An absurd status quo has held sway in Mexico, ever since the United States began to legalise marijuana, for medical, and, more recently, recreational use. The nation – encouraged by Washington – has some of the strictest drug laws in Latin America. 

But the vast majority of the marijuana it produces ends up in the US. So Mexican law enforcement officials – complying with the demands of their American counterparts – have been expending massive resources on preventing the growth and trafficking of a drug that is often, by the time it ends up being smoked within US borders, entirely legal.

The head of the Drug Enforcement Administration called the idea of medical marijuana a "joke" on Wednesday and said that smoking marijuana for medicinal use has never been proven to be safe or effective.

Chuck Rosenberg, who was appointed to lead the agency in May, made the comments at a press briefing, according to CBS News.

CODY, Wyo. — A state legislative committee plans on sponsoring a bill that would make the possession of 1 pound or more of marijuana edibles a felony.

The Casper Star-Tribune reports the Joint Judiciary Committee decided to sponsor a bill Wednesday for the 2016 session that would criminalize the marijuana-infused products.

Legislators had debated whether to separate the amount of the psychoactive ingredient THC inside an edible, because the testing of THC content in edibles is still being developed in the U.S. But the bill under consideration criminalizes THC and the edibles’ other ingredients.

The pungent smell of marijuana smoke drifted through the air outside Mexico’s Supreme Court as legalization activists puffed and waited for judges to make their ruling. When it came, it sparked up cheers and more joints. Four out of five Supreme Court justices had voted in favor of a lawsuit by plaintiffs who argued that it was unconstitutional to stop them growing, possessing or consuming cannabis. The ruling only applies to the plaintiffs – four activists from a cannabis club called the Mexican Society for Responsible and Tolerant Personal Use, or SMART. But it sets a powerful precedent that could shake up drug laws in Mexico and across the region.

Vancouver Police Chief Adam Palmer says his department is in a good position to adapt to new marijuana laws if Prime Minister Justin Trudeau follows through on his promise to legalize the drug.

The city already has a progressive approach to softer drugs, he noted.

"My focus, since I've been chief, and with the prior chief as well, the focus was on more serious drugs like fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin and the violence associated to that."Ultimately, police will follow the new Canadian government's lead, he said.

"I know the Liberals have said they are going to legalize it for possession of small amounts of marijuana. Whatever the law of the land is, the police department will roll with it."

Georgia doesn’t have the harshest marijuana laws in America, but they are far from friendly. If you get caught with more than 1 ounce of marijuana in Georgia, it’s a felony, punishable by up to ten years in jail and a $5,000 fine. There is another felony charge if the marijuana was possessed with intent to distribute (any amount), which also carries another penalty of up to ten years in jail and a $5,000 fine. I don’t know what the police are like in Georgia, but in most states law enforcement is quick to make the determination that there was intent to distribute, so I’d imagine often times those charges go together when people get caught.

Wednesday morning ushered in a new chapter in the battle over legalizing pot.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Heroin use has been exploding in the United States in recent years and on Wednesday federal officials said that for the first time it was viewed as posing the greatest U.S. drug threat.

In an annual assessment by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, heroin was ranked the No. 1 problem by the largest portion of local and state law enforcement agency authorities taking part, said DEA head Chuck Rosenberg.

Methamphetamine was ranked the top drug threat in 2014, and controlled prescription drugs was top in 2013, according to the DEA.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has introduced a bill that would end federal prohibition of marijuana, marking the latest move the Democratic presidential candidate has made toward ending the war on drugs.