cannabisnews.com: New York Fires Up The Decaf Marijuana





New York Fires Up The Decaf Marijuana
Posted by FoM on February 06, 2002 at 16:03:40 PT
By Ian Blecher
Source: New York Observer
"Normally I sell pretty good Jamaican weed," Tommy, a drug dealer who works in Washington Square Park, said the other day. "For some of my good customers, I’ll get the hydroponic stuff, the superior product. But one day a couple of months ago, these guys started asking me for, I don’t know–I guess you could say a mellower weed."Tommy, who is middle-aged, with long, gray hair and a droopy waddle of skin under his neck, snuck a sip from his cup of tea. 
One of his recent customers, he said, "was like, ‘I don’t smoke too much … the last stuff I bought got me paranoid about whether my kid is making car-insurance payments. I couldn’t sleep all night, and I was constipated for two days.’"Tommy’s buyer was not unusual, it turns out. As better cultivation techniques and genetic engineering have made marijuana more potent than ever, dealers and users say that many members of pot’s first generation–the baby boomers–have discovered they cannot function under the modern bud’s influence. Here in New York, they’ve begun asking their suppliers to provide them with a kind of low-grade, retro, "decaf" pot–one effective enough to produce a mild high, and not so powerful that it makes them hallucinate at Junior’s soccer practice."I’m 47," said Steve Wishnia, a senior editor at High Times magazine. "You go out in a social situation, you don’t want to be incoherent. You don’t want to be unable to buy a movie ticket–or at least you don’t want buying a movie ticket to be a major transaction."The demand for decaf pot runs against the idea that drug users always want the most effective, fastest-acting version of their drug of choice. Older pot smokers seem to want marijuana that reminds them of the seedy, cruddy stuff they used to get in their high-school or college days, when quality was often amusingly poor and getting high could be a crapshoot."There’s a lot of people who are requesting products that won’t give them heart palpitations or paranoia," said Brian Del Re, a sales representative for Club 13.com, a New York—based company that sells smoking accessories. Mr. Del Re, noting that marijuana 25 years ago was a "lot weaker than it is today," called decaf weed "a trend that’s just beginning."The problem, Mr. Del Re noted, was cultivating the mild stuff. Most commercial marijuana, he said, is specially bred for potency–fewer seeds, bigger buds and macroscopic THC crystals. Mr. Del Re told his own horror story about super-potent pot. "One time I’m using a five-foot water pipe," he said. "I took one puff of high-potency marijuana, and I fell on a couch and listened to my heart palpitate in my head for the rest of the night. If you’re not a regular smoker, it’s even harder to take."Tommy, however, had a common-sense solution for the decaf-pot demand. He walked back to his office–a Ford Explorer–and laced a couple of joints with the tobacco from a Marlboro Light. As pot-dealer tricks go, this is the oldest one in the world. But Tommy said that some of his customers actually preferred the tobacco-laced herb. He sells these joints for the slightly inflated price of $12 each–same as he charges for the regular stuff."Here’s the best part," Tommy said. "I told them I was giving them a deal because of the tobacco being so cheap. They were happy; they didn’t know the difference."Tommy said that nowadays he always keeps a few tobacco-laced joints on hand. He even has several grades–from 80 percent marijuana and 20 percent tobacco down to a 20/80 marijuana and tobacco mix. They all cost $12 per joint.Hoping to capitalize on the demand, some marijuana botanists have begun breeding low-potency plants. "I keep one or two of them just in case," said one grower, who did not wish to be identified. Another grower, a 52-year-old retired dentist who lives on the Upper East Side, said: "I grow for myself, so obviously I don’t want it to be stronger than I can handle–which, at 52, is less than it used to be."Referring to contemporary, super-bred marijuana, the grower said: "One joint and I would lose my whole weekend. Your only other choice is to just take one toke and then you’re O.K. But that’s no fun. I don’t want it to be over so fast–like my prom night! I like the flavor. You know, there’s a reason why they call it ‘flavor country’–not ‘flavor tiny little town that you zoom by in two seconds.’ So I started growing my own stuff."Kyle Kushman, the cultivation reporter at High Times, said the secret of breeding weaker plants was to ignore today’s conventional wisdom about marijuana growing. "Basically, what you do is what I advise people not to do," Mr. Kushman said. "You find some seeds in the pot that you buy on the street, and you put in soil and grow it." He concluded: "They’re not going to look like the plants in the centerfold of High Times magazine. At least not today’s High Times. They might look like the plants in the centerfold of High Times 15 years ago."Source: New York Observer (NY)Author: Ian BlecherPublished: February 6, 2002  Copyright: 2001 The New York Observer, L.P.Contact: comments observer.comWebsite: http://www.observer.com/CannabisNews - Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml
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Comment #19 posted by Nuevo Mexican on February 07, 2002 at 20:12:11 PT
Well done!!!
Thanks FOM! I feel much better knowing what happened to 4d and that you've spoken with the Kap! This is truly a community, and one where caring and compassion are our common bond. An example the world needs to follow!
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on February 07, 2002 at 19:07:10 PT
ekim
Thank you. It's isn't hard to do. I firmly believe we are our brother's keepers. We never know when we are the one that can make a person's day a little better. We are a community of people who understand what it's like to be made to feel different from society by the way we are treated because of what we believe. If we don't support each other by being a friend then who will?
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Comment #17 posted by ekim on February 07, 2002 at 18:56:01 PT:
Good going Fom your true blue
Thank you for taking such care of the people, and giving an example how to treat one another. 4d peice be with you.
 I think it is time the Nat'l. reformers that will meet in S.F. make a bit of propaganda of our own. William F.Buckley should be asked what he thinks of the merging of the D.W. with the T.W. I am willing to bet that he will have something most positive to say against such a evil act. We need a debate on this issue that only Mr.Buckley can join.
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on February 07, 2002 at 18:18:58 PT
goneposthole 
I have three pages I've made. One for Tom and Rollie, one for Brownie Mary and I did a page in Memory of Peter McWilliams too.
Tom & Rollie
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/rb.htm
Peter McWilliams
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/Peterm.htm
Brownie Mary
http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/browniemary.htm
PS: I talked to Kapt through email today and he will be done with his work soon and be back. I was filling him in on dddd health.
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Comment #15 posted by goneposthole on February 07, 2002 at 17:43:28 PT
dddd
I sure hope dddd is recovering. His wild rambling posts are being missed, also kap's.His illness has given me an idea.A drug war memorial. A list of names of people who have given their lives because of the insane drug policies of the US Government.Something is owed to them to repay for what has been taken from them.Maybe near the Lincoln Memorial. To memorialize them seems appropriate, especially considering Lincoln's quote about the cravings of a man's appetite. I do not think it is stupid, but words escape me here. What is totally stupid is the drug war, it needs to end. It must end.Just some thoughts about it, I hope they are in line. For all those who have given their lives, it has not been in vain, may they rest in peace. It is hard to find any here anymore. Peace
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on February 07, 2002 at 17:07:34 PT:
Toker00
I wanted you all to know I called dddd today. Today was his Birthday too! We had a very nice talk on the phone. I miss his humor and wit. He is very sick and doesn't turn on his computer very often right now. He is weak but his spirit is high. He said he wanted to thank everyone from Cannabis News that has been concerned about him. He said he felt that he wouldn't be missed if he went away and was very happy to know he was. He was so polite. I asked him if he had people to help him and he said yes he has good friends that are neighbors that are looking out for him. He didn't say I couldn't say what happened and I'm sure it is ok with him. His one lung collapsed and he was in the hospital and in a lot of pain. They are doing more tests to see the extent of what is going on. I gave him my phone number and will call him from time to time to see how he is doing. I don't think he will be physically able to do some of his posts because of his very low energy level. If people would like to send him an email and you don't have his address you can send it to me at: comments cannabisnews.com and I will forward it on to him.
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Comment #13 posted by Toker00 on February 07, 2002 at 16:49:59 PT
dddd
I missed dddd. I did not know of his illness. Hope you get about soon, dude. Thanks for the update, FOM.Peace. Realize, then Legalize.
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on February 07, 2002 at 09:46:21 PT
Trip Down Memory Lane
I thought of this song when I posted the article. I hope it makes you all smile too.
