Pubdate: Wed, 03 Oct 2007
Source: Denver Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2007 Denver Daily News
Contact:  http://www.thedenverdailynews.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4274
Author: Peter Marcus
Cited: Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation http://www.saferchoice.org
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Marijuana)

POT GROUP WOOING RICKY WILLIAMS

It was only Monday that running back Ricky Williams' agent announced
that the football star applied for NFL reinstatement after violating
the league's drug policy for marijuana. But Denver's pot proponents
were way ahead of the curve, arranging for a billboard outside Invesco
Field at Mile High requesting that Williams bring his running game to
the pot friendly Mile High City.

"Why on earth would the NFL steer some of the biggest, strongest and
toughest men in America away from marijuana and toward a drug
(alcohol) that contributes to violent and aggressive behavior?" asked
Mason Tvert, executive director of Safer Alternative For Enjoyable
Recreation (SAFER). "In Denver, the people support Ricky Williams'
safer choice, and we would be delighted to see him come play for the
Broncos."

Tvert is referring to a 2005 initiative in which Denver voters
legalized the simple possession of marijuana. State law still makes
any amount of marijuana illegal in Colorado -- Denver included.

Billboard Revealed Today

The billboard is expected to be unveiled at a news conference today
across the street from Invesco Field at Mile High on Federal Boulevard
between 18th and 19th avenues. It features a player with dreadlocks in
a Broncos jersey and reads, "Ricky, come to Denver ... Where the
people support your SAFER choice."

Williams served an 18-month suspension from the NFL after testing
positive for marijuana on four different occasions. He remains under
contract with Miami, but coach Cam Cameron may not want him to stay
with the team. Williams also may choose to pursue a new home. Both
sides said they would discuss options after a decision is made by the
NFL.

Williams' agent, Leigh Steinberg, was traveling yesterday by airplane
and was unavailable to comment. His office said it would likely
comment on the billboard today.

A spokesman for the Denver Broncos, Patrick Smyth, said the
organization declined to comment on the billboard.

Pot safer than alcohol?

Tvert argues that marijuana is a safer substance than alcohol because
it is not responsible for any recorded deaths, while alcohol
contributes to tens of thousands of American deaths each year,
according to research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, cited
by Tvert.

He added that alcohol causes more violence than marijuana, according
to evidence Tvert cited from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

"The National Football League's marijuana policy is just as irrational
as our federal government's marijuana policy," Tvert said. "In both
cases, authorities are steering adults toward using alcohol and
punishing them for making the safer choice to use marijuana instead."

The process could take up to 60 days before Williams hears back about
his application for reinstatement.

Meanwhile, Tvert encouraged the NFL to change its policy.

"If (NFL commissioner) Roger Goodell and every NFL player over 21 can
go home after a game and have a drink, there is no reason why Ricky
Williams should not be allowed to go home and use a less harmful
drug," Tvert said. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake