...lethal you could die with a single use. Why is it socially acceptable to use substances, which kill thousands a year while a plant that is practically a miracle drug remains portrayed as one of the most dangerous substances, known to man? In this paper, we will look at the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana the financial impact as well as the effects it would have on industry. We will also look at social impact caused by legalizing marijuana can it be socially acceptable. Alcohol and tobacco continually kill people by the thousands and yet remain legal, why then is marijuana, a drug that has never killed a single person still illegal. The declaration of independence and the constitution of the United States of America are written on hemp paper there were even laws on the subject of marijuana before that. America’s first marijuana law was enacted at Jamestown Colony, Virginia in 1619 it ordered all farmers to grow Indian hempseed there were several other must grow laws over the next 200 years. You would be imprisoned for not...
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...The World’s Most Understood Crop: Industrial Hemp and its Economic Benefits When most people hear the word hemp the first thing that comes to mind is marijuana. While hemp and marijuana are of the same plant species, Cannabis Sativa, they are different plants with their own chemical makeup. Hemp has been known as one of the world’s greatest agricultural crops of all time with a wide variety of uses. Unfortunately the United States still sees hemp as drug and the manufacturing of hemp is still illegal today. The United States is outlawing one of the most economically beneficial and functional crops of all times because of its cousin marijuana. Hemp was the world’s greatest agricultural crop for more than 1000 years before Christ until 1883 AD (Herer). The manufacturing and cultivation of hemp has been used for thousands of products and many different industries including producing a majority of the world’s fabric, fiber, oil, paper, and even food. The earliest known fabric was made of hemp around 8000 BC (Herer). Ninety percent of all ships' sails from at least the fifth century BC until long after the invention of the steam engines in the mid- to late-19th century were made from hemp (Herer). Many of the ships’ logs, maps, and charts were made on hemp paper from the time of Columbus to the early 1900s (Herer). In the first century AD, the Chinese found that hemp paper lasted 50 to 100 times longer than most preparations of papyrus and that it was 100 times easier and cheaper...
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...The Beneficial Uses of Hemp Following my father's death, I felt there was some unfinished business that we had not discussed. I searched to find some of my father's thoughts and feeling that I could justify our relationship through. Ironically, I came across a manila envelope, which had contained some of his prized possessions. As I searched through it, I developed a new opinion of the bio mass plant called "Hemp." There were articles showing a hemp bills being passed and farmers wanting to cultivate it within Delta County. There was also a book called "The Emperor Wears No Clothes." It was a book stating compelling facts about the miracle crop Hemp." An article struck me. It told of, Woody Harrison, a well-known actor stating, "He would pick up the tab for Colorado's first hemp crop if state legislators approve the crop." He also stated that you could smoke a pound of it and not get high. (Rice)" In addition 4.6 million members of the American Farm Bureau Federation support Hemp 100 percent. Hemp could be the most abundant natural resource, it can replace 80% of our fossil fuels, and be used for many major medicinal purposes (Kriho). It is essential that we stop the use of all fossil fuels, and deforestation to save Mother Earth. This can be accomplished with the cannabis plant hemp seizing pollution and provide the world with more than enough of its energy needs. According to Jack Herer, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, we're not only the founders of our...
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...Do you all believe that marijuana should be legalised? Good afternoon all year 11 English students, today I will be presenting an oral to you all on the legalisation of marijuana and I will change any negative thoughts you have towards the legalisation of this substance. Marijuana is an illegal “drug” in Australia but not in all parts of the world. Marijuana is a product that is grown from our earth that can benefit as all in many different aspects, for example, marijuana is used for medicinal purposes, helps produce useful resources that are needed in our modern society and also is used for the social enjoyment of a relaxing and exciting buzz. The plant that is grown from the grounds of our earth can replace the occasional drink of alcohol or smoke of a cigarette to relieve our day-to-day stresses. Also when hanging around friends or family smoking marijuana in a social sense can benefit our relationships with the others around us. The negative betrayal of marijuana by the government is all a lie. The statistics and facts clearly show that marijuana is safer then alcohol and all other drugs because no body as ever died from a over dose of this so called drug marijuana and nor has anybody died from stupid behave like alcohol. Alcohol is legal and statistics show that it makes people aggressive and takes away their ability to make sensible decisions and yet it is legal. So why isn’t marijuana legal if alcohol is, when facts show that marijuana is a...
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...Outline Worksheet Introduction ATTENTION GETTER: How much money do you think legalizing marijuana would bring to the U.S? Legalizing cannabis would actually generate 8.5 billion dollars in federal and state tax revenue per year, according to a 2013 study from Cato Institute in Washington D.C. Purpose (state specific purpose, relate topic to audience and establish credibility): Throughout the years, we have yet to legalize cannabis after all the facts of this topic have been completely laid out. It’s time we take this industry into our country’s hands and not let it go unregulated and untaxed. State Thesis & Main Points: The legalization of cannabis would be another step closer to the way out of this economic crisis our country is in today. the regulation of this product would bring economic improvement, new-found resources, and medical aid. however, we must establish both the positive and the negative sides to truly comprehend this movement. Body (3-5 MAIN POINTS PREFERRED (USE ONLY COMPLETE SENTENCES I. MAIN POINT (state as a single declarative sentence): A major upside in the legalization of cannabis is the benefit of economic improvement. A. SUBPOINT: Legalizing this drug would bring about millions to billions of dollars in tax revenue. 1. Marijuana growers account for 14 billion dollars a year in sales in CA, making it the states most valuable cash crop which is a perfect...
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...(Legalizing Hemp) Using Hemp to Boost Kentucky’s Economy It’s no secret the economy is failing. On both a state level and national level, but what Kentuckians don’t realize is how easy it would be to fix our economy. Since the decline of tobacco production in the state of Kentucky, producers have been forced to do two things. Either replace their tobacco and find a new crop to plant or get a new job and stop producing anything. However, with my solution the need to replace tobacco can be filled and the economy can grow. But how can we save a dying economy? Simple, we replace tobacco with industrial hemp. Industrial Hemp production will boost the economy, replace tobacco, and provide a stable income for Kentucky Producers. In order to be able to produce industrial hemp in Kentucky, we first must legalize it. To help legalize industrial hemp we have to be able to connect with members of the media along with lawmakers to explain why industrial hemp is necessary to re-build Kentucky. I propose that Kentuckians encourage local representatives, senators, congressmen/women etc. to vote to allow the legal production of industrial hemp in Kentucky and the United States. Recently, the Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture, James Comer, has been working hard to legalize industrial hemp. In February of 2013, the industrial hemp bill passed the Kentucky Senate and then moved to Kentucky Legislatures. In March of 2013, Kentucky Legislatures passed the regulation of industrial hemp in Kentucky...
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...Legalization of Marijuana One of the primary focuses of America’s War on Drugs in the controversial drug Marijuana. Marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug and stirs up a debate everywhere. Could you imagine a world where Marijuana was legal in all states? Sure it would have its pros and cons on the side effects that could occur when smoking it, but I don't think that it would enable us from working or doing other things. For many years people have attempted to find ways to get passed the struggles of everyday life. With the pain of the world stopping people from enjoying simple pleasures, sometimes there is a need for help. Marijuana brings millions of people relief from pain on a day-to-day basis. This completely natural plant, which previously helped so many people, puzzled the leaders of our nation for a long time. Using marijuana for medicinal purposes is not a recent discovery. In fact, written references to use medical marijuana date back nearly 5,000 years. Western medicine embraced marijuana’s medical properties in the mid-1800s, and by the beginning of the 20th century, physicians had published more than 100 papers in the Western medical literature recommending its use for a variety of disorders (Introduction to Medical Use). These disorders include pain relief, nausea, glaucoma, and movement disorders. It is also used as a powerful appetite stimulant which helps patients that had HIV/AIDS or cancer patients going through chemotherapy. Today, thousands of...
