HIGH TIMES AT QUEEN'S PARK

High times but no misdemeanours.

The Queen's Park lawn north of the legislature went to pot today as
the site for the third-annual Toronto Freedom Festival and its
flagship event, the Global Marijuana March.

So while thousands of primarily young people lit up and took a toke
form a marijuana joint or a bong or even a bite from a cookie laced
with dope, there were no reports of trouble and no arrests.

"If there's enough people standing behind a cause eventually things
will change," said 22-year-old Evan Dorion. "I wish the laws would
change."

He said the amount of time police officers in Canada dedicate to
clamping down on marijuana could be better spent catching people
dealing in more serious drugs and other violent crime.

Others thought the argument was far too old to be rehashed yet
again.

"It's a natural plant," said Mitch. "It's no more harmful than alcohol
and probably less harmful. I can't believe we're still arguing about
this, (governments) should just get over it and get on with it."

Crowd estimates ranged from 15,000 to as high as 30,000 and vendors
were raking in the cash on everything from hot dogs and mini-doughnuts
to chocolate chip cookies laced with the drug of choice for nearly
everyone there - but don't look for the beer tent.

"These are tens of thousands of people who don't consume alcohol and
still have a good safe, peaceful time," said Festival organizer Neev
Tapiro of Cannabis As Living Medicine.

"Prohibition is a failed attempt at controlling what we put in our
bodies."

The crowd was also urging support for Liberal MP's Dr. Keith Martin
proposed legislation introduced last month that would decriminalize
marijuana possession.

"I thought my generation was going to legalize it," said Tapiro. "At
least 55% support decriminalization on some level and 95% support the
legalization of marijuana for medical reasons so it's a done deal as
far as the public is concerned."