As Olympic visitors approach 307 West Hasting Street in downtown Vancouver, they may wonder which venue or event all the people are lined up to see? They may wonder what story the Associated Press is covering there, and which Olympic medalist Norway's TV2 is interviewing?
Many are surprised when they find out that all the people and media hype is not about sports and has nothing to do with the Olympics. No, this is no Olympic venue at all, but instead, it is a hotbed of political activism, and ground zero in an international controversy over marijuana legalization and two differing national attitudes towards cannabis tolerance. While the United States government is still fighting its 1930's zero tolerance war on Reefer Madness, Canada, and especially Vancouver, leans to more tolerance, lending a unique, sweet-smelling fog, that is hanging over these Olympics. The distinct smell of burning marijuana.
The first hint might come when you read the message in the third-floor windows, "FREE MARC." Eventually, you get it. All of the people, and all of the media attention in this corner of Vancouver are not drawn by the spectacle of sport, they are drawn by the desire to rub shoulders with royalty; they are all seeking audience with the Prince of Pot, Marc Emery. With his bong in hand, Marc Emery, publisher of the on-line Cannabis Culture Magazine, cannabis seed entrepreneur extraordinaire, tireless activist for worldwide marijuana legalization, and fugitive, is awaiting and fighting extradition to the United States for distribution charges stemming from his multi-million dollar mail-order cannabis seed business.
One would have to believe that the Olympic Committee's selection of Vancouver was based on its potential and ability to be a perfect choice as a city to host all of the spectacle that is the Winter Olympics. One would also have to believe that they never expected that the greatest spectacle of winter sports would become the perfect example of how the tolerance of soft drug usage is less dangerous than the tolerance of alcohol usage. The Vancouver police and the Integrated Security Unit for the Olympics are focusing more on controlling open-container consumption of alcohol on the city's streets, than worrying about someone smoking a joint. The smell of burning cannabis is not drawing police attention, even inside some of the Olympic venues.
According to Joseph White of the Associated Press, "Anyone spotted with a small amount at a hockey game isn't likely to face arrest. Quoting Constable Craig Douglas, spokesman of the ISU, "If it was a significant quantity we would, but who's going to bring a significant quantity to a venue?"
No one would have ever expected the 2010 Winter Olympics to become a living example of the fallacy of armed warfare against the people, that is the War on Drugs. And no one could have ever predicted that Vancouver would show all the world that marijuana is not the demon of society that almost all of the world's governments have conspired to create. And that's because no one could have ever predicted the likes of Marc Emery, Prince of Pot, and his endless fight to stop the war, the war on drugs, the war by government against the people. Maybe he should be called the Prince of Peace.
Watch the video from Norway's 2 Nyhetene television:
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 Magazine - Cannabis Culture News & Reviews
Source: Examiner.com
Author: William Skordelis
Contact: Examiner.com
Copyright: 2010 Clarity Digital Group LLC d/b/a Examiner.com
Website: Canadian marijuana activist getting his share of Olympic media attention
Many are surprised when they find out that all the people and media hype is not about sports and has nothing to do with the Olympics. No, this is no Olympic venue at all, but instead, it is a hotbed of political activism, and ground zero in an international controversy over marijuana legalization and two differing national attitudes towards cannabis tolerance. While the United States government is still fighting its 1930's zero tolerance war on Reefer Madness, Canada, and especially Vancouver, leans to more tolerance, lending a unique, sweet-smelling fog, that is hanging over these Olympics. The distinct smell of burning marijuana.
The first hint might come when you read the message in the third-floor windows, "FREE MARC." Eventually, you get it. All of the people, and all of the media attention in this corner of Vancouver are not drawn by the spectacle of sport, they are drawn by the desire to rub shoulders with royalty; they are all seeking audience with the Prince of Pot, Marc Emery. With his bong in hand, Marc Emery, publisher of the on-line Cannabis Culture Magazine, cannabis seed entrepreneur extraordinaire, tireless activist for worldwide marijuana legalization, and fugitive, is awaiting and fighting extradition to the United States for distribution charges stemming from his multi-million dollar mail-order cannabis seed business.
One would have to believe that the Olympic Committee's selection of Vancouver was based on its potential and ability to be a perfect choice as a city to host all of the spectacle that is the Winter Olympics. One would also have to believe that they never expected that the greatest spectacle of winter sports would become the perfect example of how the tolerance of soft drug usage is less dangerous than the tolerance of alcohol usage. The Vancouver police and the Integrated Security Unit for the Olympics are focusing more on controlling open-container consumption of alcohol on the city's streets, than worrying about someone smoking a joint. The smell of burning cannabis is not drawing police attention, even inside some of the Olympic venues.
According to Joseph White of the Associated Press, "Anyone spotted with a small amount at a hockey game isn't likely to face arrest. Quoting Constable Craig Douglas, spokesman of the ISU, "If it was a significant quantity we would, but who's going to bring a significant quantity to a venue?"
No one would have ever expected the 2010 Winter Olympics to become a living example of the fallacy of armed warfare against the people, that is the War on Drugs. And no one could have ever predicted that Vancouver would show all the world that marijuana is not the demon of society that almost all of the world's governments have conspired to create. And that's because no one could have ever predicted the likes of Marc Emery, Prince of Pot, and his endless fight to stop the war, the war on drugs, the war by government against the people. Maybe he should be called the Prince of Peace.
Watch the video from Norway's 2 Nyhetene television:
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 Magazine - Cannabis Culture News & Reviews
Source: Examiner.com
Author: William Skordelis
Contact: Examiner.com
Copyright: 2010 Clarity Digital Group LLC d/b/a Examiner.com
Website: Canadian marijuana activist getting his share of Olympic media attention
