POT RALLY MELLOWS OUT

Chanting, "We smoke pot because we like it a lot," about 500 people
gathered in Manhattan yesterday to demand marijuana be legalized - but
were a bit slow getting out of bed.

The New York leg of the Global Marijuana March, held in more than 200
cities, kicked off in Washington Square Park more than an hour after
the scheduled 11 a.m. start time.

Several high-profile drug campaigners spoke, including Bronx-born Ed
Rosenthal, who is fighting ongoing court battles in California over
the medical use of the drug.

A strong police presence was on hand, but no arrests were reported.