Sometime in the last few months, the notion of legalizing marijuana crossed an invisible threshold. Long relegated to the margins of political discourse by the conventional wisdom, pot freedom has this year gone mainstream. Is reason dawning for marijuana policy? The potential flu pandemic and President Obama’s 100th day in office may have knocked marijuana off the front pages this week, but so far this year, the issue has exploded

THE JOCULAR reference in the May 1 Clout column to the medical marijuana bill that I’ve introduced did not include any of the reasons why I believe this is a necessary and vital step. Many people, especially as they age, suffer from serious diseases for which existing prescription treatments are inadequate. Marijuana can slow the progression of glaucoma and make other dreadfully painful diseases, like cancer, HIV, multiple sclerosis or

ANNAPOLIS — When a police officer asked her what she was doing behind a van in the park, Pamela Hughes told him the honest truth. “I said I was smoking a cannabis cigarette,” she said. She presented the stunned policeman with a written recommendation from her doctor and a copy of Maryland’s “Compassionate Use Act,” which reduces the penalties for possession of medical marijuana. “I honestly thought that I wasn’t