Landlords hope for Human Rights Act exemption Alberta landlords are asking the province to nip possible human rights cases in the bud when it comes to cannabis use in rental properties, but the province doesn't see that happening. In a letter to the province, the Alberta Residential Landlords Association asked the province to revisit the residential tenancies act. The group is also asking for an exception to the Alberta Human Rights Act to make sure the right to prohibit cannabis smoking and growing is crystal clear. [continues 389 words]
Marijuana use big issue for employers, expert says Darrin Rogowski said he is launching a human rights complaint after his employer let him go in late July because he uses medical marijuana after hours. Rogowski, 30, was working for Inertia Environmental - an Okotoks-based hydrovacing company. He worked on the company's trucks, which use high-pressure water to move earth when excavation by other means isn't allowed. "When I got my medical marijuana licence back in May, I told one of my supervisors I had it, and nothing else was really said about it," he said. [continues 262 words]
Police say plan for mail-order marijuana is not legal The owner of Erbachay Health Centres was in Calgary in July, handing out business cards and flyers in hopes of getting a toehold on this side of the Rockies. Now that Canadians know recreational marijuana will soon be legalized, it's getting harder to hold the floodgates back, even if it's in the guise of medical services. Calgary City Council recently passed a bylaw limiting where medical marijuana counselling services can set up shop. Businesses offering that service can't be within 300 metres of one another, or 150 metres of a school. [continues 268 words]
Policies to Help Addicts Fights Stigma Faced by Drug Users We all wear seat belts when we get in a car - just in case the worst should happen. That's the philosophy behind harm reduction, according to Stasha Huntingford. "It can't reduce all the risk but it can reduce some of the harm," said Huntingford. She was spreading the message of harm reduction for drug users and the homeless at the third annual National Harm Reduction Day. Several dozen people gathered in Olympic Plaza to hear speakers talk about harm-reduction methods such as clean needle exchanges. [continues 211 words]
Vaping Rules Restrict Use of Prescribed Medication A Calgary medical marijuana user is looking for clarity on where and when he can use the substance. Daniel - not his real name - told Metro he's been using marijuana to deal with anxiety, PTSD and depression. He uses a vaporizer to consume his marijuana, which he gets legally through Aurora Cannabis, located in Alberta. He said he's not looking to vape everywhere all the time, but said there are times when he has a panic attack and can't make it outside. [continues 254 words]
Feds Say Legalization Could Start In Spring 2017 As protests go, it was pretty laid back. About 50 people were gathered outside Calgary City Hall Wednesday for the annual 420 rally in support of legalizing marijuana. Participants said with word today of the federal government's plan to begin legalization in the spring of 2017, the rally was more of a celebration than a protest. "We want to let the city know that the plant that we fought to legalize is on its way and that it's medicine and that it's pretty much more harmless than anything you could think of," said participant Travis Donald. [continues 157 words]
On Thursday morning, news broke that Port aux Basques RCMP had seized a large quantity of marijuana and ecstasy from a house in Port aux Basques. The story posted to The Gulf News website went slightly viral, at least in local terms, gathering over four thousand hits in a few hours. Few stories get that many hits in a week. It shows the interest and the concern people have in our community about illicit drugs. It's no secret that many in our society see marijuana as a relatively harmless recreation drug. Even some of those leaving comments on our web story said marijuana needs to be legalized while criticizing those who sell ecstasy. The federal Liberals passed a motion to legalize pot at their recent convention. [continues 221 words]
I have been volunteering with AIDS Saint John since 1990 and I was part of the board 18 years ago that decided to, under cover of darkness, practically speaking, provide clean needles to those who needed them so they could safely inject free of potential and deadly diseases. In the intervening years drug use has grown to be an enormous problem in our province, with an exponential increase in crime, broken lives and families, lost jobs and lost lives. For several years now I have been volunteering in the Needle Exchange Program based at AIDS Saint John and I have heard harrowing stories and have witnessed people begging for a walk-in methadone clinic as they struggle to overcome their addictions. [continues 144 words]
A NEEDLE exchange program at the Albury Wodonga Aboriginal Health Service, launched yesterday in partnership with Greater Southern Area Health Service, is the first of its kind in NSW. The new program also marks the inaugural partnership between the two services. Aboriginal health service chief Scott Walters said that the program would be available to those Aboriginal drug users who were not accessing mainstream needle exchange services that are offered at community health centres. The service will provide clean syringes and advice to those wanting to get off illicit drugs. [continues 231 words]
No Drug Problem, Say Residents, But THE results of a survey in Culcairn and Holbrook which showed participants predominantly thought neither town had a drug problem was a major shock, the chairman of the Culcairn Holbrook Youth Action Team, David Dunbar, said yesterday. The team is presently presenting the results of its research project to meetings in both towns with guest speakers providing details about the types of drugs available in the region and strategies parents might adopt to help reduce the risk of their children using and abusing drugs. [continues 362 words]
Want to buy cold medicine for you and your child at the Walgreens in Frayser? Be forewarned that you might get caught in a tug-of-war between well-intentioned efforts to deter drug dealers and an innocent attempt to stop a runny nose. A week ago a co-worker tried to buy a bottle of Dimetapp syrup for her son and a box of 12 Tylenol Cold pills for herself at the store on Thomas. "Exceeding drug limit," read the cash register. [continues 396 words]
Drug Addicts Shouldn't Have Children They Can't Take Care Of. On this, Barbara Harris and I agree. But the way Harris keeps addicts from getting pregnant is all wrong. In exchange for their reproductive rights, Harris, through her program Project Prevention, gives addicts and alcoholics $200. Today and Wednesday, she'll be driving around Lamar Avenue and other targeted areas in Memphis with "Get Birth Control, Get Cash" signs on her car and putting similar signs on street posts. [continues 432 words]
