Forums → WEPR → Illegilization of Cannabis Sativa : The True Story

(All information in this post is not of my own compilation, it was taken from the facebook group Illegilization of Cannabis Sativa)

I would like to start a real debate here about...well...marijuana. Before you enter this debate over wether Marijuana should be legal or not, please read the following:

- The El Paso Ordinance of 1914 was the first law against Cannabis passed in the United States, itâs primarily purposed was to control the Mexican minority in the area. Similar laws were passed elsewhere to control the marijuana smoking African American minorities in the south.
- During the prohibition the Treasury Department of United States established the Federal Bureau of Narcotics (FBN) to fight the war on drugs and alcohol (Grass). Soon after in the 1930âs two major innovations in paper making was discovered coincidentally around the same time, the first was a newly developed machine that collected the fibers and pulps from hemp more efficiently when ever before. The second advance was DuPontâs patented sulfate/sulfite process for making paper from wood pulp.
- The newly developed paper making process using hemp was much more efficient and cheaper than making paper out of wood pulp; this posed an enormous threat to Du Pont and its financial backers. During this period of time Mellon Bank of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania owned by Andrew Mellon was Du Pontâs chief financial backer.
- âIn 1931, Mellon, in his role as Hoover's Secretary of the Treasury, appointed his future nephew-in-law, Harry J. Anslinger, to be head of the newly reorganized Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (FBNDD), a post he held for the next 31 yearsâ(The Emperor Wears No Clothes Ch4).
- Determined to criminalize Cannabis, Anslinger directed the all of the focus of the FBNDD towards marijuana; he then used the same scare tactics that the Christians used in the Inquisition. Anslinger launched a nationwide media campaign against marijuana. This campaign included radiobroadcasts, television commercials and various other media outlets; the Federal Bureau of Narcotics claimed that marijuana caused murder, insanity and death (Grass). All of these claims were not back by any scientific research or evidence.
- The FBNDD also related marijuana with dangerous drugs such as heroine and opium, instilling even more fear of the plant on Americans.
-Although in the 1930âs only approximately sixty thousand Americans used marijuana, almost all other Americans knew of the marijuana due to Anslingerâs media campaign. Harry Anslingerâs propaganda succeed beyond his wildest dreams, Americans now fear the plant so much they demanded stricter laws against marijuana from the government.
-âWithout any public debate, scientific inquiry or political objection, the Marijuana Tax Act was signed into law by President Roosevelt in 1937â (The History of Marijuana).
-The Marijuana Tax Act required anyone in possession of marijuana to have a tax stamp from the Treasury Department and none was ever produced successfully making Cannabis illegal.
- Countless countries around the global have started to decriminalize Cannabis, their economies are flourishing due to the production of hemp and its products, many of their citizens enjoy the medicinal benefits of this plant. The countries that have legalized Cannabis saw the old laws against the plant unjust and since its legalization these nations experiencing exceptional growth in all areas of society directly due to Cannabis (The Magic Weed).
-Even though America imports copious amounts of hemp annually, she produces none of it herself; this nation pays handsomely to import plant products that can easily be grown and made in the United States. It is the beginning of a new millennium and there has never been a better time to put the arbitrary prejudices and fears past us. Knowledge of the Cannabis and its benefits are now widespread thanks to technological advances such as the internet and the truth about the prohibition of Cannabis is now gaining light.
-If Americans fail to extinguish these fears and start using Cannabis to all of its advantages. Then America herself will be in danger of falling behind in the Cannabis revolution of the new millennia. Reply to Nam
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The truth is Cannabis has been used by every culture and civilization in the history of the world, because of it's many useful properties. It was not until the 20th century that such an unreasonable law was passed on false pretenses.


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