General Discussion

RainDog

(28,784 posts) Thu Jun 5, 2014, 03:50 PM Jun 2014

The Hemp Wars: Is DEA Dazed & Confused Over Industrial Hemp?

As noted here earlier, the DEA considers hemp a narcotic, even tho it's not psychotropic. Because of this insane policy, the DEA seized 250 lbs. of hemp seed destined for KY.

Last week, the House of Representatives told the DEA to leave hemp alone.

Massie, the author of one bill, said Kentucky was forced into a "waste of time and money and the court system's limited resources" during a legal battle with the DEA over its hemp seeds this month. “The DEA is not above Congress, it’s not above the law,” Massie added. “This amendment simply asks the DEA to follow existing laws.”

Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) begs to differ because, according to him, the DEA needs to inspect every cannabis plant to make sure it's one with low levels of THC. Yes. This is reefer madness. Still. In the House.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/is-dea-dazed-confused-over-industrial-hemp-20140604

Just a few weeks ago, Kentucky’s Department of Agriculture filed a lawsuit in federal court to force the DEA to release the confiscated seeds, which were imported from Italy. Following a two-week battle in federal court, the DEA released the seeds. But only after Kentucky officials applied for a controlled substance permit. The "controlled substance" was delivered via UPS truck to State Agriculture Commissioner James Comer’s office and some were planted at University of Kentucky’s research farm in Lexington, Kentucky. Scientists there hope to pinpoint which types of hemp will grow best in the region.

In a May 22nd letter releasing the seeds, the DEA warned Kentucky officials that private farmers could face prosecution for planting hemp, and pilot projects could be destroyed as part of the federal marijuana eradication program. The DEA said it seized the seeds because the intent of the farm bill is unclear and doesn’t include rules for importing hemp seeds. In response, state officials sent a letter to a federal judge in Louisville, seeking a declaratory ruling. A court date has yet to be announced.

The DEA’s confusion is unwarranted, according to U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Louisville), who helped draft the Farm Bill legislation. McConnell recently released a statement, saying he was frustrated that "the DEA is using its finite resources to stymie plainly lawful hemp pilot projects at the very time Kentucky is facing growing threats from heroin addiction and other drug abuse."

The DEA has stated repeatedly that law enforcement officials might not be able to distinguish legal hemp from illegal marijuana. In the May 22nd letter, the agency "strongly suggests" Kentucky officials provide details such as global positioning coordinates for hemp plots and anticipated growing dates.

It's time for Leonhart to go. It's time for the DEA to be defunded. It's time to remove cannabis in any form outside of the purview of the DEA.

A lawyer for the KY hemp farmers says the Hemp bill makes it clear hemp is an agricultural product, not a drug.

But the reality is that Congress has created laws that make hemp a drug. Congress needs to change those laws, outright, by removing cannabis from the controlled substances act.

A Democrat re-introduced such legislation this week. The hemp growers are prepared to go to court to fight the DEA. They shouldn't have to go to court. Congress should simply DO ITS JOB and take action to stop this interference from a federal agency that should not have control over an herb.

11 replies

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Highlight:

The Hemp Wars: Is DEA Dazed & Confused Over Industrial Hemp? (Original Post) RainDog Jun 2014 OP

Henry Miller: bemildred Jun 2014 #1

Contact your Rep. in the House and in the Senate RainDog Jun 2014 #2

I Agree With Everything You Say MagickMuffin Jun 2014 #3

Hemp is an excellent cash crop RainDog Jun 2014 #4

Anyone Who Knows of Jack Herer and His Excellent Book "The Emperor Wears No Clothes", MagickMuffin Jun 2014 #6

Vulture capitalists like monopolies RainDog Jun 2014 #11

AND it's good for the environment. redqueen Jun 2014 #5

From your link: RainDog Jun 2014 #7

No, the assholes are desperate to keep their jobs Warpy Jun 2014 #8

Much of the DEA's budget for the Wod RainDog Jun 2014 #10

Kicked and recommended. Uncle Joe Jun 2014 #9

bemildred

(90,061 posts)

1. Henry Miller:

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 03:56 PM

Jun 2014

For the man in the paddock, whose duty it is to sweep up manure, the supreme terror is the possibility of a world without horses.

