cannabisnews.com: Stone Cold





Stone Cold
Posted by CN Staff on August 26, 2002 at 09:45:38 PT
By Terry Ott
Source: View Magazine
As Steppenwolf’s John Kay sang back in the day, “the dealer is the man with the love grass in his hand.” Conversely, “the pusher is a monster… he ain’t a natural man.” Advocates for the medical marijuana community in this country want the public to know that they need a legal “dealer,” so they don’t have to cop their dope from “the pusher” — or, in extreme situations, become somewhat like them.
Alison Myrden is a thirtysomething woman trying to cope with the debilitating pain of Multiple Sclerosis. She is afflicted with one of the most rare manifestations of the disease, a condition known as trigeminal neuralgia. The pain from TN causes Ms. Myrden to continually finger–jab at her cheekbone in a vain attempt to subdue the agony. Alison suggests a visual analogy to convey some idea of what she lives with all the time — Edvard Munch’s painting, The Scream.She describes the hurt as a “bolt of lightning shooting through my face,” a nearly continual excruciating pain, suffering so complete she says it causes some afflicted to commit suicide. However, she claims that high–grade medical marijuana will take the edge off the pain and allow her to lead a somewhat more comfortable life.As one of only 52 federal exemptees, Alison is allowed to possess up to 360 grams of weed for her personal stash. She has a Health Canada ID card that most stoners would sell their souls for.In the line of duty, I examined the pungent and herbal “contraband” and found it to be primo. (I think I obtained some medicinal therapy just sitting in her living room breathing.)Alison says that her custom–made joints—with filter—that she has been smoking for eight years now, need to be provided directly from the government, and at a price that is affordable.“Because the pain in my face is really unusual,” says Alison between tokes of her baby finger sized joint, “[and] nothing else will help, this is the only thing that gives me relief.”But despite the relief, Alison also criticizes the government for implicitly bogarting that joint.“The guy who grows it won’t give a cutting, a clone, or a seed because they know they have a good strain,” she complains. “So they thank me for putting their air conditioning in, and sending them to Jamaica.”“And I’m not happy because I pay $1200 per month to these assholes for my medicine. That’s what people don’t understand.”So Ms. Myrden wants the feds to get off their asses and get rolling as “compassionate” dealers themselves, vouchering medical pot for the standard $2 prescription fee.Otherwise, she feels she (and others like her) are forced into dealing with street vendors who have a compelling interest in keeping the price high. (So–called “compassionate” grass houses provide high quality marijuana at prices about three-quarters the going street rate.)As Myrden is forced to exist on only $6000 in disability pension, she’s entirely dependent on the good will of friends and family to supplement her meagre stipend, and get her marijuana.And herein lies a huge moral dilemma for the terminally sick, like Alison, who have virtually unlimited legal access to heavy–duty narcotic pain relieving drugs like Dilaudid, which is often called pharma heroin.Ms. Myrden, who can gobble up to twenty 8Mg Dilaudid in a day if she runs out of grass—the average person would OD immediately from such a dose—obtains the drug for $2 from the drug store for 200 pills, through her doctors. (Under federal drug assistance, patients pay only $2 per script dispensed. In the case of a maintenance drug like Dilaudid, used for chronic pain, doctors usually prescribe a month’s supply, so as to make the cost to the patient as low as possible.) Dilaudid can sell on the street for between $20-$30 per pill. Do the math.“I’ve had people offer me to sell my medication to make me rich,” claims Alison. “It’s lucky that I am a good girl. I could sell anything to get my medicine, but I don’t.”“I know that sick people sell their pills all the time. It’s not right. I’ve been desperate but I’ve never done it,” maintains Alison, who pegs her non–marijuana drug bills at $25,000 for last year.So while the federal government stumbles around the issue of a medical marijuana grow site and distribution mechanism, very sick people like Alison continue to vulnerable.Ms. Myrden points out that since she is allowed to “spark it up in restaurants and bars,” she is highly visible, which also translates into highly vulnerable.“What if I lost my ID card in a bar?” she asks. “It has my picture, my name and address, and how much I am legally able to possess.” To anyone unfamiliar to the oft–deadly street drug dance, the loss of the ID card or the overhearing of conversation from Alison in a public place, could lead to a rip-off and all the attendant danger.“We’re begging the government to just give us an ID number, instead of the card because I don’t want to be a target.”So, faced with a classic Catch–22, Ms. Myrden soldiers on with a high–octane media campaign, designed to raise awareness to the point that the feds must do something to protect the legal users of medical marijuana, who are often among the sickest people in Canada.“I want to fight this out in the public eye,” she states. “I believe sick people should be able to get their weed for $2.” Source: View Magazine (Hamilton, CN ON)Author: Terry OttPublished: July 25-31, 2002Copyright: 2002 View MagazineContact: editor viewmag.comWebsite: http://www.viewmag.com/Related Articles & Web Site:The Marijuana Mission http://www.themarijuanamission.com/How Pot Saved My Life http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12998.shtmlAiling Canadians To Sue for Promised Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12915.shtmlCanada: The Debate Over Decriminalization http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12697.shtml 
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