Pubdate: Fri, 09 Nov 2001 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2001 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Author: Glenn Bohn Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada) SENATORS PAY A VISIT TO THE COMPASSION CLUB Trip To Medical Marijuana Society Part Of A Look Into Drug Culture. The sweet smell of marijuana smoke and freshly-cut buds greeted four Canadian senators Thursday when they entered the Vancouver Compassion Club on Commercial Drive. Hilary Black, the founder of the non-profit society which has been dispensing the illegal drug from local offices and storefronts for more than four years, said that, to her knowledge, it was the first time elected official -- city, provincial or federal -- has walked through those doors. City licence inspectors come in "to give us a hard time," said Black, but "this is a first positive visit with any kind of politician." For the first half hour, the Senate special committee on illegal drugs had a private tour and discussion with staff members at The Wellness Centre, a $100,000-a-year clinic subsidized by marijuana sales. Behind a waiting room filled with tropical house plants -- species not mentioned by the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act -- there are private rooms where people are given alternatives therapies like acupuncture, Reiki and Bach flower remedies. Club members pay anywhere from $3 to $30 per visit, but club policy is that no one is turned away for lack of funds. Senators got their first whiff of B.C. Bud at The Distribution Centre, the adjacent storefront at 2995 Commercial where the society says it gives out "medicinal cannabis" to people with serious illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, cancer and HIV/AIDs. The Compassion Club invited The Vancouver Sun and the CBC to accompany the senators on that portion of the tour, which lasted about 40 minutes. The visitors grinned when they saw "today's menu" posted on the wall inside. It featured different strains of marijuana. with names like Time Warp, Purple Pine Berry and Skunk #1, selling for between $7 and $10 gram, enough for about three joints. Marijuana-based "Weedies" cookies were selling for $2 apiece, or $5 for three. B.C. Senator Pat Carney didn't sample any of the wares there, but she did ask a Compassion Club staffer a series of questions about how marijuana is dispensed, or whether someone has overdosed. (He told her that users usually sleep it off if they use too much, and it shouldn't be combined with other drugs.) "You can't major in cannabis," Carney noted later. "How do you ensure that the people delivering this service are qualified to assess their customers, or aid them if they get into difficulties?" Carney said she has fibromyalgia, a condition that mostly afflicts women, causing symptoms that include muscle aches, fatigue and sleeping problems. It's one of the ailments that cannabis advocates say can be treated with marijuana. Carney gave herself some wriggle room when a reporter asked whether she was considering using marijuana. "Not at the present time," the former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister replied. "I'm not saying I wouldn't do it, but right now I self-medicate through a very active aquatic program, which works for me." She also wouldn't say whether she wanted marijuana compassion clubs legalized -- "that's what we're here to investigate" -- but did note the Vancouver Compassion Club has operated for more than four years, "if not under the protection of the police, at least with the knowledge and assistance of police." Each month, the club distributes about 18 kilograms or 40 pounds of marijuana . On Wednesday, the commanding officer of the Vancouver police department's drug section told the Senate committee that, for all practical purposes, city police have stopped arresting people for possession of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and so-called designer drugs. Inspector Kash Keen also said the federal government should consider removing legal sanctions against marijuana. At the Commercial Drive storefront, there was no attempt to hide the big bags of marijuana leaf on the dispensing counter, or the living marijuana plants in pots. No one was seen smoking marijuana during the politicians' visit, but the air purifying machine near the front window didn't mask the smell of smoked marijuana emanating from the Smoking Room, where a 1960s-style black light poster graces the wall. Tobacco smoking is prohibited in that room, but marijuana smoking is permitted for club members, 28 staff members and "primary care givers" who help roll or hold a joint. The senators listened quietly as marijuana users -- including one woman in a wheelchair with multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy -- but at least one senator didn't approach the illegal drug too closely. "I'm not uncomfortable, but it's not an environment I'm used to," said Canadian Alliance Senator Gerry St. Germain, a former RCMP officer who worked in Vancouver in 1966. "In my previous life, it was treated differently." However, St. Germain confirmed that, even in the 1960s, police selectively enforced the law against marijuana possession. "Generally, there was an extenuating circumstance -- an unruly situation that went with it," he said. St. Germain said he had no regrets: "My job was to enforce the law. Now, I'm one of the legislators . . ." Senator Pierre-Claude Nolin, who chairs the Senate committee, said the people at the Compassion Club were getting marijuana for medical reasons, and he didn't see any drug trafficking. Nolin said marijuana possession is illegal in Canada "because Parliament decided it is illegal, and its our job to question the laws. Nothing is carved in stone forever." - --- MAP posted-by: Josh