USA - Marijuana conference draws crowd

[Euphoric]

Hundreds of lawyers, marijuana advocates and civil libertarians will be showing up in Universal City this weekend for the 2007 National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws conference.


A mix of celebration and serious discussion on marijuana prohibition, the NORML conference is scheduled for today and Saturday at the Sheraton Universal Hotel.


Some of the more than 50 speakers include best-selling travel author Rick Steves, NORML founder Keith Stroup and “The Guru of Ganga” Ed Rosenthal.
Some of the topics planned for discussion are a look at progress in ending marijuana prohibition in various states, a look at what initiatives are planned for upcoming elections and a discussion titled: “Will you still arrest me when I'm 64.”


Medical marijuana appears to be a focus at the conference, there are also breakout sessions with titles like “Cannabis consumer safety” and “The activists' tool box: Combining traditional and innovative strategies,” are also on the schedule.


Last year, more than 500 people registered and attended the conference, which was held in San Francisco.


The culmination of the conference is the High Times Magazine

“Stony” awards ceremony, taking place Saturday at the Knitting Factory. The awards honor the best, according to the magazine, marijuana-friendly people and projects in the entertainment industry.


Tommy Chong is scheduled to host the “Stony” awards.


More information on the conference can be found at www.norml.org.

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