A five year legal battle has come to an end involving Canada’s Prince of Pot Marc Emery. Emery pleaded guilty to selling marijuana seeds too Americans and earning a handsome profit off their sales. Some of the profits from Marc Emery Direct Seeds went to fund various activism efforts, including, Marc Emery’s Summer of Legalization of Tour, where he traveled nationwide to smoke his bong in front of cop shops.

The ensuing media campaign had Emery become even more infamous than he was when he sold marijuana seeds.

Kind of like the celebrity who becomes more famous after they’ve died.  I’m looking at you Tupac and Cobain. Emery’s not dead yet. He did say we’d never see him alive again during some of those farewell addresses.

Marc Emery Seeds Direct marketing plan was designed for him to be like how Honest Ed or Mel Lastman would sell their wares. Put themselves out front and hype, hype, hype, product and person. PT Barnum would be proud of Emery’s marijuana sales efforts, which garnered him placement on DEA most wanted list.

His second, one adopted by numerous cannabis businesses less successfully, is using his marijuana activism as a marketing platform for marijuana seed sales. A fascinating combination. It’s exactly the same corporate promise made by dish detergent Dove in their recent marketing push.

I bought some the other day because Gulf Mexico oil spill has me all worried. Consumers have demonstrated a willingness to purchase products, whether it’s dish detergent or marijuana seeds, if they believe part of the sale is, “going to good.”

Before Marc Emery Direct Seeds marijuana legalization supporters who wanted to make ethical consumer purchases had their choice of the usual crappy marketing charitable offerings (coffee mugs, membership cards, stickers) via a NORML donation.  Now they could purchase marijuana seeds (some as collectors others as growers) and get a feel goodie feeling that comes with ethical consumer purchasing.

Emery argues his marijuana activism / marijuana marketing plan was the reason he drew the ire of DEA. True. No doubt about it. He was also CEO of Canada’s largest marijuana seed bank. Why would DEA agents target a smaller marijuana seed bank like Overgrow? Generally speaking cops claim they target the top dogs.

DEA press release doesn’t even allude to political motivation.

They outright state it.

An articulate fellow aware of American draconian drug laws it’s hard to believe Emery didn’t know America would target him. Most likely he believed Canadian courts would protect him, like they’ve done in the past for his other acts of civil disobedience, from a horrific American marijuana jail sentence.

After all he never set foot in America.

Canadian courts are happy to entertain unique arguments and issue near political like rulings for the right individual. They accept peaceful acts of civil disobedience when presented by the proper person. But American cookie cutter courts with their elected judges with no legal backgrounds will not entertain any such legal arguments.

The continued Harperization of Canadian courts will, of course, move us more in line with America. Our extradition treaty is a prime example of this. When an extradition is requested by either country it’s near automatic. Bill S-10 with its mandatory jail sentences is also right out America.