Pubdate: Wednesday, January 27, 1999 Source: The Grand Forks Gazette (British Columbia, Canada) Contact: Phone: (250) 442-2191 E-mail: (250) 442-3336 Website: http://www.sterlingnews.com/Forks/ Page: 4 Author: Karen Heiber, Editor SEEING WHAT IT'S LIKE ON THE OTHER SIDE After years of being the one asking the questions, I was interviewed recently by Brock Ketcham, a Calgary herald reporter. The experience showed me what it's like to be on the other side of the media fence. Ketcham came to town because a compassion club (a place where marijuana is provided for medicinal purposes) has recently opened in Calgary. He'd heard about Brian Taylor's idea to grow medical marijuana, and decided to do an article about it. Ketcham spoke to several people in town, including me. He wanted to get a feel for what the town was like and what the buzz around Taylor was. I admitted to him that I'd been in Grand Forks only a short while, but the majority of what I'd heard about Taylor and his pursuits was skeptical and negative, often in the extreme. Forgetting that I could be quoted, I translated this into "They think he's a joke." Realizing as soon as I said it that it was an exaggeration, I went on to say that not everyone felt that way. I also added my personal opinion that whether you agree with Taylor or not, you have to give him credit for having the guts to pursue radical ideas and for not being afraid to be different. The only thing that made it into the Herald Story, however, was the "joke" comment. To add insult to injury, the story was later reprinted in the Vancouver Sun where it was seen by many Grand Forks residents. If I'm ever interviewed again, I will be more judicious with my choice of words. And, as a journalist, I will continue to take special care not to take people's quotes out of context. But back to the medical marijuana issue. In my brief interview with the Calgary reporter, I never got the chance to discuss what I consider to be some core issues. Had I the chance, I would have told him that this town really needs employment. If people want their children to be able to stay here when they grow up, we need some sort of industry - and clearly forestry is not going to be enough. That's why, until somebody comes up with a better idea, I think Grand Forks should not dismiss outright the possibility of a medical marijuana industry. Consider the following: 1) Marijuana has been shown to be effective in relieving some ailments and making some chronic illnesses and treatments much easier to endure. It has been approved for medical use in five states, and sooner or later more are bound to follow. 2) Growing medical marijuana in the Boundary wouldn't make it any more likely that local youth (or anyone else, for that matter) would smoke the stuff because there are already all kinds of growers hidden in these hills. 3) Nor would medical marijuana attract so-called "undesirable" types to town (see the point above - those who want to be near pot plants are probably here already). 4) Many people say they find the mayor and his stance on marijuana to be "embarrassing." They don't want Grand Forks to be known as the pot capital of Canada. Well, if I had to choose between worrying about what people think and keeping a great community alive with an environmentally friendly industry, I'd surely go for the latter. Whatever your perspective, all of the points above are probably moot anyway because my guess is it'll be years and probably decades before anyone in Canada is given the go-ahead to grow marijuana, medical or not. But there is a legal demand for the substance, and it will have to come from somewhere. Taylor, it seems, wants to get in on the ground floor. He also has the blind optimism that it takes to forge on against the odds. And who knows? Maybe he'll get lucky and his plan will actually come to fruition. I know this thought scares some people. Personally, I am more scared by the alternative if we don't find some way to keep this community from eventually spiralling into a ghost town. So, until I think of a better idea or hear one from someone else. I'm at least going to listen to what the medical marijuana folks have to say. - --- MAP posted-by: derek rea