Wonder why Marijuana is illegal?

[VoiceofReason101]

No I don't smoke.

its a long one but for those<wbr> of you inter<wbr>ested<wbr> in the polit<wbr>ical side of hemp and not just the 'get high'<wbr> side of thing<wbr>s its worth<wbr> the read.<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>spread<wbr> the word

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The Marij<wbr>uana Consp<wbr>iracy
THE REAL REASO<wbr>N HEMP IS ILLEG<wbr>AL
by Doug Yurch<wbr>ey

And I will raise<wbr> up for them a plant<wbr> of renow<wbr>n, and they shall<wbr> be no more consu<wbr>med with hunge<wbr>r in the land.




-- Ezeki<wbr>el 34/29

The real reaso<wbr>n Canna<wbr>bis has been outla<wbr>wed has nothi<wbr>ng to do with its effec<wbr>ts on the mind and body.





MARIJ<wbr>UANA is DANGE<wbr>ROUS.<wbr> Pot is NOT harmf<wbr>ul to the human<wbr> body or mind.<wbr> Marij<wbr>uana does NOT pose a threa<wbr>t to the gener<wbr>al publi<wbr>c. Marij<wbr>uana is very much a dange<wbr>r to the oil compa<wbr>nies,<wbr> alcoh<wbr>ol, tobac<wbr>co indus<wbr>tries<wbr> and a large<wbr> numbe<wbr>r of chemi<wbr>cal corpo<wbr>ratio<wbr>ns. Vario<wbr>us big busin<wbr>esses<wbr>, with plent<wbr>y of dolla<wbr>rs and influ<wbr>ence,<wbr> have suppr<wbr>essed<wbr> the truth<wbr> from the peopl<wbr>e.






The truth<wbr> is if marij<wbr>uana was utili<wbr>zed for its vast array<wbr> of comme<wbr>rcial<wbr> produ<wbr>cts, it would<wbr> creat<wbr>e an indus<wbr>trial<wbr> atomi<wbr>c bomb!<wbr> Entre<wbr>prene<wbr>urs have not been educa<wbr>ted on the produ<wbr>ct poten<wbr>tial of pot. The super<wbr> rich have consp<wbr>ired to sprea<wbr>d misin<wbr>forma<wbr>tion about<wbr> an extre<wbr>mely versa<wbr>tile plant<wbr> that,<wbr> if used prope<wbr>rly, would<wbr> ruin their<wbr> compa<wbr>nies.






Where<wbr> did the word '<wbr>marij<wbr>uana'<wbr> come from?<wbr> In the mid 1930s<wbr>, the M-<wbr>word was creat<wbr>ed to tarni<wbr>sh the good image<wbr> and pheno<wbr>menal<wbr> histo<wbr>ry of the hemp plant<wbr>.<wbr>..as you will read.



The facts<wbr> cited<wbr> here,<wbr> with refer<wbr>ences<wbr>, are gener<wbr>ally verif<wbr>iable<wbr> in the Encyc<wbr>loped<wbr>ia Brita<wbr>nnica<wbr> which<wbr> was print<wbr>ed on hemp paper<wbr> for 150 years<wbr>:


* All schoo<wbr>lbook<wbr>s were made from hemp or flax paper<wbr> until<wbr> the 1880s<wbr>; Hemp Paper<wbr> Recon<wbr>sider<wbr>ed, Jack Frazi<wbr>er, 1974.






* It was LEGAL<wbr> TO PAY TAXES<wbr> WITH HEMP in Ameri<wbr>ca from 1631 until<wbr> the early<wbr> 1800s<wbr>; LA Times<wbr>, Aug. 12, 1981.






* REFUS<wbr>ING TO GROW HEMP in Ameri<wbr>ca durin<wbr>g the 17th and 18th Centu<wbr>ries WAS AGAIN<wbr>ST THE LAW! You could<wbr> be jaile<wbr>d in Virgi<wbr>nia for refus<wbr>ing to grow hemp from 1763 to 1769;<wbr> Hemp in Colon<wbr>ial Virgi<wbr>nia, G. M. Herdo<wbr>n.






* Georg<wbr>e Washi<wbr>ngton<wbr>, Thoma<wbr>s Jeffe<wbr>rson and other<wbr> found<wbr>ing fathe<wbr>rs GREW HEMP;<wbr> Washi<wbr>ngton<wbr> and Jeffe<wbr>rson Diari<wbr>es. Jeffe<wbr>rson smugg<wbr>led hemp seeds<wbr> from China<wbr> to Franc<wbr>e then to Ameri<wbr>ca.






* Benja<wbr>min Frank<wbr>lin owned<wbr> one of the first<wbr> paper<wbr> mills<wbr> in Ameri<wbr>ca and it proce<wbr>ssed hemp.<wbr> Also,<wbr> the War of 1812 was fough<wbr>t over hemp.<wbr> Napol<wbr>eon wante<wbr>d to cut off Mosco<wbr>w's expor<wbr>t to Engla<wbr>nd; Emper<wbr>or Wears<wbr> No Cloth<wbr>es, Jack Herer<wbr>.






* For thous<wbr>ands of years<wbr>, 90f all ships<wbr>' sails<wbr> and rope were made from hemp.<wbr> The word '<wbr>canva<wbr>s' is Dutch<wbr> for canna<wbr>bis; Webst<wbr>er's New World<wbr> Dicti<wbr>onary<wbr>.






* 80f all texti<wbr>les, fabri<wbr>cs, cloth<wbr>es, linen<wbr>, drape<wbr>s, bed sheet<wbr>s, etc. were made from hemp until<wbr> the 1820s<wbr> with the intro<wbr>ducti<wbr>on of the cotto<wbr>n gin.






* The first<wbr> Bible<wbr>s, maps,<wbr> chart<wbr>s, Betsy<wbr> Ross'<wbr>s flag,<wbr> the first<wbr> draft<wbr>s of the Decla<wbr>ratio<wbr>n of Indep<wbr>enden<wbr>ce and the Const<wbr>ituti<wbr>on were made from hemp;<wbr> U.S. Gover<wbr>nment<wbr> Archi<wbr>ves.






* The first<wbr> crop grown<wbr> in many state<wbr>s was hemp.<wbr> 1850 was a peak year for Kentu<wbr>cky produ<wbr>cing 40,<wbr>000 tons.<wbr> Hemp was the large<wbr>st cash crop until<wbr> the 20th Centu<wbr>ry; State<wbr> Archi<wbr>ves.






* Oldes<wbr>t known<wbr> recor<wbr>ds of hemp farmi<wbr>ng go back 5000 years<wbr> in China<wbr>, altho<wbr>ugh hemp indus<wbr>trial<wbr>izati<wbr>on proba<wbr>bly goes back to ancie<wbr>nt Egypt<wbr>.






* Rembr<wbr>ants,<wbr> Gains<wbr>borou<wbr>ghs, Van Goghs<wbr> as well as most early<wbr> canva<wbr>s paint<wbr>ings were princ<wbr>ipall<wbr>y paint<wbr>ed on hemp linen<wbr>.






* In 1916,<wbr> the U.S. Gover<wbr>nment<wbr> predi<wbr>cted that by the 1940s<wbr> all paper<wbr> would<wbr> come from hemp and that no more trees<wbr> need to be cut down.<wbr> Gover<wbr>nment<wbr> studi<wbr>es repor<wbr>t that 1 acre of hemp equal<wbr>s 4.1 acres<wbr> of trees<wbr>.



Plans<wbr> were in the works<wbr> to imple<wbr>ment such progr<wbr>ams; Depar<wbr>tment<wbr> of Agric<wbr>ultur<wbr>e


* Quali<wbr>ty paint<wbr>s and varni<wbr>shes were made from hemp seed oil until<wbr> 1937.<wbr> 58,<wbr>000 tons of hemp seeds<wbr> were used in Ameri<wbr>ca for paint<wbr> produ<wbr>cts in 1935;<wbr> Sherm<wbr>an Willi<wbr>ams Paint<wbr> Co. testi<wbr>mony befor<wbr>e Congr<wbr>ess again<wbr>st the 1937 Marij<wbr>uana Tax Act.






