PENTICTON - A two-year-old Summerland girl whose family is feeding her illegal cannabis oil has had a dramatic improvement in her seizure disorder. Kyla Williams' family says in the past five months the oil given to the girl has reduced the hundreds of seizures she was suffering daily. "We were astonished and so thankful when Kyla no longer had any seizures or only very few each day. Her overall condition continues to improve both physically and mentally. Kyla is alert, increasingly socially interactive and loves sucking her thumb," Kyla's mother, Courtney Williams said. [continues 305 words]
Re: Doctors left in ' untenable' position on medical marijuana, says CMA president elect, Aug. 8 Dr. Chris Simpson, incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association, made some important points regarding medicinal cannabis. By default, doctors have been made the "gatekeepers" for the legal, legitimate use of cannabis for medical purposes. Patients look to their doctors for guidance on managing their health conditions, including options such as medicinal cannabis. Dr. Simpson is correct that cannabis is different from other treatment options. It is regulated by Health Canada separately from traditional prescription medicines, and while there is a growing body of clinical research on the therapeutic benefits and the risks of cannabis, it is still less than exists for many prescription drugs. [continues 121 words]
The City of Nanaimo and a number of Nanaimo service clubs are giving financial assistance to a program dedicated to dealing with drug abuse in the province's schools. The city is giving $2,500 to support the RCMP-led Drug Abuse Resistance Education program; the Women of the Moose gave $500, the Knights of Columbus contributed $300 and the Royal Canadian Legion #10 gave $200. The D.A.R.E. B.C. Society is a Canadian-registered charity whose purpose is to empower the children of B.C. with the critical thinking and life skills necessary to choose a drug-free life. [continues 99 words]
AFTER SERVING A five-year prison sentence for selling marijuana seeds to U.S. customers, Vancouver's Marc Emery is expected to cross the border back into Canada on Tuesday (August 12). His wife Jodie will be flying to Windsor on Monday (August 11) and will be waiting for him on the following day in the plaza outside Windsor City Hall. "I'm definitely excited, a little stunned almost," Jodie told the Georgia Straight by phone. "It's kind of surreal." [continues 617 words]
The family of a two-year-old Summerland girl is willing to break the law to provide her with the cannabis oil that appears to have dramatically reduced the hundreds of seizures she was suffering daily. Kyla Williams, who has a severe seizure disorder, has shown marked improvement during the past five months while her family has been treating her with the illegal oil. The family tried the oil after doctors said they had exhausted their treatment options. "It's a scary place to be," said Kyla's grandmother Elaine Nuessler. [continues 623 words]
PENTICTON - A two-year-old Summerland girl whose family is feeding her illegal cannabis oil has had a dramatic improvement in her seizure disorder. Kyla Williams' family says in the past five months the oil given to the girl has greatly reduced the hundreds of seizures she was suffering daily. "We were astonished and so thankful when Kyla no longer had any seizures or only a very few each day," said Kyla's mother, Courtney Williams. "Her overall condition continues to improve both physically and mentally. Kyla is alert, increasingly socially interactive and loves sucking her thumb." [continues 151 words]
Re: "Don't pretend pot is harmless," editorial, Aug 9. Marijuana can be harmful if abused. Criminal records are nonetheless inappropriate as health interventions and ineffective as deterrents to marijuana use. Marijuana prohibition does not make the plant any safer. Prohibition compounds the dangers of marijuana by granting a monopoly on marijuana distribution to drug cartels that sell methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. Marijuana prohibition is a gateway drug policy. It's time for politicians to stop confusing the drug war's tremendous collateral damage with a comparatively harmless plant. Robert Sharpe Policy analyst, Common Sense for Drug Policy Washington [end]
PENTICTON, B.C. - The two-year-old Summerland, B.C., girl whose family is feeding her illegal cannabis oil has had a dramatic improvement in her seizure disorder. Kyla Williams' family says in the past five months the oil given to the girl has greatly reduced the hundreds of seizures she was suffering from daily. "We were astonished and so thankful when Kyla no longer had any seizures or only a very few each day. Her overall condition continues to improve both physically and mentally. Kyla is alert, increasingly socially interactive and loves sucking her thumb," Kyla's mother, Courtney Williams said. [continues 297 words]
Prince George Resident Angela Cunningham Thought She Had Found the Perfect Tenant in James Wilson. Employed, well-spoken and clean-cut, the 32-year-old Wilson, a framer by trade, struck Cunningham and her husband, Kelly, as an honest, personable guy who would pay his rent on time and treat the house on Trout Road in Salmon Valley as his own. For the first few months, he did just that, even earning himself a seat at the Cunningham's dinner table last Easter where he was served, along with the other 20-30 assembled guests, a plate of turkey with all the fixings. [continues 1340 words]
Welcome news. Teleconference set up to discuss claims that some patients are relapsing after switch Government and health officials are meeting Friday to discuss claims that some patients are relapsing after B.C. switched patients to a commercial methadone product in February. The Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users and the Drug Users' Resource Centre wrote an open letter this week saying that Methadose is proving to be ineffective for longtime methadone users, its effects wearing out after 16 hours and triggering withdrawal symptoms. Many stable, long-term methadone users have relapsed to using heroin, the letter claims. [continues 322 words]
