cannabisnews.com: Cannabis Compassion Club Opens in the Queen City Cannabis Compassion Club Opens in the Queen City Posted by FoM on July 12, 2000 at 17:09:04 PT By Gray Miles, Nelson Daily News Staff Source: Nelson Daily News A Nelson man who has a herniated disk in his back and buys marijuana to relieve to his pain has found a new source: the newly-opened Nelson Cannabis Compassion Club."I feel they preform a valuable service to the community. Instead of people basing their reactions to the medical usage of pot on hysteria and past stereotypes, we need to look at the medical benefits,' said the man, who did not want to be identified. The man said he suffers both from severe pain and muscle spasms, and finds the effects of marijuana beneficial."It enables me to get on with my life,' he said. Phil McMillan is the coordinator of the club. From a cramped downtown office, he sells pot to patients over the counter, an act which is still technically illegal. But far from being concerned about arrest, he wants to reach out to Nelson City Police in an unusual way."I'm wanting to connect with the police - I want a liaison officer to work with me on this, so that if they pull over someone with marijuana and see identification issued by me, they won't arrest anybody, and they'll return any pot they seize, because it would be cruel not to,' said McMillan.McMillan, who was a social worker in Vancouver for eight years before moving to Nelson, is the founder and on the board of directors of the club, an organization that exists to provide marijuana to those who suffer from illnesses whose symptoms are eased by the use of the drug.The club sells pot out of it's recently opened downtown Nelson office for $20-30 per eighth of an ounce to those who can provide a doctor's note saying they suffer from a medical condition. McMillan says he has operated the club underground for two years but only opened the office six weeks ago.Inspector Dan Maluta, however, of the Nelson City Police is wary the new organization."Why do you think they contacted your paper to begin with? They want to make a case for the legitimization of a banned, illegal substance. Their ultimate aim is to legalize marijuana for mind-altering use," said Maluta.McMillan disagrees. He divides marijuana use into two clear camps which he says are not linked - recreational and medical uses. "I have to help people medically, that's my goal. If you had seen what I have seen you would know why," said McMillan.McMillan told the Daily News that he does smoke pot recreationally, but said this was irrelevant to the club's existence.Some of his clients suffer from AIDS and various forms of cancer, said McMillan, adding that marijuana brings them relief and solace from their suffering."The local branches of the Cancer Society and the AIDS Society have been supportive in that they carry our brochures, but I would say almost all the doctors support us too - they just won't write a prescription," said McMillan.The club has a membership of around 40 people, and it purchases its marijuana from small, family-run grow operations for $2000-$2600 per pound, according to McMillan."I've never had to buy from any criminal organizations. There's just too many mom-and-pop organizations around town for that to be a problem," said McMillan.McMillan hopes to eventually grow his own marijuana legally, and to see laws which permit medicinal use of marijuana formally recognized. He pointed to a recent court decision in Vancouver which ended in a suspended sentence for a member of the much larger Vancouver-based B.C. Compassion Club (upon which his smaller organization is modelled) as a sign that laws are relaxing.Mayor Gary Exner cautiously agreed with McMillan's prognosis."There are some politicians who are coming out for it [medical use of marijuana], because they are under pressure," said Exner."As long as they sell marijuana to the members, then no problem. If they are going to start selling to the general public, they need to come forward and get a business licence," he said.Exner pointed to the legal entanglement three years ago at local marijuana paraphernalia shop Holy Smoke, to say that the real concern in the community surrounded the sale of marijuana to youth, not medical marijuana."If they are staying within the law, I say welcome and good luck," said Exner. Email: ndnews netidea.comPublished: Wednesday, July 12, 2000 Copyright by The Nelson Daily News. Related Article & Web Site:Nelson Cannabis Compassion Club http://www.freespeech.org/nccc/Cannabis Compassion Club Surfaceshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread1692.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml END SNIP --> Snipped Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #3 posted by FoM on July 13, 2000 at 14:52:09 PT One Smoker's Source For Pot: Police Station Pubdate: Wed, 12 Jul 2000Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB)Copyright: 2000 Winnipeg Free PressContact: letters freepress.mb.ca Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/Author: Kim GuttormsonHIV-Positive Man Gets Marijuana Back Thanks To Federal Medical Exemption In a drug deal not likely to be seen again, Tim Patterson walked out of a police station yesterday with a bag of marijuana that vice officers had just returned to him."I'm happy. Very happy," Patterson said, standing in front of the vice building on Princess Street, holding a plastic bag full of the narcotic. "I'd like to get off the street with this big bag of dope in my hand." Click the link to read the complete article.News Article Courtesy Of MapInc.http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n973/a11.htmlCannabisNews Articles On Canada:http://alltheweb.com/cgi-bin/search?exec=FAST+Search&type=all&query=cannabisnews+canada [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by FoM on July 12, 2000 at 21:30:00 PT CN BC: Pot For Pain Newshawk: HerbPubdate: Wed, 12 Jul 2000Source: Express (CN BC)Address: 554 Ward Street, Nelson, B.C. V1L 1S9Contact: express expressnews.bc.ca Author: Stephen HarrisThe Nelson Compassion Club Offers Access To Marijuana For Medicinal Purposes. Illegal? Yes. Still Able To Operate? Somehow. NELSON - Phillip McMillan doesn't have a criminal record, has no interest in going to jail, and is not an activist. But he has willingly thrown himself into a club which could change all of the above.Click the link to read the complete article.News Article Courtesy Of MapInc.http://mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n970/a08.html Holy Smoke Culture Shop [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 12, 2000 at 19:11:38 PT Pioneers Of Compassion Pubdate: Tue, 11 Jul 2000Source: Peak, The (CN BC)Copyright: 2000 Peak Publications SocietyContact: letters mail.peak.sfu.ca Address: 8888 University Dr., Burnaby, B.C. V5A 1S6 CanadaFeedback: http://www.peak.sfu.ca/Feedback.HTMLIf you were to peek through the window of the Compassion Club's Vancouver building space, you might think that you were looking at the reception area of a hip, young doctor's office: a smiling receptionist greets clients as they walk through the doors; the waiting area is painted a bright yellow and is filled with enough plants to start up a small greenhouse; some soothing Sarah McLaughlin tunes blend in with the faint sound of clients' chatter.Then you walk into the club and the smell hits you. It's a smell that would bring a smile to the face of any hippie-at-heart. Welcome to the Compassion Club, Canada's largest medical marijuana buyers club. Click the link to read the complete article.News Article Courtesy Of MapInc.http://mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n969/a06.html The Compassion Club [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: