Pubdate: Thu, 11 May 2000 Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA) Copyright: 2000 The Media News Group Contact: P.O. Box 9, Chico, CA 95927 Fax: (530) 342-3617 Website: http://www.chicoer.com/ Author: James Vanderhoof MAKE PAPER FROM HEMP The United States has 2 million human beings in prison. A large portion of those are there for victimless crimes, such as smoking pot. The fact is that the legal drugs, i.e., alcohol and cigarettes, are far more destructive than pot. Activist Julia "Butterfly" Hill wants to protect the redwoods in Humboldt County. So do I. But the best way to do this is to decriminalize pot, or hemp. Why? Because hemp makes the most excellent and durable sort of paper. The U.S. Declaration of Independence was in fact written on paper made from hemp. The draconian and stupid laws against hemp are a relatively recent development in American history and arose about the time that America decided it had to become a superpower - not what Jefferson intended. We don't need to cut down a single tree in order to make paper. We should be making all our paper from hemp, not from trees. Hemp grows quickly - it is a weed after all - and requires minimal care. I don't like the effects of pot myself, but these draconian laws against an environmentally useful plant are the mark of a police state, not a republic. If we had reverence for life we would not act the way we do towards God's lovely Earth, which we did not create. "Dominion" in the Bible really means being good stewards or caretakers, not destroyers of the environment. - - James Vanderhoof, Chico - --- MAP posted-by: Greg