Politics The Shake: Gas Mask Bong Video Crashes All NFL Draft Boards Bruce Barcott April 29, 2016 Share Twitter Facebook Share Print

Laremy Tunsil gas mask bong video eats NFL draft, crashes internet. The former Ole Miss offensive tackle, projected to go as early as No. 3 in yesterday’s NFL draft, dropped to No. 13 after somebody hacked his Twitter account and posted a video of Tunsil smoking cannabis from a gas mask bong. The episode led to hours of uninterrupted finger-wagging from ESPN’s Mel Kiper, Jon Gruden, and other morality cops, even as a nation of bored NFL fans googled “where to purchase gas mask bong.” Our sympathies go out to Mr. Tunsil, 21, whose late-night lark would have been completely legal in four of these United States (but not in Mississippi, of course). As it is, the leaked video probably cost him somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 million in signing bonus money. NFL commish Roger Goodell was “unaware of video until after pick,” says ESPN, which we’d expect from a leader who continues to be so steadfastly ignorant about the use and changing attitudes of NFL players and fans on the subject of cannabis.

Calling out Obama on MMJ prosecutions. That’s what lawyer Marc Zilversmit did yesterday on Slate: “The president is spending money [on federal cannabis prosecutions] that Congress has explicitly told him he can’t spend.”

John Hudak hips federal lawmakers to the racist roots of prohibition. Hudak, our favorite Brookings Institution policy analyst, pens a piece for the Washington Post about “How racism and bias criminalized marijuana.” Great stuff.

Medical marijuana demand surges in Massachusetts. In March, 2,680 new patients registered with the state, bringing Massachusetts’ total to more than 22,500.

California lawmaker wants to let landlords ban medical cannabis use. The bill would permit property owners to prohibit all cannabis smoking on their premises, regardless of medical necessity.

A Harvard psychobiology prof says "marijuana is not medicine." Bertha Madras, formerly a federal anti-drug propagandist, cites the American Medical Association in her Washington Post op-ed against rescheudling cannabis. The only problem? As advocate Tom Angell points out, the AMA actually supports rescheduling.

No happy hour for you, Alaskans! The state’s Marijuana Control Board agreed on draft regs that would allow cannabis clubs to serve food and non-alcoholic beverages but would ban happy hours. (Of course, in a cannabis club, every hour is happy.)

Whoops! Denver Public Schools forgot to apply for that state cannabis-tax school money. So the district put out a video telling voters it’s not as flush with money as they might think. (And please vote for our upcoming school bond!)

Texans want cannabis reform. And in San Antonio, they’ll be marching on May 7 to demand it. Fortunately, the Spurs aren’t playing that day.

Illinois considering expanded conditions for MMJ. This coming Monday’s meeting of the state’s Medical Cannabis Advisory Board will look over petitions for expanded coverage, including PTSD, Lyme disease, autism, and chronic low-level depression.

NJ Weedman’s joint raided in Trenton. The larger-than-life New Jersey character, who runs a “cannabis church” across from City Hall, faces ten charges of possession, distribution, and other things that are against the law in Chris Christie’s domain.

And finally, curious about gas mask bongs? Here's a fellow explaining the finer points of the product:

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Bruce Barcott Leafly Senior Editor Bruce Barcott oversees news, investigations, and feature projects. He is a Guggenheim Fellow and author of Weed the People: The Future of Legal Marijuana in America. View Bruce Barcott's articles