CNN on Hemp

CNN has put together a timeline about hemp and the movement to legalize its production in the US. See the timeline and read the article here.
Thanks to VoteHemp.org for sharing this with me and for providing much of the information for CNN's story.

"Hemp won't get you high," the article says.

We already knew this. So why is it outlawed when hemp could revive our economy, not to mention save our environment?? Could it be that hemp would be a major competitor in a number of industries, namely energy?

Hemp is a weed, so it requires much less water than corn or other crops. It's a hardy plant, too, less susceptible to disease and pests.

According to the article, the DEA says it's just doing its job by enforcing the Controlled Substances Act. DEA spokesman Michael Sanders said that, "Until Congress does something, we have to enforce the laws."

Great. We have to wait for Congress to do something? Then I'm afraid it will never be done.

"Asked if the DEA opposes the stalled House Resolution 1009, which would nix industrial hemp from the definition of marijuana, Sanders said the Justice Department and President Bush would make that call.

"When it comes to laws, we don't have a dog in that fight," he said.

The Justice Department has no position yet on the resolution, said spokesman Erik Ablin. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, however, is skeptical because of the burden hemp would place on law enforcement resources. Also, hemp advocates are regularly backed -- sometimes surreptitiously -- by the pro-marijuana movement, the office alleges."

And marijuana is just so BAD. Right?