* Henry<wbr> Ford'<wbr>s first<wbr> Model<wbr>-T was built<wbr> to run on hemp gasol<wbr>ine and the CAR ITSEL<wbr>F WAS CONTR<wbr>UCTED<wbr> FROM HEMP!<wbr> On his large<wbr> estat<wbr>e, Ford was photo<wbr>graph<wbr>ed among<wbr> his hemp field<wbr>s. The car, '<wbr>grown<wbr> from the soil,<wbr>' had hemp plast<wbr>ic panel<wbr>s whose<wbr> impac<wbr>t stren<wbr>gth was 10 times<wbr> stron<wbr>ger than steel<wbr>; Popul<wbr>ar Mecha<wbr>nics,<wbr> 1941.






* Hemp calle<wbr>d '<wbr>Billi<wbr>on Dolla<wbr>r Crop.<wbr>' It was the first<wbr> time a cash crop had a busin<wbr>ess poten<wbr>tial to excee<wbr>d a billi<wbr>on dolla<wbr>rs; Popul<wbr>ar Mecha<wbr>nics,<wbr> Feb.<wbr>, 1938.






* Mecha<wbr>nical<wbr> Engin<wbr>eerin<wbr>g Magaz<wbr>ine (<wbr>Feb. 1938)<wbr> publi<wbr>shed an artic<wbr>le entit<wbr>led 'The Most Profi<wbr>table<wbr> and Desir<wbr>able Crop that Can be Grown<wbr>.' It state<wbr>d that if hemp was culti<wbr>vated<wbr> using<wbr> 20th Centu<wbr>ry techn<wbr>ology<wbr>, it would<wbr> be the singl<wbr>e large<wbr>st agric<wbr>ultur<wbr>al crop in the U.S. and the rest of the world<wbr>.






The follo<wbr>wing infor<wbr>matio<wbr>n comes<wbr> direc<wbr>tly from the Unite<wbr>d State<wbr>s Depar<wbr>tment<wbr> of Agric<wbr>ultur<wbr>e's 1942 14-<wbr>minut<wbr>e film encou<wbr>ragin<wbr>g and instr<wbr>uctin<wbr>g '<wbr>patri<wbr>otic Ameri<wbr>can farme<wbr>rs' to grow 350,<wbr>000 acres<wbr> of hemp each year for the war effor<wbr>t:


'<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>(<wbr>When)<wbr> Greci<wbr>an templ<wbr>es were new, hemp was alrea<wbr>dy old in the servi<wbr>ce of manki<wbr>nd. For thous<wbr>ands of years<wbr>, even then,<wbr> this plant<wbr> had been grown<wbr> for corda<wbr>ge and cloth<wbr> in China<wbr> and elsew<wbr>here in the East.<wbr> For centu<wbr>ries prior<wbr> to about<wbr> 1850,<wbr> all the ships<wbr> that saile<wbr>d the weste<wbr>rn seas were rigge<wbr>d with hempe<wbr>n rope and sails<wbr>. For the sailo<wbr>r, no less than the hangm<wbr>an, hemp was indis<wbr>pensa<wbr>ble.<wbr>..

.<wbr>.<wbr>.Now with Phili<wbr>ppine<wbr> and East India<wbr>n sourc<wbr>es of hemp in the hands<wbr> of the Japan<wbr>ese.<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>Ameri<wbr>can hemp must meet the needs<wbr> of our Army and Navy as well as of our indus<wbr>tries<wbr>...

.<wbr>.<wbr>.the Navy'<wbr>s rapid<wbr>ly dwind<wbr>ling reser<wbr>ves. When that is gone,<wbr> Ameri<wbr>can hemp will go on duty again<wbr>; hemp for moori<wbr>ng ships<wbr>; hemp for tow lines<wbr>; hemp for tackl<wbr>e and gear;<wbr> hemp for count<wbr>less naval<wbr> uses both on ship and shore<wbr>. Just as in the days when Old Irons<wbr>ides saile<wbr>d the seas victo<wbr>rious<wbr> with her hempe<wbr>n shrou<wbr>ds and hempe<wbr>n sails<wbr>.



Hemp for victo<wbr>ry!'


Certi<wbr>fied proof<wbr> from the Libra<wbr>ry of Congr<wbr>ess; found<wbr> by the resea<wbr>rch of Jack Herer<wbr>, refut<wbr>ing claim<wbr>s of other<wbr> gover<wbr>nment<wbr> agenc<wbr>ies that the 1942 USDA film '<wbr>Hemp for Victo<wbr>ry' did not exist<wbr>.






Hemp culti<wbr>vatio<wbr>n and produ<wbr>ction<wbr> do not harm the envir<wbr>onmen<wbr>t. The USDA Bulle<wbr>tin .<wbr>.404 concl<wbr>uded that hemp produ<wbr>ces 4 times<wbr> as much pulp with at least<wbr> 4 to 7 times<wbr> less pollu<wbr>tion.<wbr> From Popul<wbr>ar Mecha<wbr>nics,<wbr> Feb.



1938:


'It has a short<wbr> growi<wbr>ng seaso<wbr>n.<wbr>..It can be grown<wbr> in any state<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>.The long roots<wbr> penet<wbr>rate and break<wbr> the soil to leave<wbr> it in perfe<wbr>ct condi<wbr>tion for the next year'<wbr>s crop.<wbr> The dense<wbr> shock<wbr> of leave<wbr>s, 8 to 12 feet above<wbr> the groun<wbr>d, choke<wbr>s out weeds<wbr>.




.<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>hemp,<wbr> this new crop can add immea<wbr>surab<wbr>ly to Ameri<wbr>can agric<wbr>ultur<wbr>e and indus<wbr>try.



'


In the 1930s<wbr>, innov<wbr>ation<wbr>s in farm machi<wbr>nery would<wbr> have cause<wbr>d an indus<wbr>trial<wbr> revol<wbr>ution<wbr> when appli<wbr>ed to hemp.<wbr> This singl<wbr>e resou<wbr>rce could<wbr> have creat<wbr>ed milli<wbr>ons of new jobs gener<wbr>ating<wbr> thous<wbr>ands of quali<wbr>ty produ<wbr>cts. Hemp,<wbr> if not made illeg<wbr>al, would<wbr> have broug<wbr>ht Ameri<wbr>ca out of the Great<wbr> Depre<wbr>ssion<wbr>.






Willi<wbr>am Rando<wbr>lph Hears<wbr>t (<wbr>Citiz<wbr>en Kane)<wbr> and the Hears<wbr>t Paper<wbr> Manuf<wbr>actur<wbr>ing Divis<wbr>ion of Kimbe<wbr>rly Clark<wbr> owned<wbr> vast acrea<wbr>ge of timbe<wbr>rland<wbr>s. The Hears<wbr>t Compa<wbr>ny suppl<wbr>ied most paper<wbr> produ<wbr>cts. Patty<wbr> Hears<wbr>t's grand<wbr>fathe<wbr>r, a destr<wbr>oyer of natur<wbr>e for his own perso<wbr>nal profi<wbr>t, stood<wbr> to lose billi<wbr>ons becau<wbr>se of hemp.





In 1937,<wbr> Dupon<wbr>t paten<wbr>ted the proce<wbr>sses to make plast<wbr>ics from oil and coal.<wbr> Dupon<wbr>t's Annua<wbr>l Repor<wbr>t urged<wbr> stock<wbr>holde<wbr>rs to inves<wbr>t in its new petro<wbr>chemi<wbr>cal divis<wbr>ion. Synth<wbr>etics<wbr> such as plast<wbr>ics, cello<wbr>phane<wbr>, cellu<wbr>loid,<wbr> metha<wbr>nol, nylon<wbr>, rayon<wbr>, Dacro<wbr>n, etc.<wbr>, could<wbr> now be made from oil. Natur<wbr>al hemp indus<wbr>trial<wbr>izati<wbr>on would<wbr> have ruine<wbr>d over 80f Dupon<wbr>t's busin<wbr>ess.







