Pubdate: Tue, 28 Mar 2006 Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC) Copyright: 2006 The Vancouver Sun Contact: http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477 Author: Wency Leung, with files from Darah Hansen, Vancouver Sun Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Ian+Mulgrew SUN COLUMNIST A FINALIST FOR MAJOR LITERARY AWARD Vancouver Sun legal affairs columnist Ian Mulgrew was named a finalist Monday for this year's National Business Book Award, one of Canada's most prestigious literary awards. Mulgrew's book, Bud Inc.: Inside Canada's Marijuana Industry (Random House of Canada 2005), sheds light on the multi-billion-dollar underground industry. "I am very happy the judges thought the book worthy," said Mulgrew. "I wrote this book because I thought it was time Canadians looked at the harmful repercussions of the marijuana prohibition. "The costs of maintaining this prohibition are so high, I believe it's time for a debate about its efficacy and about other ways of regulating and controlling marijuana -- the evidence of the last century is clear: Our laws are not working." Mulgrew has written numerous books, including Unholy terror: The Sikhs and international terrorism (Key Porter Books 1988); Final Payoff: The True Cost of Convicting Clifford Robert Olson (Bantam-Seal Books 1989); and Who Killed Cindy James? (Bantam-Seal 1990). He was the ghost-writer for Webster! An Autobiography of Jack Webster (Douglas & McIntyre 1991), and has co-authored two other books, Amazon Extreme, and Lost in Mongolia. The winner of the $20,000 award will be announced April 20 in Toronto. Sun reporter Glenn Bohn was also named Monday as one of five recipients of the Jack Webster Foundation Poynter Institute Fellowship. The fellowship provides up to $3,000 per fellow to attend a journalism seminar at the famed Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla. As well, the Coalition for Canadian Astronomy cited former Vancouver Sun intern Richard Chu for "outstanding reporting on the science of astronomy" for a June 20, 2005 Sun story, entitled "Arctic wildlife protects universe's secrets." - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake