GRASS IS GREENER IN B.C.

Well, then. What to make of news from the best coast that Vancouver police
are ignoring the Cannabis Cafe, one of North America's only pot bars where
consenting adults can smoke openly?

More importantly, what to make of it as Torontonian Terry Parker heads to
court this week to fight for his right to use the drug to control his severe
epilepsy?

Both cases serve to highlight a growing tendency to view marijuana in a more
benign light. In many quarters, it is no longer considered a demon weed, the
first slip on the slope to serious drug addiction. In fact, increasing
numbers of people both north and south of the border are challenging its
legality in the courts with their assertions that the drug relieves medical
symptoms and eases their pain. Out west, the purpose is slightly less lofty.
They do it, apparently, because they can.

The cafe opened in Vancouver last July as a political statement by Hemp
B.C.'s owner Marc Emery, who is facing trafficking charges for selling seeds
as part of his propot agenda.

Located in the trendy Gastown area, it operates on a strictly BYOD basis.
(You can't buy it on the premises but you can probably talk another patron
into giving you some.) Smokers, who must be over 18, are allowed the use of
a vaporizer conveniently placed on each table. The device cooks the pot,
rather than burns it, and then dispenses a THC vapor.

Police are aware of the restaurant's existence and maintain a presence by
frequently strolling through the premises, says Cafe cook Adam Patterson.

"(But) we've never had any arrests in here and they don't harass the staff,"
he says. That's because, he adds, they have more important crimes to
investigate.

It's a benign neglect which has not yet made its way east. Parker is heading
to court on Dec. 10 to ask Ontario Court provincial division Judge Patrick
Sheppard to find him not guilty on charges of possession and cultivation of
marijuana for the purposes of trafficking.

His lawyer will argue that the drug is a medical necessity and that denying
him access would violate his charter rights to access medical treatment.

The 42yearold Parker claims the dope alleviates the symptoms caused by his
severe epilepsy. Police say he had over 70 plants growing hydroponically in
his Parkdale apartment when they searched it in July 1996. Parker has argued
in the press that he grows his own for two reasons. One, he can't afford to
purchase the drug at street prices on his disability pension and, two, he is
able to ensure his "medicine" is pure.

The inequities in the enforcement of the law are clear. While Vancouverites
have puffed with impunity this year, Toronto police statistics show that
some 1,700 people were charged with possession of marijuana in the first 10
months of this year. Another 377 have been charged with possession for the
purpose of trafficking while 93 face counts of selling it. Some 45 people
have joined Parker in answering cultivation charges.

The penalties aren't light, either. Possession of less than 30 grams can
draw anything from a fine to 6 months in jail while larger amounts can bring
a jail term of up to five years.

And there's no unofficial minimum where the drug enforcement officers look
the other way. "If they have it, we'll charge them," says Metro Const. Devon
Kealey.

The charges are laid under the federally controlled drug and substance act
and should be applicable equally across the country. That said, it seems
unfair to penalize someone in this part of the country for behavior that's
condoned elsewhere.

But if they're troubled about these inequities at the Cannabis Cafe, they're
not showing it. In fact, there's only one thing which is frying cook
Patterson's butt these days. It's the New York Times magazine's reference to
his "tasteless vegetarian fare" in their report on the restaurant.

Patterson takes pains with his menu and bears in mind the "munchies" a
craving for sweets which smokers will attest comes as a side effect of the
drug.

Ahem. At least that's what I've been told.