Open up your window, let some air into this room
I think I'm almost chokin' from the smell of stale perfume
And that cigarette you're smokin'
Don't scare me half to death
Open up the window, sucker, let me catch my breath
Mama told me not to come
Mama told me not to come
That ain't to have fun, son
That ain't to have fun, son
The radio is blastin', someone's knockin' at the door
I'm lookin' at my girlfriend, she's passed out on the floor
I've seen so many things I ain't never seen before
Don't know what it is, I don't wanna see it no more
Complete Lyrics -- http://www.threedognight.com/lyrics/MamaToldMe.html
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Comment #11 posted by Ethan Russo MD on February 07, 2002 at 06:40:43 PT:
From a Recent Paper of Mine:
	Contrary to disseminated propaganda in the USA, average cannabis potency has varied little over the last 3 decades (ElSohly et al. 2000; Mikuriya and Aldrich 1988). It is true that the maximum potency has increased through applied genetics, cultivation, and harvesting techniques. This goal is achieved through production of clonal cultivation of the preferred female plants and maximization of the yield of unsterilized flowering tops known as sinsemilla (Spanish for “without seed”). In this manner a concentration of glandular trichomes where THC and therapeutic terpenoids are produced is effected. Resultant yields of THC may exceed 20% by weight. This is potentially advantageous, particularly when smoked, because a therapeutic dosage of THC is obtained with fewer inhalations, thereby decreasing lung exposure to tars and carcinogens. As noted by Professor Wayne Hall (Lords 1998)(p. 221):Indeed, it is conceivable that increased potency may have little or no adverse effect if users are able to titrate their dose to achieve the desired state of intoxication. If users do titrate their dose, the use of more potent cannabis products would reduce the amount of cannabis material that was smoked, thereby marginally reducing the respiratory risks of cannabis smoking. 	A considerable concentration of THC, other cannabinoids and terpenoids may also be achieved through some simple processing of crude dried cannabis. Techniques for sieving or washing of cannabis to isolate the trichomes to produce hashish are well described (Clarke 1998; Rosenthal, Gieringer, and Mikuriya 1997), and may produce potential yields of 40-60% THC. Clarke demonstrates a simple method of rolling the resultant powdery material into a joint of pure hashish, termed “smoking the snake” (Clarke 1998), providing a relatively purer product for inhalation.
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Comment #10 posted by Jose Melendez on February 07, 2002 at 06:13:44 PT:
great articles on potency
http://www.cannabis.net/misc/potency.htmlObservation of the real world of social marijuana use, where autotitration is the norm, renders the scare tactics of the new marijuana proponents not only inaccurate but irrelevant. There is much published evidence about the availability of highly potent varieties of cannabis from the nineteenth century through the present day. The effects attributed to the new marijuana are the same ones debated for centuries in many different cultures. The assertion that "all marijuana research to date has been done on 1 or 2 percent THC material" (Cohen 1968) ignores several thousand years of human experience with the drug. 
http://www.oznettv.com/mcq/2feb2000/potency2.htmlWayne Hall and Wendy Swift's discussion on potency of cannabis in Australia is very useful in refuting the 'evidence' given by drug warriors. Dealing with the misinformation is very frustrating.
Creeping claim inflation (like that which occurs in Chinese whispers) has amplified a possible 30% increase in THC content (as suggested by US data) to a 30-fold increase in some recent Australian media reports. In other media reports, the statistic has been misinterpreted to mean that cannabis now has an average THC content of 30%. Repetition of these assertions, without rebuttal, has established them as "facts" that "everyone knows". 
Sceptics who contest these claims are asked to prove that they are false rather than the (usually nameless) proponents being asked to provide evidence that they are true.
http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n650.a09.html
...says the most recent data collected in the US reveals that, at most, cannabis seizures tested for potency have shown small increases in THC content from 2 per cent to 3.4 per cent in the two decades since 1980. 
http://www.idmu.co.uk/faqpotent.htmOne argument is that more potent material may have harm-reduction potential, in that less herbal material needs to be smoked to achieve the same high. Unfortunately where this argument breaks down is with the UK/European practice of mixing herbal cannabis with tobacco, where putting less 'weed' in the 'spliff' would only increase the tobacco-bearing proportion.
Arrest Prohibition - Drug War is TREASON
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Comment #9 posted by Dave in Florida on February 07, 2002 at 05:08:59 PT
It's True !!
I have been saying the same thing for years.. I am 47 and have smoked for 32 years. My wife and I play cards on saturday nights with her brother and his wife. Most of the time average smoke is better. Why? Because the art of rolling and smoking joints and the social aspect of passing joints around the table. It is the culture, the commradery, the enjoyment of smoking the herb with friends. One toke bud is great for the after work buzz. But socialy, passing the joint and not getting totaly wasted so quickly is OK.. 