THE CONSP<wbr>IRACY

Andre<wbr>w Mello<wbr>n becam<wbr>e Hoove<wbr>r's Secre<wbr>tary of the Treas<wbr>ury and Dupon<wbr>t's prima<wbr>ry inves<wbr>tor. He appoi<wbr>nted his futur<wbr>e nephe<wbr>w-<wbr>in-<wbr>law, Harry<wbr> J. Ansli<wbr>nger,<wbr> to head the Feder<wbr>al Burea<wbr>u of Narco<wbr>tics and Dange<wbr>rous Drugs<wbr>.






Secre<wbr>t meeti<wbr>ngs were held by these<wbr> finan<wbr>cial tycoo<wbr>ns. Hemp was decla<wbr>red dange<wbr>rous and a threa<wbr>t to their<wbr> billi<wbr>on dolla<wbr>r enter<wbr>prise<wbr>s. For their<wbr> dynas<wbr>ties to remai<wbr>n intac<wbr>t, hemp had to go. These<wbr> men took an obscu<wbr>re Mexic<wbr>an slang<wbr> word:<wbr> '<wbr>marih<wbr>uana'<wbr> and pushe<wbr>d it into the consc<wbr>iousn<wbr>ess of Ameri<wbr>ca.







MEDIA<wbr> MANIP<wbr>ULATI<wbr>ON

A media<wbr> blitz<wbr> of '<wbr>yello<wbr>w journ<wbr>alism<wbr>' raged<wbr> in the late 1920s<wbr> and 1930s<wbr>. Hears<wbr>t's newsp<wbr>apers<wbr> ran stori<wbr>es empha<wbr>sizin<wbr>g the horro<wbr>rs of marih<wbr>uana.<wbr> The menac<wbr>e of marih<wbr>uana made headl<wbr>ines.<wbr> Reade<wbr>rs learn<wbr>ed that it was respo<wbr>nsibl<wbr>e for every<wbr>thing<wbr> from car accid<wbr>ents to loose<wbr> moral<wbr>ity.






Films<wbr> like '<wbr>Reefe<wbr>r Madne<wbr>ss' (<wbr>1936)<wbr>, '<wbr>Marih<wbr>uana:<wbr> Assas<wbr>sin of Youth<wbr>' (<wbr>1935)<wbr> and '<wbr>Marih<wbr>uana:<wbr> The Devil<wbr>'s Weed'<wbr> (<wbr>1936)<wbr> were propa<wbr>ganda<wbr> desig<wbr>ned by these<wbr> indus<wbr>trial<wbr>ists to creat<wbr>e an enemy<wbr>. Their<wbr> purpo<wbr>se was to gain publi<wbr>c suppo<wbr>rt so that anti-<wbr>marih<wbr>uana laws could<wbr> be passe<wbr>d.






Exami<wbr>ne the follo<wbr>wing quote<wbr>s from 'The Burni<wbr>ng Quest<wbr>ion' aka REEFE<wbr>R MADNE<wbr>SS:


a viole<wbr>nt narco<wbr>tic.




acts of shock<wbr>ing viole<wbr>nce.




incur<wbr>able insan<wbr>ity.




soul-<wbr>destr<wbr>oying<wbr> effec<wbr>ts.




under<wbr> the influ<wbr>ence of the drug he kille<wbr>d his entir<wbr>e famil<wbr>y with an ax.




more vicio<wbr>us, more deadl<wbr>y even than these<wbr> soul-<wbr>destr<wbr>oying<wbr> drugs<wbr> (<wbr>heroi<wbr>n, cocai<wbr>ne) is the menac<wbr>e of marih<wbr>uana!

Reefe<wbr>r Madne<wbr>ss did not end with the usual<wbr> 'the end.<wbr>' The film concl<wbr>uded with these<wbr> words<wbr> plast<wbr>ered on the scree<wbr>n: TELL YOUR CHILD<wbr>REN.






In the 1930s<wbr>, peopl<wbr>e were very naive<wbr>; even to the point<wbr> of ignor<wbr>ance.<wbr> The masse<wbr>s were like sheep<wbr> waiti<wbr>ng to be led by the few in power<wbr>. They did not chall<wbr>enge autho<wbr>rity.<wbr> If the news was in print<wbr> or on the radio<wbr>, they belie<wbr>ved it had to be true.<wbr> They told their<wbr> child<wbr>ren and their<wbr> child<wbr>ren grew up to be the paren<wbr>ts of the baby-<wbr>boome<wbr>rs.






On April<wbr> 14, 1937,<wbr> the Prohi<wbr>bitiv<wbr>e Marih<wbr>uana Tax Law or the bill that outla<wbr>wed hemp was direc<wbr>tly broug<wbr>ht to the House<wbr> Ways and Means<wbr> Commi<wbr>ttee.<wbr> This commi<wbr>ttee is the only one that can intro<wbr>duce a bill to the House<wbr> floor<wbr> witho<wbr>ut it being<wbr> debat<wbr>ed by other<wbr> commi<wbr>ttees<wbr>. The Chair<wbr>man of the Ways and Means<wbr>, Rober<wbr>t Dough<wbr>ton, was a Dupon<wbr>t suppo<wbr>rter.<wbr> He insur<wbr>ed that the bill would<wbr> pass Congr<wbr>ess.






Dr. James<wbr> Woodw<wbr>ard, a physi<wbr>cian and attor<wbr>ney, testi<wbr>fied too late on behal<wbr>f of the Ameri<wbr>can Medic<wbr>al Assoc<wbr>iatio<wbr>n. He told the commi<wbr>ttee that the reaso<wbr>n the AMA had not denou<wbr>nced the Marih<wbr>uana Tax Law soone<wbr>r was that the Assoc<wbr>iatio<wbr>n had just disco<wbr>vered<wbr> that marih<wbr>uana was hemp.






Few peopl<wbr>e, at the time,<wbr> reali<wbr>zed that the deadl<wbr>y menac<wbr>e they had been readi<wbr>ng about<wbr> on Hears<wbr>t's front<wbr> pages<wbr> was in fact passi<wbr>ve hemp.<wbr> The AMA under<wbr>stood<wbr> canna<wbr>bis to be a MEDIC<wbr>INE found<wbr> in numer<wbr>ous heali<wbr>ng produ<wbr>cts sold over the last hundr<wbr>ed years<wbr>.






In Septe<wbr>mber of 1937,<wbr> hemp becam<wbr>e illeg<wbr>al. The most usefu<wbr>l crop known<wbr> becam<wbr>e a drug and our plane<wbr>t has been suffe<wbr>ring ever since<wbr>.






Congr<wbr>ess banne<wbr>d hemp becau<wbr>se it was said to be the most viole<wbr>nce-<wbr>causi<wbr>ng drug known<wbr>. Ansli<wbr>nger,<wbr> head of the Drug Commi<wbr>ssion<wbr> for 31 years<wbr>, promo<wbr>ted the idea that marih<wbr>uana made users<wbr> act extre<wbr>mely viole<wbr>nt. In the 1950s<wbr>, under<wbr> the Commu<wbr>nist threa<wbr>t of McCar<wbr>thyis<wbr>m, Ansli<wbr>nger now said the exact<wbr> oppos<wbr>ite. Marij<wbr>uana will pacif<wbr>y you so much that soldi<wbr>ers would<wbr> not want to fight<wbr>.






Today<wbr>, our plane<wbr>t is in despe<wbr>rate troub<wbr>le. Earth<wbr> is suffo<wbr>catin<wbr>g as large<wbr> tract<wbr>s of rain fores<wbr>ts disap<wbr>pear.<wbr> Pollu<wbr>tion,<wbr> poiso<wbr>ns and chemi<wbr>cals are killi<wbr>ng peopl<wbr>e. These<wbr> great<wbr> probl<wbr>ems could<wbr> be rever<wbr>sed if we indus<wbr>trial<wbr>ized hemp.<wbr> Natur<wbr>al bioma<wbr>ss could<wbr> provi<wbr>de all of the plane<wbr>t's energ<wbr>y needs<wbr> that are curre<wbr>ntly suppl<wbr>ied by fossi<wbr>l fuels<wbr>. We have consu<wbr>med 80f our oil and gas reser<wbr>ves. We need a renew<wbr>able resou<wbr>rce. Hemp could<wbr> be the solut<wbr>ion to soari<wbr>ng gas price<wbr>s.









THE WONDE<wbr>R PLANT

Hemp has a highe<wbr>r quali<wbr>ty fiber<wbr> than wood fiber<wbr>. Far fewer<wbr> caust<wbr>ic chemi<wbr>cals are requi<wbr>red to make paper<wbr> from hemp than from trees<wbr>. Hemp paper<wbr> does not turn yello<wbr>w and is very durab<wbr>le. The plant<wbr> grows<wbr> quick<wbr>ly to matur<wbr>ity in a seaso<wbr>n where<wbr> trees<wbr> take a lifet<wbr>ime.








ALL PLAST<wbr>IC PRODU<wbr>CTS SHOUL<wbr>D BE MADE FROM HEMP SEED OIL. Hempe<wbr>n plast<wbr>ics are biode<wbr>grada<wbr>ble! Over time,<wbr> they would<wbr> break<wbr> down and not harm the envir<wbr>onmen<wbr>t. Oil-<wbr>based<wbr> plast<wbr>ics, the ones we are very famil<wbr>iar with,<wbr> help ruin natur<wbr>e; they do not break<wbr> down and will do great<wbr> harm in the futur<wbr>e. The proce<wbr>ss to produ<wbr>ce the vast array<wbr> of natur<wbr>al (<wbr>hempe<wbr>n) plast<wbr>ics will not ruin the river<wbr>s as Dupon<wbr>t and other<wbr> petro<wbr>chemi<wbr>cal compa<wbr>nies have done.<wbr> Ecolo<wbr>gy does not fit in with the plans<wbr> of the Oil Indus<wbr>try and the polit<wbr>ical machi<wbr>ne. Hemp produ<wbr>cts are safe and natur<wbr>al.






MEDIC<wbr>INES SHOUL<wbr>D BE MADE FROM HEMP.<wbr> We shoul<wbr>d go back to the days when the AMA suppo<wbr>rted canna<wbr>bis cures<wbr>. '<wbr>Medic<wbr>al Marij<wbr>uana'<wbr> is given<wbr> out legal<wbr>ly to only a handf<wbr>ul of peopl<wbr>e while<wbr> the rest of us are force<wbr>d into a syste<wbr>m that relie<wbr>s on chemi<wbr>cals.<wbr> Pot is only healt<wbr>hy for the human<wbr> body.






WORLD<wbr> HUNGE<wbr>R COULD<wbr> END. A large<wbr> varie<wbr>ty of food produ<wbr>cts can be gener<wbr>ated from hemp.<wbr> The seeds<wbr> conta<wbr>in one of the highe<wbr>st sourc<wbr>es of prote<wbr>in in natur<wbr>e. ALSO:<wbr> They have two essen<wbr>tial fatty<wbr> acids<wbr> that clean<wbr> your body of chole<wbr>stero<wbr>l. These<wbr> essen<wbr>tial fatty<wbr> acids<wbr> are not found<wbr> anywh<wbr>ere else in natur<wbr>e! Consu<wbr>ming pot seeds<wbr> is the best thing<wbr> you could<wbr> do for your body.<wbr> Eat uncoo<wbr>ked hemp seeds<wbr>.






CLOTH<wbr>ES SHOUL<wbr>D BE MADE FROM HEMP.<wbr> Hemp cloth<wbr>ing is extre<wbr>mely stron<wbr>g and durab<wbr>le over time.<wbr> You could<wbr> hand cloth<wbr>ing, made from pot, down to your grand<wbr>child<wbr>ren. Today<wbr>, there<wbr> are Ameri<wbr>can compa<wbr>nies that make hemp cloth<wbr>ing; usual<wbr>ly 50emp<wbr>. Hemp fabri<wbr>cs shoul<wbr>d be every<wbr>where<wbr>. Inste<wbr>ad, they are almos<wbr>t under<wbr>groun<wbr>d. Super<wbr>ior hemp produ<wbr>cts are not allow<wbr>ed to adver<wbr>tise on fasci<wbr>st telev<wbr>ision<wbr>.



Kentu<wbr>cky, once the top hemp produ<wbr>cing state<wbr>, made it ILLEG<wbr>AL TO WEAR hemp cloth<wbr>ing! Can you imagi<wbr>ne being<wbr> throw<wbr>n into jail for weari<wbr>ng quali<wbr>ty jeans<wbr>?


The world<wbr> is crazy<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>.but that does not mean you have to join the insan<wbr>ity. Get toget<wbr>her. Sprea<wbr>d the news.<wbr> Tell peopl<wbr>e, and that inclu<wbr>des your child<wbr>ren, the truth<wbr>. Use hemp produ<wbr>cts. Elimi<wbr>nate the word '<wbr>marij<wbr>uana.<wbr>' Reali<wbr>ze the histo<wbr>ry that creat<wbr>ed it. Make it polit<wbr>icall<wbr>y incor<wbr>rect to say or print<wbr> the M-<wbr>word.<wbr> Fight<wbr> again<wbr>st the propa<wbr>ganda<wbr> (<wbr>desig<wbr>ned to favor<wbr> the agend<wbr>a of the super<wbr> rich)<wbr> and the bulls<wbr>hit. Hemp must be utili<wbr>zed in the futur<wbr>e. We need a clean<wbr> energ<wbr>y sourc<wbr>e to save our plane<wbr>t.



INDUS<wbr>TRIAL<wbr>IZE HEMP!

The liquo<wbr>r, tobac<wbr>co and oil compa<wbr>nies fund more than a milli<wbr>on dolla<wbr>rs a day to Partn<wbr>ershi<wbr>p for a Drug-<wbr>Free Ameri<wbr>ca and other<wbr> simil<wbr>ar agenc<wbr>ies. We have all seen their<wbr> comme<wbr>rcial<wbr>s. Now, their<wbr> motto<wbr> is: It's more dange<wbr>rous than we thoug<wbr>ht. Lies from the power<wbr>ful corpo<wbr>ratio<wbr>ns, that began<wbr> with Hears<wbr>t, are still<wbr> alive<wbr> and well today<wbr>.





The brain<wbr>washi<wbr>ng conti<wbr>nues.<wbr> Now, the comme<wbr>rcial<wbr>s say: If you buy a joint<wbr>, you contr<wbr>ibute<wbr> to murde<wbr>rs and gang wars.<wbr> The lates<wbr>t anti-<wbr>pot comme<wbr>rcial<wbr>s say: If you buy a joint<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>.you are promo<wbr>ting TERRO<wbr>RISM!<wbr> The new enemy<wbr> (<wbr>terro<wbr>rism)<wbr> has paved<wbr> the road to brain<wbr>wash you any way THEY see fit.





