I saw my pot pals recently.

Two of them are among the many who got letters from the government, the one identifying them as cannabis users and growers.

I’ll tell you what was in those letters in a minute.

First, I want to remind you that Jim has AIDS and uses cannabis to whet his appetite; Stu has chronic arthritis; and Erin broke her back not once, but twice, and she lives in constant pain.

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In a few months everyone who is licensed to use, or who had a licence to grow, cannabis will be required to stop growing and to purchase their medication from private, federally licensed growers.

Are we clear on the concept?

Me, neither.

With my friends this time was Marie, a user and grower who has a variety of painful ailments. She is involved in a legal battle: Her doctor prescribed the use of a cannabis vaporizer because she cannot tolerate smoke. But the vaporizer has a serious price tag, and ODSP (Ontario Disability Support Program) is so far refusing to pay for what is, in this instance, a medical device.

It is a three-year battle. I’ll tell you how it turns out.

Stu said, “Wouldn’t it be cheaper just to pay for the vaporizer?” “Ha, ha,” said everyone.

The device, by the way, is a sophisticated thing that fills an inhaler bag with vapour that is easy to use if a person has breathing problems, as does Marie.

So, new?

Erin has stopped growing pot; she is looking after her mother and can’t spend enough time tending her plants. A shame, really, because she lives in a condo and was able to prove to the board that her unit was perfectly safe and up to code.

She said she thought more and more people were dabbing. Oh. I see. No, I do not. What is dabbing?

“You take an extreme concentrate and heat it with a flame, using a kind of dome, so that the flame isn’t external.” Like hot-knifing, but safer.

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Stu said some international companies were interested in the concept of Canada’s government-endorsed private pot program; because of his experience as a grower and a breeder, he has had job offers. He also said that some accomplished breeders might be able to sell their genetics to the big Canadian growers. Stu is lucky.

Jim, less so. His prescription is for 25 grams of cannabis a day, but he is on a disability pension and he can’t afford to pay for all he needs.

He purchases from a grower who is licensed to provide the full amount for him, but Jim can’t afford the full amount; he doesn’t know what his grower does with the surplus. Best not to ask.

Jim isn’t sure what happens when he will be forced to purchase from the big growers, but he is not optimistic. He said, unhappily, “I may just have to use the black market.”

Stu feels that current licences should be grandfathered, if growers can prove their operations are safe and up to code.

He said, “After all, you can grow tobacco, or orchids, or any other kind of plant at home.” I like the way he thinks, but logic has no place in this debate.

Marie said, “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I was opiate-addicted; I’m afraid there’s going to be an explosion of opiates on the street.”

They all feel that, no matter what happens, they should have access to cannabis in all its forms: oils, juice, and edibles as well as bud.

Now back to the government letter.

It suggests that, come April, if people have any surplus cannabis obtained under the old regime, they should wet it and mix it with cat litter so that it clumps, and thus can be disposed of safely.

As if that’s going to happen.