should the cannabis industry be supported in our current global downturn

reply to post by psyko45

i fail to see how cannabis profits are being maxamised without industry being involved. & what profits that are being made are not being made by the government, unless you count the corrupt back handers going on.

Finally a CANNABIS thread.

First off, I'd like to thank you for calling it Cannabis, Marijuana is used as an illicit propaganda term used in the 1930's.


Quick SURPRISING facts on hemp:


-Fuel:

* Farming 6% of the continental U.S. acreage with biomass crops would provide all of America's energy needs. 1
* Hemp is Earth's number-one biomass resource; it is capable of producing 10 tons per acre in four months. 1
* Biomass can be converted to methane, methanol, or gasoline at a cost comparable to petroleum, and hemp is much better for the environment. Pyrolysis (charcoalizing), or biochemical composting are two methods of turning hemp into fuel.2
* Hemp can produce 10 times more methanol than corn.
* Hemp fuel burns clean. Petroleum causes acid rain due to sulfur pollution.
* The use of hemp fuel does not contribute to global warming.


Food:

* Hemp seed can be pressed into a nutritious oil, which contains the highest amount of fatty acids in the plant kingdom. Essential oils are responsible for our immune system responses, and clear the arteries of cholesterol and plaque.2
* The byproduct of pressing the oil from hemp seed is high quality protein seed cake. It can be sprouted (malted) or ground and baked into cakes, breads, and casseroles. Hemp seed protein is one of mankind's finest, most complete and available-to-the-body vegetable proteins. 2
* Hemp seed was the world's number one wild and domestic bird seed until the 1937 Marijuana prohibition law. Four million pounds of hemp seed for songbirds were sold at retail in the U.S. in 1937. Birds will pick hemp seeds out and eat them first from a pile of mixed seed. Birds in the wild live longer and breed more with hemp seed in their diet, using the oil for the feathers and their overall health.


iber:

* Hemp is the oldest cultivated fiber plant in the world.
* Low-THC fiber hemp varieties developed by the French and others have been available for over 20 years. It is impossible to get high from fiber hemp. Over 600,000 acres of hemp is grown worldwide with no drug misuse problem.
* One acre of hemp can produce as much usable fiber as 4 acres of trees or two acres of cotton.
* Trees cut down to make paper take 50 to 500 years to grow, while hemp can be cultivated in as little as 100 days and can yield 4 times more paper over a 20 year period.
* Until 1883, from 75-90% of all paper in the world was made with cannabis hemp fiber including that for books, Bibles, maps, paper money, stocks and bonds, newspapers, etc. 2
* Hemp paper is longer lasting than wood pulp, stronger, acid-free, and chlorine free. (Chlorine is estimated to cause up to 10% of all Cancers.) 2
* Hemp paper can be recycled 7 times, wood pulp 4 times.
* If the hemp pulp paper process reported by the USDA in 1916, were legal today it would soon replace 70% of all wood paper products. 2
* Rag paper containing hemp fiber is the highest quality and longest lasting paper ever made. It can be torn when wet, but returns to its full strength when dry. Barring extreme conditions, rag paper remains stable for centuries. 2
* Hemp particle board may be up to 2 times stronger than wood particleboard and holds nails better.
* Hemp is softer, warmer, more water absorbent, has three times the tensile strength, and is many times more durable than cotton. Hemp production uses less chemicals than cotton. 2
* From 70-90% of all rope, twine, and cordage was made from hemp

Medicine:

* Deaths from marijuana use: 0
* From 1842 through the 1880s, extremely strong marijuana (then known as cannabis extractums), hashish extracts, tinctures, and elixirs were routinely the second and third most-used medicines in America for humans (from birth through old age). These extracts were also used in veterinary medicine until the 1920s and longer. 2
* For at least 3,000 years prior to 1842 widely varying marijuana extracts (bud, leaves, roots, etc.

[edit on 3-2-2009 by Psychonaughty]

Originally posted by psyko45

Originally posted by cooler
reply to post by psyko45

 

the very successfull micheal phelps, is he a criminal too ?.

So success determines criminality

. you can tell this thread is full of stoners. What about Bernie Madoff..pretty successful. Phelps was a moron for admitting it. He could have said it was a joke, or that he was partaking in some fine Turkish tobacco. There was no proof that there was pot in the pipe. It was probably a ploy so a large group of people...like you...could say oooo Mikey Phelps does it so maybe its not so bad.

phelps has quite a few gold medals & a career to speak of, ide say thats pretty successfull, where as bernie madoff, well it looks like he`s going to prison for quite a while, not what ide call very successfull.
and as for well nown people who have enjoyed a relaxing spliff or a bong, well theres no shortage of them.