There<wbr> is only one enemy<wbr>; the frien<wbr>dly peopl<wbr>e you pay your taxes<wbr> to; the war-<wbr>maker<wbr>s and natur<wbr>e destr<wbr>oyers<wbr>. With your fundi<wbr>ng, they are killi<wbr>ng the world<wbr> right<wbr> in front<wbr> of your eyes.<wbr> HALF A MILLI<wbr>ON DEATH<wbr>S EACH YEAR ARE CAUSE<wbr>D BY TOBAC<wbr>CO. HALF A MILLI<wbr>ON DEATH<wbr>S EACH YEAR ARE CAUSE<wbr>D BY ALCOH<wbr>OL. NO ONE HAS EVER,<wbr> EVER DIED FROM SMOKI<wbr>NG POT!<wbr>! In the entir<wbr>e histo<wbr>ry of the human<wbr> race,<wbr> not one death<wbr> can be attri<wbr>buted<wbr> to canna<wbr>bis. Our socie<wbr>ty has outla<wbr>wed grass<wbr> but condo<wbr>nes the use of the KILLE<wbr>RS: TOBAC<wbr>CO and ALCOH<wbr>OL. Hemp shoul<wbr>d be decla<wbr>ssifi<wbr>ed and place<wbr>d in DRUG store<wbr>s to relie<wbr>ve stres<wbr>s. Harde<wbr>ning and const<wbr>ricti<wbr>on of the arter<wbr>ies are bad; but hemp usage<wbr> actua<wbr>lly enlar<wbr>ges the arter<wbr>ies.<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>which<wbr> is a healt<wbr>hy condi<wbr>tion.<wbr> We have been so condi<wbr>tione<wbr>d to think<wbr> that:<wbr> Smoki<wbr>ng is harmf<wbr>ul. That is NOT the case for passi<wbr>ve pot.





Inges<wbr>ting THC, hemp'<wbr>s activ<wbr>e agent<wbr>, has a posit<wbr>ive effec<wbr>t; relie<wbr>ving asthm<wbr>a and glauc<wbr>oma. A joint<wbr> tends<wbr> to allev<wbr>iate the nause<wbr>a cause<wbr>d by chemo<wbr>thera<wbr>py. You are able to eat on hemp.<wbr> This is a healt<wbr>hy state<wbr> of being<wbr>.





The stere<wbr>otype<wbr> for a pothe<wbr>ad is simil<wbr>ar to a drunk<wbr>, bubbl<wbr>e-<wbr>brain<wbr>. Yet, the truth<wbr> is ones creat<wbr>ive abili<wbr>ties can be enhan<wbr>ced under<wbr> its influ<wbr>ence.<wbr> The perce<wbr>ption<wbr> of time sligh<wbr>tly slows<wbr> and one can becom<wbr>e more sensi<wbr>tive.<wbr> You can more appre<wbr>ciate<wbr> all arts;<wbr> be close<wbr>r to natur<wbr>e and gener<wbr>ally FEEL more under<wbr> the influ<wbr>ence of canna<wbr>bis. It is, in fact,<wbr> the exact<wbr> oppos<wbr>ite state<wbr> of mind and body as the drunk<wbr>en state<wbr>. You can be more aware<wbr> with pot.





The pot plant<wbr> is an ALIEN<wbr> plant<wbr>. There<wbr> is physi<wbr>cal evide<wbr>nce that canna<wbr>bis is not like any other<wbr> plant<wbr> on this plane<wbr>t. One could<wbr> concl<wbr>ude that it was broug<wbr>ht here for the benef<wbr>it of human<wbr>ity. Hemp is the ONLY plant<wbr> where<wbr> the males<wbr> appea<wbr>r one way and the femal<wbr>es appea<wbr>r very diffe<wbr>rent,<wbr> physi<wbr>cally<wbr>! No one ever speak<wbr>s of males<wbr> and femal<wbr>es in regar<wbr>d to the plant<wbr> kingd<wbr>om becau<wbr>se plant<wbr>s do not show their<wbr> sexes<wbr>; excep<wbr>t for canna<wbr>bis. To deter<wbr>mine what sex a certa<wbr>in, norma<wbr>l, Earth<wbr>ly plant<wbr> is: You have to look inter<wbr>nally<wbr>, at its DNA. A male blade<wbr> of grass<wbr> (<wbr>physi<wbr>cally<wbr>) looks<wbr> exact<wbr>ly like a femal<wbr>e blade<wbr> of grass<wbr>. The hemp plant<wbr> has an inten<wbr>se sexua<wbr>llity<wbr>. Growe<wbr>rs know to kill the males<wbr> befor<wbr>e they ferti<wbr>lize the femal<wbr>es. Yes, folks<wbr>.<wbr>.<wbr>.the most poten<wbr>t pot comes<wbr> from '<wbr>horny<wbr> femal<wbr>es.



The reaso<wbr>n this amazi<wbr>ng, very sophi<wbr>stica<wbr>ted, ET plant<wbr> from the futur<wbr>e is illeg<wbr>al has nothi<wbr>ng to do with how it physi<wbr>cally<wbr> affec<wbr>ts us..

POT IS ILLEG<wbr>AL BECAU<wbr>SE BILLI<wbr>ONAIR<wbr>ES WANT TO REMAI<wbr>N BILLI<wbr>ONAIR<wbr>ES!

 

[VoiceofReason101]

Peter McWilliams, a patient with AIDS and cancer who shares his story on this website, died on June 18, 2000. McWilliams was a best-selling author, noted libertarian, and eloquent advocate for medical marijuana. He was arrested on a marijuana charge and denied any use of his medicine as a condition of bail while he awaited trial. It appears that, unable to control his nausea, he died by asphyxiation from aspirating vomit. We mourn his passing.

The following account was written about a year before his death.



Medical Marijuana & Me
By Peter McWilliams

I began using medicinal marijuana in March, 1996. In that month I was diagnosed with both AIDS and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a result of the AIDS. The doctors who saved my life poured chemicals into me with side effects listed on twelve different sheets of paper with very tiny type I couldn't read without my putting on glasses. Nausea was a side effect of nearly every drug prescribed. The drugs that would save my life would need something to help keep them down. I was prescribed several anti-nausea medications, both oral and suppository.

I knew nausea was at the top of most marijuana-as-medicine lists, but I hesitated using it right away for two reasons. First, I found it hard to believe that to treat nausea modern medical science (all those test tubes and machines that go, "Ping!") didn't have something better than inhaling the smoke from dried marijuana flowers. I mean, these cute herbal remedies were fine in The Old Days, but I needed industrial-strength anti-nausea medication to combat the industrial-strength anticancer and anti AIDS medications. Or so I thought.

The second reason was psychological. For fifteen years I belonged to a religion that taught smoking marijuana was among the worst things you could possibly do to yourself physically, mentally, emotionally, morally, and spiritually. Although the religion I was in was hardly mainstream-closer to Heaven's Gate than Vatican City - I think this is a theme common in American religious teaching today. I had a religious-based prejudice against marijuana.

Fortunately, I had left the religion behind two years before my treatment began, but I still found pockets of well-instilled ignorance inside myself. I was willing to accept that my attitudes about marijuana were tucked away in one of those pockets. I decided to play writer-researcher and try everything my doctor said was okay to try and see what worked best while reading as much as I could about the possible dangers of marijuana.

One oral anti-nausea prescription medication did not seem to help at all. Marinol helped a little, but was of no use whatsoever in a nausea emergency. I stopped using Marinol for the specific reason that the protease inhibitor I was taking, Crixivan, required no fat intake for three hours prior to ingestion and Marinol capsules contain oil. (The active ingredient is suspended in vegetable oil.) I didn't want to take the chance of the oil in Marinol counteracting the AIDS-fighting effects of Crixivan.

The suppository was effective when I could hold it inside for twenty minutes. Sometimes I could do this, sometimes I could not. (I occasionally had mild diarrhea during my treatment. It is also - how do I put this delicately? - difficult to hold something in at one end when the body is trying very hard to expel something else out the other.) The suppository worked faster than the Marinol.

The smoked marijuana, however, worked faster than anything else. I would be trembling, sweating, on the verge of vomiting-fully resigned to vomiting, in fact-but within a minute of inhaling the marijuana, the symptoms eased. With a second puff, they disappeared completely. A third puff brought an unexpected sensation, one found with no other anti-nausea medication I tried: hunger. This was a most welcome side effects of marijuana and the sole reason I came out of chemotherapy and radiation therapy weighing more than when I went in.

