HEMP- Part of the Solution.

[Koolblue13]

When Henry Ford started to make cars, he made them with Hemp Plastic Panels that were stronger than steel and lighter/ more efficient. The cars were also to be fueled with Hemp Oil and he grew fields worth of it.

Hemp contains less than 1% THC, the chemical in Cannibals that gets you high. That is the same as getting drunk on N/A beer. You won't.

Hemp was originally made illegal in 1937 because of special interest groups, who had their money in both paper and oil, something Hemp can produce faster and more efficient.

- Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Where did the word 'marijuana' come from? In the mid 1930s, the M-word was created to tarnish the good image and phenomenal history of the hemp plant...as you will read. The facts cited here, with references, are generally verifiable in the Encyclopedia Britannica, which was printed on hemp paper for 150 years:

The first Bibles, maps, charts, Betsy Ross's flag, the first drafts of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were made from hemp; U.S. Government Archives.

From Popular Mechanics, Feb. 1938:

'It has a short growing season...It can be grown in any state...The long roots penetrate and break the soil to leave it in perfect condition for the next year's crop. The dense shock of leaves, 8 to 12 feet above the ground, chokes out weeds....hemp, this new crop can add immeasurably to American agriculture and industry.'

In the 1930s, innovations in farm machinery would have caused an industrial revolution when applied to hemp. This single resource could have created millions of new jobs generating thousands of quality products. Hemp, if not made illegal, would have brought America out of the Great Depression.

William Randolph Hearst (Citizen Kane) and the Hearst Paper Manufacturing Division of Kimberly Clark owned vast acreage of timberlands. The Hearst Company supplied most paper products. Patty Hearst's grandfather, a destroyer of nature for his own personal profit, stood to lose billions because of hemp.

In 1937, Dupont patented the processes to make plastics from oil and coal. Dupont's Annual Report urged stockholders to invest in its new petrochemical division. Synthetics such as plastics, cellophane, celluloid, methanol, nylon, rayon, Dacron, etc., could now be made from oil. Natural hemp industrialization would have ruined over 80% of Dupont's business.

Andrew Mellon became Hoover's Secretary of the Treasury and Dupont's primary investor. He appointed his future nephew-in-law, Harry J. Anslinger, to head the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs.

Secret meetings were held by these financial tycoons. Hemp was declared dangerous and a threat to their billion dollar enterprises. For their dynasties to remain intact, hemp had to go. These men took an obscure Mexican slang word: 'marihuana' and pushed it into the consciousness of America.

- Only Thing New Is History We Do not Know -

Hemp, or cannabis, or marijuana was outlawed in 1937 because it threatened the nation-less corporate interests of - William Randolph Hearst * and - DuPont. They had to get rid of the competition. - Hearst's yellow journalism newspaper chain wrote scathing stories about "marijuana" - a word he made up - because he knew no one would believe them about hemp, which George Washington himself grew hemp.

The decorticator, a state of the art hemp harvester, led Popular Mechanics to call hemp the New Billion Dollar Crop. - - Because of printing and bindery lead time required for publication, this February 1938 article was actually prepared in the spring of 1937, when cannabis hemp was still legal to grow and was an incredibly fast-growing industry. - - Newsprint could now be produced far more cheaply than any other method, and one acre of hemp could produce as much newsprint as four acres of forest trees. - Hearst owned vast timber acreage and competition from the hemp industry might have driven his paper manufacturing out of business. He stood to lose millions of dollars.

DuPont stood to lose on two fronts. DuPont owned the patent for converting wood pulp into newsprint and supplied Hearst with the necessary chemicals. Secondly, in the 1930s DuPont was gearing up to introduce nylon and other man-made fibers, along with synthetic petrochemical oils, which they hoped would replace hemp see oil used in paints and other products. The decorticator meant that hemp fibers could be manufactured as fine as any man-made fibers. DuPont would lose untold millions of invested dollars, plus an estimated 80 percent of all future business, unless hemp was outlawed.

DuPont's financial backer was Mellon Bank, owned and chaired by Andrew Mellon. - - Andrew Mellon at the time was also Secretary of Treasury Department, which was in charge of drug taxes - -, i.e., prohibition - -. Harry Anslinger, commissioners of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, which answered to the Treasury Department, was married to Andrew Mellon's niece. Thus they had the power and the means. - Anslinger's lies about hemp were repeated endlessly in Hearst's newspapers. Stories about marijuana, the killer weed from Mexico, instilled fear and completely misled the public that the weed was, in fact, just good old hemp.

Cannabis hemp was not prohibited because it was dangerous. Indeed, for thousands of years it was the world's largest agricultural crop used in thousands of products and enterprises, producing the majority of fiber, fabric, lighting oil, paper, incense, medicine and food. - No, cannabis hemp was prohibited to protect the Hearst and DuPont corporations from devastating competition, as well as appealing to the overt racism stirred up by Hearst's yellow journalism.

http://www.venusproject.com/ethics_in_action/Real_Reason_Hemp_Illegal.html

CRS Report for Congress by Jean M. Rawson, Specialist in Agricultural Policy, Resources, Science, and Industry Division, Congressional Research Service. July 8, 2005, January 5, 2005. 12 pages. (PDF files 60K) Highly recommended.

http://opencrs.cdt.org/document/RL32725

[roger waters]

it just doesnt make sense, legalize it for that and for recreation the tax revenue influx seems like it is needed......the downside? i dont know i sure can get more dangerous off of jack daniels...

[Koolblue13]

it just doesnt make sense, legalize it for that and for recreation the tax revenue influx seems like it is needed......the downside? i dont know i sure can get more dangerous off of jack daniels...

This has nothing to do with smoking pot. Not one thing.

[ACW]

This has nothing to do with smoking pot. Not one thing.

Tell that to the :dunce: feds. :doh:

[Koolblue13]

Tell that to the :dunce: feds. :doh:

Did you even read what I am talking about?

I am posting this because during an energy conversation with a few people I had asked PeterMP about Hemp and he didn't know to much, so I decided to do a little research.

Hemp can save this country by providing jobs, cutting taxes, increasing healthy food supplies, greening the joint up and all by doing next to nothing.

[ACW]

Did you even read what I am talking about?

I am posting this because during an energy conversation with a few people I had asked PeterMP about Hemp and he didn't know to much, so I decided to do a little research.

Hemp can save this country by providing jobs, cutting taxes, increasing healthy food supplies, greening the joint up and all by doing next to nothing.

I'm agreeing with you. There's a reason it's not in wider use. DEA.

[BigMike619]

KB, this doesnt have a thing to do with smoking pot you are dead on right there. I am 10000000% in favor of using hemp for products like this article mentions. I had a pair of hemp pants that I loved for a long time. They were just my lounging around the house pants and were light and cool as heck.

But what do you do with the buds that hemp will obviously produce? Do you trust the companies producing them to destroy them? Do you sell it to the government for cannibas meds?

[Baculus]

Hemp is one of the most useful plants we have, and it is incredibly pathetic that we do not even address its usage.

This is one reason why my vote was affected: McCain is opposed to hemp production.

[Baculus]

KB, this doesnt have a thing to do with smoking pot you are dead on right there. I am 10000000% in favor of using hemp for products like this article mentions. I had a pair of hemp pants that I loved for a long time. They were just my lounging around the house pants and were light and cool as heck.

But what do you do with the buds that hemp will obviously produce? Do you trust the companies producing them to destroy them? Do you sell it to the government for cannibas meds?

Industrial hemp produces small buds and has an incredibly low amount of THC. You can smoke a roomful of the stuff and it will not get you high.

[Koolblue13]

But what do you do with the buds that hemp will obviously produce? Do you trust the companies producing them to destroy them? Do you sell it to the government for cannibas meds?

I think you were growing pot Mike.

1. Q: What is Industrial Hemp?

A: Industrial Hemp is a number of varieties of Cannabis sativa L. that are intended for agricultural and industrial purposes. They are grown for their seed and fiber content as well as the resulting byproducts such as oil, seed cake, hurds, etc. Industrial Hemp is characterized by being low in THC (delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol) and high in CBD (cannabidiol). THC is less than 1% and in Canada and Europe the current legal level for cultivation is 0.3%. The ratio of CBD to THC is greater than one.

2. Q: What is marijuana?

A: Marijuana is a preparation made from varieties of Cannabis sativa L. that are intended for medical and recreational drug use. They are grown for their THC content, primarily in the flowering tops and to a lesser extent in the leaves. Cannabis sativa L. grown for marijuana is characterized by being high in THC (delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol) and low in CBD (cannabidiol). The THC content is greater than 1%, usually 3% to 20%. The ratio of CBD to THC is less than one.

