Fallen Soul
Active Member
Originaly posted on MAM
The article was written by me, but I thought I would get some more input and thought on it.
Hemp, Marijuana, Weed, Pot......They are all the same. Yeah there are different strains containing more THC then others but they all can be used Medically, For Textiles, Clean Energy, Food, and so much more. The uses are almost endless. So if there are so many uses why is it illegal? In fact for 99% of its known history it was legal and in use, so what happened? In the united states it was around for many years. In fact there was a law passed in 1619 that you HAD TO grow Indian hemp seed in Jamestown Colony, Virginia. Meaning you could be jailed for NOT growing it in times of need. Also not to mention Hemp was LEGAL TENDER meaning you could pay your taxes in hemp.
So from the 1600's all the way to the early 1900's, it went from acceptable, being mandated, used as legal tender and highly encouraged to illegal. Now what in the world happened?
Reason:
In the early 1900's tension was building between westerners, and Mexican-Americans because of the mexican war that spilled over the border during 1910. Later on, tension developed between small farmers and the large farms that used cheap Mexican labor. Then, the depression came and increased tensions, as jobs and welfare resources became scarce. One of the "differences" seized upon during this time was the fact that many Mexicans smoked marijuana and was looked down upon because Mexicans brought their weed plants with them. California passed the first law against the preparation of hemp, or loco weed. Not only that but the law was influenced not only because of the prejudice against Mexicans, but because of the Mormons who had brought it back with them from mexico at the time, and the churches reaction to it.
Soon after many other states started their own laws against Marijuana (Hemp) ( Wyoming (1915), Texas (1919), Iowa (1923), Nevada (1923), Oregon (1923), Washington (1923), Arkansas (1923), and Nebraska (1927). These laws tended to be specifically targeted against the Mexican population.
When Montana outlawed marijuana in 1927, the Butte Montana Standard reported a legislator's comment: "When some beet field peon takes a few traces of this stuff... he thinks he has just been elected president of Mexico, so he starts out to execute all his political enemies." In Texas, a senator said on the floor of the Senate: "All Mexicans are crazy, and this stuff [marijuana] is what makes them crazy."
So the intent behind outlawing marijuana was never because of "health issues" and their concern for you, but rather because it was an easy way to outcast the mexicans at the time.
So why is it still illegal? People say "its bad for you" but really the true meaning behind it was a racial tension back in the early 1900's. Now they just threw some research at you to make it seem as if they did it for you best intrest because the united states is all about freedom and equality and the safety of its people.
Recreational use of the plant was never even recognized until the early 1900's. Before that it was simply smoked and enjoyed like tabacco in the days, only this relaxed you more and had medicinal use.
So you see the real reason behind making it illegal is this
My reasoning for this blog is not to make you think "OMG your right, we should all smoke pot and use it" Because the fact is there are people who abuse it, there are some negative side effects, not many of them, none of them being very severe in my opinion but I do believe it to be true the the vast majority of the population would not abuse it and give us a good shot at turning our economy around because of the taxes they could put on it.
So this was my first article I wrote and thought I would share it.
Thoughts, Comments?
The article was written by me, but I thought I would get some more input and thought on it.
Hemp, Marijuana, Weed, Pot......They are all the same. Yeah there are different strains containing more THC then others but they all can be used Medically, For Textiles, Clean Energy, Food, and so much more. The uses are almost endless. So if there are so many uses why is it illegal? In fact for 99% of its known history it was legal and in use, so what happened? In the united states it was around for many years. In fact there was a law passed in 1619 that you HAD TO grow Indian hemp seed in Jamestown Colony, Virginia. Meaning you could be jailed for NOT growing it in times of need. Also not to mention Hemp was LEGAL TENDER meaning you could pay your taxes in hemp.
So from the 1600's all the way to the early 1900's, it went from acceptable, being mandated, used as legal tender and highly encouraged to illegal. Now what in the world happened?
Reason:
In the early 1900's tension was building between westerners, and Mexican-Americans because of the mexican war that spilled over the border during 1910. Later on, tension developed between small farmers and the large farms that used cheap Mexican labor. Then, the depression came and increased tensions, as jobs and welfare resources became scarce. One of the "differences" seized upon during this time was the fact that many Mexicans smoked marijuana and was looked down upon because Mexicans brought their weed plants with them. California passed the first law against the preparation of hemp, or loco weed. Not only that but the law was influenced not only because of the prejudice against Mexicans, but because of the Mormons who had brought it back with them from mexico at the time, and the churches reaction to it.
Soon after many other states started their own laws against Marijuana (Hemp) ( Wyoming (1915), Texas (1919), Iowa (1923), Nevada (1923), Oregon (1923), Washington (1923), Arkansas (1923), and Nebraska (1927). These laws tended to be specifically targeted against the Mexican population.
When Montana outlawed marijuana in 1927, the Butte Montana Standard reported a legislator's comment: "When some beet field peon takes a few traces of this stuff... he thinks he has just been elected president of Mexico, so he starts out to execute all his political enemies." In Texas, a senator said on the floor of the Senate: "All Mexicans are crazy, and this stuff [marijuana] is what makes them crazy."
So the intent behind outlawing marijuana was never because of "health issues" and their concern for you, but rather because it was an easy way to outcast the mexicans at the time.
So why is it still illegal? People say "its bad for you" but really the true meaning behind it was a racial tension back in the early 1900's. Now they just threw some research at you to make it seem as if they did it for you best intrest because the united states is all about freedom and equality and the safety of its people.
Recreational use of the plant was never even recognized until the early 1900's. Before that it was simply smoked and enjoyed like tabacco in the days, only this relaxed you more and had medicinal use.
So you see the real reason behind making it illegal is this
- Racism
- Fear
- Ignorant, Incompetent, and/or Corrupt Legislators
My reasoning for this blog is not to make you think "OMG your right, we should all smoke pot and use it" Because the fact is there are people who abuse it, there are some negative side effects, not many of them, none of them being very severe in my opinion but I do believe it to be true the the vast majority of the population would not abuse it and give us a good shot at turning our economy around because of the taxes they could put on it.
So this was my first article I wrote and thought I would share it.
Thoughts, Comments?
