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Hemp Hemp Hooray
Posted by CN Staff on April 18, 2005 at 17:39:16 PT
By Jordan Smith, Austin Chronicle
Source: AlterNet
Texas -- Five states -- Hawaii, Montana, Kentucky, West Virginia and North Dakota -- currently have laws that legalize and regulate hemp farming; similar legislation is pending in California, Oregon and New Hampshire. Patients and advocates filled the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee room on April 5 to testify in favor of HB 658, which would offer medical marijuana patients an affirmative defense against prosecution for pot possession.
The bill, filed by Rep. Elliott Naishtat, D-Austin, and co-sponsored by Reps. Terry Keel, R-Austin, and Suzanna Gratia Hupp, R-Lampasas, would offer the defense for patients using marijuana on a doctor's recommendation for the treatment of a bona fide medical condition. It would also prohibit law enforcement from investigating doctors on the grounds that they'd discussed marijuana with their patients.Twenty-six states have already recognized the benefits of medical marijuana -- including 10 which have legalized medi-pot and two, Florida and Idaho, which have passed laws creating a "medical necessity" defense to prosecution, akin to Naishtat's current proposal. "This is an issue of compassion, and [of] the right to effective health care treatments," Texans for Medical Marijuana Executive Director Noelle Davis told the committee. The bill is still pending in committee.Redefining HempIn other news, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Surfside, intends to file legislation this spring that would redefine industrial hemp under the Controlled Substances Act, removing the de facto federal ban on agricultural hemp production. "This is an industrial product," said Paul spokesman Jeff Deist. "This would essentially eliminate the federal roadblocks to industrial hemp production."According to a recent report from the Congressional Research Service, the U.S. is the only industrialized nation that does not have an established hemp crop. And the demand for hemp products -- from textiles to auto parts to foods -- continues to grow, meaning U.S. companies must import hemp products for sale in the states.Hemp farming used to be an agricultural staple -- the government actually encouraged production during World War II -- until changes to the Controlled Substances Act made continued production untenable. The CSA drug-war era revisions eliminated the distinction between breeds of marijuana, thus placing hemp regulation under the authority of the Drug Enforcement Administration, which is charged with approving, denying, or just ignoring hemp farming license applications. (The DEA has only ever issued one license, which has now expired, to hemp growers in Hawaii.)Nonetheless, five states -- Hawaii, Montana, Kentucky, West Virginia, and North Dakota -- currently have laws that legalize and regulate hemp farming; similar legislation is pending in California, Oregon, and New Hampshire. Deist said that the government's broad definition of marijuana, which includes industrial hemp as a Schedule I narcotic, is "preposterous.""Hemp doesn't fall under the same category [as illegal marijuana] and it is silly that it does," he said. "This is an industrial product." The ban on hemp is merely an "off-shoot of this mentality from a war on drugs, and is not based on reason or fact. There is no rational policy right now." Deist said Paul expects to file the legislation in late May or early June.Evil-Weed RhetoricSpeaking of irrational, federal drug czar John Walters, head of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, whipped out his hysterical evil-weed rhetoric last week during a visit to Cincinnati, claiming, again, that marijuana is a hard drug and is now the primary reason for admission to drug treatment facilities, reports the Cincinnati Enquirer.Walters' pot protestations have become somewhat tiresome -- along with the dubious drug treatment stats, Walters also likes to claim that today's pot is super potent, with THC levels up to 20% and higher -- but the man is nothing if not persistent. During his Cinci speech, Walters said it's "crucial" to target preteens with an anti-pot message, since "studies show" that people are less likely to become dependent on drugs after age 19. Marijuana abuse, he said, is a "pediatric-onset disease." Jordan Smith is a staff writer at the Austin Chronicle.Source: AlterNet (US)Author:  Jordan Smith, Austin ChroniclePublished: April 18, 2005Copyright: 2005 Independent Media InstituteContact: letters alternet.org Website: http://www.alternet.org/DL: http://alternet.org/drugreporter/21796/Related Articles:State Considers Legalizing Hemphttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20489.shtmlDrug Czar Calls Pot a Danger To Kids http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20483.shtmlBill Backs Medical Use for Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20463.shtmlOregon Considers Industrial Hemp Billhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20455.shtml
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Comment #7 posted by runderwo on April 19, 2005 at 19:26:41 PT
ron paul
The only reason Ron Paul is a Republican is so that he will have a fair chance on the ballot. His values and actions are clearly libertarian, and he does not accept corporate money.
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on April 19, 2005 at 06:47:48 PT
Duzt
Thank you! I just posted a Reuters article.http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread20535.shtml
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Comment #5 posted by Duzt on April 19, 2005 at 06:40:48 PT
not sure if you saw this fom
http://yahoo.reuters.com/financeQuoteCompanyNewsArticle.jhtml?duid=mtfh85179_2005-04-19_10-48-16_wla3909_newsml
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Comment #4 posted by stoner spirit on April 19, 2005 at 02:18:16 PT:
Hemp
I'm glad that somebody has finally woken up to this issue. Hopefully some of the other butt munchers, (the Government people) wake up sometime soon. But then again, I'm half asleep so excuse me for my dreamy state of being.
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Comment #3 posted by Taylor121 on April 18, 2005 at 19:21:44 PT
Ron Paul
He's not your typical Republican. The GOP shuns him, he doesn't follow the party at all. He is a man that believes in the principles of the founding fathers. He is not liberal, he is a libertarian, he believes in small government on both the economic and personal side. He is a co sponor of the states right to medical marijuana act and is a medical doctor, he has also spoken in favor of the hichney amendment in the House. Ron ran for president for the Libertarian Party in the late 1980s but failed to win (of course). He has since gone to the GOP, won in the district Victoria is located here in Texas. No one even stepped up to oppose him in the 04 election. Ron Paul is my favorite representative in Congress.
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on April 18, 2005 at 19:10:15 PT
Happiness, Nature's Tonic for a Healthier Life 
Happy people are healthier so why won't they let us get happy?***Tuesday, April 19, 2005 A happy worker is a healthy worker, say scientists who have uncovered the strongest link yet between a positive state of mind and long term health. Andrew Steptoe and colleagues at University College London asked more than 200 middle-aged civil servants how many happy moments they experienced during a typical day. The happiest people had lower levels of chemicals which are linked to heart disease and type II diabetes. Complete Article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1462764,00.html
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Comment #1 posted by mayan on April 18, 2005 at 18:16:13 PT
Ron Paul
In other news, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Surfside, intends to file legislation this spring that would redefine industrial hemp under the Controlled Substances Act, removing the de facto federal ban on agricultural hemp production. "This is an industrial product," said Paul spokesman Jeff Deist. "This would essentially eliminate the federal roadblocks to industrial hemp production."It is ironic that a Republican from Texas is leading this charge. If only the one in the White House would pull his head out of his ass.
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