ABBY PROTEST GOES TO POT

How many potheads does it take to set Old Glory ablaze?

Apparently, more than four, dude, as even that number of marijuana marchers
couldn't muster a spark when they tried to set fire to a U.S. flag Thursday
outside Abbotsford provincial court.

The agonizingly small band of pro-pot protesters -- including the seemingly
ubiquitous Tim Felger and John Fulford, who ran under the Marijuana party
banner in the last federal election -- were outside the hall of justice to
voice their displeasure with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency entering Canada.

Now, the issue of the DEA working with the RCMP and other police agencies
on this side of the border is indeed a serious one that deserves serious
debate. There was a controversial incident in the Okanagan not long ago
involving the DEA, the Mounties and a pot grower north of the 49th that
raised Constitutional issues with many critics.

However, Thursday's protest resembled Monty Python more than Berkeley of
the 1960s, with Felger abandoning the protest to rescue his vehicle from a
tow truck and Fulford, battling the wind in vain, invoking plan B --
standing on the Stars and Stripes and defiantly smoking a joint.

We're sure Dubya is in the White House now, consulting with Homeland
Security chief Tom Ridge on what measures to take with these threats to
democracy.

Truth be told, we've seen better organization at a toddler soccer match.
Any follower of news in Abbotsford is by now more than aware of Tim Felger
and his band of activists. The former U.S. Army officer and erstwhile pizza
parlour owner has been anything but shy in his vocal opposition to the
current laws that keep pot illegal.

And, while the argument to decriminalize or even legalize marijuana is
sound (after all, it is the very illegality of pot that breeds the crime
that is associated with it), the actions of Felger and company do little to
further their cause.

From the sporadic rally in Centennial Park (where, it seems, many in
attendance are rebellious teens who couldn't tell a tort from a toke) to
Thursday's sad saga, it would seem Abbotsford's pro-pot brigade is in
serious need of some public relations help.

Because, when one analyzes the situation, standing on the U.S. flag and
sparking a doob, while offering poignant political ponderings such as,
"This is just so controversial, and we love controversy," does little to
convince opponents of your argument.

Party on, Tim. Party on, John -- and don't Bogart that joint.