Jacob Bell
New Member
"It's good to have a poop now," said Craig Pirart when asked what medical marijuana has done to help him.
He's on about $900 per month of presciption drugs, including heavy duty pain meds to deal with a broken hip eight years ago that led to 10 surgeries and finally amputation of his right leg.
Without the $90-100 of medical marijuana he was able to obtain each month through the Langley Medical Marijuana Dispensary, the 52-year-old former heavy equipment operator will be faced with having to double his prescription drug use.
The dispensary was raided by the RCMP on July 19. Iits pot varieties were seized along with baked goods containing marijuana. (See Pot dispensary owner wants to talk, Langley Advance, July 28.)
No charges have been laid against owner Randy Caine who held a townhall meeting Aug. 2 to ask the community for input.
More than 100 people attended, including Pirart in his electric scooter.
He said he won't, as some medical marijuana patients have said they must, look at buying pot on the streets.
"I'm too scared," he said. Pirart said he feels particularly vulnerable as a scooter user, tries to be around other people when he's out and won't even go out alone after dark.
"I've heard from other people in scooters who have been rolled for cigarettes," he said.
But upping his prescription medication has significant impacts, such as blocking bowels, troubling his stomach and altering his mind and clarity.
At the meeting, people offered various suggestions on how to obtain their medical marijuana or get the dispensary back open.
Caine said the dispensary had about 150 active members receiving medical marijuana, like Pirart. Health Canada licensed Caine to provide for two people but he said he was following court decisions about the right to access the plant.
"I think that this is as far as I'm going to go with it," he told the crowd.
Caine said he's become a distraction from the real issue - ensuring people who have been prescribed medical marijuana can obtain it.
"I will deal with the police," he said. "I will deal with the legal. The medical - I will no longer be the face."
The Langley City resident said he would like the opportunity for this to go to court but does not believe the Crown will pursue charges because there are so many grey areas.
He and others at the meeting invited Langley City council members and other politicians but none attended.
"These are your representatives that aren't here," Caine said.
Four dispensaries have been raided recently. Caine said the intent is to create fear, not to uphold the law.
Talk turned to actions the attendees could take, including appearing before City council as a delegation of medical marijuana users, letter writing campaigns, organized civil disobedience, and voting against current council members in the Nov. 19 municipal election. The crowd roared when one person asked if Caine planned to run for office but he commented that the current council has skills and gets things accomplished but lacks the emotional maturity to deal with medical marijuana in a way that helps the community.
He said he won't run for municipal council.
"We can put a fire under them," he noted.
A member-driven dispensary model has been suggested and will likely be the next method tried for the community, Caine told the crowd.
It would be based around the structures his dispensary created, such as criteria for membership, and paralleling Health Canada medical marjiuana rules.
"There is no stopping of this," Pirart said of the growing use of medical marijuana and cultural attitudes that have shifted. "It [a dispensary] will take the criminal element out of it."
WHO USES?
Medical marijuana users want to put a face on who uses it and what it has done for them.
A table will be set up in McBurney Lane in downtown Langley on Saturday, Aug. 6 from noon to 5 p.m.
People at Tuesday's townhall meeting were invited to volunteer at the booth which will answer questions from passersby and to share their stories.
It may become a regular occurance as people impacted by the raid of the Langley Medical Marijuana Dispensary speak out. It remains open but is not dispensing medical marijuana.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: langleyadvance.com
Author: Heather Colpitts
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Postmedia Network Inc.
Website: Dispensary users promise to be vocal
He's on about $900 per month of presciption drugs, including heavy duty pain meds to deal with a broken hip eight years ago that led to 10 surgeries and finally amputation of his right leg.
Without the $90-100 of medical marijuana he was able to obtain each month through the Langley Medical Marijuana Dispensary, the 52-year-old former heavy equipment operator will be faced with having to double his prescription drug use.
The dispensary was raided by the RCMP on July 19. Iits pot varieties were seized along with baked goods containing marijuana. (See Pot dispensary owner wants to talk, Langley Advance, July 28.)
No charges have been laid against owner Randy Caine who held a townhall meeting Aug. 2 to ask the community for input.
More than 100 people attended, including Pirart in his electric scooter.
He said he won't, as some medical marijuana patients have said they must, look at buying pot on the streets.
"I'm too scared," he said. Pirart said he feels particularly vulnerable as a scooter user, tries to be around other people when he's out and won't even go out alone after dark.
"I've heard from other people in scooters who have been rolled for cigarettes," he said.
But upping his prescription medication has significant impacts, such as blocking bowels, troubling his stomach and altering his mind and clarity.
At the meeting, people offered various suggestions on how to obtain their medical marijuana or get the dispensary back open.
Caine said the dispensary had about 150 active members receiving medical marijuana, like Pirart. Health Canada licensed Caine to provide for two people but he said he was following court decisions about the right to access the plant.
"I think that this is as far as I'm going to go with it," he told the crowd.
Caine said he's become a distraction from the real issue - ensuring people who have been prescribed medical marijuana can obtain it.
"I will deal with the police," he said. "I will deal with the legal. The medical - I will no longer be the face."
The Langley City resident said he would like the opportunity for this to go to court but does not believe the Crown will pursue charges because there are so many grey areas.
He and others at the meeting invited Langley City council members and other politicians but none attended.
"These are your representatives that aren't here," Caine said.
Four dispensaries have been raided recently. Caine said the intent is to create fear, not to uphold the law.
Talk turned to actions the attendees could take, including appearing before City council as a delegation of medical marijuana users, letter writing campaigns, organized civil disobedience, and voting against current council members in the Nov. 19 municipal election. The crowd roared when one person asked if Caine planned to run for office but he commented that the current council has skills and gets things accomplished but lacks the emotional maturity to deal with medical marijuana in a way that helps the community.
He said he won't run for municipal council.
"We can put a fire under them," he noted.
A member-driven dispensary model has been suggested and will likely be the next method tried for the community, Caine told the crowd.
It would be based around the structures his dispensary created, such as criteria for membership, and paralleling Health Canada medical marjiuana rules.
"There is no stopping of this," Pirart said of the growing use of medical marijuana and cultural attitudes that have shifted. "It [a dispensary] will take the criminal element out of it."
WHO USES?
Medical marijuana users want to put a face on who uses it and what it has done for them.
A table will be set up in McBurney Lane in downtown Langley on Saturday, Aug. 6 from noon to 5 p.m.
People at Tuesday's townhall meeting were invited to volunteer at the booth which will answer questions from passersby and to share their stories.
It may become a regular occurance as people impacted by the raid of the Langley Medical Marijuana Dispensary speak out. It remains open but is not dispensing medical marijuana.
News Hawk- Jacob Ebel 420 MAGAZINE
Source: langleyadvance.com
Author: Heather Colpitts
Contact: Contact Us
Copyright: Postmedia Network Inc.
Website: Dispensary users promise to be vocal