Patients in B.C. up 66 per cent over five years A program that treats illicit drug users by giving them methadone or another substitute is saving lives and money, the provincial health officer said Thursday. Dr. Perry Kendall released a report showing that increased numbers of B.C. patients take methadone or suboxone to treat an addiction to heroin, morphine or Oxy-Contin. "We're seeing the hospitalization costs come down, which means that people are probably less sick when they're being hospitalized," he said. "The mortality rate is coming down, which is really good news. =C2=85 [continues 344 words]
If medical marijuana is a step toward legalization, just make it legal - or at least decriminalize it - and don't dump it all on doctors. Making physicians the gatekeepers of legal marijuana is not fair to doctors and is not conducive to public health. The problem is that marijuana has been prescribed by the courts, not by health-care professionals. "Dried marijuana is not an approved drug or medicine in Canada," says the Health Canada website. "The Government of Canada does not endorse the use of marijuana, but the courts have required reasonable access to a legal source of marijuana when authorized by a physician." [continues 486 words]
The province's top doctor says that with 40,000 estimated opiate drug abusers in B.C., the provincial opioid substitution program may only be meeting a third of the potential need. To date, B.C.'s opioid substitution program has 15,754 patients, according to chief medical health officer Dr. Perry Kendall. "Currently, some of the best estimates is that there may be 40,000 people using illicit opioid drugs in B.C., whether it's heroin or other opiates," Kendall said. [continues 172 words]
Stephen Harper once said, "Do I look like a person who smoked marijuana." Well, no, Stephen, you don't. You're the man. Marc Emery had been around for years, decades, going on doing what Marc Emery did. He wound up as a spokesman, on the edge. And he was, by de facto, condoned by society and a well-established part of the Canadian social fabric. Then came Harper. What the Harper government did to Mr. Emery, as I see it, stank. Mr. Harper, in my opinion, stepped in this one, not Marc Emery. Richard Wright, Powell River [end]
Despite coming up well short of the required 400,000 signatures during last year's efforts to force a referendum on the decriminalization of marijuana, Sensible BC is in no way giving up. In fact, Sensible BC leader Dana Larsen believes that there is tremendous opportunity ahead on a number of fronts, including the municipal and federal elections. Municipalities across British Columbia elect new Mayors and Councils this November and a federal election is coming in 2015. The Bulletin spoke with Larsen this week on why he is feeling optimistic that changes are coming to marijuana laws. [continues 587 words]
Everyone sick and tired of hearing from and or about Marc and Jody Emery, raise their hands. These are not heroes. These are not "civil rights" activists. These are not role models. Nor are they the pillars of the community they have been elevated to. Marc Emery is a criminal who was caught and rightly charged. Jody Emery is simply riding his coat-tails to fame and fortune. She has nothing meaningful or significant to say. This duo has made a lucrative career out of the marijuana issue, and an entirely self-serving one at that. That they are paid any attention or credence is an indicator of just how warped and perverse our collective priorities have become. [continues 101 words]
The province's health minister says the effectiveness, or lack thereof, of a new heroin treatment regime must be evaluated before he'll get involved. Terry Lake's comments follow an open letter sent Tuesday by the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU) to government and health officials claiming that the switch from methadone to Methadose in February has had "alarming side effects" on up to a quarter of patients in the Methadone Maintenance Program. "We are deeply concerned by the number of us, our friends, colleagues and loved ones who are relapsing - using heroin or other opiates to deal with this withdrawal - in many cases, after years of abstaining," the letter reads. [continues 284 words]
Squamish Valley: Police, music festival officials promise tight security After a rash of drug-related deaths and illnesses at music festivals this summer, Squamish RCMP said they'll be enforcing a zero-tolerance policy on harder drugs at the Squamish Valley Music Festival this weekend. "We are going to arrest and charge," said Sgt. Wayne Pride of the Squamish RCMP. But police will also exercise discretion depending on the type and amount of drugs. "We're not here to be heavyhanded," Pride said. "If someone is found in possession of many individually wrapped packs of cocaine, for example, we're going to take that more seriously than someone smoking a doobie in the crowd." [continues 407 words]
Harm reduction: Legislators should drop morality approach, consider end to black market Does caffeine lead to cocaine use? Obviously not. But what would happen if caffeine was outlawed? Naturally, a black market would emerge. Drug gangs, which are highly skilled at operating outside of the law, and have pre-existing distribution channels, would begin trafficking illegal caffeine pills. If people were forced to use black market distribution chains to obtain a mild stimulant such as caffeine, would they be more likely to opt for a stronger stimulant such as cocaine? Almost certainly. [continues 695 words]
"Revenge!" Now there's an anguished utterance you normally expect only to hear in bad Shakespeare parodies. Not last week, however, when Marc Emery, Canada's so-called Prince of Pot, dropped the R-bomb on no less than the government itself. Speaking to CBC Radio from a private deportation facility (whatever the heck that is) in anticipation of finally being released from the U.S. prison system, Emery said: "My own government betrayed me and I'm going to wreak an appropriate amount of political revenge when I get home and campaign against the Conservative government." [continues 582 words]
Inside British Columbia