Inhaling the smoke allowed me to perfectly and quickly adjust my dose, even thought the types of marijuana I used, due to black market fluxuations, had a broad range of strengths. The euphoric effect was most pleasant and, I think, therapeutic. Within a few weeks of regular (several times a day) usage I no longer had these blissful experiences. Although this swift acclimation to the more intoxicating effects of marijuana may be unhappy news to someone who wishes to be high all the time, it was good for me because, as a professional writer, I like having control of at least some portion of my brain when I write.

While I stopped getting "high" after a few weeks, I did find marijuana continued to have a soothing, calming effect physically, mentally, and emotionally. Physically, my body was a battle between the invading cancer cells and the chemicals sent to kill them. I was aware my personal Armageddon was being fought within. The overall feeling was as though my nerve endings, once round and plump, had now became shards of sharp steel. Marijuana removed this feeling completely and replaced it not with numbness or dullness but with ease and, sometimes, pleasure.

Mentally, cancer and AIDS found me financially not just out on a limb but dangling from a twig. "I'm hanging onto my lifestyle by my fingernails," I told friends. I had been defending myself against a mammoth lawsuit for two years which had completely drained my financial resources and borrowing capacity. Further, running my company with no money is much more difficult than running my company with money. Marijuana kept all this from swamping me while allowing me to keep a clear head for important decisions about both business and my health.

Emotionally I was not only faced with my own mortality but the reactions of my mother, brother, and best friend to my cancer and AIDS. Marijuana did not take away the many negative feelings natural at such a time, but it did remove the fear of feeling them. I could not take the pain away from my loved ones, but I think marijuana helped me listen more deeply. At least I never said, "There, there, it will be all right," during the time when it didn't look as though it would be all right at all.

Indeed, marijuana led me to creative wellsprings within myself I had not visited in years. I began using visual images as well as words to communicate. For hours I sat in front of the computer playing with words and images, enthralled, entertained, involved. Alive. While undergoing treatment, instead of lying in bed weak from nausea, I learned the intricacies of two major computer programs to better express my visual-verbal creations. I also wrote, designed, and self-published a book which became a New York Times bestseller. (I say this not to brag, but to give lie to the notion that "heavy" marijuana use leads to mental rot. In my case, the rot was there long before I started using marijuana.)

During my treatment I felt an enormous will to live because-even with the many external pressures-living was so much fun. I took chemotherapy and, later, radiation treatments in stride and still put in a full and enjoyable working (creative) day. I compare this to the attitude I would have had if each treatment and pill brought with it ever more nausea. I do not know how much importance the patient's attitude during treatment has on the outcome of that treatment, but thanks to medical marijuana my attitude was, "I want to live and thank you, medical professionals, for making that possible. Treat on!" Thanks to medicinal marijuana that was not just an affirmation, it was the way I really felt.

As to pain management, I had several occasions during treatment when treatment for specific pain was needed. I found that marijuana worked only moderately well on pain relief itself, but had the delightful ability to distract me from the pain by engrossing me in something else more enjoyable. A piece of the music, a bird, or a color would so enchant me it took my mind off the pain. This made marijuana an excellent adjunct, allowing me to use milder pain medications than I otherwise might have. For this kind of pain relief I had to smoke two-to-three times my normal anti-nausea dose.

For me, however, the big test (who knows? Maybe all this earlier stuff was psychosomatic) came when I got tested again after the chemotherapy treatment. One test involved injecting me with some sort of fluid which the outstandingly expensive machinery around me would trace through my body. When I received this injection the first time I was tested (pre-medical marijuana) I felt the most intense nausea I had ever felt in my life. Within a matter of seconds I vomited into the otherwise attractive stainless-steel crescent-shaped dish the nurse held. Here, the second time I was to receive this shot, would be marijuana's ultimate test.

I premedicated myself in the parking lot just before going in. The nurse, noting my reaction to the injection during the first test, was kind enough to ask if I wanted to take something for the nausea this time. I so hated the thought of having that feeling again that I almost said yes. But then I told myself (imagine Lou Grant as the voice of my writer's integrity), "If you ever want to write about medicinal marijuana, you'd better go through with this or else you'll never really know for sure." So I gulped and said, "No, but please keep handy the stainless-steel crescent-shaped dish."

Finally they injected me. Nothing. Not ever the slightest tinge of nausea. After the test, the nurse told me they used more tracer-fluid the second time than the first. I went to the nearest Burger King and ate a Whopper to celebrate.

As of this writing, August 1997, the cancer is in full remission and has less than a ten percent chance of recurrence. My viral load has been kept to near-undetectable levels for more than fifteen months by the combination of anti-virals and protease inhibitor, which I keep down with medicinal marijuana.

I owe my life to modern medical science and one ancient herb. I am currently awaiting trial in Michigan for possession of seven "marijuana cigarettes" for medical purposes. I had them with me on a trip to Detroit for my mother's birthday in December 1996. I face one year in prison if convicted.

 

[RaoulDuke]

The problem is there is no way to tax it as anyone can just grow a couple of plants in the yard or indoors.Shame the guy had to die that way wonder what happened sounded like he was doing well with the cancer in remission and the virus was undetectable.

 

[NES]

I used to think we should legalize it until I got high a few minutes ago, Im so high that it has to be a crime.

 

[barman]

The material in the first post eloquently describes the reasons why marijuana was made illegal in 1937 unless one had purchased the appropriate number of "federal tax stamps" (minted, but never used by anyone, ever).

The federal government would then make it totally illegal in 1970 via the creation of the Controlled Substances Act with the primary motivation being to "control the hippies and the niggers" (per the Haldeman tapes of his conversations with President Nixon).

The bulk of "reefer madness" lies had been thoroughly dispelled by the early to mid 1990s, but the plant remains illegal today primarily because there is more money made by various government agencies enforcing Prohibition then is perceived could be made via taxes if the pot were allowed to be commercially cultivated and distributed.

Good news is that a growing number of local and state jurisdictions are finding that they can no longer effectively afford to finance Prohibition, so we will eventually see an end to the federal policy once a sufficient number of states decriminalize possession and/or legalize and regulate

 

[barman]

The problem is there is no way to tax it as anyone can just grow a couple of plants in the yard or indoors.Shame the guy had to die that way wonder what happened sounded like he was doing well with the cancer in remission and the virus was undetectable.

Certainly marijuana could be effectively taxed at both the production and commercial distribution level since the vast majority of cannabis consumers would far prefer purchasing their product from reliable growers and dealers rather than going to the trouble to cultivate their own at home.


As for McWilliams sad fate, I was in personal and fairly regular contact with him up until the last month before his death and totally concur with the grim fact that his death was deliberately accelerated by the federal sentence hanging over his head.

Peter's writings on personal and spiritual development played a significant role in my recovery from alcohol and other drug abuse in the mid 1990s. Beginning in early 1999 when I first met him personally he became and remains today one of my most important spiritual mentors.

 

[barman]

I'll add, respectfully, that the essay posted above, authored by McWilliams was written about two and half years before his death - not one year.

By that time he had been convicted on federal charges of operating a state-legal medical marijuana grow. He had been permitted by Judge King to stay out of federal prison rather than be sentenced to 10+ years. But he also was under orders to not use medical marijuana or he would be imprisoned. Additionally, his mother's home in Michigan would be forfeit to the feds since she had used it as collateral to pay the bond which Judge King employed to keep him out of federal prison.

 

[brucefan]

No surprise, I agree with him


<EMBED src=http://www.youtube.com/v/JHS_y94H1Dk&rel=1&border=0 width=425 height=355 type=application/x-shockwave-flash wmode="transparent">

 

[quantumleap]

I've said it before and I'll say it again:

Cocaine is widely used as a vasoconstrictor during some surgery to reduce bleeding and has been used for decades. It is a far more addictive and harmful drug than marijuana. Yet marijuana has been outlawed by the Federal government even for medical use.

 

[VoiceofReason101]

Harry J. Anslinger

Anslinger was an extremely ambitious man, and he recognized the Bureau of Narcotics as an amazing career opportunity -- a new government agency with the opportunity to define both the problem and the solution. He immediately realized that opiates and cocaine wouldn't be enough to help build his agency, so he latched on to marijuana and started to work on making it illegal at the federal level.