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...the decades. Cannabis has been around for centuries and legally used and distributed as a natural resource until it began to gain restrictions and regulations in the late 1800s and early 1900s soon leading to the illegalization of it in the 1930s with the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937 (Guither). In the eyes of many people, the reasons for the illegalization of growing and distributing the hemp plant are untrue or over exaggerated, and this paper will address why marijuana should be legalized in America. The reasons for why the government should take the action of legalizing the use of marijuana, or cannabis, are endless, but this paper focuses on the facts that cannabis has a multitude of known, positive uses, that legalizing it will take thousands and thousands of good people out of prisons, and that legalizing the use of marijuana could actually have economically positive effects on the country. Marijuana has been around long before it was known as a recreational drug in the early 1900s. The known uses of the hemp plant go back to as early as 7000 B.C. The earliest known uses were to make woven fabric (Guither) which was used to make things like cloth, clothes, shoes, and rope. It has also been known to be used for cooking and for incense. Cannabis also, as most of us know, has been known to be used to treat many different medical conditions. Marijuana has been proven to stimulate the appetite, which is very helpful to people...
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...decriminalization of marijuana. The first thing that came to my mind when thinking about whether or not to decriminalize the use of marijuana was, why is marijuana illegal in the first place? I did a little research and found some interesting information about the origins and uses of Hemp/Marijuana and how it became illegal. Marijuana was only recognized as an illegal drug as recently as the 1900s. Before this the Hemp plant was used to make fabrics, rope, food and much more. In fact one of the first laws in this country regarding Marijuana was enacted in Jamestown Virginia in the 1600s ordering all farmers to grow hemp seed. Over the next 200 years laws were passed that would send farmers to jail in times of shortages for not growing it because hemp was so important. It was even a form of currency early on and one could pay his taxes with hemp. Hemp was even the primary crop of George Washington at Mt Vernon. So what happened that such an important crop could become illegal? With the introduction of Eli Whitney’s Cotton Gin in 1793 hemp was on its way out in favor of the now significantly more cost effective to produce cotton materials. Along with this decline in importance for the hemp plant the early 1900s brought along a change in...
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...instances when a politician does attempt to address the problems with prohibitionist attitudes towards marijuana, they face harsh opinion from their peers, which is a result of their fear of losing the support from their board. Cannabis is not just a drug cannabis also brings technological, health and economic benefits to the world. When people hear the word hemp or marijuana they believe in the medical aspects but it also has a vast amount of usefulness for example; hemp is able to produce plastic and medicine it is said that one acre of hemp is to produce more oxygen than twenty-five acres of forest. One important use of cannabis is the use as bio fuel with the plant’s ability to grow in infertile soils also reduces the need to grow it on primary croplands, which can then be reserved for growing food, says Richard Parnas, a professor of chemical, materials, and bimolecular engineering(Christine Buckley). With the high demand of oil and jobs, hemp is a more reliable source a resources in addition a research from the University of Connecticut stated: The hemp biodiesel showed a high efficiency of conversion – 97 percent of the hemp oil was converted to...
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...Release the Green! Marijuana is a very noticeable and scandalous issue in the world today. Although many malicious entitlements have been said about cannabis in current history, the certainties are slowly starting to reappear. Unluckily, these facts are being very heavily criticized because of the clichéd view of what people see as the classic “weed smoker.” This twisted observation of a lazy and unenthusiastic America is the consequence of over seventy years of information and deception spread by private interests who needed weed illegal for their own particular gains. As just a regular citizen and someone that doesn’t even use marijuana, I think that the drug should be legalized for all uses. Consuming marijuana for pharmaceutical purposes is not a new discovery. Actually, written references to consume medical marijuana go back to almost 5,000 years ago (herer, 167). Western treatment included marijuana’s medical properties in the mid-1800s, and by the start of the 20th century, doctors had issued more than 150 credentials in the Western medical literature recommending its use for a variety of disorders (Miron, 117). These conditions include relief from pain, glaucoma, nausea and movement disorders. It can also be used to help patients that have or had HIV/AIDS or cancer patients that have to go through chemotherapy because it motivates their appetites. In our day, thousands of patients are capable of use marijuana as an effective technique of cure for their illnesses. This...
