Pubdate: Fri, 18 Sep 2009 Source: Langley Advance (CN BC) Copyright: 2009 Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc. Contact: http://www.langleyadvance.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1248 Author: Travis Erbacher MARC EMERY IS A CANADIAN HERO Dear Editor, Marc Emery is prepared next Monday to surrender to US authorities to face at least 5 years in prison south of the border. His crime? The U.S. government claims it is because he sold marijuana seeds to U.S. citizens. However, hundreds of companies do the same thing. The real reason is that legalizing marijuana has more support than ever, and in order to stop this movement, they decided to arrest the most visible leader and financier of the legalization movement. The Canadian government gladly took Emery's tax dollars, which had "Marijuana Seed Merchant" listed as his occupation, and Canadian police officers never decided to arrest Emery for selling seeds. Apparently, however, the U.S. government and DEA have the authority to operate in our country and tell our police officers who to arrest, and for what reason. Not a single person has ever come forward to say Marc Emery hurt them. Nobody could. There are no victims here, and yet the U.S. government feels it necessary to lock him up for more than 50 times the sentence he would get in this country. Marc Emery is a Canadian hero. He opened his store on Sunday when it was illegal to do so, until the archaic law was repealed. He sold banned books and albums to protest censorship, until that was repealed. He has spent his entire life trying to make his country free, fighting for the rights of every Canadian. This man is a patriot, and Canadians should not stand by while our sovereignty is thrown out the window and an innocent man goes to jail. This is about more than Marc Emery. This is an issue of national sovereignty. If the U.S. government can tell our police officers who to arrest, and forcibly take a Canadian citizen and throw him/her in a U.S. jail for political reasons, this country is finished. We may as well allow the United States to annex Canada and become the 51st state already. This Saturday, at the Vancouver Art Gallery, from 2 p.m. till 5 p.m., there will be a protest in response to the extradition. Travis Erbacher, Langley - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake