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| Marc Emery: 'I'm My Adversaries' Worst Nightmare' |
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Posted by FoM on November 22, 2001 at 07:02:40 PT By Joe Matyas, Free Press Reporter Source: London Free Press 
Canada's marijuana king is on the phone, changing a baby's diaper and predicting he'll live to see his favourite weed decriminalized. "It's going to happen sooner or later," said Marc Emery. "You can see it coming. "There's been a breakthrough in medical use, I haven't been arrested in three years and the mayor of Vancouver, who used to crusade against me, is now saying legalization is inevitable." Emery, a 43-year-old former Londoner, always could stir the pot. "I consider myself my adversaries' worst nightmare," he once said. "I regard myself as a principled idealist who just won't change his mind. I won't compromise on anything." From his 17-year perch as owner of the City Lights Book Shop on Richmond Street in downtown London, he gained notoriety for his opinions and campaigns. He was a buzz saw, a machine gun, a waterfall of words. He railed against big government, big business, big unions, feminists, socialists and the police. He wanted the downtown business improvement area organization dismantled and fought its right to levy a charge on his store. He started political parties and newspapers and campaigned against the Pan-Am Games, city grants to the University of Western Ontario and pay hikes for city politicians. He paid people to pick up garbage during a municipal strike, hired a Santa Claus to stuff coins in downtown parking meters at Christmas and gave books away while defying a law banning Sunday business openings. He was a school dropout and proud of it. He home-schooled his own sons and once boasted he was too bright for school, so bored he had to get out. "My idea of a good time was to take away the control from the teacher and install myself as the main influence in the class," he said. Emery started City Lights with the help of a $10,000 loan from his father and within a year was making "a killing." He started out as a New Democratic Party supporter, but his entrepreneurial bent and Ayn Randish individuality turned him into someone who eventually came to believe there should be little or no government. He ran as a Libertarian in a federal election and later founded the Freedom party with Robert Metz. He started the London MetroBulletin and the London Tribune, two short-lived newspapers. He went to court to defend his right to sell sexually explicit and marijuana magazines and the 2 Live Crew rap tape, As Nasty As They Wanna Be, deemed obscene by some people. Citing his disenchantment with Canadian society, Emery moved to Indonesia with his wife and two sons in 1992, vowing never to return. He settled in Vancouver two years later and soon made headlines as the owner of Cannabis Cafe, a meeting place for tokers, Hemp BC, a supply store, and Little Grow Shop, a seed and plant outlet. They were raided a few times and eventually closed. Emery was arrested eight times and convicted of trafficking in marijuana seeds. "I've had $600,000 in assets seized," he said. "It's been rough on my employees. I employ 35 people right now." This year, he'll gross about $2 million from Marc Emery Direct, his mail-order marijuana seed business, break even as publisher of Cannabis Culture Magazine and lose about $10,000 a month on his Web-based Pot-TV. He's the proud father of an infant son and the BC Marijuana party, which ran candidates in all 79 ridings in this year's provincial election. He's donating about $400,000 to the cause of decriminalizing marijuana, including legal defences. "I'm having fun," he said. Canada is the greatest country in the world, he added. "It's a friendly fascist country, something you can live with. I'd be on death row in the United States if I was doing there what I'm doing here." Source: London Free Press Related Articles & Web Site: POT - TV FTE's Canadian Links B.C.'s 'Prince of Pot' - National Post B.C. Marijuana Party To Distribute Marijuana Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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Comment #4 posted by Jose Melendez on May 06, 2002 at 08:30:55 PT:
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| COPS' NOTEBOOKS SEIZED IN PROBE OF DRUG SQUAD [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #3 posted by SWAMPIE on May 05, 2002 at 05:48:54 PT:
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| As to his radical ideas,I'm not too sure that all would go along with them.HOWEVER,by toning-down the ideas of extreme radical change,he may be able to accomplish alot.We all know that he is now running for mayor,and this is very admirable,but to fire the police and hire possible mercenaries to enforce his laws,I think that is stupid.There are alot of people that do stupid things,and the violent ones need help.By radically changing things as this article states,it would do no good at all.I wish to respect Marc,but you have to control your ANGER against society or your voice will be heard as that of a crackpot.Marc,in my mind is not a crackpot,however he is angry and he needs to use his anger CONSTRUCTIVELY rather than DESTRUTIVELY!We all need to take this mindset if we are going to make a change in the way the future will unfold.This is all history in the making,and our great-grandchildren will be the ones to guide the world after we are gone.Got the picture?As dddd says,"we are all fucked",now would you rather be the "fucker"or the "fuckee"???What we need to do is get more people on our sides and become more organized if we want to crack the wall.For the last week,I have been writing on my money,as I read a comment awhile ago to do it.You wouldn't believe the results! I have yet to see any newbies to C-NEWS,but I have seen more bills with similar writing that I received in change.It's not illegal,and it gets the word out that
#1...Cannabis is Medicine.
#2...Stop the WAR ON DRUGS
#3...Food Fuel Fiber Farming will stop global warming
#4...WWW.CANNABISNEWS.COM.
#5...WWW.POT-TV.NET
#6...WWW.OVERGROW.COM
#7...WWW.MARIHUANANEWS.COM.
We all need to start to start at the bottom and work our way up further to make others see the light.The American government it feeding us Bullshit,and it is High time that we set them Straight once and for all that as soon as they LEGALIZE AND REGULATE cannabis we can go FORWARD again,instead of the INSANITY of running your head into the WALL,only to find that you didn't even make a dent in it!!!I guess that's enough ranting for now,please feel free to use my suggestions on your money,or inform me if there is something to add.We will break the wall yet.I heard a crack sound,Hope it was the wall,nope it was a cat falling off the top of the tv..Oh well.......
ONWARD THROUGH THE FOG..... SWAMPIE [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by bruce42 on November 23, 2001 at 09:25:21 PT |
| fine by me. Notice how 4&5 have that flavor of wartime surrender documents. That seems rather appropriate in my book. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Lehder on November 22, 2001 at 14:20:05 PT |
1. The immediate legalization of cannabis, and then as quickly as possible to all other herbs and entheogens. 2. That there be no legal or regulatory controls on who may cultivate and use cannabis. We will accept regulation and taxation only in regards to the commercial sale of cannabis products. 3. That any person imprisoned for any cannabis-related offense is to receive an immediate and unconditional pardon. All records of convictions for any cannabis-related offences are to be expunged and destroyed. 4. That restitution be paid to all victims of cannabis persecution. Compensation for property seized and a per-diem rate for time in jail should be paid out of tax revenue from the sale of cannabis products. 5. An official apology from the UN and world governments, that they acknowledge the war on cannabis and cannabis consumers was a vicious, murderous bigotry with no legitimate social or health concerns whatsoever. http://www.cannabisculture.com/cgi/article.cgi?num=1568 [ Post Comment ] |
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