Hemp and
Marijuana Prohibitionists
People who profit directly or indirectly because
of present marijuana probition laws "DO NOT
WANT MARIJUANA LEGALIZED, NOT EVEN FOR MEDICAL USE"
Below is a list of industries and special interest groups which benefit
either directly
or indirectly from marijuana prohibition. Although hemp and marijuana
is not the same plant they do belong in the same family, making them almost
indistinguishable to the uneducated, untrained eye of the law enforcement
officers on the ground and the aerial surveillance cameras above.
(Note to industrial hemp activists)
Hemp
will never be legalized for industrial use as long as marijuana is still
illegal because growing a crop of hemp makes marijuana too difficult to
detect by law enforcement agents.
Logging Industry/Hemp
The logging industry is a very lucritive business, they receive welfare
funding from the state and federal government for roads and equipment in
order to clear cut state and federally owned forests. They
sell the timber to the lumber companies for a handsome profit, the timber
that isn't lumber grade goes to the paper mills. The overhead costs to
the logging industry and paper mills is very low netting them a tidy
profit. Politicians who would approve of this give away and
mass destruction of public land is either heavily invested in the logging
industry or is recieving campaign finance money and/or kickbacks.
Cotton/Nylon Industry/Hemp
Hemp and cotton have long been rivals. Hemp is an excellent material
for a number
of products. Clothing, paper, rope, canvas, fuel, sealant, birdfeed
etc. Cloth made from hemp is more rugged and durable than cloth made from
cotton . Canvas made from hemp used in tents, sails and jeans
is far superior than 100% cotton products. Much of our clothing is a blend
of cotton and the by-products of the oil industry, nylon, rayon and polyester
woven fibers. The cotton industry and the oil industry climbed in
bed together years ago when nylon was invented. Before the invention of
nylon, ropes were made from jute and hemp.
Alcohol Industry/Marijuana
The alcohol industry simply does not want the competetion. Alcoholics
could use marijuana to help them stop drinking. People who are health conscious
might
choose to use marijuana over alcohol because marijuana is much safer
without all the negative side effects. The bars and pubs would loose customers
to coffee shops and tea rooms that allow marijuana smoking. (especially
in New York where smoking is banned in ALL public facilities including
the local bars and cocktail lounges.
Marijuana is a big threat to the alcohol industry and they know it.
Oil Industry/Marijuana
Who would have guessed that the oil industry would benefit from marijuana
prohibition but they do benefit indirectly. US Drug prohibition policies
are
in enforced throughout the world (especially in impoverished countries
that are dominated by US corporate interests. )
The US government dictates drug policies to other countries, supplies
money, arms
and military support to enforce these policies but mainly to protect
US corporate interests against leftists guerillas who are engaged in civil
unrest against oppressive regimes that are allowing US corporations to
plunder their natural resources, pollute their environment, violate human
rights and abuse workers with unfair labor practices
Also included in this list of marijuana prohibition benefactors is organized crime and their Black Market suppliers, terrorist groups
as well as the Government agencies listed below.
DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY= Benefits from State and Federal government grants/ money from fines/siezed property and forfeitures. This has resulted in the errosion of the criminal justice system, civil liberties and our bill of rights. Drug task force agents have even went so far as to solicate the sale of marijuana while busting the marijuana buyer for possession of the very marijuana they were just sold by the undercover agent ( entrapment). These drug agents have played so fast and loose with the law they think they are above the it. Where's the oversight? Why is it ok for agents to use/sell drugs as long as they say they are doing it in order to bust buyers?
In the state of TN over the past decade several
new private for profit CCA prisons were built. A law was passed to
make it a felony to have a large sum of cash money in your possession.
The term large sum loosely applied by local law enforcement agents can
mean as little as 250.00. You are automatically assumed guilty of a drug
crime until you prove yourself innocent. No drugs need be present
in order for you to be charged with a drug crime and your money
seized.
Even when you prove you are innocent you still
have to file a form within 10 days in order to get your money back which
can take up to several days - weeks and you still only recieve a percentage
of the amount you had when you were arrested. This doesn't even touch
on the cost of hiring a lawyer, bondsman and any lost time from work
or the defamation of character when your name appears in the local newspaper.
One thing for certain it does do, it fills
the prison system with non violate inmates and the local police dept, court
system and drug task force with additional revenue. It also unfairly
targets the poor and the minorities. If you are a minority or you are dressed
in jeans, driving an old pickup truck you better not have more than few
bucks in your pocket if you are in the state of Tennessee.
