COLU @ CONCEPTS

WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s hard to justify $45 for an ordinary black cotton T-shirt, but the customer at a store in Washington D.C.’s Adams Morgan neighborhood does so without question. The clerk grabs a clear plastic box containing about one gram of marijuana and drops it into the bag, reciting a practiced line: “Thank you and here’s a gift for you to have as a souvenir.” It’s another satisfied customer in the so-called District of Cannabis, the unique legal and commercial space spawned by the District of Columbia’s unusual approach to marijuana legalization. A 2014 ballot initiative to legalize recreational use passed overwhelmingly. But unlike the eight states that have legalized recreational use, the Washington initiative also maintained it was still illegal to buy or sell the drug. So instead of the straightforward marijuana storefronts common in Colorado or Nevada, Washington has developed a thriving “gift economy” marijuana industry. These businesses--many offering delive...

TOKYO (AP) — A surge of popularity for a freshly minted opposition party in Japan is making Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s decision to call a snap election look riskier than initially thought. Abe dissolved the lower house of parliament Thursday, setting the stage for an Oct. 22 vote. The Party of Hope, launched earlier this week by Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike, may not dethrone Abe’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party but analysts say it could put a dent in the LDP’s majority. A major setback could derail Abe’s presumed hope to extend his rule for three more years at a party leadership meeting next year. Minutes after the lower house dissolution, Abe made a fiery speech to party members. He said he is seeking a public mandate on his tough diplomatic and defense policies to deal with escalating threats from North Korea, and that party members would have to relay his message to win voter support during the campaign. “This election is about how we protect Japan, the people’s lives and ...

BANGKOK (AP) — Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra appears to be staying in the Mideast commercial hub of Dubai after fleeing a criminal conviction, Thailand’s prime minister said Thursday, in the first official word on her whereabouts since she missed a court date last month. “We have received preliminary unofficial reports from the Foreign Ministry indicating that she is in Dubai,” said Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who expressed annoyance over being asked about it by reporters. It had been generally assumed that Yingluck was in Dubai or London, since her brother, ousted former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, maintains residences in both locations. Yingluck was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison on Wednesday after being convicted of negligence in overseeing a money-losing rice subsidy program. Her government was ousted in a 2014 coup and the military government that remains in control of the country has pursued Yingluck through the courts. She ...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Melania Trump has invited experts and people affected by addiction to opioids to the White House for a listening session and discussion about the epidemic. The first lady is hosting Thursday’s event in the State Dining Room and has invited journalists to attend a portion of the meeting to help raise awareness. She joined President Donald Trump at a briefing on the crisis during the president’s vacation last month at his New Jersey golf club. Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for Mrs. Trump, said the first lady met regularly during the presidential campaign with families who had been affected by drug abuse and addiction. She said Mrs. Trump wants to work in tandem with the president’s drug commission on youth and prevention initiatives. “The opioid crisis is the deadliest epidemic in American history, and it is getting worse,” Grisham said in an email. “It affects children of all ages, even before they are born. As a mother, and as first lady, she is an...

BALI, Indonesia (AP) — More than 120,000 people have fled the region around the Mount Agung volcano on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali, fearing it will soon erupt, an official said Thursday. The disaster mitigation agency’s command post in Bali said the number of evacuees has swelled to about 122,500. The figure is more than double the estimated population within an immediate danger zone but people further away are leaving too. Those who have fled are scattered in more than 500 locations across the island famed for its beaches, lush green interior and elegant Hindu culture, taking shelter in temporary camps, sports centers and other public buildings. The volcano has been at its highest alert level since Friday, sparking the massive exodus of villagers. Thousands of cows left behind by rural communities are also being evacuated. The exclusion zone around the mountain extends as far as 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from the crater in places. “I was very worried about the...

LONG BEACH, Calif. (AP) — U.S. Navy veteran Mohammed Jahanfar has traveled overseas four times in the last year to visit his Iranian fiancee, most recently hoping to complete government paperwork that would allow her to come live with him in the United States. But the 39-year-old now fears they will be forever separated after President Donald Trump’s administration rolled out new restrictions blocking most Iranians from traveling to America. The new restrictions covering citizens of Chad, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen — and some Venezuelan government officials and their families — are to go into effect Oct. 18. “It is devastating,” said Jahanfar, who works as a salesman in Long Beach, California, and has lived in the United States for three decades. “There should be no reason why my fiancée, who is an educated person in Iran, who has a master’s degree, why we cannot be with each other. I cannot wrap my head around it.” This is the Trump administration’s...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Social media giant Twitter will visit Capitol Hill Thursday as part of the House and Senate investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 elections. Twitter’s closed-door meetings with staff follow similar briefings from Facebook earlier this month, and the House and Senate panels have invited both tech giants, along with Google, to appear at public hearings this fall. The committees are scrutinizing the spread of false news stories and propaganda on social media, to what extent Russia was involved and whether anyone in the United States helped target those stories. Unlike Facebook, which has said phony accounts on its platform attempted to stir up divisiveness in the election, Twitter has remained mostly silent. The two social media companies have different types of platforms, as Twitter allows users to register anonymously and has more public accounts than Facebook. Many lawmakers have expressed concerns about the proliferation of anonymous “bots...