Arguing that smoking dope is safer than drinking booze is akin to stating that getting shot in the leg is preferable to taking one in the head. Yet that's the argument often used by pro-pot crusaders, as we debate the minutiae about what age should Canadians be allowed to legally buy weed. Well, folks, kids can already get a hold of dope with little effort. Don't get me wrong; let's legalize the stuff. In fact, we should decriminalize every other drug, because the entire campaign to treat addiction as a matter of legality rather than mental health is among the deadliest and costliest exercises society has tried. [continues 576 words]
Trio sets up its own overdose-prevention site in Rutland after Interior Health fails in bid to establish one in community More pop-up overdose-prevention sites such as the one created Monday could be coming to a Rutland neighbourhood. Depending on the response of civic officials and police, additional efforts could be undertaken to offer places where drug users could receive naloxone in the event of an overdose. "We're going into this, frankly, with a lot of unknowns," Norah Bowman said Monday. [continues 361 words]
Let me start by saying that I am in favour of making illegal drugs legal, provided they are given to registered addicts in regulated doses to be used in situ. The addict arrives at the clinic (or opium den, or whatever you want to call it); shows his/her photo permit; gets the dose in a needle; and either uses it or is injected by an employee. I don't care whether he/she pays or not. If the feds/province/municipality buys the stuff from the producer, with no middleman (sorry, middle person), the cost per dose will be about 50 cents. Chump change. [continues 193 words]
The message has been spread for years that drinking and driving don't mix, but taking drugs and driving can be just as fatal and needs to be taken seriously, police say. The Capital West Integrated Traffic Unit reports it is seeing more cases of impaired driving by drug use. Const. Mike Hibbs of the Capital West Integrated Traffic Unit said there were two individuals found to be impaired by drugs at a check stop in the capital region this past weekend. [continues 430 words]
"I have been hearing and reading a lot about fentanyl and about the many hundreds who have died using it, Well, I guess I want to kill myself, so would the government please advise me were I can get a couple pills? Oh, and by the way, would they send along the location of any of the injection sites where I can get the antidote just in case I change my mind? The question remains: Why is the government supporting this sort of crap by offering injection sites and free antidotes to people who know full well taking the drug may kill them, but they do it anyway? Maybe it's the government who needs the antidote. [continues 55 words]
Legalizing recreational use could unleash $22.6B industry TORONTO* It' s Sunday afternoon and Toronto's Centre for Social Innovation is packed full of marijuana enthusiasts perusing tables of goods. Everything from marijuana-infused barbecue sauce to medicated body rubs is available at Green Market, where artisans peddle their various craft cannabis products. Such events, which sell to patients and casual users alike, operate within a foggy regulatory environment. Selling marijuana is illegal unless you are a large-scale producer licensed under Health Canada's medical marijuana regime. [continues 526 words]
After two days of legal marijuana immersion therapy, Alberta's justice minister admits more questions than answers remain on how the province rolls out pot reforms. But a federal task force's recently unveiled recommendations - calling for cannabis sales outside liquor stores, mail order retail and a minimum age of 18 - have cleared some of the smoke. While an October trip to Denver - the epicentre of Colorado's cannabis legalization - was useful, what Alberta's post-prohibition landscape looks like remains dependent on Ottawa's still hazy blueprint, says Kathleen Ganley. [continues 404 words]
Program warns youths about effects of cannabis use on brain and reflexes A lot of people have the sense that cannabis does not impair your driving or that they're able to compensate for the effects. With Ottawa poised to legalize recreational marijuana next year, researchers are keeping a close eye on use of the drug, which has been steadily trending upward over the last couple of decades. In Ontario, for instance, a survey by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health found that past-year cannabis use virtually doubled between 1996 and 2015, rising from about eight per cent to almost 15 per cent of respondents. [continues 807 words]
Before 1973 there were no services for heroin addicts at all except in prison. Then the NDP passed reforms to health care which permitted methadone clinics. These were quite radical at the time. The clinic possibly saved my life as I was then using heroin. I got work and became law abiding and some of my friends did the same. Many eventually withdrew off methadone as the years went by and became "normal" people. In the last 15 years the powers that be have ignored the lessons of Portugal and The Netherlands and even the universities that study such problems. It is now abundantly clear that prescription heroin is part of the answer along with counselling and/or residential detox for those who want to be drug free. I don't hear any politicians advocating for such solutions. As Christy Clark says, "This is beyond politics." With the introduction of fentanyl (and carfentanil) the situation is becoming a body count and there is no time for dithering or "further studies." If there had been action on this 10 years ago we would not be in such a situation now. D'Arcy Proulx, Roberts Creek [end]
There is an easy way to stop this crisis in its tracks. Legalize street drugs, in a controlled way, so that addicts can get what they need without having to resort to dealers who provide products of unknown purity. If alcohol and tobacco were illegal, there would be even more deaths from adulterated products. As a bonus a lot of dealers would be out of business. I cannot imagine why this has not been done. I realize that there are legal impediments to doing this, but we do have a serious problem. The laws should be changed immediately, or if necessary, broken by the health authorities in order to save lives. If done, everyone wins, the addicts stay alive and out of trouble, the police and other first-responders can take a much-needed rest, the illegal distribution network collapses, and the social workers can help these people in a more productive way. There is no time to waste, this needs to be done ASAP. Mark H. White, Vancouver [end]
The courts must do whatever they can to stop or reduce drug trafficking, a Nanaimo judge said last week as he handed a drug trafficker a six-month jail sentence. On Dec. 19, Trevor Lee Sihota pleaded guilty to possession of heroin for the purpose of trafficking. Sihota, a 35-year-old recovering crack cocaine and crystal meth addict, was arrested on March 7, 2013. Police found 42.7 grams of heroin valued at $4,700 to $6,000 in his apartment. [continues 556 words]
B.C. mom Scarlett Ballantyne wonders if Ottawa's plans to legalize marijuana will make her 14- and 16-year-old daughters more inclined to try it. But she's not waiting to find out. Ballantyne says her family has been discussing the dangers of drug use since the girls were 13 - a preemptive strike as pot shops and marijuana headlines have been popping up everywhere they turn. She's proud to say they are athletic, self-confident kids, but she also gets the impression that their generation sees marijuana as "not that big of a deal." [continues 687 words]
An American fugitive who was dubbed the Godfather of Grass because of run-ins with the law involving the large-scale production of marijuana will be detained in Montreal for at least another week while authorities decide when he will be deported. John Robert Boone, 73, was arrested by Montreal police Thursday afternoon at a shopping centre, at the corner of Ste-Catherine St. W. and Atwater Ave., putting an end to a police search that lasted eight years. He had been sought by the Kentucky State Police and the U.S. Marshals Service since 2008. He was detained at the Riviere-des-Prairies Detention Centre where he had a hearing Friday afternoon before an adjudicator with Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board. [continues 457 words]
Two years ago, a good friend of mine died here in Prince George, along with three others over the Christmas Holidays, all from fentanyl overdoses. One year before he died, I watched my friend Ken fight, sweat, vomit and soil his way through withdrawal from heroin, cold turkey. After three weeks, he found employment, rose quickly through the ranks and gladly helped others. After eleven months clean, his pain, regrets from the past, the company of others afflicted and this perverted unrealistic time of year for a lot of people, culminated in his succumbing to his addiction one last time. [continues 526 words]
The federal changes to withdraw the National Anti-Drug Strategy are significant for Canada's nurses and their ability to deliver ethical and evidence-based care. Harm reduction will again be a pillar of Canadian drug strategy. Evidence, not ideology, will be privileged. And the Minister of Health, not the Minister of Justice, will be in charge. However, proposed changes will take time to translate into action. Nowhere is this more evident than in British Columbia, where on one December night 13 people died of overdoses. Our hearts are with everyone who is experiencing these losses and with those who are working hard to save lives daily. [continues 590 words]
Re: "Church builds wall to keep out drug users, homeless campers," Dec. 22. If the homeless drug-addicted want to use church property to sleep on, perhaps they should try being good neighbours. Just because they have addiction or mental health issues, it is not an acceptable excuse for leaving a filthy, dangerous mess behind. During their lucid moments, why not collect their used needles and trash and dispose of them safely? Perhaps the homeless shelters could organize cleanup parties every morning. If they were to keep their neighbourhood cleaner, people might be more welcoming. John Miller Victoria [end]
WINNIPEG School Division is considering stocking its schools with the antidote naloxone in case any student suffers an opioid overdose. "We need to pay attention to it," trustee Lisa Naylor said Thursday. "It may be something we deem as a good idea, as part of a first aid kit." Naylor raised the possibility at a school board meeting earlier this month and was told the WSD administration was already looking into it. Naylor said a parent, who is also a doctor, had told her another unidentified school division is also considering putting naloxone kits in schools. [continues 791 words]
As the latest statistics from the BC Coroners Service confirm illicit-drug-overdose fatalities are continuing to climb, posters aimed at getting the message across that the danger isn't confined to addicts are being distributed throughout the Semiahmoo Peninsula. Verna Logan, constituency assistant to Surrey-White Rock MLA Gordon Hogg, confirmed last week that the posters, created by Fraser Health, have been sent to South Surrey & White Rock Chamber of Commerce officials for distribution to their membership, as well as the White Rock Business Improvement Association, the Surrey Board of Trade and other organizations. [continues 277 words]
Police chief says intervention, education key to tackling problem For the first time under Chief Clive Weighill's tenure, crime in Saskatoon is going up. This city has the highest murder rate in the country and thefts and break-ins are spiking. The StarPhoenix sat down with the city's police chief to talk crime and what's next for 2017. Q The rise of methamphetamine is well documented in Saskatoon. You've said it's a main contributor to the city's crime rate. How are you going to combat it? [continues 745 words]
Artisanal producers already selling teas, medical rubs under foggy legislation It's Sunday afternoon and Toronto's Centre for Social Innovation is packed full of marijuana enthusiasts perusing tables of goods. Everything from marijuana-infused barbecue sauce to medicated body rubs is available at Green Market, where artisans peddle their various craft cannabis products. Such events, which sell to patients and casual users alike, operate within a foggy regulatory environment. Selling marijuana is illegal unless you are a large-scale producer licensed under Health Canada's medical marijuana regime. [continues 333 words]
Inside Canada