-- Henry Miller in Tropic of Cancer"

RainDog

(28,784 posts)

2. Contact your Rep. in the House and in the Senate

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:00 PM

Jun 2014

H.R. 499 seeks to remove cannabis from the jurisdiction of the DEA. Please contact your representative to indicate your support for this bill. Here's a list to find your representative: http://www.house.gov/representatives/

more info in this LBN post: http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014818432

You can find your Senator's contact information here: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

The Senate needs to approve an amendment that would defund the DEA so that they cannot interfere with medical marijuana in the majority of states in the U.S. where this is legal. The Senate also needs to vote in support of hemp legislation. Both of these are amendments to H.R. 4660.

http://ssdp.org/assets/MASSIE_022_xml.pdf

http://ssdp.org/assets/BONAMI_045_xml.pdf

MagickMuffin

(15,936 posts)

3. I Agree With Everything You Say

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:01 PM

Jun 2014

These insane laws against an herb, is well, just insane.

Perhaps the DEA should smoke every Cannabis - Hemp plant they encounter and they would soon know the difference. Doing so would definitely have an effect whether positive or negative. I.E. they would either have a delightful experience or a tremendous headache!

I do find it interesting that McConnell is in favor of hemp production.

RainDog

(28,784 posts)

4. Hemp is an excellent cash crop

Reply to MagickMuffin (Reply #3)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:03 PM

Jun 2014

This article talks about the KY hemp program. It's an excellent read.

The Other Cannabis War: The Battle Over Hemp

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/the-other-cannabis-war-20140603

...Despite its patriotic bona fides, cannabis sativa was a victim of reefer madness in almost every decade of the 20th Century. Praised, taxed, vilified, confused with pot and blamed for killing sprees and the theft of American jobs by immigrants. The final nail in hemp's coffin was its classification as a Schedule 1 narcotic in 1970's Controlled Substances Act.

The U.S. is the only industrialized nation without a commercial hemp industry. All the hemp sold in the U.S., including the food and body products lining the shelves of Costco, the Body Shop and Whole Foods is imported. As Americans buy hemp, Britain, China, France and Germany are among the countries benefiting from America’s incoherent drug policy. Last year, Canadian farmers grew 67,000 acres of hemp and say they may not be able to grow enough to fill this year's orders. David Bronner began adding hemp oil — imported from Canada — to his liquid soaps in 1999. "I thought this was the most ridiculous piece of the drug war," he says "that a non-drug agricultural crop was caught up here."

In 2001, in a fit of drug war paranoia, the DEA declared a ban on foods that contain hemp including certain cereals, salad dressings, breads and veggie burgers — claiming that the foods contained THC. Effected businesses were given 120 days to dump their inventories. With the hemp food market just taking off, 200 hemp companies, including Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap, took the DEA to court. The lawsuit allowed the hemp industry to make its case in the media. Hemp won the bruising battle nearly three years later when a federal judge in San Francisco ruled that the government couldn't regulate the trace amounts of THC that occur naturally in hemp seeds.

...In Kentucky, farming programs for veterans that teach families how to grow their own food have just sewn hemp in collaboration with the agriculture department and Vote Hemp. Mike Lewis, a military veteran and food security expert who founded the group in 2012 when his brother returned from the war in Afghanistan with a brain injury, now has grant money for a hemp textile project and part-time work for twelve people. This in a state with a 19% poverty rate. "Appalachia has a strong history of textiles," Lewis observes. "In my vision that's what's missing from rural communities, ag income. People used to survive off tobacco. If it has to be hemp for textiles, let's do it. People call hemp a panacea, a pipe dream, but look how many people came together from all walks of life in Kentucky to make this happen."

