Marijuana Production in the United States (2006)
Drugscience.org
Based on a comparison with average production values of other crops from 2003 to 2005 marijuana is the top cash crop in 12 states, one of the top 3 cash crops in 30 states, and one of the top 5 cash crops in 39 states. [23] Marijuana is the largest cash crop in Alaska, Alabama, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia. (See Table 8 below.)
Domestic marijuana production often takes place in marginal areas not usually associated with agricultural production. In addition to indoor cultivation in trailers, closets, basements, and attics marijuana is grown outdoors along fence lines, in forests, on other public lands, in undeveloped rural countryside areas, and on other parts of private land generally inaccessible and unseen by the public.
It is much more profitable to make as many things as possible, including Pot, illegal until there are no more Cities, Counties, States, Municipalities or citizen taxpayers to foot the bill because they have been thrown in debtors prison for lack of funds. With just 5% of the population of the world they incarcerate for the profit of stockholders some 20% of all of those imprisoned worldwide.
Did we all of a sudden just become more lawless? No they made more things illegal, sentences longer, mitigation and affirmative Defenses less available, probation much harder and a strategically placed corrupt Judiciary less just. After the privatization of the prison system, the three strikes law was passed and there was a major increase in activity on “The War On Drugs”. Whenever America declares a war on anything you can usually find Americans in the cross hairs.
Congress passed all kinds of draconian laws using the “WAR” on drugs as the excuse to incarcerate. Then the government targeted certain groups to impoverish or set against one another by flooding the neighborhoods with guns and drugs so that the people in those neighborhoods had no other choices.
Then they threw as many people as possible in jail many times by violating their fourth amendment rights. If they could not influence changes in statutes they turned the right to association and freedom of assembly into a tort for negligence or trespass with criminal penalties.
This is going on right now and being fought in the courts in Washington D.C. by Lawyers from the Partnership for Civil Justice because the Police have surrounded a targeted D.C. neighborhood and harass the residents going in and out 24/7. This is a test to see if we will notice and demand they obey the constitution. As usual they target the disenfranchised groups in our country and then they have programed us to blame the victim so we’ll conveniently and sometimes selfishly go along with the charade. This has been a very clever campaign to isolate us from each so we quit caring about anyone but immediate family members.
Then there is an American involvement even in laundering all of the dirty drug money to fund more illegal and secret activities. The unholy marriage between private corporation and public government is shown at its worst when investors in prison stocks cleaned up and the taxpayers got left holding the bag, not only for the cost of keeping our fellow citizens in jail, but the cost of being blamed for not keeping better track of our loved ones.
The most chilling aspect of the situation is that “the powers that should not be” have intentionally targeted the State of California and imprisoned more of its citizens than in any other State.
Furthermore National Geographic came out with a special issue on energy which charges California with being the second largest user of gasoline on the planet. Why are they targeting California? My bet is California is the largest producer of food crops and probably Pot which is the biggest profit crop in the country. Therefore it follows that control by the government of the food and the money is just one step closer to their ultimate goal of total
control. Those who adamantly believe they are free are usually surrounded by invisible cages.
When American investors are unable or unwilling to see the irony in this twisted idea of
liberty, the brainwashing has truly been done and we are blinded to the direction of the evil we face. When we allow ourselves to forget about the other guy, wherever and whomever they might be and we stay silent in the face of blatant injustice we put ourselves in peril of losing our life our liberty our humanity and our destiny.
very interesting statistics are coming out of Portugal which decriminalized drugs in 2001. The outcome of the decriminalization has been a overwhelming success across every category that they measured: reduced drug use, less harm and cost to society…
http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10080
“there is no real debate about whether drugs should once again be criminalized. More significantly, none of the nightmare scenarios touted by preenactment decriminalization opponents — from rampant increases in drug usage among the young to the transformation of Lisbon into a haven for “drug tourists” — has occurred.”
more analysis:
http://www.salon.com/opinion/greenwald/2009/04/26/portugal/index.html
It costs more to make it illegal than it would to legalize it. Look at the numbers in prison, policing and court cost that we the taxpayers are responsible for.
