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Current Affairs 2006 - Chronological (55 items)
| Dec 30, 2006 | Up In Smoke A man suspended from work after testing positive for pot has filed a human rights complaint, claiming his boss refused to let him see the company drug-testing policy. Stephen Shorten, 46, says he suffers from chronic pain and smokes a nightly joint - paired with ibuprofen - to ease the discomfort. His arms were broken after they got caught in a machine at the Layfield textile plant in April, and he only returned to full-time status in October...Over the nearly five years Shorten has worked at Layfield he said the company has turned a blind eye to recreational pot use, so long as staffers showed up for work sober.
But in November they beefed up the policy to no longer tolerate pot use of any kind, he said."They never told us of the change. I didn't find out until after all this happened," he told the Sun. ..Shorten doesn't see himself as having a disability, but "didn't expect the company I broke my arms for to be so eager to suspend" him.
[ If this man is denied justice, we are all denied justice...If human value not monetary value ruled, then The Layfield Group stock would plunge when the old policy was scrapped.
Another disturbing trend is the proliferation in US influenced workplace drug testing. The whole concept appears to be a cash cow and income for drug testing companies and their affiliates. It is also a brazen attempt at behaviour modification - steering people toward alcohol, tobacco and pharmaceuticals without repercussions if not impaired, and away from any substance of choice. ] |
| Dec 29, 2006 | Compassion Club Raided, Names Taken Mark Russell, the founder of the Coombs chapter of the Cannabis Buyers Club of Canada, who supplies marijuana to sick people who use it for pain relief, was raided by members of the Courtenay RCMP on Dec. 22 and now faces six counts of trafficking in a controlled substance
[ Anytime is a bad time for a club to be raided, but right before the holidays so that many people can suffer just a little bit more this Christmas, is beyond cruel. How do police sleep at night because 'just doing my job to enforce laws' doesn't cut it over moral and intellectual honesty.] |
| Dec 12, 2006 | 6 Kids Seized In Drug Houses Six children have been taken into custody following two marijuana grow op busts in Calgary, their parents set to become the first in the city charged under provincial legislation aimed at protecting kids living in drug homes...."It comes down to organized crime and making profits. They will sacrifice their families to make a profit," said the Ward 13 alderman. "I hope that if these parents are found guilty, that they never get their kids back."
[ Pure evil - the spin that it is heartless criminals making profits, rather than possibly families trying to supplement meager incomes with a bit of extra income so they won't have to live on the street. Either way, tearing families apart for growing plants (that many people are eager to buy) ensures there are emotionally scared victims for life - and we allow these people to rule our lives? Are we insane?] |
| Dec 8, 2006 | Canada Looks To USA For Drug Policy Hints onservative cabinet ministers and their aides are consulting with "keen" U.S. government officials on a new national drug strategy for Canada, according to internal documents obtained by The Vancouver Sun.
[ Not really new news - the US has controlled global drug policy via the UN since the 1960's.] |
| Dec 8, 2006 | Steady Increase in Marijuana Use Some young people start off by smoking marijuana even before they try cigarettes, says Dr. Scott Leatherdale, researcher at Cancer Care Ontario, University of Waterloo and University of Toronto.
That's quite the opposite of how things used to be years ago.
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| Nov 30, 2006 | Low Tolerance For High Drivers The Federal Conservatives Want to Amend the Criminal Code to Better Target Stoned Motorists. Is It a Safety Measure, an Electoral Ploy, or a New Way to Bust Potheads?... It would amend the Criminal Code by increasing penalties for drivers found under the influence or who are found to be in possession of an illicit drug. ...The bill has several obstacles to overcome before it becomes law. One is its constitutionality.
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| Nov 24, 2006 | Screening Of Soldiers Uncovers Illegal Use Of Drugs Canadian Troops Being Sent to Afghanistan in February Are Being Tested for Illegal Drug Use -- and About 5 Per Cent Are Failing. A...fghanistan is the world's largest producer of opium and the military does not want to send people who already have problems into that environment. More than that, it needs troops who are in full control of their faculties.
[ Strange the government has no problem exposing these same soldiers to depleted uranium (DU) and other atrocities. The DVD Beyond Treason is a must see. ] |
| Nov 2, 2006 | 93% Of Canadians Okay With Medicinal Pot Nearly Half Back Full Legalization; Support Is Highest In Quebec And B.C.
In a nationwide survey, an overwhelming 93 per cent of Canadians indicated they accept the idea of people legally smoking marijuana for health reasons.
Nearly three in four ( 70 per cent ) not only accept the practice but also personally approve of the behaviour.
[ Not much has changed in six years - (See: 2000 Survey ) - Support still runs in the 90+ percentile for medpot, and the government still does nothing ] |
| Oct 26, 2006 | Top court overturns pot activist's conviction An Alberta medical marijuana activist was deprived of his constitutional right to a jury trial when his trial judge instructed two sympathetic jurors to nonetheless find him guilty, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled today.
READ RULING:
SUPREME COURT OF CANADA vs Grant W. Krieger
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| Oct 18, 2006 | US Begins Air Patrols On Alberta Border The "longest undefended border in the world" is becoming anything but.
Jets and helicopters began continuous patrols of the airspace above the Montana-Alberta border starting on Mon, Oct 16, coinciding with the opening of the Great Falls Air Branch at the airport in Great Falls, Montana by the US Customs and Border Protection, part of the US Department of Homeland Security.
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| Oct 7, 2006 | Medicinal Pot Dispute Closes Legion Branch MACCAN, N.S. - Officials with the Royal Canadian Legion have shut down a Nova Scotia branch after members used the local hall to promote the use of locally produced marijuana oil for cancer patients.
The legion's Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command temporarily suspended the charter of the Maccan branch and ousted its executive.
Provincial command chairman Steve Wessel said the legion name, insignia and buildings cannot be used to promote the use of illegal substances.
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| Oct 4, 2006 | Output To Increase As Pot Deal Extended Health Canada has awarded Flin Flon's famous grow-op a one-year extension that calls for a significant jump in medicinal marijuana output.
The $2.1-million deal requires contractor Prairie Plant Systems to supply 1,712 lbs of pot throughout the year, up 85 per cent from the previous annual total.
Brent Zettl, Prairie's president and CEO, said his Saskatoon-based company will spend nearly $500,000 in upgrades to accommodate the increased production.
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| Oct 3, 2006 | Medical Marijuana Grower Shot During Attempted Theft Pair Posed As Police To Gain Access To House Where Drug Was Grown
A man shot during a home invasion is recovering in a Kingston hospital today, while the OPP search for the men who posed as police officers in order to steal his medicinal marijuana.
[When it comes to stealing gardens, it has always been difficult to differentiate between the cops and robbers - what does that say?] |
| Sep 1, 2006 | Cannabis Use in British Columbia: patterns of use, perceptions, and public opinion
as assessed in the 2004 Canadian Addiction Survey - September 2006
(PDF) Cannabis Use in British Columbia
Compared with other Canadians, significantly
fewer BC respondents said they believed cannabis
use should be illegal (42% versus 49%), while
significantly more stated they:
- had ever used cannabis in the past – 53%
in BC versus 44% elsewhere
- experienced access to be ‘very easy’ – 65%
in BC versus 44% elsewhere
- believed both occasional and regular
cannabis use to be harm free.
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| Aug 30, 2006 | RCMP Retract 'Pound For Pound' Assertion Police made an honest mistake by telling The Reminder that marijuana is sometimes traded pound for pound with cocaine, according to the RCMP National Headquarters.
Paul Nadeau, the Mounties' national drug enforcement director, said police have no evidence to support this recently-reported "urban myth."
"Personally, I have never heard of one instance where we've been able to corroborate that," he said from his Ottawa office.
Nadeau said the fallacy is so widespread that it's believed by criminals, lawyers and some of the many thousands of police officers - -- RCMP and otherwise -- across the nation....The pound-for-pound statement was included as part of an Aug. 9 Reminder article outlining how today's marijuana is much more potent - -- and of greater concern to police -- than the pot of yesteryear.
Within days of the story running, members of the pro-marijuana lobby from across Canada fired off e-mails and letters to the editor ridiculing the claim. They read the article online.
Police propaganda gets trounced - thanks to the efforts of many letter writers. It would be so much easier to separate fact from fiction if all media followed up on the dubious claims of reefer madness spewed into the "news", and got retractions from police and politicians. |
| Aug 25, 2006 | Health Canada Cuts Off Sick Man's Pot Supply Tom McMullen ran out of the medication that gave him his life back about two weeks ago, and he can't get more.
The Prospect Bay man is an authorized medical marijuana user and buys his drugs directly from Health Canada.
But the bill for the 90 grams he's allowed each month is 80 per cent of his monthly Canada Pension, his only source of income.
Mr. McMullen, 42, owes the agency more than $1,000 and has been told he won't be sent more marijuana until he clears the debt.
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| Aug 11, 2006 | First Medical Marijuana Exhibit First Medical Marijuana Exhibit at the XVI International AIDS Conference:
Canada Leads the Way
TORONTO, August 11, 2006 - For the first time in the conference’s history, an exhibit on the therapeutic use of marijuana (cannabis) is being offered at the XVI International AIDS Conference this week in Toronto. This initiative acknowledges that for many people living with HIV/AIDS cannabis is an important part of their medical therapy.
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| Jul 27, 2006 | Wanted: Pot Growers WINNIPEG -- People who want to grow pot for the federal government may soon get the chance.
Health Canada's five-year, $5.75-million contract with its current supplier of medicinal marijuana, Prairie Plant Systems, appears to be winding down and the department is preparing to seek proposals from all potential suppliers.
Of course, anyone with experience that has been "caught" need not apply. |
| Jul 19, 2006 | Nelson Shop Owner Busted One of the owners of the Holy Smoke Culture Shop in Nelson is vowing to fight on in his advocacy of marijuana despite new criminal charges laid against him.
Paul DeFelice, 48, was busted Saturday on charges of possession and trafficking of pot.
"We're going to persevere," DeFelice insisted yesterday. "The show will go on. We're in it to the bitter end."
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| Jul 6, 2006 | Ease Pot Restrictions - CAS A new study from the Canadian AIDS Society ( CAS ) says Canadians living with HIV/AIDS and other serious illnesses need better access to medical marijuana. The study report identifies barriers that prevent patients from getting a reliable and affordable supply of medical pot and proposes ways to make access easier.
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