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Comment #8 posted by E_Johnson on February 07, 2002 at 03:50:10 PT
Nobody is bothered by the inconsistency?
One the one hand, in the mainstream media, marijuana users are portrayed as unambitious losers with diminished intellect and low organizational ability.On the other hand, marijuana growers are portrayed as skilled hydroponic bioengineers and cunning black market distributors with the ambition and audacity and organizational ability to engage in large scale production and earn enormous revenue as a major national cash crop.And the media keep propagating these two images side by side apparently without stopping to ponder the inconsistency.
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Comment #7 posted by E_Johnson on February 07, 2002 at 03:42:40 PT
Cannabis science avoidance syndrome yet again
I have never seen a single article on marijuana potency that has had the slightest bit of scientifically valid information about marijuana potency, what it means, how it is measured and how it is perceived by users.It's getting to the seriously absurd point now.Is it because of ignorance, is this generation of journalists simply ignorant about science, about the whole concept of measurment, of how things are measured? Or have they lost the ability to care about what's true,in the cynical postmodern era?What's funny about this is that the cannabis community is always educating itself on the science. Pot TV pays great respect to science. Cannabis-related science gets much broader, deeper and more objective coverage from the cannabis press than from the mainstream press, that's for sure.Marijuana growers seem to be a fairly science literate bunch with good quantitative skills, or that's the impression I get from looking at some growing books.This community is storing up a lot of valuable scientific and technical knowledge that the rest of the media doesn't seem to have the intelligence to follow.Maybe one big problem here is the dumbing down of today's mega-corporate-dominated media. 
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on February 06, 2002 at 21:40:57 PT
An Update on dddd
Without going into what is wrong with dddd I feel it's ok for me to say that he emailed me tonight and I will be calling him on the phone when he tells me what time is best for him. He is weak but his spirit is strong he said.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on February 06, 2002 at 21:37:59 PT
SpaceCat 
You're right. It will become an art. 
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Comment #4 posted by SpaceCat on February 06, 2002 at 21:09:14 PT
Cannaphile
We used to get superb Columbian back in High School in the 70's. Lots more variety today, though. It does seem a bit of a crock to desire crummy herb. If this is more than the crazed ramblings of a bored reporter, these people are probably just expressing a desire for a less mind-blowing effect than the typical hydro product gives.I don't think we've scratched the tip of the iceberg in terms of marijuana connoisseurship. It is much more complicated than wine, since genetic manipulation and direct blending actually change the character of the effects. Sativa's are rare in the market because they are difficult to grow and give lower yields indoors, but they are much more nuanced than a typical indica, which is your bang-for-the-buck weed. When the pressure of the black market disappears, we will see a true flowering of cannabis art.
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Comment #3 posted by goneposthole on February 06, 2002 at 20:28:47 PT
good idea, crummy pot
I got up this morning, that is all that is expected of me by the government (no job). I didn't get stoned (no money).
I walked around the city streets (no car). Got good and drunk (panhandled for some cheap booze).
Passed out in my new digs (cardboard box). Who cares about terrorists, I hope the wolves think I am Mawgli.Thanks Enron, a former employee I bought some Panama Red in 1971 and it rivaled any good bud bought today.Booze sucks, legalize
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on February 06, 2002 at 19:49:51 PT
Sam
It didn't make sense to me. I guess that's why I posted it. What would be wrong in smoking less if it is too much to handle? Isn't that the better way? Very weird article. I am from the 70s. Never have I see pink elephants swinging from a ceiling except when I was 7 and got my tonsils out and they used Ether! LOL!
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Comment #1 posted by Sam Adams on February 06, 2002 at 19:21:29 PT
This is the biggest BS I've ever heard
I know a lot of lightweight smokers - I've never heard anyone wishing they had weaker weed! What a complete joke! Duh! Just take one hit if it's strong...hence "one hit wonder weed". From what I hear, the high quality 60s-70s herb were Mexican & Colombian sativas, extremely potent with a better buzz than the commercial hybrids we get today. There's always been schwag around, this writer's friends are the only people I've EVER heard of that prefer schwag. What a complete crock."Excuse me, this beautiful kind bud won't do....do you have any moldy Mexican schwag, with plenty of stems and seeds?" Ha! This BS tops even the worst propaganda from the ONDCP.
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