3. Q: Is Industrial Hemp marijuana?

A: No. Even though they both come from Cannabis sativa L., the varieties that are used to make Industrial Hemp products (seed, fiber, etc.) and those that are used to make marijuana (flowering tops and leaves) are distinctly different. They are scientifically different and are cultivated in very different ways.

[Koolblue13]

Industrial hemp produces small buds and has an incredibly low amount of THC. You can smoke a roomful of the stuff and it will not get you high.

Like I said in the OP. It's like getting drunk of N/A beer.

[CliffBattles]

It is foolish that in this era some people still associate hemp with getting high. You can buy hemp clothing, it is legal. Hemp has many great uses, a real miracle plant.

As far as marijuana....I really can't think of a good reason why an adult should not be allowed to smoke pot in their own home.

[BigMike619]

interesting "industrial hemp".

[Koolblue13]

In 1916, the U.S. Government predicted that by the 1940s all paper would come from hemp and that no more trees need to be cut down. Government studies report that 1 acre of hemp equals 4.1 acres of trees. Plans were in the works to implement such programs; Department of Agriculture.

Clean Air- Less pollution.

[PeterMP]

A question: If its such a great crop, why isn't it used elsewhere?

I'd assume a country like China, which imports cotton, would be happy to have a fiberous crop it could grow.

[Koolblue13]

A question: If its such a great crop, why isn't it used elsewhere?

I'd assume a country like China, which imports cotton, would be happy to have a fiberous crop it could grow.

TODAY'S HEMP INDUSTRY

AUSTRALIA - Tasmania research trials began in 1995. Victoria commercial production since1998. New South Wales has research. In 2002 Queensland began production.

AUSTRIA - has a hemp industry including production of hempseed oil, medicinals and Hanf magazine.

CANADA - started to license research crops in 1994 on an experimental basis. In addition to crops for fibre, one seed crop was experimentally licensed in 1995. Many acres were planted in 1997. Licenses for commercial agriculture saw thousands of acres planted in 1998. 30,000 acres planted in 1999. In 2000, due to speculative investing,12,250 acres were sown. In 2001 ninety-two farmers grew 3,250 acres. A number of Canadian farmers are now growing organically certified hemp crops.

CHILE - has grown hemp in the recent past for seed oil production.

CHINA - is the largest exporter of hemp paper and textiles. The fabrics are of excellent quality. (ma)

DENMARK - planted its first modern hemp trials in 1997. Committed to utilizing organic methods.

ENGLAND - lifted hemp prohibition in 1993. Animal bedding, paper and textiles have been developed. A government grant was given to develop new markets for natural fibers. 4,000 acres were grown in 1994. Subsidies of $230 Eng. pounds per acre are given by the govt. for growing.

FINLAND - had a resurgence of hemp in 1995 with several small test plots. A seed variety for northern climates was developed: Finola, previously know by the breeder code 'FIN-314'. In 2003, Finola was accepted to the EU list of subsidized hemp cultivars. (hamppu)

FRANCE - harvested 10,000 tons in 1994. France is the main source of low-thc producing hempseed. (chanvre)

GERMANY - only banned hemp in 1982, but research began in 1992 and many technologies and products are being developed. Clothes and paper are being made from imported raw materials. Germany lifted the ban on growing hemp November, 1995. Mercedes and BMW use hemp fiber for composites. (hanf)

HUNGARY - is rebuilding their hemp industry, and is one of the biggest exporters of hemp cordage, rugs and hemp fabric to the U.S. They also export hemp seed and hemp paper. Fiberboard is also made. (kender)

INDIA - has large stands of naturalized Cannabis and uses it for cordage, textiles, and seed oil.

JAPAN - has a religious tradition requiring the Emperor wear hemp garments, so there is a small plot maintained for the imperial family only. They have a thriving retail market selling a variety of hemp products. (asa)

NETHERLANDS - is conducting a four years study to evaluate and test hemp for paper, and is developing processing equipment. Seed breeders are developing new strains of low-thc varieties. (hennep)

NEW ZEALAND - started hemp trials in 2001. Various cultivars are being planted in the North and South.

