Jim Hightower in the Boulder Weekly

Jim Hightower in the Boulder Weekly expresses more support for hemp. The press is starting to take on this issue, with the LA Times (see post on this blog) giving it weight in an editorial.

Can sanity finally conquer reefer madness?

By Jim Hightower

Besides being founders of our Republic, what did Thomas Jefferson and George Washington have in common? Answer: Hemp.

America’s founders were strong promoters of this extraordinarily useful agricultural crop, and both Jefferson and Washington grew it. The first draft of our Constitution was written on hemp paper, and as late as World War II, the government urgently pushed farmers to grow the crop as part of a “Hemp for Victory” program.

So why are American farmers today prohibited from producing this patriotic, profitable, pesticide-free plant? Political nuttiness. Most recently, in a frenzy of reefer madness, U.S. drug police decided that President Nixon’s “Controlled Substance Act of 1970” not only outlawed marijuana, but also its non-narcotic cousin, industrial hemp. If ignorance is bliss, they must’ve been ecstatic, yet their nuttiness remains the law of our land.

The good news is that a wave of sanity is now wafting across America. In Colorado, for example, farmer Michael Bowman and Denver hemp advocate Lynda Parker helped pass Amendment 64 in last fall’s election. It legalizes personal pot use, which got all the media attention, but it also directs the legislature to set up a program for “the cultivation, processing and sale of industrial hemp.” Bowman now hopes to be the first American farmer in generations to plant a legal crop of it — hoping to do so on April 30, the 80th birthday of familyfarmer hero and hemp champion Willie Nelson.

The red state of Kentucky is also on the move. Its Republican ag commissioner, backed by its chamber of commerce, is campaigning to legalize hemp farming, and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is co-sponsoring a national bill with Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden to take hemp off the controlled substance list.

Jim Hightower on hemp

The hemp issue is in the news more and more - now Jim Hightower is talking about it. The article below makes note of yet another petition, this one asking the president to mention industrial hemp in his 12 Feb State of the Nation speech. The first petition is one asking him to make hemp legal - this is at www.minawear.com/about-us/ - sign both! Then write your congressman. Let's make this happen!



Four years ago, first lady Michelle Obama picked up a shovel and made a powerful symbolic statement about America’s food and farm future: She turned a patch of White House lawn into a working organic garden.
That was a great move, earning kudos from just about everyone this side of Monsanto and the pesticide lobby. But now, as she begins another four years in the people’s mansion, the first lady is probably asking herself: “How can I top that? What can I do this time around to plant a crop of common sense in our country’s political soil that will link America’s farmers, consumers, environment and grassroots economy into one big harvest of common good?”
Thanks for asking, Ms. Obama, and please allow me to intrude into your thoughts with a one-word suggestion: hemp. Plant a good, healthy stand of industrial hemp next to your organic garden!
This would, of course, drive the anti-drug zealots up the wall (a good place for them, I think). “Holy J. Edgar Hoover,” they’d scream, “hemp is a distant cousin of marijuana!”

 

Well, yes, but the industrial variety of cannabis lacks the psychoactive aspects of pot, so their hysteria is misplaced. Industrial hemp won’t make anyone high, but it certainly can make us happy, because it would deliver a new economic and environmental high for America.
Plus, hemp production is firmly rooted in American history. Question: Besides being founders of our republic, what did Thomas Jefferson and George Washington have in common? Answer: Both farmed hemp. Most of America’s founders were strong promoters of this extraordinarily useful agricultural crop, with Jefferson declaring it to be “of first necessity ... to the wealth and protection of the country.”
The first draft of our Constitution was written on hemp paper. “Old Ironsides” was powered by sails of hemp cloth. As late as World War II, the government urgently pushed farmers to grow the crop as part of a “Hemp for Victory” program.
So why are American farmers today prohibited from producing this patriotic, profitable, pesticide-free plant? Political nuttiness. Most recently, in a frenzy of reefer madness, U.S. drug police decided that President Dick Nixon’s Controlled Substance Act of 1970 not only outlawed marijuana, but also its non-narcotic cousin, industrial hemp. If ignorance is bliss, they must’ve been ecstatic, yet their nuttiness remains the law of our land today.
While our nation is the world’s biggest consumer of hemp products (from rope to shampoo, building materials to food), the mad masters of our insane “drug war” have lumped hemp and marijuana together as “Schedule 1 controlled substances” — making our Land of the Free the world’s only industrialized country that bans farmers from growing this benign, profitable, job-creating and environmentally beneficial plant.
Thus, the U.S.A. is consuming millions of dollars’ worth of products made from hemp, that hemp comes from producers in other countries, because our farmers aren’t allowed to grow it in the U.S.A. and reap the economic benefits here at home.
The good news, though, is that a wave of sanity is now wafting across America. In Colorado, for example, farmer Michael Bowman and Denver hemp advocate Lynda Parker helped pass Amendment 64 in last fall’s election. While it legalizes personal pot use, which got all the media attention, it also directs the legislature to set up a program for “the cultivation, processing and sale of industrial hemp.”
Bowman now hopes to be the first American farmer in generations to plant a legal crop of it. Appropriately enough, he hopes to do so on April 30 — the 80th birthday of family-farmer hero and hemp champion Willie Nelson.
Even red states like Kentucky are on the move. Its Republican ag commissioner, backed by its Chamber of Commerce, is campaigning to legalize hemp farming there, and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is co-sponsoring a national bill with Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden to take hemp off the controlled substance list.
As Bowman puts it: “Can we just stop being stupid?” To help move us in that direction, he’s seeking 100,000 signatures on a online petition requesting that President Barack Obama include the words “industrial hemp” in his Feb. 12 State of the Union speech. I’m sure the president would appreciate my advice on this, so I suggest he say: “First thing tomorrow morning, Michelle and I are going to give a symbolic jumpstart to the development of a thriving hemp industry in America by planting a stand of it on the White House lawn.”
To sign Bowman’s petition, click here to go to the White House website.
— Jim Hightower is a national radio commentator, writer, public speaker and author of Swim Against The Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow. Click here to contact him, follow him on Twitter: @JimHightower, or click here to read previous columns. The opinions expressed are his own.

Colorado gets green light for hemp, but feds see red

While Kentucky is the hotseat of debate, Colorado has decided to go ahead and sow the seed. Who knows what this could lead to, will the feds override the state's right? The federal level is key, and that is why we are promoting so heavily the petition to the White House at www.minawear.com/about-us/

Below is the article by Anthony Gucciardi in the Rim County Gazette:

 

 

Farmers begin planting hemp in Colorado
In the event that Colorado manages to generate acres of hemp without the federal government raiding the super efficient substance that is classified as a dangerous drug, it will provide a serious industry change that may spread to other states and potentially even federal law.

Many farmers in Colorado will be expanding their list of planted crops this Spring after groundbreaking legislation was passed last November that allowed not only for the legalization of marijuana, but hemp as well. Now in case you’re not familiar, hemp is actually a multi-purpose substance that does not produce the high effects of marijuana. In fact, it’s mainly used as a super cheap and highly efficient building material — at least in other nations where ridiculous bans are not enforced on the ‘high-free’ material.

Colorado farmers like Michael Bowman will be planting 100 acres of hemp to be harvested and sold off as not only building material, but a highly nutritious superfood. While marijuana is considerably high in the substance known as THC (delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol), which of course is the compound that produces the ‘high’ effects, it’s also significantly low in what’s known as CDB (cannabidiol). That’s where hemp comes in. Both THC and CDB are known as cannabinoids, but hemp is particularly high in CDB while lacking in THC.

Hemp as a Superfood, Industry Transformer

These cannabinoids have actually been promoted by many first hand sources as not only a health optimizing substance, but a serious solution to cancer. One popular documentary titled ‘Run from the Cure’ by Rick Simpson, which is available for free on Youtube, focuses on the use of hemp oil to conquer cancer.

Rich in essential oils, fiber, and a close to complete amino acid profile, hemp contains beneficial ingredients such as:

• Linoleic acid (44% of the weight of hempseed is actually full of edible oils)
• Omega 3 fatty acids (shown time and time again to fight against anxiety, depression, and even inflammation)
• Omega-6
• A ‘complete’ amino profile that surpasses the profile of eggs, milk, soy, and many meats. This includes the 9 essential aminos that the human body cannot produce on its own.

It is for these reasons that hemp is utilized today in many high quality products like protein shakes, energy bars, and many more food products. Two tablespoons of shelled hemp seeds contain about 11 grams of protein and 2 grams of unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids.

Its versatility allows it to be a prime ingredient even in clothing and fabric-based industries. It could transform the entire industry, replacing unsustainable materials with environmentally friendly hemp.

Feds: ‘We Will Come for Your Hemp’

That is if the federal government doesn’t seize it across the nation. The DEA has its sights set on confiscating all hemp planted and grown in the United States through citing the Controlled Substances Act, which doesn’t differentiate between marijuana and hemp. The agents, which will ignore state law and enforce federal law throughout any state, say that they will be going after farmers who plant non-THC hemp as if they were planting marijuana. After all, they say it doesn’t matter what it actually is.

“It really doesn’t matter whether it looks different or it looks the same,” DEA agent Paul Roach told NPR. “If it’s the cannabis plant, it’s in the Controlled Substances Act and, therefore, enforceable under federal drug law.”

In the event that Colorado manages to generate acres of hemp without the federal government raiding the super efficient substance that is classified as a dangerous drug, it will provide a serious industry change that may spread to other states and potentially even federal law. In the more likely scenario of federal agents jailing hemp farmers and raiding their ‘drug’ operations, an intellectual and legal resistance will be in order to attempt to alter the ridiculous laws surrounding the cultivation of hemp.

Article in Denver Post

An article appeared earlier this month in the Denver Post, titled: :"Hemp industry poised to grow in Colorado with new legal status," by Steven Raabe. This is the third article on hemp in Colorado this month (scroll down a few to read). That state is making more noise, and along with California, Oregon, Arizona, Texas, Kentucky, Tennessee and North Carolina - is part of a block of southern states that are making waves politically about hemp and medical cannabis. Quite a number of previous posts have mentioned all of these states - and expect a number of future posts to do the same as Hemp for Victory tracks the progress of hemp in the US - including backing the petition by Texas based company Minawear - www.minawear.com/about-us/ is where to go if you want to sign it to make hemp legal at the federal level. Below is the article on hemp activism in Colorado:

No, not pot. The fanatics get their kicks from buzz-free hemp.

A genetic cousin to marijuana, hemp is a look-alike plant with one key difference. It contains almost no THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that makes users high.

But what hemp lacks in THC, it makes up for by being a remarkable workhorse of industrial utility. From auto bodies to textile fibers to nutrition bars — even as a cleaner of toxic contamination — hemp struts its stuff.

Boosters say hemp is poised to become a big industry in Colorado because Amendment 64 allows its legal cultivation pending legislative authorization.

Lynda Parker's eyes light up, the all-natural way, when she talks about it.

"My friends tell me I'm too evangelical," says the retired Dex saleswoman. "But there's hardly a problem in the world that can't be solved with hemp."

She ticks off an abbreviated list, just a tantalizing hint, of the practical applications. "Hemp is food, animal feed, fiber, fuel, shelter," she says. "It cleans the air, the water, the soil. Hemp could be enormous for Colorado because we're the first state to legalize it."

Hemp's most common uses are food products derived from seeds and seed oil. Fiber from the stalks of hemp plants are used in clothing and industrial applications, including as a strengthening agent in concrete.

Parker is part of an early-stage, loose-knit coalition formed to raise hemp's profile. Other members range from a medical-marijuana activist to a Ph.D. candidate at Colorado School of Mines. Their common thread is a belief that hemp is going to be big — bigger, perhaps, than legal marijuana.

