Oct 11, 2006 9:23 pm US/Mountain
Drug Czar Speaks Out Against Pro-Pot Initiative
by Terry Jessup
DENVER (CBS4) ―
The nation's drug czar blasted Amendment 44 during his visit to Colorado on Wednesday. The proposed amendment would make it legal for Coloradans to have an ounce or less of marijuana.
John Walters also spoke out against a new pro-marijuana billboard displayed at Broadway and Harvard which features a small picture of the drug czar in the upper left-hand corner with the inference that he says marijuana is the safest thing in the world.
The billboard is actually a reference to a controversial new television commercial that is getting so much attention that Walters felt he had to speak out against it.
The commercial features three young guys sitting on a couch after apparently smoking marijuana.
The actor says: "I smoked weed and nobody died. I didn't get into a car accident. I didn't get on heroin the next day, nothing happened. We sat on Pete's couch for 11 hours. Know what's going to happen on Pete's couch? Nothing."
The commercial is anti-drug and produced by the government to suggest marijuana smokers are slackers and losers.
Safer Alternative For Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER), the group promoting Amendment 44, said the commercial actually helps their cause especially the teen actor's sarcastic line that marijuana is the "safest thing in the world."
"It is the safest thing in the world," said Mason Tvert, Amendment 44 supporter. "That is a quote, it is not mine, it is the drug czar's via his advertisements."
SAFER now has the quote on a billboard and the drug czar said it's misleading and dishonest.
"I never said that," Walters said. "What I said today is what I tried to say to field that blind spot. Marijuana is the single biggest cause of substance abuse problems among illegal drugs in the United States today."
"The ads that they were running telling people how dangerous marijuana was were not having any effect," Tvert said. "And now the drug czar has resorted to simply acknowledging it's a relatively benign substance, but you're a loser if you use that drug."
Both sides now see the new TV ad as ammunition for their side. As for the new billboard, the drug czar says it's simply a lie.
"This is ridiculous and it is ridiculous except it's not funny," Walters said. "It's harmful because it sends the wrong message.
The two sides also disagree over who's behind the pro-pot campaign in Denver. The drug czar said its wealthy out-of-state residents and mentioned Democrat supporter George Soros who he says is promoting pro-pot initiatives all over the country.
The Amendment 44 supporters say that's not true in Colorado and that their group known as SAFER is grassroots, with only two paid staff and more than 1,000 volunteers.
Walters was in town to announce a multi-million dollar grant. Colorado is getting the money to help prevent and treat addiction.
(© MMVI CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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