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Federal
Medical Marijuana Exemptee |
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| ~ DONALD APPLEBY'S STORY ~ My name is Donald Appleby and I have aids. I first tested positive in 95 and have been on anti viral medication for the past five years. The side effects of this medication has been god awful but with my mix of marijuana I'm able to endure It's worse moments. There are days that I feel so nauseous that I wont even venture outside add to this the constant diarrhea and you begin to get a picture of my life. My life is not pretty, I constantly am having to change my underwear because I have accidents.Add to this the sheer depression and you begin to see my dilemma. My goal now is to take only the meds that I have to to stay alive and deal with the side effects and depression with my marijuana, it is a good mix. People who don't smoke take what is referred to as drug holidays, simply because the medication makes you ill but myself I have never taken a drug holiday because of my marijuana. This year I have appeared in Federal court 3 times and denied each and every time. After court Health Canada has given me something, first my exemption then 7 plant limit and now 15 plant limit. None of this is enough as my last crop stared out with 50 plants and I cut down 30 for medicine while they grew and only ended up with 150 grams. I need someone to supply me while my crop grows so that I don't have to touch it in progress and this is the problem. When I was in Toronto this summer I had the privilege of meeting Alison Myrden and Dianna Bruce, two of the nicest people I have ever met. The two of them are solely responsible for changing my attitude about marijuana, they gave me my first free medicine and that has changed my life. I asked Dianne to help me out and she said that she would, no monies were ever discussed and I am still waiting for my medicine. Now they have her in jail and that is an unacceptable outrage. She is such a tiny woman with a heart of gold; I love what this woman is doing and I will stand by her until this matter is resolved. Federal Marijuana Exemptee Don Appleby ~ AFFIDAVIT OF DONALD APPLEBY ~ I, Donald Appleby, Ontario, Canada make oath and say as follows: 1. Ex. A is my letter to Allan Rock. 2. I'm 42 years of age and I have aids. I tested positive for the virus 6.2 years ago and now I have aids. My cd4 count is about 100 and the prospects don't look good. I'm on Kaletra [which, by the way, was fast tracked but the results have not been what I thought they would be. We're running out of medications and time. 3. I was blessed with a doctor who encouraged me to grow my own. He said that the government might not be able to reproduce what you need and no judge in the world will incarcerate me for doing it. 4. I appeared in Federal court before judge Teitlebaum and Mr. Prefontaine. All of them told me that what I wanted was illegal. After the Citizen reported his decision I was granted an exemption. I am here today to ask the court to lift the plant limits on my exemption and to allow me to import my own seeds from the Netherlands. 5. I first apologize to the judge and Mr. Prefontaine for not being present and for using the court in this manner. But I have no choice now that this process has taken it's toll on my nerves. I'm already on a permanent disability for depression and your actions have not helped. 6. It is bad enough that I now have to educate my doctor on the # of plants and their strength, I will not sit down with beauracrats from Ottawa and debate the science of growing. It is marijuana that has allowed me to endure some of the more toxic antiviral medications. It is marijuana that makes my life livable, without it I don't think that I would even be here today. When you have a terminal illness with no hope for the future everyday becomes a struggle. Marijuana has given me a new lease on life. I have no family or friends because you have made me into an outlaw. Continue to regulate my life and you will certainly give me reason to consider the alternative which is death. I am running out of time and I don't know how much longer I can continue to grow high quality marijuana. 7. The second part is this:Where am I to get the seeds to grow my medicine. Right now I have to buy them on the black market and I find this wholly offensive. I want the right to import different strains direct from Amsterdam without the worry of infestation of parasites through cloning. Mr. Prefontaine, you need to go back to your bosses and tell them as I wrote to Allan Rock, this is a matter between me and my doctor. [not three specialists] 8. I have been blessed with a gift,the ability to grow high quality marijuana and I intend to spend what is left of my life growing and breeding marijuana for seed. I believe that the Ontario Supreme Court did not intend for this to become a complicated process which it certainly has. If you and your government would have left us alone then we would have cared for our own sick and paid taxes besides. I wore a red tie to Toronto because I am a liberal some even call me a radical, like our former Prime Minister P.E.T. And just as he thought that Canada had no right in the bedrooms of Canadians, I feel that we have no right to regulate the sick and dying. 