MagickMuffin

(15,936 posts)

6. Anyone Who Knows of Jack Herer and His Excellent Book "The Emperor Wears No Clothes",

Reply to RainDog (Reply #4)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:17 PM

Jun 2014

knows all about Hemp and how it was a cash crop long before it was deemed an evil "drug" by crazed lawmakers. One thing for sure is there are still crazed lawmakers imposing stupid laws against our best interests.

Clothes, varnishes, rope, food, paper, on and on………

I actually gave a copy of The Emperor Wears No Clothes to President Jimmy Carter during one of his book signings. Unfortunately, he wasn't impressed with the concept at the time, hopefully his views have changed.

RainDog

(28,784 posts)

11. Vulture capitalists like monopolies

Reply to MagickMuffin (Reply #6)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 06:39 PM

Jun 2014

That's why they have to get busted up every so often.

I would imagine Carter's views have evolved - he was the last president to speak openly that marijuana should be decriminalized and who tried to make it happen.

As a farmer, I'm sure he could appreciate the value of a good cash crop, too.

redqueen

(115,103 posts)

5. AND it's good for the environment.

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:08 PM

Jun 2014

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashoka/2013/05/29/industrial-hemp-a-win-win-for-the-economy-and-the-environment/

K&R

RainDog

(28,784 posts)

7. From your link:

Reply to redqueen (Reply #5)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:26 PM

Jun 2014

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashoka/2013/05/29/industrial-hemp-a-win-win-for-the-economy-and-the-environment/

Over time, the use of industrial hemp has evolved into an even greater variety of products, including health foods, organic body care, clothing, construction materials, biofuels, plastic composites and more (according to one source, more than 25,000 products can be made from hemp).

Sustainable hemp seed, fiber and oil are still used in raw materials by major companies, including Ford Motors, Patagonia, and The Body Shop, to make a wide variety of products. However, most hemp product manufacturers are forced to import hemp seed, oil and fiber from growers in Canada, Europe, and China because American farmers are prohibited by law from growing this low-input sustainable crop.

In 2012 the U.S. hemp industry was valued at an estimated $500 million in annual retail sales and growing for all hemp products, according to the Hemp Industries Association, a non-profit trade organization consisting of hundreds of hemp businesses.

Not only can hemp be used for an astonishing number of products, its net environmental benefit is impressive. Among the more salient features, hemp grows in a variety of climates and soil types, is naturally resistant to most pests, and grows very tightly spaced allowing it to outcompete most weeds. A natural substitute for cotton and wood fiber, hemp can also be pulped using fewer chemicals than wood because of its low lignin content. Its natural brightness can obviate the need to use chlorine bleach.

Some anthropologists think cannabis was the first plant that was domesticated by humans.

It has multiple uses, from different parts of the plant, for different human activities. The person in China who is considered the "father of medicine and agriculture" wrote about the multiple uses of the plant thousands of years ago. It's one of, if not the, oldest domesticated plants.

Warpy

(111,252 posts)

8. No, the assholes are desperate to keep their jobs

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:31 PM

Jun 2014

and the assholes at the top are desperate to keep upping their funding.

I agree that Congress needs to do its fucking job instead of naming post office against right wing heroes. The DEA has been raging out of control for quite long enough. It's time to rein it in, cut its funding, and give its paramilitary the option of joining the real military or retiring.

RainDog

(28,784 posts)

10. Much of the DEA's budget for the Wod

Reply to Warpy (Reply #8)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:47 PM

Jun 2014

goes to no-bid military contracts with no accountability to Congress for the use of the funds. Millions of dollars, every year.

No doubt the pigs at the trough don't want the American people to interfere with this.

Uncle Joe

(58,355 posts)

9. Kicked and recommended.

Reply to RainDog (Original post)

Thu Jun 5, 2014, 04:33 PM

Jun 2014

Thanks for the thread, RainDog.

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