A Big Bill for Soldiers Using Marijuana, Free Weed Seeds, and Other Pot News

Legal or not, which pot purchasing person doesn't think weed can be a little expensive? Minister of Veterans Affairs Kent Hehr, who probably has the biggest weed bill in Canada right now, has begun to think so. The CBC reported that in nine months the bill for reimbursing Canadian veterans for their medical marijuana has come in at a whopping $12.1 million. The number of Canadian Forces personnel using medical marijuana has increased exponentially in the last three years, with over 1,320 vets currently turning to the plant to help treat symptoms. And with the increasing interest in cannabis as a treatment for serious ailments like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) amongst vets, the Canadian government's dab tab likely won't be shrinking in the near future. But it isn't just this massive bill that has Veteran's Affairs worried of course, it's that weed might be unsafe for veterans. In a statement to the CBC, the Canadian Forces cited a lack of study on treatments with weed and said it may actually be harmful to people suffering from PTSD. I find it interesting that people that were previously trusted to make life or death decisions in a war zone aren't being trusted to make personal healthcare decisions on the best way to cope in the aftermath. But the Canadian government needs not to fear for, as the Calgary Sun reported, University Of Calgary researcher Dr. Maria Morena is doing the research they need. Morena is currently running a three-year study into the treatment of PTSD in mice with cannabis. She is studying the way the endocannibanoid system in the body helps regulate stress and the reactions to it. Maybe this study could also be helpful in providing some remedy to Ministers Hehr's own stress about the ever increasing cannabis expenditure.

Smoke 'Em If You Got a Fat Wallet

If price is no object for the medical consumer, my friend and colleague at VICE, Manisha Krishnan took a look at the weed on offer in Toronto for the money-is-no-object set). More than just a list of what to buy me for my birthday, it's a peak into champagne wishes and Cavi-Kush dreams of the rich and famous of the newly emerging Canadian chronic connoisseur class. One company looking capitalize on the fat-pocket potheads is newly opened upscale Toronto headshop Tokyo Smoke. In a glowing Canadian Press story that seemed to get picked up by just about every news outlet in Canada the Toronto outpost of the American company bragged about efforts to "rebrand" weed. Licensed producers also weighed in on the campaign by saying they have also been waging to break the stigma around cannabis by doing things like "moving away from the street names," which is a pretty clear indication that this is going to be a market that appeals to all matter of economic strata. But even if one has all the money to buy all of these beautiful weeds and weed derived goodness, where in Ontario will one be able to smoke it?

Where Can I Smoke?

Following last week's Liberal flip-flop on excluding medical cannabis from the "Smoke Free Ontario Act," the impending impact on Ontario pot users has begun to set in. With the inclusion of cannabis in Bill 45, which effectively bans public consumption of tobacco and greatly limits the retail of e-cigarettes and vapes, Toronto's dozens of cannabis related auxiliary businesses are under threat. The Smoke Free Ontario Act will greatly impact the way "headshops" are able to retail vaporizers and other implements used in the consumption of cannabis. It will also effectively make Ontario's various "vapour lounges" illegal. These lounges, for a small daily membership fee of $5, offer members a space to safely and comfortably consume their own cannabis. Operating in various cities across Canada for well over a decade, they have become much more than simply places to smoke pot, but hubs for the community. These institutions serve as the frontline of education around cannabis. When I first turned to cannabis five years ago, I had an unending well of questions that the medical community around me was unable to answer. My questions about ways to consume pot, dosing effects and the differences in strains were only answered once I discovered cannabis lounges in Toronto. The reality is that the prohibition of cannabis has forced much of this quest for information on to the patient. Places like vapour lounges and "headshops" serve as meeting points for various people on this quest. Helped by the Cannabis Friendly Business Association the cannabis community is rallying together in response to the Liberals plan. This week I went to Toronto's oldest lounge Roach-A-Rama to talk to owner Abi Roach about her involvement in the response to Bill 45.

Free Weed for Green Thumbs

Speaking of activism, few are as involved cannabis activism these days as Dana Larsen. Following up last week's launch of a petition to end racist cannabis arrests, this week Larsen announced a plan to give away 1.1 million cannabis seeds as part of a civil disobedience campaign called "Overgrow Canada." In a blog post on Huffington Post's, um, The Blog, the Sensible BC director outlined the history of activism that brought North America to this point of cannabis reform and argued that to get over the final hurdle more activism is needed such as Canadians planting Cannabis "Victory Gardens." He wrote: "This is my rallying cry for all Canadians. If you love cannabis, if you love freedom, or if you just love your country, then plant some cannabis seeds this spring, and we will all reap a wonderful harvest together." And he is offering the over a million seeds to help us on our way. Well, I guess I've got some planting to do! So until next week, DON'T GET BUSTED. Dab it, if you got it. Follow Damian Abraham on Twitter.