Prince of Pot profiled in Citizen Marc

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      A documentary by Roger Evan Larry. Rated PG.

      The most conservative lawmaker probably has to give Marc Emery some grudging respect for standing up so vehemently for what he believes. Conversely, even the most liberal fan of his actions must, upon prolonged exposure, conclude that the guy’s a bit of an asshole.

      Both sides of Marc Emery are scrutinized in this excellent overview—smoothly assembled by local filmmakers Roger Evan Larry and Sandra Tomc—of someone whose actions will likely outlive his brash persona. More casual observers of Canada’s Prince of Pot (as dubbed by the American media) might expect that this full-time activist for legalization to be a peace-and-love kind of guy. Not really. Born 56 years ago in London, Ontario, Emery opened a popular bookstore there and got his first taste of politics, mainly by challenging then-prevalent Sunday-shopping laws. Excited by the infantile, self-aggrandizing writings of libertarian godhead Ayn Rand, Emery set out to build his own mythology. Friends and rivals from the period (interviewed at various times) make it clear that particular causes were secondary to the man’s mission.

      Our aviator-lensed hero (SNL’s Bill Hader would be a good choice to play him in a biopic) found his true calling when, after a weird debacle in Indonesia, he moved to Vancouver and threw himself head-first into cannabis culture. Even some of his staunchest allies here noted the narcissism of his mission. “Marc’s ego must constitute 40 percent of his body weight,” says one. And other observers, including Noam Chomsky, point out that civil disobedience is not supposed to be built around cults of personality—which doesn’t stop Emery from comparing himself, favourably, to Gandhi, King, and Jesus.

      There is, however, a self-sacrificing part of Mr. Marijuana, who recently completed more than four years in a Mississippi prison for the heinous crime of selling seeds to U.S. citizens. After a shameful performance by the Harper government, Emery cut a deal that protected his “co-conspirators”. Well, as another friend puts it, every organism needs an asshole, if only to pass the bad stuff through to the other side.

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