cannabisnews.com: A Marijuana Salesman Seems to Lose Another Round










  A Marijuana Salesman Seems to Lose Another Round

Posted by CN Staff on September 03, 2004 at 17:33:25 PT
By Gregory Crouch 
Source: New York Times  

Naaldwijk, The Netherlands -- James R. Burton, who once served a year in federal prison, still gets a kick out of the signs at his marijuana plantation here reminding employees whom to call in the event of an emergency: the Dutch police.Sixteen years ago, Mr. Burton did time in the maximum security jail in Marion, Ill., and lost his family farm in Bowling Green, Ky., after being caught with an estimated $112,000 worth of marijuana that he said he needed to stave off glaucoma. Last year, the Dutch government gave him a five-year contract to grow more than 10 times that much.
Mr. Burton, 56, seemed the perfect candidate to supply a medical cannabis program, through which terminally ill patients and sufferers of chronic pain can buy doctor-prescribed marijuana at local pharmacies. For one thing, he has had plenty of on-the-job training, having grown and smoked pot every day for most of the last 35 years."He's qualified to grow marijuana, I can tell you that," said Eddie Railey, a Kentucky state police investigator at the time of Mr. Burton's arrest. "He's good at it."Even his one-year stretch behind bars was not a total waste, Mr. Burton said, because he got a grounding in the high-security techniques needed to guard a government-sponsored cannabis crop. "It's better guarded than the bank here," Mr. Burton said proudly.Dressed in a lab technician's white coat, his ponytail barely visible, Mr. Burton nurses a deadly serious devotion to a plant that makes others simply giggle. One of only two growers chosen for the medical cannabis program, Mr. Burton was sure he had found nirvana in the Netherlands, a place to fulfill his dream of establishing marijuana as a valid medical treatment. But his euphoria has been short-lived. The Dutch program's first anniversary is in September and Mr. Burton and health officials are clashing over what to charge for cannabis, how to test it and even how many varieties to sell. "Everything I have ever worked for is going down the tubes," he said.Mr. Burton says government regulations like testing and packaging are ruining his business. His medical marijuana, which is radiated to remove bacteria, sells at a drugstore for about $11.50 a gram; local cafes often charge less than half that, so many patients understandably choose to go there instead."The government here is sticking its neck out on this project, and the whole world is watching," Mr. Burton said. "Unfortunately, they have made some misjudgments and miscalculations."But if Mr. Burton's mission to make pot the world's next wonder drug has already cost him his home and his freedom in the United States, his mouthing off on marijuana's behalf seems likely to result in the loss of his government contract, particularly because, in the government's view, it violates a confidentiality agreement. At the very least, his recent appearance on a national television network here lambasting the medical cannabis program - sprinkled with threats of a lawsuit against the government - has exasperated officials. "Certainly there are problems, but it's not a flop," said Willem Scholten, director of the Dutch Office of Medicinal Cannabis. "It's too early to make such a judgment."MR. Burton has not seen eye to eye with the powers that be since he went to jail in 1988, after a federal jury ruled that growing marijuana at his farm was a crime in spite of his claims that he needed it to ward off glaucoma. He has stuck to that defense, convinced that three joints a day - he prefers the term cigarettes - have staved off a form of the eye disease that afflicts some members of his family. "One of the reasons I have such great passion for it is because it did save my eyesight," Mr. Burton said. "I have met tens of thousands of people who marijuana does work for."For more than three decades, Mr. Burton has followed the same medical regimen: "I smoke first thing when I get up in the morning, I then smoke usually in the afternoon and then I smoke before I go to bed." Mr. Burton's life story may be unusual, but he himself doesn't always have a clear recollection of it. He seems at times scattered and frazzled, mixing up words, phrases and even facts, including those about his medical history.More than once, he has told reporters that his two brothers "were totally blind" from glaucoma, but his brothers say that only one of them has glaucoma and that both can see just fine as long as they wear glasses.After his release from prison, Mr. Burton decided that he had little choice but to leave the United States. His criminal case had attracted enough media attention to make him an undesirable, even among drug dealers."I was homeless, I didn't have any money, I couldn't get a job," he recalled. "I really couldn't get any marijuana anymore because when I called up and said, 'This is James Burton,' all of the dealers hung up."So he moved to the Netherlands, where he could buy and smoke pot carefree. In time, Mr. Burton started distributing marijuana to Dutch patients, which was technically illegal but tolerated. Business boomed, and in 1993 he opened up SIMM, the Dutch acronym of his Institute of Medical Marijuana. Three years ago, the Dutch government put out a call for medical cannabis growers. With his long experience in the field, Mr. Burton easily met the requirements, including delivery of cannabis of a consistent quality during three separate trial runs. In fact, he can grow 134 different varieties, slice it, dice it and package it tastefully in a joint, a tea bag, even a cup of chocolate milk.Medical marijuana has to be certifiably free of pesticides and bacteria, and have a moderate dosage of the compound THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is what causes people to get high but has limited therapeutic value. "A woman in critical condition," said Mr. Burton, "doesn't want to get high. She wants to use it so she can deal with chemotherapy."The plants are harvested after a few months and stripped of all of their leaves, with only the bud left for the pharmacist. "That's the real medicine," Mr. Burton said.His medical cannabis is sold under the bland brand name SIMM. "You can't have at the pharmacy 'White Nightmare' or 'AK-47,' " he said. "The doctor can't prescribe those kinds of names. You have to have medical terms."Mr. Burton enjoys a loyal following among his customers, many of whom are in the last stages of their lives with cancer or AIDS. They often call him Dr. Burton, even though he has little more than a high-school education. He is less revered by Dutch officials, who recently announced that they would not renew his contract beyond next year. For the second time in less than 20 years, therefore, Mr. Burton faces the prospect of losing his home or his business, or both. What he still has is his faith in marijuana as a medicine."I will definitely go on some way, somehow, to help patients get good marijuana at a good price," he said. Source: New York Times (NY)Author:  Gregory CrouchPublished: September 4, 2004Copyright: 2004 The New York TimesContact: letters nytimes.com Website: http://www.nytimes.com/Related Articles:Dutch State Pot Is No Heady Stuff for Supplierhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17248.shtmlThe Dutch Go To Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17247.shtmlDutch Cannabis Initiative Stirs Interest in Europe http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17212.shtmlCannabis As a Prescription Drug http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17207.shtml

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Comment #19 posted by Roger Christie on September 05, 2004 at 02:13:57 PT:
 "Legalize it?" No, thanks
Hello out there,Aloha. This story is a great example of why not to fight, work, pray or advocate for "legal marijuana". It's not good enough!Wording is crucial in life and that's especially true for us cannabis enjoyers. What exactly do I, we, or you want?    
With 'legalization' comes government inspections and required regulations like radiation and who-knows-what else. No pass!What else might come with legalization? Would hard hats be required in our gardens supervised by agents from O.S.H.A.? No pass!Netherlands has 'toleration' in its coffeeshops and I've appreciated them, but even that's still not 'high enough' of a model to work for, in my opinion. How about you?As long as dreamin's still free, I'm dreamin' for freedom of religion to prevail for cannabis sacrament, then decriminalization for all. What are you going for? As tempting as it might sound, "DON'T legalize it!" We all deserve a Higher solution! Mahalo. Love and respect to you,Roger
 The Hawai'i Cannabis Ministry
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on September 04, 2004 at 09:04:00 PT

Truth 
I hope you and Martha have a great weekend! 
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Comment #17 posted by Hope on September 04, 2004 at 08:29:49 PT

Good morning to you, Truth!
You have a happy one, too.
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Comment #16 posted by Truth on September 04, 2004 at 08:02:37 PT

good mornin
Happpy Labor Day Weekend all.
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Comment #15 posted by Virgil on September 04, 2004 at 07:16:56 PT

Section 7 is cultivation
It is in Turmel's message. Turmel is the only source I know of for these things.
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Comment #14 posted by Virgil on September 04, 2004 at 07:13:32 PT

Showdown in Canada
Here it comes, the ruling on CP in Canada. It may come on September 14. In 10 days a judge will rule on "Parliament only legislate. Courts only abrogate."Section 4 is possession and Section 7 is trafficing. Turmel is quite sure that they are very dead because of the POKCOA logic. Section 5 is trafficking and he believed that cannabis was removed from the list of controlled substances enough that he took like 6 pounds up to the steps of Parliament to have it out with the authorities.In the latest message up at Yahoo Groups Medpot, Turmel starts out with these words- http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/MedPot/message/1369JCT: September 14 could be a really big day for marijuana
legalisation in Canada. Brantford's Ontario Provincial Court
Judge Edwards will be handing down his decision in the
Nielsen family motion to quash their charges.There are two big issues here. The possession charge under
s.4(1) that was declared repealed should be easy and that's
the reason for Terry Parker's presence.But they were also charged with possession for the purpose
of trafficking. It's true that the Crown withdrew that
charge against the TO Trio so I'm asking them to come and
support the Nielsen family. It's also the Turmel Aitken
appeal issue, whether failure to exempt marijuana in
sections 4 and 7 mandates that it has been struck from the
schedule of banned substances.

