CAPITOL POT PROTESTERS DON'T SEE MISSION AS HOPELESS

It wasn't the mellow gathering one might expect.

After a parade through downtown Lincoln on Monday, women in tie-dye
dresses and men with cardboard posters cheered at passing cars in
front of the Capitol.

Their message: Across-the-board legalization of marijuana.

To many, it would seem a pointless goal -- but between honking horns
(and a few middle fingers) from passersby, Omahan Brian Gray and
others still argued.

"If I didn't think there was a point, I wouldn't be out here," Gray
said.

He argued about the University of Nebraska becoming a leader in hemp
research.

He argued sick people could use marijuana to feel better.

He argued pot doesn't actually cause the side effects that many
fear.

And he argued that Nebraska needs the cash.

"Here's our answer."

Gray -- sporting a "Nebraska H.E.M.P." T-shirt with pot leaves instead
of periods -- knew many people would write him off.

Those people have bought into the fear, stigma and apathy that
surrounds any meaningful conversation about marijuana.

"I think, anymore, it's just the populace being ignorant," he said.