Anslinger immediately drew upon the themes of racism and violence to draw national attention to the problem he wanted to create. He also promoted and frequently read from "Gore Files" -- wild reefer-madness-style exploitation tales of ax murderers on marijuana and sex and... Negroes. Here are some quotes that have been widely attributed to Anslinger and his Gore Files:

"There are 100,000 total marijuana smokers in the US, and most are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos, and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz, and swing, result from marijuana use. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes, entertainers, and any others."

"...the primary reason to outlaw marijuana is its effect on the degenerate races."

"Marijuana is an addictive drug which produces in its users insanity, criminality, and death."

"Reefer makes darkies think they're as good as white men."

"Marihuana leads to pacifism and communist brainwashing"

"You smoke a joint and you're likely to kill your brother."

"Marijuana is the most violence-causing drug in the history of mankind."

And he loved to pull out his own version of the "assassin" definition:

"In the year 1090, there was founded in Persia the religious and military order of the Assassins, whose history is one of cruelty, barbarity, and murder, and for good reason: the members were confirmed users of hashish, or marihuana, and it is from the Arabs' 'hashashin' that we have the English word 'assassin.'"

A picture named hearst.jpg Yellow Journalism

Harry Anslinger got some additional help from William Randolf Hearst, owner of a huge chain of newspapers. Hearst had lots of reasons to help. First, he hated Mexicans. Second, he had invested heavily in the timber industry to support his newspaper chain and didn't want to see the development of hemp paper in competition. Third, he had lost 800,000 acres of timberland to Pancho Villa, so he hated Mexicans. Fourth, telling lurid lies about Mexicans (and the devil marijuana weed causing violence) sold newspapers, making him rich.

Some samples from the San Francisco Examiner:

"Marihuana makes fiends of boys in thirty days -- Hashish goads users to bloodlust."

"By the tons it is coming into this country -- the deadly, dreadful poison that racks and tears not only the body, but the very heart and soul of every human being who once becomes a slave to it in any of its cruel and devastating forms.... Marihuana is a short cut to the insane asylum. Smoke marihuana cigarettes for a month and what was once your brain will be nothing but a storehouse of horrid specters. Hasheesh makes a murderer who kills for the love of killing out of the mildest mannered man who ever laughed at the idea that any habit could ever get him...."

And other nationwide columns...

"Users of marijuana become STIMULATED as they inhale the drug and are LIKELY TO DO ANYTHING. Most crimes of violence in this section, especially in country districts are laid to users of that drug."

"Was it marijuana, the new Mexican drug, that nerved the murderous arm of Clara Phillips when she hammered out her victim's life in Los Angeles?... THREE-FOURTHS OF THE CRIMES of violence in this country today are committed by DOPE SLAVES -- that is a matter of cold record."

Hearst and Anslinger were then supported by Dupont chemical company and various pharmaceutical companies in the effort to outlaw cannabis. Dupont had patented nylon, and wanted hemp removed as competition. The pharmaceutical companies could neither identify nor standardize cannabis dosages, and besides, with cannabis, folks could grow their own medicine and not have to purchase it from large companies.

This all set the stage for...

The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.

After two years of secret planning, Anslinger brought his plan to Congress -- complete with a scrapbook full of sensational Hearst editorials, stories of ax murderers who had supposedly smoked marijuana, and racial slurs.

It was a remarkably short set of hearings.

The one fly in Anslinger's ointment was the appearance by Dr. William C. Woodward, Legislative Council of the American Medical Association.

Woodward started by slamming Harry Anslinger and the Bureau of Narcotics for distorting earlier AMA statements that had nothing to do with marijuana and making them appear to be AMA endorsement for Anslinger's view.

He also reproached the legislature and the Bureau for using the term marijuana in the legislation and not publicizing it as a bill about cannabis or hemp. At this point, marijuana (or marihuana) was a sensationalist word used to refer to Mexicans smoking a drug and had not been connected in most people's minds to the existing cannabis/hemp plant. Thus, many who had legitimate reasons to oppose the bill weren't even aware of it.

Woodward went on to state that the AMA was opposed to the legislation and further questioned the approach of the hearings, coming close to outright accusation of misconduct by Anslinger and the committee:

"That there is a certain amount of narcotic addiction of an objectionable character no one will deny. The newspapers have called attention to it so prominently that there must be some grounds for [their] statements [even Woodward was partially taken in by Hearst's propaganda]. It has surprised me, however, that the facts on which these statements have been based have not been brought before this committee by competent primary evidence. We are referred to newspaper publications concerning the prevalence of marihuana addiction. We are told that the use of marihuana causes crime.

But yet no one has been produced from the Bureau of Prisons to show the number of prisoners who have been found addicted to the marihuana habit. An informed inquiry shows that the Bureau of Prisons has no evidence on that point.

You have been told that school children are great users of marihuana cigarettes. No one has been summoned from the Children's Bureau to show the nature and extent of the habit, among children.

Inquiry of the Children's Bureau shows that they have had no occasion to investigate it and know nothing particularly of it.

Inquiry of the Office of Education--- and they certainly should know something of the prevalence of the habit among the school children of the country, if there is a prevalent habit--- indicates that they have had no occasion to investigate and know nothing of it.

Moreover, there is in the Treasury Department itself, the Public Health Service, with its Division of Mental Hygiene. The Division of Mental Hygiene was, in the first place, the Division of Narcotics. It was converted into the Division of Mental Hygiene, I think, about 1930. That particular Bureau has control at the present time of the narcotics farms that were created about 1929 or 1930 and came into operation a few years later. No one has been summoned from that Bureau to give evidence on that point.

Informal inquiry by me indicates that they have had no record of any marihuana of Cannabis addicts who have ever been committed to those farms.

The bureau of Public Health Service has also a division of pharmacology. If you desire evidence as to the pharmacology of Cannabis, that obviously is the place where you can get direct and primary evidence, rather than the indirect hearsay evidence."

Committee members then proceeded to attack Dr. Woodward, questioning his motives in opposing the legislation. Even the Chairman joined in:

The Chairman: If you want to advise us on legislation, you ought to come here with some constructive proposals, rather than criticism, rather than trying to throw obstacles in the way of something that the Federal Government is trying to do. It has not only an unselfish motive in this, but they have a serious responsibility.

Dr. Woodward: We cannot understand yet, Mr. Chairman, why this bill should have been prepared in secret for 2 years without any intimation, even, to the profession, that it was being prepared.

After some further bantering...

The Chairman: I would like to read a quotation from a recent editorial in the Washington Times:

The marihuana cigarette is one of the most insidious of all forms of dope, largely because of the failure of the public to understand its fatal qualities.

The Nation is almost defenseless against it, having no Federal laws to cope with it and virtually no organized campaign for combating it.

The result is tragic.

School children are the prey of peddlers who infest school neighborhoods.

High school boys and girls buy the destructive weed without knowledge of its capacity of harm, and conscienceless dealers sell it with impunity.

This is a national problem, and it must have national attention.

The fatal marihuana cigarette must be recognized as a deadly drug, and American children must be protected against it.

That is a pretty severe indictment. They say it is a national question and that it requires effective legislation. Of course, in a general way, you have responded to all of these statements; but that indicates very clearly that it is an evil of such magnitude that it is recognized by the press of the country as such.

And that was basically it. Yellow journalism won over medical science.

The committee passed the legislation on. And on the floor of the house, the entire discussion was:

Member from upstate New York: "Mr. Speaker, what is this bill about?"

Speaker Rayburn: "I don't know. It has something to do with a thing called marihuana. I think it's a narcotic of some kind."

"Mr. Speaker, does the American Medical Association support this bill?"

Member on the committee jumps up and says: "Their Doctor Wentworth[sic] came down here. They support this bill 100 percent."

And on the basis of that lie, on August 2, 1937, marijuana became illegal at the federal level.