POLAND - currently grows hemp for fabric and cordage and manufactures hemp particle board. They have demonstrated the benefits of using hemp to cleanse soils contaminated by heavy metals. (konopij)

ROMANIA - was the largest commercial producer of hemp in Europe in the late 80's and early 90's. Total acreage in 1993 was 40,000 acres. Some of it is exported to Hungary for processing. They also export to Western Europe and the United States. (cinepa)

RUSSIA - maintains the largest hemp germ plasm collection in the world at the N.I. Vavilov Scientific Research Institute of Plant Industry (VIR) in Saint Petersburg. They are in need of funds. (konoplya)

SLOVENIA - grows hemp and manufactures currency paper.

SPAIN - grows and exports hemp pulp for paper and produces rope and textiles. (cañamo)

SWITZERLAND - is a producer of hemp and hosts one of the largest hemp events: Cannatrade.

EGYPT, KOREA, PORTUGAL, THAILAND, and the UKRAINE also produce hemp.

USA - The United States - granted the first hemp permit in over 40 years to Hawaii for an experimental quarter acre plot in 1999. The license has been renewed since. Importers and manufacturers have thrived using imported raw materials. Twenty-two states in the United States have introduced legislation. VT, HI, ND, MT, MN, IL, VA, NM, CA, AR, KY, MD, WV have passed legislation for support, research, or cultivation. The National Conference of State Legislators has endorsed industrial hemp production for years.

[Baculus]

Hemp is literally a billion dollar crop that we are denying ourselves.

What other plant can you use to clothe your family, feed your children, produce paper for their education, and even make into a fibre board for housing construction?

Take, for example, the Northwestern US: you can plant hemp in clear-cut areas to reduce topsoil erosion, and then employ former loggers for the production of the hemp. It is a win-win sort of solution.

It just boggles the mind considering the flimsy arguments used against its usage.

[Koolblue13]

It can also be used as a fuel that grows 4 times faster than corn.

Recyclable plastics as well.

[Hubbs]

It can also be used as a fuel that grows 4 times faster than corn.

Recyclable plastics as well.

Also, when the boogie man goes to sleep at night, he checks his closet for hemp.

Hemp's tears can cure cancer. Too bad it's never cried.

Behind hemp's beard is a third fist.

[TradeTheBeal!]

What's not to like?

[Drop]

Great Post! Hemp being illegal is highly illogical and completely ignorant on the part of those making it illegal.

[Hersh]

I'm glad I'm not the only one that has thought about this. Instead of subsidizing farming, we should allow our own farmers to be growing hemp. Then US companies wouldn't need to import it for all the products it is currently used for. This is one of those logical, practical solutions to a problem that the US will ignore it because the anti-drug crowd will somehow claim it's a slippery slope. This is also the kind of question I wish would be asked at a debate instead of the same ones that are always asked.

[rincewind]

What exactly is the argument against industrial hemp? For instance, why has McCain taken a stance against it?

[Hersh]

I, for one, would love to see hemp grocery bags that people could reuse and a complete ban on plastic bags. More crop growing for our farmers, less pollution and less oil use. (Yes, oil is used to make those plastic bags)

[MurrayH81]

Good thread/post man. I have been reading information relating to the health benefits of eating hemp (no, not brownies either).

"Seeds of the plant cannabis sativa, hemp seed, contain all the essential amino acids and essential fatty acids necessary to maintain healthy human life. No other single plant source has the essential amino acids in such an easily digestible form, nor has the essential fatty acids in as perfect a ratio to meet human nutritional needs."

http://www.ratical.org/renewables/hempseed1.html

"30–35% of the weight of hempseed is oil containing 80% essential fatty acids (EFAs), linoleic acid (LA, 50-70%), alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 15–25%) and gamma-linolenic acid (GLA, 1–6%).[9][10] The proportions of linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid in hempseed oil meet human requirements for EFAs. Unlike flax oil and others, hempseed oil can be used continuously without developing a deficiency or other imbalance of EFAs. Unfortunately the unsaturated fat makes the oil rancid quickly, unless it is stored in dark coloured bottles or mixed with chemical preservatives. This makes hemp oil difficult to transport or store. The high unsaturated fat content also makes the oil unsuitable for frying. This severely limits hemp oil's potential on the food market, although some marketing potential exists as a nutritional supplement.[8]

Hemp seed also contains 20% complete and highly-digestible protein,[8] 1/3 as edestin protein and 2/3 as albumins. Its high quality amino acid composition is closer to "complete" sources of proteins (meat, milk, eggs) than all other oil seeds except quinoa and soy.[11]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp#Nutrition

mmmmm, hemp! :laugh: