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.