Pubdate: Thu, 07 May 2015
Source: Reno News & Review (NV)
Copyright: 2015, Chico Community Publishing, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.newsreview.com/issues/reno/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2524
Author: J.R. Reynolds

THE VICIOUSLY IGNORANT

I am astonished at the uncompromising ignorance some people exhibit 
while speaking (or writing) on a topic they know absolutely nothing 
about. The subject matter of concern to me here is marijuana, and 
more specifically, the plant itself. The hemp plant has been around 
for millennia, and has provided humans with benefits still being 
discovered to this very day.

The discovery of the New World was powered by hemp sails and rigging. 
With modern technology, we are learning we can use the hemp plant in 
many ways to take advantage of this natural gift of the earth. Hemp 
seed, as an example, is nature's perfect food product, containing 
proteins and essential fatty acids. Only recently have we talked 
about the medicinal benefits contained in marijuana. Some state 
legislators have passed laws legalizing medical marijuana, including 
our very own state of Nevada. Others have begun the process of 
legalizing the plant for recreational use.

Why aren't we using hemp today to save our environment? Deforestation 
is slowly killing our planet! Have you considered how much paper we 
consume in any given day? Constitutionalists should know that the 
Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were written on hemp 
paper. Why aren't we doing that today? The answer, of course is 
simple-greed! Big money interests want to keep this plant illegal for 
all the obvious reasons. And so, you see, I could go on and on about 
benefits to humanity, not to mention the buds can give you a buzz. 
But seriously, we've known about this for decades and we haven't 
really done anything about it until recently, as in sporadic 
legalization. And that's not good enough.

We need to educate ourselves about marijuana and hemp so we may 
eradicate the ignorance about this plant. I try not to sound mean 
about this, but some of these self-proclaimed drug warriors need to 
understand the harm this idiocy (the drug war) has caused our great 
nation. We need people to stand up against this every chance they 
get. It's the only way we have a chance to stand up to the big money 
interests-our voices.

J.R. Reynolds

Reno
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