MEDICINAL MARIJUANA SHOW IN SAN JOSE DRAWS THOUSANDS

There was one thing you couldn't do at the HempCon Medical Marijuana
Show in San Jose on Saturday: smoke marijuana.

But you could step across the street away from the convention center's
South Hall, nestle back in the shade and light up -- as dozens of
devotees did.

The event was one of those modern-day meetings of the minds where
medical marijuana users, cannabis growers, paraphernalia peddlers and
even insurance companies that specialize in coverage for the marijuana
industry rubbed shoulders to help promote medical marijuana -- and it
was all legal.

Young people mingled with old. Counterculture types talked with the
button-down. And anyone with a medical marijuana ID card was allowed
entry to a marijuana goods emporium, which was screened off from the
general crowd.

There you could meet Magic Ellingson -- also known as Henry Hemp, who
wore a marijuana headdress, with a hole in the middle for his face --
and sniff various marijuana bud samples and edibles on display but not
for sale.

"In the future, if it becomes legalized nationally, we will have a
marijuana event," instead of a trade show, said Matthew Fox, HempCon
coordinator. Like most people there, Fox is a medical marijuana user,
smoking it for "everything from stress to depression." He said the
three-day show is part of the movement to legalize marijuana for
medical use in the U.S.

San Jose is in the midst of developing a licensing plan for medical
marijuana dispensaries, and the City Council has placed a measure on
the November ballot that would tax medicinal marijuana sales at up to
10 percent, which would be the highest rate in the Bay Area.

But the three-day show, while steeped in politics, also allowed for a
few giggles and the display of lots of novelty items. There were also
some sales of marijuana edibles -- candy or baked goods -- even though
there wasn't supposed to be, Fox said.

Multiuse Pipes

Tired of the same old marijuana pipe? Try Lollipipes, the edible candy
marijuana pipe that comes in six flavors, including watermelon and
peach. After smoking with the pipe, users can munch and swallow it.

Like to multitask while you smoke or have use of only one hand? Try
the "all-in-one" pipe that comes with the lighter built in.

"Maybe you have to drive a car or mow the lawn," said Rudy Armijo, who
was helping sell the pipes. "You won't find a better pipe for
cheaper." At HempCon, the price is $10, $5 off the regular price.

Thousands of people moved in and out of the convention center, jamming
the aisles where merchandise was displayed and filling hundreds of
seats for such talks as "Your Medical Marijuana Garden" and "Your
Rights as a Grower." A big draw was Ed Rosenthal, a longtime activist
and author who has battled federal authorities in court. Medical
marijuana is still illegal under federal law.

Rosenthal was the main reason Lizz Caplan of San Jose attended
HempCon.

A self-described "closet grower" who grows one plant at a time in a
closet, Caplan said she uses marijuana to help ease the pressure in
her eyes from glaucoma.

"My family all has glaucoma," she said. "I've smoked since I was
12."

Caplan said her father could "really benefit" from medical marijuana,
but he lives in a state where it's illegal.

"It's a substance that grows out of the ground, so it must be
God-given or nature-given," she said. "But it isn't just the medicinal
and the psychotropic effects that make it valuable. The uses of hemp
are more varied than of any substance I know."

Easy 'Recommendation'

Along with display after display of marijuana pipes, including a few
that were naughty, there were brisk lines at the booths to receive
medical marijuana ID cards or a "medicinal marijuana recommendation"
from a doctor.

Many convention-goers filled out a few papers, signed their names,
answered a few questions from a doctor and paid $35 to $80. Five
minutes later, they received an official "medicinal marijuana
recommendation," which ensures the right to purchase marijuana for
medicinal uses from any licensed medical marijuana provider.

The higher price includes a 24-hour verification service to confirm to
law-enforcement officials that you are a legal medical marijuana user.

Noel Card of San Jose said he has used medical marijuana for 20 years
to treat his multiple sclerosis because it helps ease the pain in his
feet. He supposed legalizing marijuana for everyone would be OK "as
long as they don't drive on it."

HempCon continues today from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tickets are $20 at the
door.