The Colorado Center on Law & Policy estimates that state-sanctioned marijuana sales initially could be as much as $270 million a year, producing state and local taxes of $47 million a year. Yet a mature hemp industry — from farm to factory to storefront — might be 10 times larger than legal marijuana, backers project. Could anything possibly dampen the potential of this beneficial botanical?

Well, yes. The federal government for one.

Like marijuana, hemp is still illegal in the eyes of the feds, despite Colorado's clear electoral mandate to legalize it.

Federal officials have said little about how they will react to Colorado's new law. Some analysts say it's unlikely they will target individual users, but the outlook is less certain for federal crackdowns on larger enterprises, such as farm-scale growing.

Hemp backers say that would be an extreme injustice, given that hemp has no narcotic properties. But federal law does not differentiate between the cultivation of hemp and marijuana. Even in Colorado, the Amendment 64 implementation task force is unlikely to set up hemp regulations until next year because it has its hands full with the complexities of marijuana rule-making.

Test crop planned There are plenty of hemp products on the market — clothing, food, beverages, construction materials. But because of the federal prohibition on growing, all hemp must come from imported sources. Canada is the largest supplier to the U.S.

If Colorado were to establish a hemp-farming industry, it would be limited by a federal ban on interstate transportation of the crop. The harvested hemp would need to stay inside Colorado, where currently there are few major industrial customers.

That limitation does not deter Mike Bowman, a Yuma County farmer and alternative-energy activist. He plans to plant a test crop of 100 acres of hemp, possibly as early as this year, on land typically reserved for corn.

Hemp requires much less water than corn, Bowman notes, thus providing a potential solution to over-pumped aquifers on the eastern plains.

In Canada, he said, hemp is a more profitable crop than wheat. According to the Alberta provincial government, hemp seed production can yield up to $1,000 per acre. Canadian wheat in 2012 yielded an average of $315 an acre. But the threat of federal intervention in the U.S. and the misperception that equates hemp to marijuana are formidable hurdles.

"If hemp had a different name, it would be a lot easier," Bowman says.

Parker and other hemp proponents plan to visit eastern Colorado farm towns this week to talk up the potential.

Supplies of Colorado-grown hemp would be welcome by Ari Sherman, president of Boulder-based Evo Hemp. In a small commercial kitchen, Sherman and his four associates make nutrition bars containing hemp seed, fruits and nuts.

The company imports several hundred pounds of seed each month from Canadian suppliers.

"The transportation costs are huge," Sherman says. "It definitely would help us to have supplies from Colorado. And to create a product where the majority of the ingredients are from Colorado would be great."

The 1½-year-old company distributes about 700 bars a week to small grocers. It recently signed a deal to supply Whole Foods stores in the Rocky Mountain region and is talking with King Soopers parent Kroger Co.

There's money to be made in hemp, but that's not what drives industry proponent Parker.

"I'm a product of the '60s," she says. "If we make some money, I won't reject it, but I do this out of my passion for hemp."

Article in Washington Post

An article this month (13 Jan.) by Juliet Eilperin from the Washington Post underscores the national mood for making hemp legal.

"Hemp legalization effort gathers steam"

 

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An old press oil extraction system. (Hemp Oil Canada/ )

In the cannabis plant family, hemp is the good seed. Marijuana, the evil weed. Michael Bowman, a gregarious Colorado farmer who grows corn and wheat, has been working his contacts in Congress in an attempt to persuade lawmakers that hemp has been framed, unfairly lumped with the stuff people smoke to get high.
Somehow over time, as Bowman’s pitch goes, hemp, which is used to make paper, oils and a variety of useful products, was mistaken for its twin, marijuana — a.k.a pot, chronic, blunt and weed — a medicinal drug loaded with tetrahydrocannabinol that buzzes the mind. Hemp got caught up in the legendary crusade against pot popularized by the movie “Reefer Madness.” All varieties of cannabis ended up on the most-wanted list, outlawed by Congress as well as lawmakers in other nations, inspiring people to kill it on sight.
Bowman’s message is simple: Be sensible. “Can we just stop being stupid? Can we just talk about how things need to change?”