On November 5, 1996, California voters approved Proposition 215 allowing physicians to legally recommend marijuana to their patients. After this passed, I imagined that glaucoma sufferers would be able to go to their doctor for a diagnosis and then head over to the local pharmacy to have their prescription filled. Not necessarily. Kent Sugnet's video Compassionate Use is, if anything, the kind of evidence that Proposition 215 opponents would seize on to show how this initiative might be abused. Sugnet introduces us to The Cannabis Buyers Club of San Francisco, a three-story warehouse where members can order five grades of pot in the same way that, say, a yuppie might order a double latte cappuccino mocha in a trendy downtown coffeehouse. Although lip service is paid to the alleviation of suffering, most members seem to be gathering in the opium den atmosphere of the club to enjoy the camaraderie of recreational drug use. Frequent coughing is heard, people light up and occasionally someone barks "this is good stuff" (is that a medical term?). This is not a tape made by physicians for compassionate usage. It is a tape made by those in favor of legalizing marijuana for recreational usage who are exploiting the current medical controversy to advance their point of view. They should just come out and say so, instead of forcing us to "weed" it out of them. Note: On August 4, 1996, most of the people appearing in this tape were arrested when the California State Bureau of Narcotics raided and shut down the Cannabis Buyers Club. A very optional purchase. Aud: C. (R. Ray)
Compassionate Use
(1996) 23 min. $11.95. Tara Releasing. PPR. Color cover. Vol. 12, Issue 3
Compassionate Use
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