Fury over "Marijuana is Good for You" Legalization Campaign

"It's good to toke" - a tourist enjoys a relaxing break in Kecskemt Hungary's quiet main square after his arrival. The European Union has given way to a blazing row after the Magyars declared "marijuana is good for you" and legalized all cannabis use in a bold bid to boost tax revenue and spur new farm exports.

The countrys new approach to "soft drugs", however, has met hard line opposition from other EU leaders in Brussels who have slammed the Hungarians as the "irresponsible pot-pushing peddlers of death, disease and moral decay".

That particular outburst came from the moral high ground of the United Kingdom which has nurtured and preferred its own legion of "lager louts" to the more soporific peaceful stoner pursuits of the Netherlands and now Hungary.

Prime Minister Tony Blair warned that the EC could be plunged into a political crisis if the new lax approach on marijuana and cannabis was not replaced with a far more robust legislation.

But with Peter Medgyessy, the Hungarian PM, already announcing his decision to step down from office, his attitude towards Mr Blair was relaxed, but far from conciliatory.

In an approximate translation, Mr Medgyessy said: "Calm down man, chill out; what you need is a really good bong hit. Will I skin up"?

The Member states were not totally united behind Mr Blair. The Dutch, all wearing MP3 players, seemed totally nonplussed over the situation while the Belgian contingent remained silent, raising suspicions that its stance was linked to the sudden increase in chocolate exports to the former communist state.

Hungary's legalization of the Class C drug resulted in the cultivation of 200,000 hectares of Cannabis sinsemilla hybrids across the Great Plain, already home to thousands of orchards, vineyards and bountiful farms, many of them organic.

This year's mixture of blazing sunshine, low humidity and an abundance of spring rain saw the newly legal cannabis bud and hemp crop surpass all expectations. The average plant, with most of the Hungarian growers opting for a Northern Lights/Haze Dutch F-1 hybrid, soared well above 2.5m. This first cannabis crop is expected to finally surpass 120,000 metric tonnes of finished dry high quality buds with a 12% --15% average THC content.

The Magyar government has levied a hefty tax rate on marijuana and resin sales with a kilo of high quality, top flower -- 'Euro-Bud' -- selling for U$420.00 wholesale.

While this is still an expensive luxury for many ordinary Hungarians, it is a bargain basement price for tourists or the export market particularly the USA.

Villagers have been quick to capitalise by setting up "Stoner Stalls" and "Export It Now" shops in the city of Kecskemt which has even introduced a special "pot smoking park" where tourists can relax with a giant Pot pipe while listening to Hungarian cover versions of Grateful Dead Live recordings from the bandstand while watching a giant screen liquid lightshow.

Both Dick French & Harry Annal Potter are directors of communications for the Marijuana Policy Satire Project.