Kamloopians will get a chance to hash out their feelings about medical marijuana. Kamloops council has agreed to hold a public hearing, at a yet-to-be-determined date, on a bylaw change that would restrict where legal weed growers can set up shop in the city. If the new rules are adopted, medical-marijuana grow-ops will only be allowed in industrial zones and will be subject to a number of restrictions and conditions. While the changes drew praise from marijuana activist Carl Anderson when he spoke to KTW last week, they have another local grower concerned. [continues 635 words]
VANCOUVER, Canada - Marijuana has been found to be quite effective in the treatment of some symptoms exhibited by HIV infected persons, according to the doctors here in Vancouver, Canada who prescribe it for their patients. Dr Silvia Guillemi, director of clinical education at the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, said marijuana controls nausea and helps patients with weight loss issues among other things. As such, Dr Guillemi said she often prescribes it for those patients who are desirous of using it. [continues 332 words]
It may be one of the most controversial zoning bylaw hearings ever - city hall is looking at restricting licensed medical marijuana grow operations to industrial zoned areas. City officials are taking the first tentative steps toward a sensible answer to changes expected in federal regulations. They have no choice but to be tentative because no one knows what the changes will be and whether municipalities will have any say in how they are carried out or enforced. As it stands, cities like Kamloops are too often left holding the bag when things go wrong. Licensed grow ops don't always follow the restrictions placed on them, so police resources (paid for by city taxpayers) are used to enforce them. If a grow op results in mould problems, city inspectors have to deal with that issue. [continues 333 words]
Province Urged to Treat Addicted Parents Without Separating Them From Their Kids A shortage of treatment facilities where drug-addicted parents can stay with their children is having a devastating impact on at-risk youth in B.C., advocates say. Most facilities do not allow children to stay with parents who are getting help for a substance abuse problem. "There's the assumption that you'd be a crummy mummy, obviously, so we separate mother and child," said Shawn Bayes, executive director of the Elizabeth Fry Society of Greater Vancouver. [continues 577 words]
Council has told staff to find a way to put medical-marijuana grow operations into agricultural areas of Maple Ridge. "They're going to draft a bylaw where it can only be grown in an agricultural zone and get it out of the houses," said Mayor Ernie Daykin. "You can write a bylaw, and then the $64,000 question is - what happens if it's challenged. Will it stand up?" Politicians made the decision at their Tuesday meeting after a report on the topic. According to the report, Health Canada is developing new standards for medical marijuana operations in two years. Those standards will toughen requirements for product quality, safety, record keeping, and could result in the phasing out of smaller, individual growers. [continues 318 words]
Marijuana reform advocates hope Washington and Colorado states' vote Tuesday to legalize and tax marijuana sales will add momentum to their push for change in B.C. Washington state estimates it would collect $560 million in the first year from a planned 25-per-cent tax on the sale of licensed, regulated marijuana through authorized stores. If enacted, this could also cause a partial collapse of B.C.'s estimated $7-billion-a-year illegal pot industry, as growers relocate to the U.S. to avoid the need to smuggle. [continues 216 words]
Seven years ago, Frank Albert Wolff was caught speeding with a stash of marijuana in his pickup truck. It cost him his job as a fire captain. He also was sentenced to 100 hours of community work for what the judge said was a minor first offence by an otherwise law- abiding man. Imagine his surprise when, after his conviction, the government seized his $ 52,000 Dodge Ram under the civil forfeiture law, which came into effect after he was charged. [continues 816 words]
Restricting Licensed Grow-Ops to Industrial Areas Would Be Too Costly, Advocate Says A medical marijuana user and advocate says the City's proposal to put grow-ops in industrial-zoned areas is too restrictive and expensive. Medical marijuana advocate Carl Anderson said Wednesday he looked for heavy industrial zoned property on the weekend after hearing about the City's proposed bylaw changes. He came up empty. "Where they propose the grows be allowed, there's nothing at all available in those zones. There are heavy industrial sites available. But if you look at the regulations, there are certain restrictions over and above like not having neighbours, no ancillary businesses in the building, it has to be a free standing building," Anderson said. [continues 518 words]
People of Terrace gratefully receive cheques and new vehicles being handed out by recent lottery winner Bob Erb peers out from his half-open front door, wearing a paint- speckled maroon shirt emblazoned with a large cannabis leaf. One of his daughter Audrey's three small children screams from inside the duplex, which is surrounded by a yard filled with rusted folk art, children's toys and a yapping miniature poodle. Erb's duplex unit is identified by an A scrawled in jiffy marker on the front door. Above it is a sign - "Smile, you are on Candid Camera" - possibly scooped up during Erb's frequent garage-sale rummaging. [continues 1229 words]
Burnaby: Killing of Sukh Dhak and his bodyguard unlikely to stop violence, expert says The brazen daylight murder of Sukh Dhak and his bodyguard, Thomas Mantel, will lead to further power struggles in B.C.'s lucrative gang business, predicts a gang expert and author. "The public shouldn't mistake this gangland murder of Sukh Dhak as the end of this gang war," said Ranj Dhaliwal, the author of Daaku: The Gangster's Life. "Until we do something about the demand for hard drugs like cocaine and crack, we will never see an end to this." [continues 286 words]
If young people didn't have the message already, this has been an instructive week for anyone thinking it might be cool to join a drug gang. On Sunday, following what was described as B.C.'s longestrunning criminal jury trial, five members of the Greeks gang out of Vernon were convicted of three drug-linked murders. Then on Monday, Sukhveer Dhak, a "high-ranking member of the Dhak-Duhre crime group," and his bodyguard, Thomas Mantel, were shot to death in the lobby of a Burnaby hotel. [continues 130 words]
Editor: The media has reported that a great number of citizens of this province are in favour of legalizing the use of marijuana. I am rather 'sitting on the fence' regarding this matter, because I have little knowledge of the pros and cons on this subject . One thing I can't understand, though. People are constantly being advised to kick the cigarette habit because of the damage to the lungs from smoke. Therefore, why should marijuana be made legal, since it, too, elicits smoking and therefore polluting the air and perhaps even harming others from second-hand smoke? Smoke is smoke, isn't it, no matter what one is smoking? M. Downey, White Rock [end]
Chasing too much revenue may keep black market alive Taxing B.C. bud could generate hundreds of millions of dollars in provincial government revenue each year, but likely not billions, a new study suggests. The study, prepared by UBC and SFU researchers and published in the International Journal of Drug Policy, estimates B.C. marijuana users spend roughly $500 million a year on pot. The Stop The Violence BC campaign to legalize marijuana has used that figure to infer B.C. could reap $2.5 billion in revenue over five years by heavily taxing the drug. [continues 451 words]
Hearing to tackle bylaws restricting site of operations Kamloops residents will get to weigh in on whether they think medical marijuana should be grown in industrial areas of town instead of users' homes. City council voted seven to two Tuesday in favour of holding a public hearing on changing the bylaws to restrict medical marijuana grow operations to general or heavy industrial areas. Councillors Nelly Dever and Tina Lange opposed the move, while the rest of council supported the public hearing. [continues 551 words]
Re: "Washington vote boosts change in province," (Alberni Valley Times, Nov. 20) Now that neighbouring Washington State and Colorado have legalized marijuana, Ottawa can no longer claim Canada must uphold marijuana prohibition in order to maintain good U.S. relations. In 2002, the Canadian Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs concluded that marijuana is relatively benign, prohibition contributes to organized crime, and law enforcement efforts have little impact on patterns of use. Consider the experience of the former land of the free and current world leader in per capita incarceration. The U.S. has double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available.The only winners in the war on marijuana are drug cartels and shameless tough-on-drugs politicians who confuse the drug war's tremendous collateral damage with a plant. Robert Sharpe Policy Analyst Common Sense for Drug Policy [end]
Down 30 per cent from 2008 The number of school suspensions has dropped in Abbotsford, according to the latest numbers released by the school district. Last year, there were 727 out-of-school suspensions, compared to 805 the previous year. In-school suspensions dropped to 526 in 2011, compared to 683 in 2010. Total suspensions have dropped about 30 per cent since 2008 and are highest at the Grade 9 and 10 levels. Drugs are the most common reason, and boys account for about 80 per cent of suspensions. [continues 71 words]
Dear Editor, Now that Washington State and Colorado have legalized marijuana [Pot laws not about all or nothing, Nov. 15 Painful Truth, Langley Advance], Ottawa can no longer claim Canada must uphold marijuana prohibition to maintain good U.S. relations. In 2002, the Canadian Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs concluded that marijuana is relatively benign, prohibition contributes to organized crime, and law enforcement efforts have little impact on patterns of use. Consider the experience of the former "land of the free" and current world leader in per capita incarceration. The U.S. has double the rate of marijuana use as the Netherlands, where marijuana is legally available. The only winners in the war on marijuana are drug cartels and shameless tough-on-drugs politicians who deliberately confuse the drug war's tremendous collateral damage with a comparatively harmless plant. Robert Sharpe, Common Sense for Drug Policy, U.S.A. [end]
To the editor: "That's just the way life is." That's the message I get from recent letters in the Capital News written by Dave Lawrence and Tom Neave. They're saying that things can't change, so deal with it. Nothing like some constructive criticism, but when their writing provides no options, it's downright destructive. Legalization and regulation of marijuana is not the panacea to cure the criminal gangs corroding society, but it would sure put a dent in their wallets. [continues 415 words]
How many medical marijuana grow-ops are there in the city of Kamloops? The RCMP say three for sure, but city building inspectors estimate more. Health Canada knows, but isn't telling. City of Kamloops staff are hoping a new set of regulations to be discussed at the Tuesday, Nov. 27, council meeting will shed some light on a murky system. As of Oct. 12, 26,222 people across the country are licenced to grow marijuana for themselves or others through Health Canada's marihuana medical-access program. [continues 1069 words]
Washington and Colorado have voted in favour of the legalization of marijuana. After this happened, B.C. marijuana advocates did not wait a minute to start campaigning for pot legalization. The biggest deterrent the federal government had to prevent changing the law is gone: that legalization, even decriminalization, would create unbearable tensions with our biggest economic partner and neighbour in the south. Pot activists argue that marijuana is not dangerous to our health, that legalization would bring millions of dollars in tax revenue, and that it will decrease crime. [continues 556 words]
Inside British Columbia