Originally posted by cooler

Originally posted by psyko45
The government is already maximizing cannibas profits. All these other ideas are a bunch of crap that bong hitting bozos sit around drumming up while sucking on a doobie so they dont have to hide in their basement anymore.

.
so no it is not correct to assume that the government is or has in any way maximised cannabis profits

Pot Being illegal makes more money than any amount of necklaces, sandals, or hemp hand lotion coul ever come close to. Hemp is not illegal. They quit using it for rope because they came up with far more efficient means to manufacture a superior product.

Adding more facts:

# For at least 3,000 years prior to 1842 widely varying marijuana extracts (bud, leaves, roots, etc.) were the most commonly used real medicines in the world for the majority of mankind's illnesses. 2
# The U.S. Pharmacopoeia indicated cannabis should be used for treating such ailments as fatigue, fits of coughing, rheumatism, asthma, delirium tremens, migraine headaches, and the cramps and depressions associated with menstruation. 3
# In this century, cannabis research has demonstrated therapeutic value and complete safety in the treatment of many health problems including asthma, glaucoma, nausea, tumors, epilepsy, infection, stress, migraines, anorexia, depression, rheumatism, arthritis, and possibly herpes. 3
# Deaths from aspirin (U.S. per year): 180 - 1,000 +
# Deaths from legal drugs (U.S. per year) at doses used for prevention, diagnosis, or therapy: 106,000


Industry:

* Almost any product that can be made from wood, cotton, or petroleum (including plastics) can be made from hemp. There are more than 25,000 known uses for hemp.
* For thousands of years virtually all good paints and varnishes were made with hemp seed oil and/or linseed oil. 2
* Hemp stems are 80% hurds (pulp by-product after the hemp fiber is removed from the plant). Hemp hurds are 77% cellulose - a primary chemical feed stock (industrial raw material) used in the production of chemicals, plastics, and fibers. Depending on which U.S. agricultural report is correct, an acre of full grown hemp plants can sustainably provide from four to 50 or even 100 times the cellulose found in cornstalks, kenaf, or sugar cane (the planet's next highest annual cellulose plants). 2
* One acre of hemp produces as much cellulose fiber pulp as 4.1 acres of trees, making hemp a perfect material to replace trees for pressed board, particle board, and concrete construction molds. 2
* Heating and compressing plant fibers can create practical, inexpensive, fire-resistant construction materials with excellent thermal and sound-insulating qualities. These strong plant fiber construction materials could replace dry wall and wood paneling. William B. Conde of Conde's Redwood Lumber, Inc. near Eugene, Oregon, in conjunction with Washington State University (1991-1993), has demonstrated the superior strength, flexibility, and economy of hemp composite building materials compared to wood fiber, even as beams. 2
* Isochanvre, a rediscovered French building material made from hemp hurds mixed with lime petrifies into a mineral state and lasts for many centuries. Archeologists have found a bridge in the south of France from the Merovingian period (500-751 A.D.), built with this process. 2
* Hemp has been used throughout history for carpet backing. Hemp fiber has potential in the manufacture of strong, rot resistant carpeting - eliminating the poisonous fumes of burning synthetic materials in a house or commercial fire, along with allergic reactions associated with new synthetic carpeting. 2
* Plastic plumbing pipe (PVC pipes) can be manufactured using renewable hemp cellulose as the chemical feed stocks, replacing non-renewable coal or petroleum based chemical feed stocks. 2
* In 1941 Henry Ford built a plastic car made of fiber from hemp and wheat straw. Hemp plastic is biodegradable, synthetic plastic is not.




Source(S) :www.hempcar.org...

reply to post by muzzleflash


Actually Im a janitor at White Castle...love them little burgers!!!

reply to post by psyko45


i mentioned earlyer that the building industry wich is very big can use cannabis textiles like roofing, flooring cannabis ply board & the like, this alone would generate a lot of jobs, make materials cheaper, companeys earn more, & of coarse it can be grown local, & parts of the same plant can also be turned into fuel, add the motor industry to that, & the revenue from a cannabis industry would be substantial, without other minor cannabis goods you mentioned.

Ok heres the deal. Using the arguments that Ive seen in this thread will never aid in the legalization of cannibas for smoking..its been tried by potheads since the prohibition started.

Fine ....all the hate here forces me to admit...As soon as its legal.(if) Ill be the first one firin up the doobage @ 0420 on the dot. I have a growing technique handed down to me by a friend of mine who happens to be a columbian national thats been a "farmer" for several generations. The method is amazing but will be taken with me to my grave unless it becomes legal. Im familiar with evry aspect of this plant, medicinal ,industrial, as well as the law enforcement side of things. The result of my extesive experience with this plant is that it will never be legal for recreational use. Industrial use doesnt matter because we have better ways of doing everything that cannibas could be used for.

reply to post by Psychonaughty


nice post, the more i look at the current economic problems wich are getting worse, i think society needs to some how bring cannabis into industrial use, what ever it takes.
also with current oil & gas imports, the fossil fuels may not run out for a while yet, but the more unstable an oil producing nation becomes & depending how much you use, can be good reason to worry,
like not long ago, russia turned of the gas to the ukrane, but that also ment other parts of europe were also cut off untill the problem (debt paid) was solved. in the middle of winter, this is good enouph reason for me to consider things like cannabis.

My opinion is that we should make it legal and tax it.

I don't support drug us.

Currently, the war on drugs does nothing to prevent drugs from reaching consumers. It just keeps the price high.

I think that we should make it legal and tax it.

A portion of the taxes could be set aside for free drug rehab programs aimed at substance abusers who really want to clean up their lives.

I read one statistic that 85% of crime was related to drugs. I say take the money out of drugs and put it into rehab.

I didn't read the whole thread so I apologize if I'm repeating things


but simply put the reason we aren't allowed to cultivate hemp /cannabis is that they are essentially money trees


they are that valuable even if everyone grew them they would still be money trees .

It's part of the power and control of wealth thing that TPTB got past us all with the FOOD AND DRUG ACT,so designed to protect us from danger ,sound familiar?


anyway I guess you guys already know that but I want to move to California because it's legal to five plants (for personal use)there

Well this downturn is going to cause a rise in the cost of food.
Add in the rampant munchies caused by legalizing pot and there you have it: the perfect storm.
Everybody will starve.

Originally posted by psyko45
Ok heres the deal. Using the arguments that Ive seen in this thread will never aid in the legalization of cannibas for smoking..its been tried by potheads since the prohibition started.

Fine ....all the hate here forces me to admit...As soon as its legal.(if) Ill be the first one firin up the doobage @ 0420 on the dot. I have a growing technique handed down to me by a friend of mine who happens to be a columbian national thats been a "farmer" for several generations. The method is amazing but will be taken with me to my grave unless it becomes legal. Im familiar with evry aspect of this plant, medicinal ,industrial, as well as the law enforcement side of things. The result of my extesive experience with this plant is that it will never be legal for recreational use. Industrial use doesnt matter because we have better ways of doing everything that cannibas could be used for.

ok first, thanks for being to the point. i think ide have to agree with you on the point that there may well be some better ways to do some things, but unless those better ways are made public, they are of little use. like you i also have a growing plan of my own waiting.
& as far as cannabis becoming legal, i doubt if it will, but decriminalised & regulated maybe, if a change is going to happen then i think a big industry will be a player.

I am all for the legalization of growing and using cannibus for your own use. I am also all for the industrial uses also, oil, rope, clothes ect.

The only problem I can see is what has happened in a couple counties in California,where authorities have decided to just look the other way. There is "some" violence, breakins, toxic waste and the sometimes HUGE operation which involves organized crime. This kind of behavior can be dangerous. But if everyone was allowed a few plants the price would drop and demand would drop and it would no longer be a big deal.

reply to post by cooler


I do think it will be legalised in a widespread fashion for medicinal use.(all 50 states) Which will lead to what you are talking about.(decriminalisation and regulation) But before that happens we have to find jobs for alot of cops, prison guards, probation officers, prosecuting attorneys, judges....you catching what Im sayin.(in other words never). An average small pot bust (less than 28 grams) costs the offender around 10,000 dollars. Not to mention all the other crimes prosecuted by information related to each bust. Its a many headed serpent. And as long as its illegal other crime will be associated with it. This is why I cannot condone its recreational use. You would be amazed at how many very serious crimes have been solved due to a small pot bust. Its an easy taxfree way to make money (pot selling). Very appealing to a criminal. Not saying that everyone who smokes a joint has bodies in their cellar. Crime leads to more crime.

Originally posted by psyko45
reply to post by cooler

 

I do think it will be legalised in a widespread fashion for medicinal use.(all 50 states) Which will lead to what you are talking about.(decriminalisation and regulation) But before that happens we have to find jobs for alot of cops, prison guards, probation officers, prosecuting attorneys, judges....you catching what Im sayin.(in other words never). An average small pot bust (less than 28 grams) costs the offender around 10,000 dollars. Not to mention all the other crimes prosecuted by information related to each bust. Its a many headed serpent. And as long as its illegal other crime will be associated with it. This is why I cannot condone its recreational use. You would be amazed at how many very serious crimes have been solved due to a small pot bust. Its an easy taxfree way to make money (pot selling). Very appealing to a criminal. Not saying that everyone who smokes a joint has bodies in their cellar. Crime leads to more crime.

i see what you mean about re employing a number of people, but by not making it legal & only allowing regualtion eg no more than 15 or 30 grams, this would need enforcing, probation & rehab would still be needed, as im only talking cannabis, & there are plenty of small quantitys of hard drugs that will lead police to new discoverys, if cannabis were to be accepted to a degree, it would leed to changes for sure, but the legal system would still be needed. crime is not about to go away any time soon.

reply to post by cooler


I understand. Although.... 25 dollars worth of pot is alot harder to hide than 25 dollars worth of crack. Its easier for a cop to find pot (the smell alone)..And chances are(not saying allways) someone who has illegal pot knows where there is some coke or heroin...you see where Im going. Maybe just make the penalty for pot alot less if the person cooperates with authorities. I know that sounds terrible, but theres alot of really bad stuff that pot being ilegal can lead us to. Its really sad. Honestly Im for the complete legalisation and regulation of all drugs.(hard drugs included)

Somebody please delete all posts in this thread about the drug aspect of the plant, before the thread itself is deleted.

This is about the INDUSTRIAL implications of the plant, not your opinion on users or why a completely different end product should/would be legal or not. That argument is completely ignorant of the fact that HEMP is not something you can use as a drug.

Stay on topic.

[edit on 3-2-2009 by alaskan]

Originally posted by psyko45
I do think it will be legalised in a widespread fashion for medicinal use.(all 50 states) Which will lead to what you are talking about.(decriminalisation and regulation) But before that happens we have to find jobs for alot of cops, prison guards, probation officers, prosecuting attorneys, judges....you catching what Im sayin.(in other words never).

I always think it's funny how righteous enforcement types think they are 'protecting' the same public they then incarcerate and subconciously fear. This is why narcs and cops will always profile the public and fear the public.

I know what you mean though: Weed makes lots of criminals and supports a lot of the authorities and their jet skiis, yeah? Hey, they get paid well enough to afford them water-crafts at retail prices but seized drug assets are even cheaper, eh? Also judges get special rights to be armed, over and above all the rest of us. Wow, what a life! And they get to smoke weed (so long as they don't get caught).

You would be amazed at how many very serious crimes have been solved due to a small pot bust. Its an easy taxfree way to make money (pot selling). Very appealing to a criminal. Not saying that everyone who smokes a joint has bodies in their cellar. Crime leads to more crime.

Chief Justice, is that you?!

Let's follow your logic a step farther: If videocameras are let's say, registered with the government, we'd catch so many more people filming illegal stuff, right? Why not ask each citizen if they care about cops confiscating their VHS tapes? ...No but your point is valid: If more things are made illegal, even if they are trivial, it will still catch more criminals. Damn, you're smart!

Actually, since you probably are part of law enforcement of some kind, you should be afraid, because if something isn't done to help the economy, you'll be outnumbered when the prisons are opened (or explode). Lots of people have been put away for trivial crimes (and to support that 10k job struture you mentioned) and these people are going to be way more angry at your class, than at mine (hippie).

Originally posted by Wildbob77
My opinion is that we should make it legal and tax it.

I don't support drug us.

Currently, the war on drugs does nothing to prevent drugs from reaching consumers. It just keeps the price high.

I think that we should make it legal and tax it.

A portion of the taxes could be set aside for free drug rehab programs aimed at substance abusers who really want to clean up their lives.

I read one statistic that 85% of crime was related to drugs. I say take the money out of drugs and put it into rehab.

Actually 85% are Non-Violent drug offenders.

Prison is completely of these people instead of rapist's, murders, etc...

Weed being more than half of these is quite a reasonable appeal to legalizing and regulating it.

The real revenue is cultivating hemp.