cannabisnews.com: Lighten Up! It's the Hemp Olympics 





Lighten Up! It's the Hemp Olympics 
Posted by FoM on September 09, 2000 at 09:49:01 PT
By Mort Rosenblum, AP Special Correspondent
Source: S.F. Gate
The 3:45 p.m. ferry to Darling Harbor trailed a huge green-leaf flag not accredited to the Olympics, and its bearer, an underfed gentleman named Chicken George, was clearly no athlete. George wore a bright chartreuse, wool knit bodysuit, sort of a mix between a knight's chain mail and a kid's bunny-feet pajamas, with a five-pointed marijuana leaf emblazoned on the chest. ``We figure there's enough paranoia in this town now,'' explained one of his entourage, Robin Harrison, a ponytailed actor in paisley pants. ``We thought we'd show there were still a few normal blokes around.'' 
Normal for Sydney. This is not your average sort of place. And as the 2000 Summer Games approach, Sydneysiders' lovable looniness shifted to yet a higher gear. The ferry ride was Friday. On Saturday, George rode astride a 42-foot-long joint as it rolled down Broadway to Town Hall, flanked by feeling-no-pain supporters and followed by a phalanx of amused mounted policemen. A red-painted tip glowed at the monster reefer's business end. The words, ``Let It Grow,'' ran along one side. The other was stenciled: ``The Law is the Crime.'' This capped the cannabis-scented Hemp Olympix in Victoria Park: joint rolling for speed and artistry; a triathlon of hauling fertilizer and water and crawling through bush; and a bong (water pipe) throwing contest. Marijuana use is illegal in Australia, but like a lot of popular social activities, such as drinking in the streets and flouncing nude on beaches, enforcement is not draconian. Police Sgt. John Tate laughed when asked what he thought of escorting a giant joint and half-naked dancers through the heart of Sydney. ``It's such a minor offense,'' he said. ``Let 'em have their fun.'' At official levels, tension is high. Nearly a half million visitors during the Summer Games' supercharged two weeks mean the potential for every threat from traffic nightmares to high-tech terrorism. Immigration authorities, traffic police and security guards near Olympic sites feed the mood of paranoia Harrison described. But most residents of Australia's beloved signature city, now basking in world attention, are taking things easy. ``G'day, mate'' is slipping in usage, but the constant watchword remains: ``No worries.'' At Darling Harbor, a private boat disgorged a wedding party, a dozen young people dressed to kill in black ties and backless gowns. Half of them guzzled from long-necked beer bottles. Weekend crowds spilled out of pubs onto public squares, office workers in suits and high heels mingling easily with the cutoffs-and-flipflop class. Some talked of sports, but others trashed any public figure whose name happened to arise. A few made macabre jokes about the season's sensational news story: A man's head was found in the belly of a 90-pound cod. ``It's who we are,'' pronounced Andrea Dixon, a journalist who loves her hometown. ``Australians have a total contempt for anything that smacks of authority or discipline.'' She appreciates a thickening layer of sophistication in Sydney, with fine food and excellent theater. But she is proud of her deep Australian roots, her tint of aborigine blood and her bush traditions. ``We're all the spawn of criminals, what do you expect?'' she concluded, with a merry laugh. ``Pretty nice, hey?'' A faux Princess Anne, eerily like Britain's real item, opened the Hemp Olympix, praising its sense of reality in the face of the ``Over-the-Top Olympics,'' which get under way Friday. Declaring herself Hempress of Gaia, she said: ``It gives me great pleasure not being the queen, not opening the Not Olympics. Hemp, hemp, hooray.'' Then she lit up a regal-sized joint. Lisa Yeates, the actress in royal clothing, later said these ``games'' had a serious purpose: to focus attention on drug laws that send youths to jail, where they emerge as human wrecks, if not real criminals. They were sponsored by growers of the hippie community of Nimbin, north of Sydney, whose annual Mardi Grass campaigns for drug education, control of dangerous narcotics and a reform of drug laws. For many Sydneysiders, the Olympics are essentially an excuse for weeks of nonstop partying. The Taylor Square drag queens are preening. Bottle shops are doing a brisk business. Taxi drivers are wary of their immediate future, despite a 10 percent premium for fares during the Olympics. Their job won't be easy. But this is Sydney. ``It'll be all right,'' observed one recent immigrant, a Punjabi who lost no time picking up the mood. He calls himself Johnny Singh. ``No worries.'' On that 3:45 ferry, Harrison, the actor, described a serious purpose behind what outsiders see as lighthearted looniness. ``We're not really going to survive this new era without some intelligent thought about economies, our societies, our environment,'' he said. ``That's really what we're working toward.'' Chicken George adjusted his wraparound shades and added his own note of wisdom for life, especially during this month of imported madness: ``Just remember. If at first you don't succeed, cheat.'' Sydney, Australia (AP) Saturday, September 9, 2000 © 2000 Associated Press Related Articles: Study Criticizes IOC in Drug Fight http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6982.shtmlOlympics-Remove Pot From Banned List, Says Doctor http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6981.shtmlU.S. Report Will Criticize I.O.C. on Drugshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6978.shtml
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on September 10, 2000 at 20:50:20 PT
Here's a related article and a couple links too!
42 Foot Joint Marks New 'Olympic' Event September 9, 2000Anovahttp://www.ananova.com/http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_56812.htmlhttp://www.ananova.com/news/index.html?keywords=Cannabishttp://www.ananova.com/news/index.html?keywords=Drugshttp://www.ananova.com/news/index.html?keywords=Australiahttp://www.ananova.com/news/index.html?keywords=WorldA man called Chicken George rode through Sydney on a 42 foot-long joint to mark the climax of an Olympic event with a difference.The Hemp Olympix, in the city's Victoria Park, featured a joint rolling contest, with contestants tested for speed and artistry, and a bong throwing contest.An actress pretending to be Princess Anne opened the Olympix saying: "Hemp, hemp, hooray." She then lit a regal-sized spliff.The 42 foot-long joint had rolled down Broadway to Town Hall. A red-painted tip glowed at the monster reefer's business end. The words, "Let It Grow," ran along one side. The other was stencilled: "The Law is the Crime".It was followed by a phalanx of amused mounted policemen. Marijuana use is illegal in Australia, but enforcement is not draconian.Police Sgt. John Tate laughed when asked what he thought of escorting a giant joint and half-naked dancers through the heart of Sydney.He said: "It's such a minor offence. Let 'em have their fun."The fake Princess Anne praised the OLympix's sense of reality in the face of the "Over-the-Top-Olympics," which get under way on Friday. Declaring herself Hempress of Gaia, she said: "It gives me great pleasure not being the queen, not opening the Not Olympics. Hemp, hemp, hooray."Lisa Yeates, the actress in royal clothing, later said these "games" had a serious purpose: to focus attention on drug laws that send youths to jail.The games were sponsored by growers of the hippie community of Nimbin, north of Sydney, whose annual Mardi Grass campaigns for drug education, control of dangerous narcotics and a reform of drug laws.Updated: Saturday 9th September 2000
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Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on September 10, 2000 at 14:21:20 PT:
Nothing like a little laughter
But not just for levity's sake.Ever notice that the antis always talk, write, even *gesture* as if they have perpetual wedgies? Pantie-in-a-wad syndrome seems to be par for the course with them.And this, too, is one of their Achilles' heels.Ridicule has long been one of their favorite weapons. Knowing that they cannot possibly hold their own in a fair debate, they resort to tactics usually found amongst ingenue freshman debating-team members. Namely, redirect attention from the facts (and their lack of familiarity with them) by relying upon heaping scorn upon their opponents *personal* attributes. In this case, the *stereotypical* attributes. Barry's snide remark about 'Cheech and Chong' medicine is a perfect example of this, neatly side-stepping the fact that nearly every doctor involved in oncology swears by cannabis' anti-emitic properties. They're just afraid of the AMA coming down hard on them because the AMA has its' nose so far up Barry's arse that he has to warn them when he makes turns lest he break it.But when the shoe is on the other foot, when *we* make fun of *them*, they get downright vicious. Why? Simple: we've hit them where they live. In their belief systems. In their faith. In their de facto religion. After all, they are the ones who've proclaimed since 1914 that they are on a 'crusade', right? "Nobody laughs in MY church, you blasphemers!"By laughing at their histrionics, we call attention to the underlying hysteria. By exposing their ignorance publicly, we shame the ones with pretensions of being 'experts'. But most of all, by showing them as intolerant bigots who's lack of a sense of humor hides a stony willingness to do more than incarcerate. Remember, folks, Darryl Gates, the man who created DARE, wanted to shoot us in the streets, Dachau style. Bullet to the back of the head, don't you know? And that s*****r of wisdom and moral righteousness William Bennett wanted to behead us publicly a la Saudi Arabian 'justice'.By laughing at these very dangerous buffoons, we are doing more than stress relief; we are showing the American people that, with their fulminating reactions to us, that these goofs are really something a lot more dangerous than any pot-head could ever be. 
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on September 09, 2000 at 10:33:58 PT:
My Thoughts On This Article
Hi Everyone,This is a really cool article! Bless their hearts! I sure wish we could be free like them. I watched The Travel Channel a while back and they featured the festival where they carried a 42-foot-long joint down to the police department. Everyone had a bong of their own. It was with a person on The Travel Channel named Alby Mengel, I believe. I hope they replay it during the Olympics!Peace, FoM!
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on September 09, 2000 at 10:23:43 PT
Related Articles & Web Site
Hi Everyone! I found a related web site and articles and I thought I should post them! Nimbin Hemp Industryhttp://main.nrg.com.au/~hemp/Stoned or Sober, Nimbin is a Triphttp://cannabisnews.com/news/4/thread4115.shtmlAll Hippie Retrospectacle Thriving Down Under http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread4075.shtml 
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Comment #1 posted by MikeEEEEE on September 09, 2000 at 10:21:28 PT
Pressure!!!
The drug warriors are coming under a lot of pressure, this is good change.
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