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Opinions
Drug wars: pills vs. plants

legalizing weed could
be better than opening
Canada to more opiates

By Sophie Isbister,
Staff Writer

Ties they are
a-changin’. I never
would have thought
that I’d see marijuana
legalized in Washington
and Colorado before
seeing it decriminalized
here in Vancouver (or
“Vansterdam,” as we’re
known internationally).
No, it seems in Canada
we’re turning the clock
backwards with regard
to our drug policy,
what with Harper’s
Conservatives pushing
through mandatory
minimum prison
sentences for petty
marijuana crimes. And
it seems now that the
Conservatives want to
pat their pharmaceutical
buddies on the back with
anew decision recently
made about OxyContin.

You may have heard
of OxyContin: it’s the
powerful prescription
opiate derived from
oxycodone, and it’s
also known as “hillbilly
heroin.” It’s called that
because oxycodone is
really close to morphine,
and is often easier and
cheaper to get on the
streets than heroin.
Pharmaceuticals like
Oxy have fast become a
drug of choice for many
addicts, both those with
legitimate prescriptions
and those who seek out
the drug on the black
market—that is, until it
was phased out in early
2012 by its maker Purdue
Pharma and replaced
with a version of the
drug that is supposedly
harder to abuse.

The Oxy issue is on
the table again, as the
drug’s Canadian patent
expired on November 25,
opening up the market
for generic (cheaper)
versions. Federal Health
Minister Leona Aglukkaq
has the opportunity to

block these generics
from flooding Canadian
pharmacies, but says she
won't. She stated in a
letter to provincial health
ministers, as reported by
the National Post, that she
is concerned foremost
with Canadians who
legitimately need access
to this drug for pain
management, stating that
“As a health minister I
have to weigh the needs
of patients first.”
Aglukkaq’s stance
is controversial. Health
ministers from the
provinces and territories
claim a “slippery slope”
argument that the
cheaper and more readily
available oxycodone
is, the more it will turn
up on our city’s streets.
Aglukkaq herself says
there are a myriad
of other drugs in the
same category as Oxy
and cities have always
had to deal with multi-
faceted issues of drug
abuse. Citizens and
Internet commenters,
myself included, are all

Bus stop or bus don't stop?

Bus accessibility for
handicapped people

By Steven Cayer,
Contributor

ello students of

Douglas College.
My name is Steven Cayer,
and I’m in a power chair.

I use transit to go

everywhere. This has its
benefits and drawbacks.
One benefit of using
transit is that it’s way
cheaper than buying a
car. You can then use that
saved money for more
important things, like
tuition. Also, you can do
anything while on transit,
like read the newspaper

18

 

or, more likely, use your
cellphone. When there’s
along lineup for the
bus, I’m happy if the
driver doesn’t open the
back doors until I’m on:
if there are people in
my area of the bus, nine
times out of 10 they’ll
move on their own. The
last one out of 10 are
either waiting to be run
over by me, or waiting
to be yelled at by the bus
driver. I can’t help but

smile when that happens.

What I’m trying
to say is that transit in
the Lower Mainland is
relatively good. I say
“relatively” because I
haven’t told you about
the drawbacks yet. I’ve
used many different bus
routes, and not every
stop is accessible to me.
T always think, “What if
I need to get off at a stop
that’s not accessible?”
I’ve found out that
while the bus drivers are
required to pick me up
from such a stop, they
don’t have to drop me off
there.

One example of
this scenario was at
Schoolhouse Street and

wondering the same
thing: why would our
government continue
to open doors for
pharmaceuticals when
overwhelming public
opinion points to the
legalization of marijuana?
Ottawa is drastically
skewed in its view on the
legality of substances.
Legislators are getting
ready to allow who
knows how many
generic versions of a
substance that is already
known to be harmful
and addictive, yet they
continue to fight a foolish
war against a plant
with no reported deaths
associated with its use.
The medicinal benefits
of marijuana have long
been proven in pain
management and lifestyle
improvement for people
with multiple sclerosis,
cancer, glaucoma, and
epilepsy, among others.
OxyContin, on the other
hand, has proven to be
habit forming, causing
the body to become
physically dependent on

Lougheed Highway.

Last month, I was going
to the Coquitlam movie
theatre four days a

week. That bus stop was
not handicap-friendly.
One day, the driver just
kept driving past the
Schoolhouse stop, all the
way to the next accessible
stop, King Edward Street.
It took me 10 minutes to
get to the theatre when
normally it would take
me four. I’m happy to say
that the Schoolhouse bus
stop is now handicap-
friendly. All they needed
to do was build an extra
foot of sidewalk so there
was enough room for
chairs and strollers. I just
wish every bus stop was

the opiate, which makes
it a poor choice for long-
term use. Recreationally,
it puts it right up there
with street heroin, as its
nickname would suggest.
While it is possible for
patients to access medical
marijuana legally, much
in the same way a patient
would access OxyContin,
it’s my opinion that
cannabis is currently
medically underutilized.
T also think that it
should be completely
decriminalized; people
should have the right
to grow it for personal
use in their own home
without fearing jail
time. Economists
and criminologists
overwhelmingly support
the decriminalization
of marijuana. | think
it’s high time (no pun
intended) we start
looking at marijuana
as medicine—but
then, where would
the pharmaceutical
companies get their big
paycheques from?

accessible.

I love taking transit. I
pretty much need to say
that because it’s my only
mode of transportation—
unless I count having
my mom drive me, but
that doesn’t roll off my
tongue as well. All in all,
transit is probably the
most important mode of
transportation for me,
and I don’t think I’m
alone when I say that
we need this system to
be perfect. Don’t get
me wrong, it’s great
compared to most parts
of the world, but it’s not
perfect yet.