Pubdate: Wed, 26 Oct 2005
Source: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)
Copyright: 2005, Denver Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.rockymountainnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/371
Author: Alan Gathright, Rocky, Mountain News

POT SUPPORTERS INVITE MAYOR TO DEBATE INITIATIVE

Pro-pot forces worked hard today to draw Denver's brew pub-owning 
mayor into a debate about the merits of marijuana initiative on 
Tuesday's ballot.

Mayor John Hickenlooper wasn't taking the bait.

"Mayor Hickenlooper's attention and energy are focused on issues that 
actually matter to Denver, which more than anything else seems to be 
what is annoying these folks who already know that passage would be 
irrelevant as state laws on marijuana would still be enforced in 
Denver," said Lindy Eichenbaum Lent, the mayor's spokeswoman.

That didn't stop 20 supporters of Initiative 100, which asks Denver 
voters whether to change city law to legalize adult possession of 1 
ounce or less of marijuana.

They rallied outside City Hall, calling Hickenlooper a hypocrite and 
a (legal) "drug dealer" because his brew pubs sell beer, but the 
mayor opposes the pot measure because he says marijuana is a "gateway 
drug" to destructive addictions.

"What is the difference between Mayor Hickenlooper and a marijuana 
dealer? The mayor has made his fortune selling a more harmful drug: 
Alcohol," read a huge banner unfurled by members of the I-100 group, 
Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER).

The central theme of the Alcohol-Marijuana Legalization Initiative is 
that adults should have the legal right to choose marijuana, which 
proponents -- citing national and local studies -- call a safer 
alternative to booze, which they argue fuels deadly violence, car 
wrecks, collegiate binge-drinking and alcoholism.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman