Neal Pollack

Neal Pollack

Neal Pollack is The Cannabist's Texas Correspondent. He's also a three-time Jeopardy! champion, a 10-time book author, and the co-host, with his teenage son Elijah, of the Audible Original podcast Extra Credit. He lives in Austin.

Recent posts by Neal Pollack

Cannabis industry group says Texas gov undermined long-awaited medical marijuana program

A “private edict” issued by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott “substantially weakened” the state’s nascent medical marijuana program, according to Texas Cannabis Industry Association letter to state officials.

A plea from Texas to Willie Nelson: Your influence is needed in fight to legalize weed

Op-ed: No one in Texas has more cultural credibility or cachet than Willie Nelson does. He should leverage it to help end the state’s marijuana prohibition.

A frantic push for medical marijuana in Texas, bureaucratic heartbreak and renewed resolve

Following the life and death of Texas HB 2107: Advocates’ concerted efforts for medical marijuana yield surprising results before an ultimate letdown.

Texas Marijuana Lobby Day has ballooned in size — and potentially influence

Texas Marijuana Lobby Day included hundreds of patients, doctors, lawyers and marijuana-loving citizens from all over Texas.

Texas medical marijuana faces a steep uphill climb to implementation

In the Lone Star State, the thrill of a modest victory for Texas medical marijuana advocates has since been muted by the thud of dull bureaucracy.

‘A paradigm shift’ in Texas marijuana: These state legislators want to decriminalize weed

These Texas state legislators want to decriminalize marijuana in the Lone Star State. And they aren’t alone.

Kusha yoga explores how weed treats your body type

Texas yogi Harleigh Reynolds is hitting the road with Kusha workshops in legalized states that mix cannabis education and yoga styles. First stop: Denver.

Inside story on how Texas advocates are mobilizing for marijuana reform

Legalizing marijuana hasn’t been easy anywhere, but Texas presents a unique set of challenges. Author Neal Pollack dives into an “advocacy training” session.

Magical freedom in Oregon: Reveling in pot parties and endless possibility

Author Neal Pollack celebrates the changing times in Oregon, where weed is shared with abandon and not yet commercialized. It’s a bittersweet summer to remember.

B&B 2.0: What it’s like inside Earth’s first weed-worshipping hotel chain

Author Neal Pollack explores the Rockies: ‘The Bud+Breakfast felt like a halfway house for people who need to transition into the reality of legalized marijuana, but not everyone wants to spend their holiday getting stoned on a couch with strangers.’

Praying for Texas marijuana: Boots on the ground in pot’s biggest battlefield

It’s been a mammoth month for Texas marijuana. “In a business where it’s slow to do anything,” one state legislator told us, “we’ve gone light years in the last few months.” But will any of the Lone Star State’s cannabis legislation pan out in 2015? Cannabist columnist Neal Pollack reports from Austin.

The Neal Pollack pilgrimage: On ganja yoga, pot pretzels and understanding

Intrepid cannabis aficionado and yoga enthusiast Neal Pollack flies to San Francisco to take three consecutive days of ganja yoga classes. Will the weed control him, or will he control the weed? His full report.

Neal Pollack’s Reefer Roadtrip from Texas to Free America (aka Colorado)

Acclaimed author and Austin resident Neal Pollack traverses 800-plus miles to the nearest pot-peddling town in Colorado to find the meaning of life and legalization as America heads into 2015.

Pollack: ‘Don’t let pot just be another yuppie lifestyle accoutrement’

When I saw a couple of snotty rich young ambitious marijuana marketing types in The New York Times yesterday claiming they were “weeding out the stoners” and that they “want to show the world that normal, professional, successful people consume cannabis,” I got pissed, because I am a stoner. And I was especially pissed because I was traveling on business and couldn’t do what I usually do when I get pissed, which is smoke weed. Or vaporize it. Or eat a candy. Regardless, I was an angry pothead. More of writer Neal Pollack’s column for The Cannabist: