On this page I present my articles and links about marijuana, and arguments for its legalization -- and not only for medical purposes.
My text is in black. Text copied from the Net is in maroon or, as highlighted by me, in red.
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Articles
Links
Marijuana Health Mythology: http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/hemp/general/gier1.htm
ACTIVISTS LINK PATIENTS WITH POT GROWERS: http://www.angelfire.com/band/ecoabios/normlsask/press.html NORML Saskatchewan.
B.C. Marijuana Party: http://www.bcmarijuanaparty.ca/article_vision_for_future.htm Imagine
what Alberta would be like if oil were illegal. Right now Alberta is in the
midst of an economic boom even while BC is suffering from
recession. The BC Marijuana Party envisions a prosperous future
for growers in a legalized cannabis economy. Just as the Reform
(now Alliance) Party has championed the Alberta oil industry, so
too does the BC Marijuana Party champion the Westıs beleaguered
cannabis industry. . . . The Alternative
The cannabis economy is precariously poised between the work of
legalizers like BC Marijuana Party candidates and harsh US-style drug-war
oppressions. If we
donıt move toward legalization, tougher and harsher enforcements
will be the alternative. There will be more helicopters, more raids,
more people in prison. The cannabis economy will be destroyed and poverty will
sweep across this province that will make the 30ıs look like the
20ıs.
The US has 5% of
the worldıs population, but 25% of the worldıs prisoners. It
wasnıt always that way. In
the sixties, the US prison population was actually on the
decline, and there was talk of doing away with prisons
altogether. The
Reagan era war on drugs changed all that. Statistics produced by the US Bureau of
Justice show that since 1980, a massive increase in the number of
US prisoners is attributed almost solely to an overwhelming
increase in drug arrests, particularly arrests for marijuana
possession.
The US has dealt
with swelling prison populations by making cuts to education and
other social programs, and by privatizing prisons. Privatized prisons make money by having
drug-war prisoners work on corporate assembly lines, and forcing
them to pay for rent, food and other costs. These
privatize-prison assembly lines are used to produce everything
from clothes to cars to computers, and have meant that some
factories have relocated into the prison system, leaving
law-abiding citizens without jobs. Increased unemployment and
poverty means that more people turn to trafficking and growing
marijuana to feed their families, further fueling private prisons
with inmates. Ultimately, this destructive cycle means a return
to slavery, a new corporate feudalism, with managers living in
stately homes and blue-collar workers kept like animals behind
bars. . . .
Cannabis Culture Resource Archives: http://www.cannabisculture.com/library/artlist.cgi?sub=Canada&head=REGIONAL REGIONAL: Canada 366 articles. . . . including: . . .
. . . Church of the Universe Canadian constitutional case update: http://www.cannabisculture.com/cgi/article.cgi?num=2289 Church of the Universe: Canadian constitutional case update by Reverend Damuzi (18 Feb 2002). Cannabis as sacrament in Canada to be decided once and for all Leaders of the Church of the Universe, Reverends Michael Baldasaro and Walter Tucker, will be in Canadian Federal Court on February 27th at Toronto (Action T-1805-98) and will be examined by the crown before a prothonotary (a court clerk that decides smaller matters of law, saving time for the judges), on matters relating to their sacramental use of cannabis. This case is set to decide once and for all the issue of religious cannabis use in Canada.
Cannabis News - marijuana, hemp, and cannabis news: http://www.cannabisnews.com/
canabisnews.com Pot Advocates Diss Official Gov't Weed: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11740.shtml
cannabisnews.com Medicinal-Pot Users Fuming Over Delays: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11623.shtml
cannabisnews.com Of Cannabis and Compassion: http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10989.shtml
Canada Medical Marihuana Information: http://www.medicalmarihuana.ca/information.html
. . . Applicants must provide information about themselves, their medical condition, and indicate if they plan to grow their own supply of marijuana, have someone grow it for them, or in the future, obtain it from a dealer licensed by Health Canada. . . .
Growing Marijuana
Holders of an authorization to possess can also hold a licence to produce and grow their own marijuana, or they can choose to have a designated person grow the marijuana for them. . . .
Plants can be grown indoors or outside, providing specific criteria are met. Growers must take the necessary precautions to protect plants and the dried marijuana from loss or theft. The amount of marijuana that can be grown and stored at any time depends on the daily dosage that has been prescribed by a physician, and whether plants are grown indoors or outside. . . .
Canadian Links:
http://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htm Freedom
to Exhale. . . . New facility for legal
marijuana
set up in old Manitoba mine August 2, 2001. . . . in the
Trout Lake mine deep Flin Flon, Manitoba. . . .
DO WE WANT A HIGH SOCIETY: http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v00/n796/a02.html CannabisLink.ca
fuoriluogo.it -
International Drug Tribune: http://www.fuoriluogo.it/idt/originalmaggio.htm Mon, 24 Apr 2000
- Indianapolis Star (IN)
LIMITATIONS OF POWER
It was, said Rep. Henry Hyde, "a throwback to
the old Soviet system, where justice is the justice of the
government, and the citizen doesn't have a chance." Hyde,
chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, was referring to a 1984 anti-drug law that
allowed federal agents and police wide leeway to seize property
and use the proceeds to finance their budgets. Hyde sponsored a
bill limiting seizures that was passed recently by Congress, approved by
President Clinton and supported by such diverse groups as the
Trial Lawyers Association, the American Civil Liberties Union and
the National Rifle Association. The 1984 law authorized seizure
based on nothing more than "probable cause" to suspect
the property was involved in criminal activity. Owners did not
have to be convicted or even charged with implication in a crime.
In fact, in more than 80 percent of seizure cases, criminal
charges were never brought. So Hyde's description was on target.
The old law was embarrassingly close to the Soviet way of doing
things. Not incidentally, it proved a windfall for crime-fighting
agencies. The annual flow of cash, houses, sports cars, vehicles
and other assets to the Justice Department escalated from $27
million in 1985 to $449 million in 1998. Local authorities could
act on their own or, when involved in a federal case, get a share
of the proceeds. Law enforcement groups opposed amending the law,
saying it would devastate department budgets and make it easier
for drug dealers to escape punishment. In numerous instances,
however, the 1984 law was exploited and innocent people were
wronged. Often they had no knowledge of illegal activities.
Parents had their homes seized because a son was growing
marijuana on the property. Families were evicted because a member
was charged with drug abuse. A man lost his business because a
drug peddler was caught plying his trade in a restroom. In one
particularly egregious case, a Florida family had its 4,000-acre
ranch seized on suspicion it was a landing strip for a
drug-carrying plane that crashed nearby. It took the family four
years and thousands of dollars to get the property back. A court
ruled the police had no reason to believe the family knew of any
drug flights. The new law would make it easier for government to
seize property once the owner is convicted of a crime. But minus
a conviction, the government must prove the property had been
used for criminal activity or was bought with the proceeds from a
crime. Should the owner challenge the confiscation, the
government must present a "preponderance of evidence"
that the property was substantially connected with criminal
activity. The law also eliminates a requirement that owners
challenging confiscation must post a cash bond worth 10 percent
of the property's value. Hyde battled seven years to impose
limits on seizure power. That he has finally succeeded is a
tribute to his persistence and to the belated, but still welcome,
common sense of Congress.
www.starnews.com
06 May 2000 - National Post
(Canada) Luiza Chwialkowska MARIJUANA
GROWERS SOUGHT, EXPERIENCED NEED NOT APPLY Ottawa
Looking For High-Grade Supply For Clinical Trials
OTTAWA - The federal government is seeking individuals or
corporations to supply Health Canada
with hundreds of kilograms of high-quality marijuana, Allan Rock,
the Health Minister, announced yesterday. The "affordable,
quality, standardized marijuana products" sought by the
government must be grown in Canada and will be used in clinical
trials that will investigate potential medical benefits of the
drug, according to a Request for Proposals issued by the
Department of Public Works. The five-year contract would pay
approximately $5-million. Proposals are due by June 6 and a
contractor will be chosen this summer. Bidders on the contract
will have to obtain a special licence, pass a security check, and
cannot employ personnel with past criminal drug convictions.
Officials at Public Works would not comment on whether proposals
from existing growers could potentially lead to their arrest.
"They're not being asked to describe their marijuana-growing
operations. They are being asked to describe a proposal for
setting up marijuana-growing operations," said Fran
Gerhberg, a spokeswoman for Public Works. "If you are
growing it already, you are growing it illegally," she
noted. The supplier will be required to maintain "stringent
security" at its facility. A legal marijuana supply is part
of the marijuana research plan announced by Mr. Rock last June.
"Establishing a Canadian source of research-grade marijuana
is an important step in putting our plan into action, and we will
proceed expeditiously," Mr. Rock said in a statement
yesterday. The government is reviewing a number of research
proposals and could begin supplying marijuana to patients in a
matter of months.
www.nationalpost.com .
. .
LEGALIZATION OF MARIJUANA -- AGRICULTURAL BENEFITS: http://www.hempbc.com/library/misc/agricult.html William Murray Science and Technology Division 13 April 1993. Library of Parliament Research Branch . . .
Legalize use of marijuana for medical purposes, MDs and patients plead [CMAJ - Feb. 10, 1998]: http://www.cma.ca/cmaj/vol-158/issue-3/0373.htm Canadian Medical Association Journal. Charlotte Gray CMAJ 1998;158:373-5.
As debate about the legalization of marijuana continues in Canada, physicians are joining the fray. Ottawa family physician Don Kilby is working hard to make it easier for ill patients to use the marijuana that alleviates their symptoms. A recent case in Toronto indicates that the courts are starting to share these views. . . .
Moves to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes have solid public support -- according to a recent poll, 83% of Canadians believe this type of use should be legal. There have been well-publicized stories about its effectiveness in controlling nausea and relieving symptoms of glaucoma, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis. When the issue arrives in court, much of the argument surrounds scientific proof of its effectiveness, for which little agreement yet exists. The federal government continues to argue that not enough is known about potential dangers posed by the drug.
Sheppard said his ruling did not extend into the hazy world of recreational drug use but referred only to Terry Parker's Charter rights to life, liberty and security. However, his decision provided a springboard for editorialists across the country. They argued that the harsh penalties for marijuana use contained in the Criminal Code should be eliminated. Pointing to the amount of court and police time that marijuana arrests consume -- there were 29 562 arrests in 1996 -- the Globe and Mail concluded that the "marijuana ban should go to pot." Meanwhile, the Ottawa Citizen said that legalizing marijuana for medicinal use would simply "invite what amounts to a market in medical prescriptions that is, except for the status quo, the least satisfactory way of dealing with the problem." It said Parliament should act to legalize the possession, consumption and production of marijuana. Several commentators pointed out that it is now 25 years since Gerald Le Dain's royal commission recommended the decriminalization of marijuana use. The Addiction Research Foundation, Canadian Bar Association and Canadian Police Association also want to eliminate criminal penalties.
However, those who are pressing for the release of marijuana for medicinal purposes are less quick to support general access. Kilby shies away from any discussion of recreational use. . . .
Marijuana 101 At Selkirk.txt:
http://www.dutch-passion.nl/news/2002/January/Canada-%20Marijuana%20101%20At%20Selkirk.txt 10 Jan 2002. Source: Valley Voice,
The (CN BC). Checked out the new calendar from Selkirk
College? Did you read it very
carefully? If not, you may have missed a very nteresting
course that seems quite appropriate for this neck of the
Kootenays: Medical
Marijuana 101.
"Anyone
who is considering applying for a section 56 exemption to use
marijuana for medical purposes or any 'designated grower' who may
consider growing for a medicinal patient should take time for
this course." says the
calendar.
"Review the Medical Marijuana Access Regulations, . . .
As well as covering
regulations, Medical Marijuana 101 goes into "the very
basics about cultivars and the effect of certain strains on
certain [medical] conditions.
"We don't overwhelm them with information.
We teach them what a bud looks
like, how to trim it, what you want to be smoking or not
smoking."
Taylor also instructs people on alternatives to smoking. . . .
For more information,
call . . . 442-5166 or visit the website,
at: . . .
. . . CRI Cannabis Research Institute Inc.: http://www.cannabisresearchinstituteinc.com Canada's Premier Source of Medical Marijuana Products & Service . . . located . . . Grand Forks. An attractive valley town . . . near the convergence of Kettle & Granby Rivers.
MarijuanaNews.Com,
Freedom has nothing to fear from the truth: http://www.marijuananews.com/we_will_approve_marijuana_prescr.htm 'WE WILL APPROVE MARIJUANA
PRESCRIPTIONS': Marijuana 'no different than Aspirin,' Health
Canada official says. (This is a major defeat for the US
prohibitionists.) From the Ottawa
Citizen by Jeremy Mercer Dec 19,
1997
Marijuana 'no
different than Aspirin,' Health
Canada official says. Health Canada is
prepared to approve the use of marijuana as a legal medicine in
emergency situations.
Yesterday, the department turned down a request by an Ottawa
doctor to provide an area AIDS patient with marijuana because of
two technical flaws in the application. . . .
News Marijuana Growers Get Off With Lenience In The Courts: http://www.hemp.net/news/9910/14/lenience_in_bc.shtml Oct 4, 1999. Vancouver Sun.
The Vancouver Sun reviewed the cases of 112 people charged with growing marijuana, dating from 1996: Of those: 37 (33%) had their charges stayed 3 (2.7%) were acquitted 72 (64.3%) were convicted. . . .
Office of Cannabis Medical Access: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hecs-sesc/ocma/bckdr_4-0601.htm Health Canada
On April 7, 2001, Health Minister Allan Rock released proposed regulations for Canadians to access marijuana for medical purposes for a 30-day public comment period. . . .
Selling Pot The Pitfalls of Marijuana Reform - Online Library: http://www.lindesmith.org/library/tlcreasn.html
Toronto Hemp Company (THC) - Information: http://www.torontohemp.com/decrim.htm PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS WHO HAVE PUBLICLY ANNOUNCED THEIR SUPPORT OF THE DECRIMINALIZATION OF MARIJUANA - AN EVER-EXPANDING LIST STARTED ON JUNE 4, 2001.
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You can e-mail me at waynerp@sympatico.ca