Pubdate: Tue, 18 Mar 2003 Source: Sudbury Star (CN ON) Copyright: 2003 The Sudbury Star Contact: http://www.thesudburystar.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/608 PANELISTS DEBATE POT USE Police Officer Says It's 'a Gateway Drug.' Advocate Says 'No One Has Ever Died of Pot' Local News - The confusion surrounding the issue of decriminalizing marijuana was apparent Monday during a roundtable discussion at the Elizabeth Fry Society. The conflicting opinions and research presented during the day-long session demonstrated just how divisive the issue is. Barry Burkholder, an advocate for the legalization of pot for medicinal use, and Const. Robert Brunette, a Greater Sudbury Police crime prevention officer, delivered diametrically opposed addresses. During the discussion, Burkholder, who does not support the recreational use of pot, said there is ample evidence to show that pot is excellent for pain management. Using pot has allowed him to return to work, he said, and helps him manage the chronic pain and nausea related to Hepatitis C, meningitis and a spinal injury. Research, Burkholder added, has shown that THC (dronabinol) -- the active chemical agent in marijuana -- inhibits cancer tumour growth. That research, he said, has been suppressed by government officials in Canada and the United States. Burkholder's most controversial statements revolved around what he called the duplicitous relationship between the federal government and pharmaceutical companies. If pot was legalized, he said, the companies would lose billions in prescription drug profits. The government is stalling legalization to give those companies time to develop a "pill or puffer that they can sell for huge profits," he said. More research needed? Health Canada, he added, argues that more research must be done on marijuana to determine its medicinal benefits. But a considerable amount of pot research must have been done to develop Marinol -- a synthetic THC used to treat the symptoms of cancer and HIV/AIDS. Tens of thousands of Canadians die each year from alcohol, tobacco and prescription drug use, Burkholder said, but pot is relatively harmless. "No one has ever died of pot," he said. Brunette countered Burkholder's arguments, using mostly Health Canada sources. Pot, he said, is as addictive as alcohol and tobacco, and legalizing it would multiply the social and health problems linked to legal drugs. THC, Brunette said, increases the growth of cancer cells, and pot use has been linked to fatal motor vehicle collisions. Marinol, he added, is a viable alternative to the medicinal use of marijuana, an argument rejected by Burkholder, who said Marinol users suffer severe side-effects, particularly a heightened sense of paranoia. "Why legalize something that is even worse than alcohol and tobacco," Brunette said. "We already have two bad problems, let's not add another one." Young people are getting highly confused messages about pot-smoking, Brunette said. The perception that the drug is harmless has led to more widespread use, he said. Quoting Health Canada sources, Brunette said that young people who smoke pot are 85 times more susceptible to using other, harder drugs than those who never smoke pot do. Pot is, in fact, a "gateway drug," Brunette said, an argument flatly denied by legalization advocates. After a three-year battle in the courts, Burkholder was granted a one-year medical exemption for marijuana use in August, 2001, which allowed him to grow, possess and use the substance. The exemption has since expired, and Burkholder says that Health Canada has made the process of renewing it a nightmare. Issue 'too political' "When I first applied for an exemption, the form was one page long," Burkholder said. "Now it's 52 pages, and it's almost impossible to find doctors and specialists who have the time and the willingness to fill it out. "The issue is too political for them to touch and they are scared they could lose their (medical) licences or face higher insurance rates." Burkholder incurred $30,000 in legal fees and lost his home during the first court battle, but said he will return to the courts for a second battle, preferring the justice system to applying for an exemption, which he claimed has become an increasingly frustrating exercise. "More people have won exemptions in court than by going through this ridiculous process," he said. "A lot of people die waiting for an exemption." It is a myth that police resources would be freed up if pot were legalized, Brunette said. Possession charges for pot are usually the result of broader investigations related to more serious crimes, he said. Young people who are convicted of pot possession, he said, are not branded criminals for life, as some argue. They can apply for a pardon. - --- MAP posted-by: Alex