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Comment #13 posted by global_warming on September 04, 2004 at 06:04:46 PT

question
I read somewhere that AARP is planning to publish an article that is very pro MMJ, has anyone read this?Was at the AARP site and they seem to have a decent forum on various topics -health, money, and everyone's favorite elections...-gw

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Comment #12 posted by mayan on September 04, 2004 at 03:44:09 PT

Get Busy! 
It seems that Kevin Sabet's bogus letter has made it into yet another paper. Let's send those LTE's!Potent pot puts kids at risk:
http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/mcherald/news/editorial/9581557.htm
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Comment #11 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on September 04, 2004 at 03:43:13 PT

Ashrubsayswhat?
Here's an interesting and useful quote from Bush's speech on Thursday night:"We will make sure that health decisions are made by doctors and patients, not by beaureaucrats in Washington, D.C."
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on September 03, 2004 at 21:05:56 PT

Hope 
In all honesty I have no idea what a lot of words mean. Duh! LOL! I use dictionary.com when I'm just not sure. Thank goodness for Dictionary.com!!! I'm sorry you are teary. That's not a nice feeling but those times sure happen.You know what old is? Old is 20 years older then you are right now! I like that!
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Comment #9 posted by Hope on September 03, 2004 at 20:58:47 PT

My head is so stopped up...excuses...
my thinking could be better. Curmudgeon...cranky, ill tempered (usually old) men.Someone called himself a "curmudgeon" the other day and it's just stuck with me. For one, I like the cranky, ill tempered, not necessarily "old" men here. Golden Lung probably thinks we are all ancient as the hills. Maybe we are. It's all relative to who's doing the thinking.FoM, I'm sure we are, as they say, "playing with a full deck"...If I doubted that, I wouldn't be here. I sincerely believe we have some great thinkers here. I've just missed some of our "cards"...Kap being one. I mean that in the best sort of way. Kap has got to know how fond I am of him. So I don't think he'll misunderstand me.I'm labeling and calling names aren't I? I meant to be funny...shouldn't have tried it. Sorry. I was in a teary mood tonight and tried to make a "funny". Shouldn't have tried.
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on September 03, 2004 at 19:57:21 PT

Hope I'm Not Insulted
I have no idea what a curmudgeon is. Oh we aren't playing with a full deck of cards is that it? If so that's funny!
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Comment #7 posted by Hope on September 03, 2004 at 19:52:40 PT

Oh my gosh
I hope no one is insulted at my "thought". I meant it in a nice way...I love all the self professed curmudgeons around here.
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Comment #6 posted by Hope on September 03, 2004 at 19:48:02 PT

a full deck of curmudgeons...
that is.*smile*
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Comment #5 posted by Hope on September 03, 2004 at 19:45:19 PT

a funny thought
We've been one "curmudgeon" short of a "full" deck.
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Comment #4 posted by Hope on September 03, 2004 at 19:43:07 PT

Kaptin
I'm so glad you came back to see us this evening. A lot has needed some carving up...glad to see you have your trusty electric "carving knife" still in good shape.It's so good to see you posting.
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Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on September 03, 2004 at 18:28:17 PT:

I agree with Virgil
Having been Chemical Corps, I've had lots of education as to the effects of radiation. Granted, radiation on plants is not quite as destructive as it is on humans, but plants have chromosomes as well as any other living thing, and neutron bombardment can derange them, causing enzyme changes and mutations. Irradiation is a quick means of sterilization, but it's long term effects on things such as foods and other consumables have not gotten near the testing they deserve. As a result, I never knowingly purchase any irradiated food items. 
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Comment #2 posted by Virgil on September 03, 2004 at 17:50:48 PT

Leave it to government to screw it up
The radiation needs more study. What would make them think that rediation is necessary if things are done correctly? The Dutch gave GW Pharmaceuticals the idea to use plants that did not require sexing, or at least the Americans refuged in the Netherlands. It seems like the Dutch should at least look at the position of the tinctures of GW and try to beat the alcohol extraction method. If they cannot beat them, they should join them.
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on September 03, 2004 at 17:40:43 PT

This Is A Surprise
Good or bad I'm glad we have an article from The New York Times.
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