This doesn’t even take into account the amazing number of uses for hemp, the also quite illegal non-psychotropically “high” containing sister plant of marijuana. For example, upon relating the positive experience of someone close to me, I ordered hemp seed powder to add to fruit/veggie/whatever smoothies as a clean, healthy source of protein and countless other good things for the bodies including essential good fats & aminos. Do most muscle building or fitness mags tout this cheap ($27/3 pounds incl. shipping from canada of course) alternative? No.
How many know about the alternatives to paper, cotton, petroleum, just to name a few, that also exist for hemp? Not many. Certainly not the midwestern hard working farmers I grew up around; however during the 40s the govt wanted people to plant it for making hemp rope. Made films encouraging farmers to do just that. How many know that its nearly, like quinoa, a perfect plant/grain for the human body in terms of its nutritional content, ability to grow in multiple stressful climate zones, and its ease of harvest and regrowth as an ‘perennial’ re-growing plant?
How many know that for thousands of years its been found around human living sites supporting them in many beneficial ways? And this is all just Hemp remember, I’m not even going to touch the anxiety reducing, pain killing, therapuetic/emotional releasing benefits of marijuana, because I think they often are more cited and readily available, at this point.
Now, one thing to consider, lastly, is how many domestic violence, murders, mental health committments to mental health care facilities, date rapes, etc. are associated with alcohol? How many with marijuana? Especially in other countries, here too, consider the violence & abhorrent, disgusting violence associated with humans mixing their brain cells being killed with alcohol. This doesn’t even touch upon the long term health effects of alcohol usage either, just the societal and family killing prowess of the most abused drug on the planet, but which one is legal, heavily marketed, not pot. and thank god, what a threat to our values!
I am all for the legalization of Marijuana, however with some strong guidelines. If legalizing it puts it in the hands of regulators who in turn put it in the hands of big Corps, who then chemicalize it like tobacco then I am opposed. Since it already has been “determined”, a medicinal plant in several states, it would seem likely to fall into the hands of the FDA and then possibly “Big Pharma”. This, I believe would “taint” one of “Mother Natures” wonders.
Very interesting, thanks Catherine. Are there similar statistics available, by country for the rest of the planet??
Andrew:
Be careful about the word “anyone.” I live next to small farmers who work very hard at great physical and financial risk to bring in crops of cotton, soybean and corn. There are millions of honest, hardworking people in North America and around the world who are struggling to support themselves and their families.
I give thanks for each and everyone.
Catherine
It makes me sick to think about how all that matters to anyone anymore is MONEY$$$ Is this the meaning of life? Is this why we’re here on this planet? Is this to be the goal of our meager existences? How gross. How sad. How demoralizing.
Actually, I just received an email yesterday stating that the Obama administration had received more feedback on legalizing marijuana–before, during, and after the campaign–than on any other issue and was going to be looking at it as a result. So it is on the radar screen.
Thanks for putting up this statistic. I recall the Obama “town hall” meeting a couple months ago. Citizens were asked to email in their questions and apparently a great many asked about legalizing Cannabis. Obama chuckled at the question, and gave his answer. “No.” He didn’t think that was a good way to grow the economy. I was appalled that such an obvious question rates little more than sniggers from our highest officials. Perhaps it would not grow the economy, but it certainly would bring more justice to our nation. As we jail several times more people than even China.
Brian:
Absolutely. I am assuming that part of legalization is that the gross value will drop dramatically but the taxing authorities believe they can get a bigger piece, so to speak. I would love to learn more about what the “inner” economics are for the municipalities and other constituents locally.
Catherine
Isn’t the cash value of marijuana this survey uses highly inflated because it is illegal? Supposing it was widely legalized, the sale price of marijuana would fall way down and it would no longer top this list… or even be on it?
Ah, so if they legalize it they will tax and regulate it to use as another revenue stream for Empire.