Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Ditchweed

Believe it or not, there are already hundreds of millions of Hemp plants growing in the United States. For example, in 2005, in Indiana alone, there were over 200 million hemp plants! That represents thousands and thousands of acres! The United States is already growing hemp, it seems.
Turns out, this Feral Hemp, or Ditchweed, is actually just wild Hemp that continues to grow year after year, left over from a long legacy of hemp farming. The hemp could probably be used for simple products like Animal Bedding or Biomass for Agrofuel, but this is not the case.
The DEA began its Domestic Cannabis Eradication/Suppression Program in 1979 and has been expanding since. While I'm sure they would like to find growhouses with high potency marijuana, these are not very easy to find, if you've ever looked yourself. However, it is easy to find a desolate field covered with grass; this is a general description of the Great Plains. So,
Over 98% or Cannabis Seized by the DEA in their "Cannabis Eradication" program is actually wild Hemp; containing generally less than 1% THC. When I first heard this I did not actually believe it. But low and behold, it has been going on for years, according to NORML.
Apparently, the DEA spends taxpayer dollars to harvest and burn an agricultural commodity. According to The Data, States like Kansas, Missouri, and Indiana have acres upon acres of uncultivated Marijuana plants.

The Irony? However, the DEA being ridiculous about their inability to distinguish between Hemp and Marijuana makes a little more sense, now that the DEA has admitted to being legitimately insane. They started this Marijuana Eradication Program and all they can find is Feral Hemp. If they actually legalized hemp, what would happen to the Marijuana eradication program? They would lose 98% of their Taxpayer Profits!

Seriously, I can't believe there are already thousands acres of Hemp growing in the United States. And why does the DEA insist on calling it all Marijuana?

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

I'm Quoted in the Paper!

So a few weeks ago, a journalist came to write an article about Capitol Hemp, Adam Eidinger's (my boss) new Hemp store. Long story short, she wrote an article that was published in today's Express, Washington DC's free daily newspaper. You should check it out Here
I am quoted as "the wiry young hemp enthusiast". Its pretty cool.

Vote Hemp Intern

As my first blog entry, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Ben Droz and I am currently working as an intern for Vote Hemp. That means that I do anything and everything I can to advance Hemp. That means, for example, leaving hundreds of voicemails in offices of Capitol Hill, with little response. Plus, I go to Capitol Hill sometimes.

OK.

If you read this, make a comment that says you read it. I will not blog if no one reads it. If people read it (like people used to check bendroz.negimaki.com), I will update it.

Now... lets see if this blog is sustainable....