cannabisnews.com: The Mainstreaming of Marijuana





The Mainstreaming of Marijuana
Posted by CN Staff on April 15, 2004 at 07:59:15 PT
By Todd Babiak, The Edmonton Journal 
Source: Edmonton Journal 
Three men in black, on wooden stools, with binders open in front of them, say "Marijuana." They are careful with the word, thoughtful and defiant. We understand they are reclaiming marijuana, pulling it back from the forces of ignorance and repression, from media distortion, from The Man. "We say it because we want to feel comfortable saying it, not ashamed and guilty," one of them says.Using the flat intonations and strategic repetitions of The Vagina Monologues, the three men of The Marijuana Logues exploit the dying days of marijuana's comic potential.
Their show has been off-Broadway since the end of March. "You've got to know a guy to get marijuana," says the monologist in the middle, Doug Benson. "We worry that something could happen to the marijuana guy. We worry that we will have to get a new marijuana guy."Smoking marijuana can be funny, and dated propaganda films such as Reefer Madness are unintentionally hilarious. However, watching people smoke marijuana hasn't been funny since the '70s. Hollywood screenwriters and the people who pay them have been ignoring this truism for years, subjecting us to embarrassing provocations such as Half Baked and How High."In Amsterdam, I might laugh at comedies like that, but not here," says Benjamin Currie, manager of the True North Hemp Company on Whyte Avenue. "It's a mockery of our beliefs. These sorts of movies and other treatments in the media over-popularize without education. Even if people are pro-marijuana, they don't know why." Snipped: Complete Article: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/mainstream.htmSource: Edmonton Journal (CN AB)Author: Todd Babiak, The Edmonton Journal Published: April 15, 2004Copyright: 2004 The Edmonton JournalContact: letters thejournal.canwest.comWebsite: http://www.edmontonjournal.comRelated Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmNip Reefer in The Bud http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18646.shtml Marijuana-Logues Light Up New York http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread18564.shtmlCannabisNews -- Canada Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/Canada.shtml
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