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin has been linked to recent overdoses across California, many of them fatal. It’s called fentanyl, and it’s a synthetic painkiller given mainly to cancer patients; but it’s also a street drug known as “China White,” “Apache,” and “TNT”, among other names.
Read the story9 minHow to Mitigate Ocean Acidification on the West Coast
As millions of tons of CO2 are pumped into the atmosphere every day, the world’s oceans are becoming more acidic causing devastation to marine life. Oysters and other shellfish are having trouble building their shells; salmon and other bigger fish are losing some of their sources of food.
Read the story7 min“The Invitation” and Indie Horror
Sixteen years ago, director Karyn Kusama made a huge splash at the Sundance Film Festival with her first movie, “Girlfight”, which starred then-unknown Michelle Rodriguez as an aspiring fighter.
Read the story14 minTheranos Investigations and Silicon Valley Dealmaking
The bad news continues to roll in for Theranos, the Silicon Valley-based blood-testing company that was previously valued at $9 billion. Just a few years ago, the company’s wunderkind C.E.O. Elizabeth Holmes was the subject of glowing media profiles.
Read the story6 min
