Pubdate: Tue, 22 Aug 2000
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: The Vancouver Sun 2000
Contact:  200 Granville Street, Ste.#1, Vancouver BC V6C 3N3
Fax: (604) 605-2323
Website: http://www.vancouversun.com/
Author: Tom Barrett

LEADER ISSUES STRAIGHT DOPE ON MARIJUANA PARTY PLATFORM

"We're 	Not Just An Excuse to Smoke Joints"

Marc (Boris) Saint-Maurice wants Canada to know the Marijuana Party is
more than an excuse to smoke joints.

Saint-Maurice is leader of the fledgling Marijuana Party and also 
leader of the Bloc Pot, its Quebec provincial counterpart. Last week he 
announced plans to take on Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day in 
the Okanagan-Coquihalla byelection Sept.11.  

To run against Day, Saint-Maurice needs to collect 100 signatures from 
Okanagan-Coquihalla voters by today. That job, he said last week, is 
something he can do with both hands tied behind his back or as they say 
in Quebec, "with both fingers up my nose."  

Saint-Maurice, 31, is taking a break from a career as a bass player for 
a rock band to be a full-time marijuana advocate. He says the great 
thing about pot as a political issue is that it crosses all party 
lines.  

"The only thing marijuana users have in common is the fact that they 
use marijuana," he said during a stopover in Vancouver on his way to 
campaign in the Okanagan. "That's what's good for a party like ours. We 
really do have a large base from which we can draw."  

The goal of the Marijuana Party is to end pot prohibition Saint-Maurice 
said: "Let's stop prosecuting and persecuting people who chose to use 
marijuana...  

"We're not just an excuse to smoke joints.  We are a legitimate 
political party that is defending a legitimate social cause which has 
massive support."  

Some highlights from a conversation with Saint-Maurice:  

Why are you running against Stockwell Day?  

We're launching a federal party nationally and byelections are a good 
opportunity for leaders to get known and to feel each other out as far 
as position and policy. It's a chance to get to know this enigma we 
call Stockwell Day.  

Tell me about yourself. Unlike Bill Clinton, I take it you inhaled.  

Myself and the marijuana party, we're of the opinion that asking 
someone about their personal marijuana use is a terribly inappropriate 
question. It has no bearing on someone's ability to run a campaign, it 
has no bearing on whether or not they do their job, it's about as 
relevant as asking them whether or not they've used tobacco. If the 
state has no business in the bedroom, they have no business in your 
ashtray.  

Do you have positions on any other issues?  Health care?  

We think medical marijuana is great.

Tax Cuts?

Perhaps.

Do you have any political heroes?

Frank Zappa.

Who would you like to see hit with a pie?

Let's see them go throw pies at the bikers.  Chretien's chump change
next to those guys. 
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MAP posted-by: John Chase