The entire coverage in the New York Times: "President Roosevelt signed today a bill to curb traffic in the narcotic, marihuana, through heavy taxes on transactions."

Anslinger as precursor to the Drug Czars

Anslinger was essentially the first Drug Czar. Even though the term didn't exist until William Bennett's position as director of the White House Office of National Drug Policy, Anslinger acted in a similar fashion. In fact, there are some amazing parallels between Anslinger and the current Drug Czar John Walters. Both had kind of a carte blanche to go around demonizing drugs and drug users. Both had resources and a large public podium for their voice to be heard and to promote their personal agenda. Both lied constantly, often when it was unnecessary. Both were racists. Both had the ear of lawmakers, and both realized that they could persuade legislators and others based on lies, particularly if they could co-opt the media into squelching or downplaying any opposition views.

Anslinger even had the ability to circumvent the First Amendment. He banned the Canadian movie "Drug Addict," a 1946 documentary that realistically depicted the drug addicts and law enforcement efforts. He even tried to get Canada to ban the movie in their own country, or failing that, to prevent U.S. citizens from seeing the movie in Canada. Canada refused. (Today, Drug Czar John Walters is trying to bully Canada into keeping harsh marijuana laws.)

Anslinger had 37 years to solidify the propaganda and stifle opposition. The lies continued the entire time (although the stories would adjust -- the 21 year old Florida boy who killed his family of five got younger each time he told it). In 1961, he looked back at his efforts:

"Much of the most irrational juvenile violence and that has written a new chapter of shame and tragedy is traceable directly to this hemp intoxication. A gang of boys tear the clothes from two school girls and rape the screaming girls, one boy after the other. A sixteen-year-old kills his entire family of five in Florida, a man in Minnesota puts a bullet through the head of a stranger on the road; in Colorado husband tries to shoot his wife, kills her grandmother instead and then kills himself. Every one of these crimes had been proceeded [sic] by the smoking of one or more marijuana "reefers." As the marijuana situation grew worse, I knew action had to be taken to get the proper legislation passed. By 1937 under my direction, the Bureau launched two important steps First, a legislative plan to seek from Congress a new law that would place marijuana and its distribution directly under federal control. Second, on radio and at major forums, such that presented annually by the New York Herald Tribune, I told the story of this evil weed of the fields and river beds and roadsides. I wrote articles for magazines; our agents gave hundreds of lectures to parents, educators, social and civic leaders. In network broadcasts I reported on the growing list of crimes, including murder and rape. I described the nature of marijuana and its close kinship to hashish. I continued to hammer at the facts.

I believe we did a thorough job, for the public was alerted and the laws to protect them were passed, both nationally and at the state level. We also brought under control the wild growing marijuana in this country. Working with local authorities, we cleaned up hundreds of acres of marijuana and we uprooted plants sprouting along the roadsides."

After Anslinger

On a break from college in the 70s, I was visiting a church in rural Illinois. There in the literature racks in the back of the church was a lurid pamphlet about the evils of marijuana -- all the old reefer madness propaganda about how it caused insanity and murder. I approached the minister and said "You can't have this in your church. It's all lies, and the church shouldn't be about promoting lies." Fortunately, my dad believed me, and he had the material removed. He didn't even know how it got there. But without me speaking up, neither he nor the other members of the church had any reason NOT to believe what the pamphlet said. The propaganda machine had been that effective.

The narrative since then has been a continual litany of:

* Politicians wanting to appear tough on crime and passing tougher penalties
* Constant increases in spending on law enforcement and prisons
* Racist application of drug laws
* Taxpayer funded propaganda
* Stifling of opposition speech
* Political contributions from corporations that profit from marijuana being illegal (pharmaceuticals, alcohol, etc.)

... but that's another whole story.

 

[joebatters]

wow, now that is some interesting shit. Thanks for the history lesson.

 

[barman]

The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 did not make "marijuana illegal at the federal level"

Anyone could have legally possessed had they agreed to buy the appropriate number of tax stamps.

However no one ever did.

Those stamps - in full sets - carry a decent collectable value among stamp afficianados. I don't have a recent quote, but recall that in the summer of maybe 2005 a friend of mine who collects stamps sent me a copy of most popular monthly magazine and it had a cover article on the MT stamps.

Marijuana became fully illegal at the federal level to possess, manufacture and to distribute with the passage of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970

 

[VoiceofReason101]

correct

The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 did not make "marijuana illegal at the federal level"

Anyone could have legally possessed had they agreed to buy the appropriate number of tax stamps.

However no one ever did.

Those stamps - in full sets - carry a decent collectable value among stamp afficianados. I don't have a recent quote, but recall that in the summer of maybe 2005 a friend of mine who collects stamps sent me a copy of most popular monthly magazine and it had a cover article on the MT stamps.

Marijuana became fully illegal at the federal level to possess, manufacture and to distribute with the passage of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970

Under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug on the basis that is has "a high potential for abuse." What does this mean?

It means that the perception is that people get on marijuana, they get hooked and become "potheads," and it begins to dominate their lives. This unquestionably happens in some cases. But it also happens in the case of alcohol--and alcohol is perfectly legal.



Now this was the case that was made but not the truth as shown above.

 

[VoiceofReason101]

Like many other fibrous plant materials, hemp can be used to make cloth and paper. Like any other plant matter, it can be converted to alcohol, and its seeds provide both oil and protein. The cannabis strains used for hemp tend to be relatively low in THC, and are not encouraged to flower, but rather to bolt and produce long, strong stalks. Historically speaking, hemp was a critically important fiber.

Today, hemp paper and cloth made with modern technology is very durable and of high quality. However, once nylon was invented everyone quickly switched from hemp ropes to nylon ropes, which were stronger and longer-lasting.

All told, cannabis has been used for pleasure, medicine, fiber, food, paper, clothing and fuel for thousands of years - quite an impressive resume for a single domesticated plant.

The fact that this simple plant is criminal, when it has such a long record in human history, has to be one of the more bizarre features of modern human society.

The criminalization of drugs in the 20th century can't be ascribed to any single cause - economic cartels, racism, puritanical attitudes, public health crusaders, the prison-industrial complex, or anything else. It arose out of politics and fear, and is now used to keep domestic populations in line by dictatorial governments.

For example, another leading feature in the War on Drugs is the power of fear in politics - politicians can whip up public fears about drugs corrupting the youth and drug-related crime very easily, and use that as a basis for political power. That's a common theme from Anslinger and McCarthy (heroin addict) through Nixon to Bush: "We are Threatened by Great Evils - Commies, Druggies, and Terroists".

Regarding this article, it's unwise to dismiss private economic rationales for government action There are many examples of government decisions made in the 20th century that served private interests.

For example, alcohol prohibition had the added effect of securing the tranportation fuel market for J.D. Rockefeller's petroleum business (before the auto engine came along, the business had been all about selling kerosene for lamps). The original internal combustion engines ran on farm alcohol - 96% pure ethanol produced on farms in small stills. Oddly enough, Rockefeller gave millions to the Women's Christian Temperance Movement. Anti-German sentiment at the outbreak of WWI was used to push Prohibition (there were many German brewers).

This kind of thing was going on all the time in the late 19th and early 20th century. Rockefeller's Standard Oil was using every trick ever invented to undercut and buy out the competition. Likewise, the electricity combines were struggling to gain monopolies everywhere that power lines were being put in, and often owned entire city councils. People worked without breaks or vacations in sweatshop conditions, and attempts at unionizing led to brutal clashes with security guards and soldiers.

In such an environment, it's not implausible that established business interests in the paper and cloth industries would actively support Anslinger's efforts in order to shut out a new competitor, even if his motivations were racism and securing political power.

Oddly enough, there was a brief hiatus in Cannabis Prohibition during WWII, when farmers were urged to grow hemp by the U.S. government. The promotional film made during that time, Hemp for Victory (1942) is available at that link.

 

[VoiceofReason101]

Thank you all for your contributions