9. Doctors are now complaining about fast tracking this medication. Well, as a veteran of experimental medication, I can tell you that they fast track AIDS drugs and we deal with the side effects. I have a feeling that the Pharmaceutical companies are behind this new attempt to derail us. Think of the millions of dollars that will be lost if morphine and perquisites are replaced by a natural herb. 10. I again apologize to my friends for not being there today but the stress alone is killing me faster than the virus itself. I am losing feeling on my left side but I will continue to fight from home. I will always support those who seek relief through marijuana. 11. To Mr. Prefontaine: I don't know about the law but I do understand justice. I now request, no I demand justice or I will be back. Letter
of Donald Appleby To Allan Rock Dear Mr. Rock: My name is Donald Appleby and I have aids. Currently I am on a heavy regime of anti-aids drugs and I must have my exemption for medicinal marijuana. You stood outside the house and said that Canadians could distinguish between compassionate use and recreational use of marijuana but it would appear that your own health department can't seem to make up their minds. I've carried in my pocket a prescription for marijuana from my family doctor for over two years now and your department refused to recognize his right to prescribe. But understand this Mr. Rock, this is an issue between me and my doctor. You and your department need to butt out. I have been a grower of pot for some five years now and I would think that you have some idea about what it cost to grow good marijuana. First off you need the lights, the metal halide for vegetative growth and sodium vapour for flowering and they are not cheap. Cost for seeds are dear. I've spent over $400.00 just on seeds. There's air conditioning to cool in the summer and fans to move air in the winter. There are ozone machines to control smell and odours, $400.00 more ; dehumidifiers to remove moisture to avoid mould and bacteria which are enemies of the plants. Fans everywhere to move the air around, pots, trays, soil, pro-mix and last but not least fertilizer. Co2 machines to replenish Co2 lost, timers, powerbars, mylar to reflect light. Nutrients have to be bought and they aren't cheap either, maybe $250.00. Ph has to be adjusted and those meters cost 100 dollars as well as the light meters to test the efficiency of your lights. Add to this the cost of rent and hydro and you find yourself going broke to pay for your medication. The only alternative is to give a drug dealer $600.00 per month and I just refuse to do that anymore. You say that you will allow one person to grow for three additional people, well at three grams per day, that's 360 grams a month. That's a lot of pot to grow. You would need to buy a lot more equipment and grow hundreds of plants. My last crop of 22 plants netted me only 100 grams of dried bud but that was an organic experiment usually I can grow 200 grams from 24 plants in three months and I still run out. Plus there is a need to keep 4 or 5 healthy mothers for cloning and breeding programs so that I can develop better crosses of hybrids. All of this cost money and nowhere in the guidelines do I see where it says who is going to pay? If it is the patient who is to bear the cost then we must recoup our investment from them. It isn't cheap. I think that the government needs to make small business loans available to those with exemptions so that we may do what it is that we do. I don't have a problem with authorities knowing what I do but your application process has left many people unfairly hanging in the wind. Thank god that we now have judges that are awarding compensation for this treatment by your department. Two years later and $4,000.00 invested, not to mention a $100.00 bill from my doctor to fill out forms to document my death to your departments satisfaction and you won't even pay for that. The response I get from your department is that they are in the permit business, not the refund business. It would appear that you will not pay for anything so excuse me if my confidence in the government's ability to deal with this crisis is waning. How can I suggest others get involved when your department continues to put up road block after road block. And after the treatment that I've received, I'm not likely to recommend this process to anyone. It's certainly helped kill me. And how can bringing back medicine from Amsterdam be wrong? I have got nothing but trouble from your department from the days that you leaked my name to the press to the present. I guess we will be seeing you in court as I've already given you 30 days notice or intention to pursue an Application for Judicial Review of the condition limiting my medicine to anything but what my doctor prescribes and I need for my personal medical needs. Yours
Truly PS. I'm now seeing a psychiatrist at the general hospital due to your inaction.
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