by Matthew Tyler Funk

Created on: February 04, 2008   Last Updated: November 30, 2010

I like to refer to the US government's prohibition of cannabis as a "policy of enforced extinction."

Marijuana is the term used for the premature flowers (or buds) of the cannabis plant; cannabis and marijuana cannot be separated, unless the lifespan of the plant is cut short before natural reproduction has a chance to take place. What we now term "dirt weed" and "schwag" - you know, the stuff that doesn't really get you high - are the wild unrefined strains of cannabis that have a much lower potency when smoked; and some people for this reason call these plants "hemp," as if it is distinct from marijuana; but these plants still have flowers and they are still smokable and there's nothing that I'm aware of to suggest that the flowers of these cannabis plants should not be called marijuana.

To call a plant a "hemp plant" is not really correct, hemp and marijuana are both separate parts of one plant; the cannabis plant. Of course, when people think of marijuana today it is a much more potent item than it ever was before the plant was domesticated and bred for potency over many hundreds or maybe thousands of generations. If you smoke with someone who hasn't smoked since the 60's, they would be very surprised at how powerful the modern product is. So while there may be grounds for a distinction between varieties of cannabis; hemp and marijuana will not do it because hemp and marijuana are parts of the cannabis plant that all cannabis plants have in common. If we were to make an accurate distinction we would need to use different words; perhaps species names.

Anyway, on with the history lesson (or at least my version of it). Of course, there were and all the racist reasons for marijuana prohibition, as there were with the prohibition of most of the better known illicit drugs. But hemp, which refers to the fibrous strands that can be made from the stalks of the cannabis plant, has incredible potential for commercial and industrial applications. The fiber is very strong and was used for centuries for all the lines and rigging on ships, as well as to make the canvas for the sails.

Obviously I don't support using hemp for industrial purposes (because I don't support using anything for industrial purposes) but here is a list of all the things that hemp can be used to make - from the website of the HIA or Hemp Industries Association:

'Accessories
back packs, bags, beanies, belts, briefcases, caps, checkbook covers, gloves, guitar straps, hair ties, hats (knit, crocheted

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