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David Malmo-Levine's Blog
about David Malmo-Levine
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The Devil in the Details: Why Russ Belville is Slightly Wrong About His "5 Pot Myths That Must Be Busted"
By David Malmo-Levine - Thursday, March 6 2014
FOLLOW:
"I've been studying marijuana professionally for eight years now and have read more reports, studies, and data than most of you put together."
– Russ Belville, Sept. 26 at 10:20am, Facebook
CANNABIS CULTURE - I am saddened when pot activists do sloppy research and hold it out to the public as the truth. I am even more saddened when it takes the form of an attack on other pot activists.
If you're going to attack your fellow pot activists, make sure you have your own facts straight – or you're going to look really stupid – and be proven wrong by activists who don't appreciate being talked down to.
Case in point: Russ Belville, who writes for HighTimes.com, wrote a very superficial article called "5 Pro-Pot Myths That Must Be Busted":
attacking unnamed activists for promoting five "pot myths". Except his understanding of each myth was missing some vital truth – a truth that is even more important to understand than the myth he is attempting to "bust".
1) Washington's "hemp quotes" – they weren't just about industrial hemp
Belville's first myth was about "Debunked Presidential Quotes". He points out some quotes that are no doubt baseless, such as the Jefferson quote "Some of my finest hours have been spent on my back veranda, smoking hemp and observing as far as my eye can see." and the Lincoln quote "Two of my favorite things are sitting on my front porch smoking a pipe of sweet hemp, and playing my Hohner harmonica."
But then Belville goes on to say that "The Founding Father's hemp quotes, though, are totally legit."
Hemp quotes?
Let's look at these quotes closely. The most famous Founding Father cannabis quotes are from George Washington:
"Began to seperate the Male from the Female hemp at Do.—rather too late." 7 August 1765
http://founders.archives.gov/?q=Volume%3AWashington-01-01&s=1511311112&r...
http://cdn1.theweedblog.com/wp-content/uploads//George-Washington-Diary.gif
As some other cannabis activists have bothered to note:
"…his phrase "rather too late" suggests that he wanted to complete the separation *before the female plants were fertilized*--and this was a practice related to drug potency rather that to fiber culture."
http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_history2.shtml
Then there is the "India hemp" quotes:
"I also gave the Gardener a few Seed of East India hemp to raise from, enquire for the seed which has been saved, and make the most of it at the proper Season for Sowing." - Jan. 6th 1794
http://founders.archives.gov/?q="India hemp"&s=1511311112&sa=&r=1&sr=
"I cannot with certainty recollect, whether I saw the India hemp growing when I was last at Mount Vernon; but think it was in the Vineyard; somewhere I hope it was sown, and therefore desire that the Seed may be saved in due season & with as little loss as possible: that, if it be valuable, I may make the most of it." Augt 17th 1794.
http://founders.archives.gov/?q="India hemp"&s=1511311112&sa=&r=3&sr=
According to all sources, "India hemp" was "grown all over India for intoxification, but never for cordage",
and that "the principle virtue of this species lay in the strength of its narcotic properties".
http://wlbcenter.org/Schultes Publications/BotMusLeaf_23_337-367.pdf (p. 351)
So if Washington was growing sensimilla and later on growing India hemp (cannabis indica), "in the Vineyard" - along with his wine grapes rather than out in the field - what makes Belville think that this founding father is only talking about industrial hemp? Belville should mention that the "hemp quotes" are actually "marijuana quotes".
about David Malmo-Levine
www.potshot.ca
more blog posts
The Devil in the Details: Why Russ Belville is Slightly Wrong About His "5 Pot Myths That Must Be Busted"
By David Malmo-Levine - Thursday, March 6 2014
FOLLOW:
- ACTIVISM
- CANCER
- DAVID MALMO-LEVINE
- FOUNDING FATHERS
- HEMP
- HIGH TIMES
- MEDICAL MARIJUANA
- RUSS BELVILLE
– Russ Belville, Sept. 26 at 10:20am, Facebook
CANNABIS CULTURE - I am saddened when pot activists do sloppy research and hold it out to the public as the truth. I am even more saddened when it takes the form of an attack on other pot activists.
If you're going to attack your fellow pot activists, make sure you have your own facts straight – or you're going to look really stupid – and be proven wrong by activists who don't appreciate being talked down to.
Case in point: Russ Belville, who writes for HighTimes.com, wrote a very superficial article called "5 Pro-Pot Myths That Must Be Busted":
attacking unnamed activists for promoting five "pot myths". Except his understanding of each myth was missing some vital truth – a truth that is even more important to understand than the myth he is attempting to "bust".
1) Washington's "hemp quotes" – they weren't just about industrial hemp
Belville's first myth was about "Debunked Presidential Quotes". He points out some quotes that are no doubt baseless, such as the Jefferson quote "Some of my finest hours have been spent on my back veranda, smoking hemp and observing as far as my eye can see." and the Lincoln quote "Two of my favorite things are sitting on my front porch smoking a pipe of sweet hemp, and playing my Hohner harmonica."
But then Belville goes on to say that "The Founding Father's hemp quotes, though, are totally legit."
Hemp quotes?
Let's look at these quotes closely. The most famous Founding Father cannabis quotes are from George Washington:
"Began to seperate the Male from the Female hemp at Do.—rather too late." 7 August 1765
http://founders.archives.gov/?q=Volume%3AWashington-01-01&s=1511311112&r...
http://cdn1.theweedblog.com/wp-content/uploads//George-Washington-Diary.gif
As some other cannabis activists have bothered to note:
"…his phrase "rather too late" suggests that he wanted to complete the separation *before the female plants were fertilized*--and this was a practice related to drug potency rather that to fiber culture."
http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_history2.shtml
Then there is the "India hemp" quotes:
"I also gave the Gardener a few Seed of East India hemp to raise from, enquire for the seed which has been saved, and make the most of it at the proper Season for Sowing." - Jan. 6th 1794
http://founders.archives.gov/?q="India hemp"&s=1511311112&sa=&r=1&sr=
"I cannot with certainty recollect, whether I saw the India hemp growing when I was last at Mount Vernon; but think it was in the Vineyard; somewhere I hope it was sown, and therefore desire that the Seed may be saved in due season & with as little loss as possible: that, if it be valuable, I may make the most of it." Augt 17th 1794.
http://founders.archives.gov/?q="India hemp"&s=1511311112&sa=&r=3&sr=
According to all sources, "India hemp" was "grown all over India for intoxification, but never for cordage",
and that "the principle virtue of this species lay in the strength of its narcotic properties".
http://wlbcenter.org/Schultes Publications/BotMusLeaf_23_337-367.pdf (p. 351)
So if Washington was growing sensimilla and later on growing India hemp (cannabis indica), "in the Vineyard" - along with his wine grapes rather than out in the field - what makes Belville think that this founding father is only talking about industrial hemp? Belville should mention that the "hemp quotes" are actually "marijuana quotes".