I agree that marijuana should be decriminalized for all those reasons.
What is especially ludicrous is that industrial hemp, which is less than 1% THC, is also illegal. Hemp is used to make paper and cloth, among other things. Hemp seed is also a good source of protein. The DEA destroys more hemp every year than it does other varieties of marijuana. From
NORML:
Quote:
Hemp produces a much higher yield per acre than do common substitutes such as cotton and requires few pesticides. In addition, hemp has an average growing cycle of only 100 days and leaves the soil virtually weed-free for the next planting.
The hemp plant is currently harvested for commercial purposes in over 30 nations, including Canada, Japan and the European Union. Although it grows wild across much of America and presents no public health or safety threat, hemp is nevertheless routinely uprooted and destroyed by law enforcement. Each year, approximately 98% of all the marijuana eliminated by the DEA's "Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program" is actually hemp.
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