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...Hemp or industrial hemp is typically found in the northern atmosphere. It is one of the fastest growing crops. and was one of the first plants to be spun into usable fiber 10,000 years ago. It can be made into a variety of commercial items including paper, textiles, clothing, biodegradable plastics, paint, insulation, biofuel, food, and animal feed. Recreational marijuana and industrial hemp are both members of the species Cannabis. Hemp is used to make a variety of commercial and industrial products including rope, clothes, food, paper, textiles, plastics, insulation and biofuel. The bast fibers can be used to make textiles that are 100% hemp, but they are commonly blended with other organic fibers such as flax, cotton or silk, to make woven...
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...grains (grasses) and developed agriculture. Agriculture requires a commitment to the land and grants a steady food supply which enables people to form permanent settlements. Cannabis and Neolithic bands probably came in contact often as plants invaded the fertile clearings — the campsites, roadsides, fields and garbage heaps — that occur wherever people live.”(Mel Frank and Ed Rosenthal) It was primarily used for the production of hemp. Hemp is a fabric made of the fibers that separate from the stem of the cannabis plant when it decays. Hemp fabric is extremely strong and durable, especially when compared to cotton fabric. The ancient Asians used hemp to make their clothes, fish nets and ropes. Hemp eventually became so popular that it clothed the majority of the people during the time period. “As their culture advanced, these prehistoric people replaced their animal skins with hemp cloth. At first, hemp cloth was worn only by the more prosperous, but when silk became available, hemp clothed the masses.”(Mel Frank and Ed Rosenthal) Hemp was only one of many uses for the marijuana plant. The ancient Asians even found a way to use the plant seeds for food. “People in China relied on Cannabis for many more products than fiber. Cannabis seeds were one of the grains...
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...Should Marijuana be Legalized By: Susan Cooper Starting in the 1600’s the hemp plant was grow as a trade good. It was used for rope and fabric though out the 18th and 19th centuries. In the mid 1800’s they started using part of the plant to make cannabis and use it for medical use. With this new drug on the market the department of agriculture wanted to place regulations on it. After all the testing they did on the drug they considered it to be poison. In the early 1900’s states had to label it as such and show all ingredients in it. A few states started to require prescriptions for the sale of the drug. In 1938 the Federal Pure Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act of 1938 was passed. This law set strict standards for prescription, non-prescription drugs and also food. This made the drug cannabis or marijuana a dangerous and illegal drug. This is still the law we have in affect as of today. Lately a lot of people are up in arms about the law and some believe it should be changed. Some believe that there are more benefits to marijuana if it was legal. The Cons: People believe marijuana should remain and always be illegal. Just like any drug marijuana is addictive according to Dr. Drew Pinsky. He said “It would be malpractice to say that cannabis isn't addictive. Anybody who's experienced it, actually been addicted to it, knows how profound that addiction is. The difficult thing about marijuana addiction is some people, even though they're addicted can do fine with it for many...
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...“Industrial hemp and marijuana are different varieties of the same species, Cannabis sativa L. In the United States, Cannabis sativa is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, regardless of its narcotic content, under the Controlled Substances Act as amended.” (USDA 1). U.S. markets for hemp fiber (specialty textiles, paper, and composites) and seed (in food or crushed for oil) are, and will likely remain, small, thin markets. Uncertainty about longrun demand for hemp products and the potential for oversupply discounts the prospects for hemp as an economically viable alternative crop for American farmers. (USDA i). The main reason the hemp market is as described by the USDA is that hemp is illegal to grow in the United States currently. We know this to be the reason because back in WWII the U.S. needed rope, but could no longer trade with Japan and so allowed farmers to grow hemp for the war effort as it is a high-yield, fast-growing crop that makes fine rope. The possession of hemp products is still legal here; the only condition is that it must have be free of THC. However, the amount of THC in industrial hemp is so small that “the only thing you will get from smoking it is a headache.” (Greg Bambaugh). Many people believe and say that the reason it is illegal to grow is due to its similarity to marijuana but, as noted by the first quote, they are different things, and even the USDA knows it; "It's like a Chihuahua versus a Saint Bernard," says David Bronner. (Wells)...
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