Private Prison Industry/Marijuana/Hemp
Corporate greed and slave labor is at the bottom of the private for profit prison system. This industry recieves state and federal money to build and warehouse prisoners. The inmates who are incarcerated for non violate drug related crimes are given the opportunity to work off part of their sentences by allowing their labor to be farmed out by the prison (volunteer work program). The prison not only recieves federal or state money to incarcerate each prisoner they also make a profit by selling the labor of these non violant medium and minimum security prisoners to private corporations (logging industry, cotton fields, factory farms).
This private for profit prison industry has resulted in at least 50% of all inmates who are incarcerated in the prison system today are there for non violate drug related crimes.
These private prisons are notorious for wide spread abuse and neglect
and the general lack of oversight.
The private prison industry is costing the states too much money, more
money than the states can afford. Money that could be better spent in the
dept of education, transportation and the dept of housing instead of
going toward maintaining the present prison population. It cost the
taxpayers approx. 100.00 a day ($ 36,000.00 a year) to house a state prisoner.
The state could certainly save themselves a lot of money by reducing the
amount of prisoners incarcerated for long periods of time on mandatory
drug sentencing.
Wouldn't it make just about as much sense and be a lot less expensive if instead of incarceration the state simply gave the offender a community service job and paid them 50.00 a day not to use drugs again for a determined period of time. During this period of time drug test the offender on a weekly basis and dock him of his pay for the week he doesn't test clean. This would give the offender an incentive NOT to use drugs again and would save the state millions of dollars each year. The only problem with this idea is the unemployed might be tempeted to deliberately get themselves arrested on a drug related charge so they too could recieve a pay check.
ALCOHOL TOBACCO FIREARMS (The Untouchables)
The first thing Elliot Ness said he would do when alcohol prohibition ended was to go to the nearest bar and have himself a stiff drink, maybe even get drunk. We all know that alcohol prohibition corrupted politicians, mayors and police depts nationwide, while turning cities into gangland battle zones. When "Happy Days" was finally here again these untouchables needed something else to do to keep them busy. Marijuana was the perfect answer, primarily targeting African Americans, Mexicans and blues/jazz musicans. The media portrayed smoking pot as something only the misfits and undesirables did opposed to the socially acceptable, upper middle class Americans who's desire was only to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol, engage in unprotected sex and drive fast cars.
This is the image that the alcohol and tobacco corporations would have us believe. Some of the most popular movies in the 40's-80's glamorized the use of alcohol, tobacco and firearms.
CENTERAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
These are the guys who get to go to foreign countries,
dabble in politics and dictate
US policies related to trade, arms and drugs.
they act as overseers to make sure other countries are abiding by US arms
and drug policies. These are the real untouchables because they can pretty
much do as they please without much over sight.
HOMELAND SECURITY
This agency was set up after 9/11 to act as domestic
super spy to police the activities of millions of citizens for the sake
of homeland security. Spying on citizens while looking for suspected
terrorists is suppose to act as a defensive measure to safe guard Americans
against any future terrorist attacks
Instead of just looking for would be terrorists that might pose a threat
to our national security, the office of Homeland Security is using
their massive domestic super spy operation to sniff out drug offenders.
The Bush Administration is portraying marijuana users as supporters of
terrorism because the money they spend to purchase illegal marijuana
might find it's way into the hands of a terrorist. The simple solution
would be to legalize and regulate marijuana. If drug money is going to
support terrorism then
legalizing marijuana would hurt terrorists financially.
(marijuana prohibitionists are the real supporters of terrorism
because they want to maintain the black market by keeping marijuana illegal
therefore encouraging the flow of illegal drugs into this country)
Homeland security is also designed to centralize the government and give the agency more sweeping power without congressional oversight or approval in order to bring America under a military police state, abolish the bill of rights, destroy the constitution and usher in a dictatorship.
A military industrial complex with a military
base in every country has long been the dream of egomanics everywhere
who lust after world domiance. The US being the military superpower makes
the dream all that much more grandious and appealing to
a madman and those who share his ambitions.
People working for the criminal justice system,
wardens, jailers, prosecuting attornies, judges and politicians.
The very people who make and enforce these
marijuana prohibition laws, exempt themselves from the laws and the screening
they vigorously impose upon others.
The prison system quit randomly drug screening
jailers because the majority of them couldn't pass a piss test. Doesn't
it make you wonder about the judges, prosecuting attornies, wardens and
politicians who make and enforce these laws and are themselves never subjected
to random drug testing?
page created 1/17/03