Video: Brief History of Weed

As a promo for their sitcom Weeds, Showtime created this concise history of cannabis.

[#1 posted by mdh, May 21, 2009 9:56 AM]

I think of it as more of a doorway drug - as I always go through the door, into the kitchen for a snack, shortly after having some.

[#2 posted by Brainspore, May 21, 2009 10:03 AM]

What, no mention of the W.R. Hearst-led smear campaign that was the reason WHY hemp became illegal, or the fact that it was actually Nixon that coined the term "War on Drugs?"

One upside to this recession: the State and Federal governments may finally realize they can't AFFORD to keep criminalizing pot. After all, it was largely the Great Depression that finally did in alcohol prohibition.

[#3 posted by hoffmanbike, May 21, 2009 10:10 AM]

i'm one of those crazies that doesn't drink or smoke... but i still think it should be legallizied and taxed. i think legalized pot would be a good thing.

[#4 posted by David Pescovitz, May 21, 2009 10:21 AM]

MDH @1, LOL!!!

[#5 posted by TroofSeeker, May 21, 2009 10:25 AM]

That was a cool video! Can't take their stats as facts, being such biased propaganda, but now I hate Columbus less and love George Washington even more! Maybe the colonists should have focused on crops that are more edible, like corn, so they could make corn chips. Munch munch!
d8^)

[#6 posted by knodi, May 21, 2009 10:29 AM]

I find this topic fascinating, and look forward to revisiting this article once the comment count has had time to build up.

I drink a little, and have never smoked weed (or anything else). Nancy Reagan brainwashed me as a kid; all I can do now is Just Say No. :-( Seriously, I have the same reaction to smoking weed as sky-diving; I want to, I approve, but when the opportunity is there, I can't seem to step out. But I don't think that really matters.

I believe my stance FOR legalization is actually made stronger by my abstinence; no one can say I'm being self-serving or trying to justify my own actions. Legalize it!

[#7 posted by Takuan, May 21, 2009 10:32 AM]

when the Waronsomedrugs Industry becomes the next victim of the Bush Depression, what will be done for the hundreds of thousands of innocents currently rotting in Prison Industry Complex warehouses? Are there plans for getting them out and giving back their lives? Or will they simply be liquidated since that is so much cheaper?

[#8 posted by Anonymous, May 21, 2009 10:33 AM]

Cute vid, but they don't differentiate hemp & marijuana. Hemp was widely grown to make ropes and twines. You try to smoke Hemp & you'll get a nasty headache and lousy high.

[#9 posted by Anonymous, May 21, 2009 10:38 AM]

The music for this is amazing!! I really like the artist whose music got placed in this...found him on myspace of all places:

www.myspace.com/emeenz

[#10 posted by Dilapidus, May 21, 2009 10:56 AM]

I would very much like to see the scholarly evidence for the claims made here. I'm not a hater, but I would like to be armed with verifiable facts when I talk to people.

Can anyone recommend a peer reviewed overview of this stuff or some reasonably unimpeachable source?

[#11 posted by Liquid 2, May 21, 2009 11:09 AM]

Dilapidus (#8): I'm not sure what you mean by "this stuff" (especially since I can't watch the video since I'm at work), but assuming you're talking about decriminalization/legalization--they're different things, but are similar in many aspects--here's a link to a white paper by someone at the Cato Institute analyzing the results of Portugal's decriminalization of all drugs (including things like cocaine and heroine) since 2001, when the law took effect. http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=10080
The benefits of their policy are simply astounding, and I can't believe that their example hasn't been followed.

[#12 posted by ill lich, May 21, 2009 11:19 AM]

"1880: Turkish smoking parlors open up all over the Northeast"

Well. . . that would explain the sudden popularity of Barbershop Quartets, those harmonies were trippy.

[#13 posted by MCOBigBen, May 21, 2009 11:23 AM]

I think they're discussing hemp for the most part, which has plenty of uses beyond recreational. I'd bet a lunch that Jamestown was growing it for practical purposes.

[#14 posted by Takuan, May 21, 2009 11:27 AM]

the web literally overflows with cannabis resources.
Any wishing to verify historic or scientific claims need only google and read.

[#15 posted by toxonix, May 21, 2009 12:53 PM]

Hemp is great. Rotating it in with other crops is beneficial, and its very hearty. I think Cotton Lobby would have a shit fit, but there is a significant Hemp Lobby, which is gaining momentum.

[#16 posted by Takuan, May 21, 2009 1:39 PM]

Federal Bureau of Idiots defends racket turf:
http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2009/05/20/video-fbi-defends-marijuana-laws/

[#17 posted by Takuan, May 21, 2009 1:41 PM]

DEA Cartel is self evident... "The Hoover Boys"? "The Purple Fed Gang"?

[#18 posted by Anonymous, May 21, 2009 3:57 PM]

Yes, most of the uses in this video are for hemp fiber, not for the buds themselves. Hemp was widely used for many things. I read somewhere that cannabis is actually where we get the word "canvas" because hemp fiber was used to make the cloth for sails. Hemp is strong and easy to grow. Paper made from hemp doesn't yellow like other papers, and is preferred for printing bibles. There are too many uses to count, and legalization would be a huge boon to the American economy. Its silly that it hasn't been done yet.

[#19 posted by Dilapidus, May 21, 2009 5:04 PM]

#11 Liquid 2

Thanks, I'm quite familiar with Mr. Greenwald's work on that. I meant for the factual assertions in the video.

I believe that the Columbus and forced growing comments were actually Hemp and that it is counterproductive to conflate the two.

[#20 posted by dragonfrog, May 21, 2009 5:37 PM]

MCOBIGBEN @13 - I'm sure they were growing it primarily for its fibre. But I'm just as sure that colonists also used (ate, brewed a tea, maybe even smoked) the flowers as treatment for nausea, aches and pains, and just because it's pleasant.

[#21 posted by fALk, May 22, 2009 3:52 AM]

Hemp and Cannabis are pretty much the same plant - these days they are trying to breed the plant so it does not contain so much of THC and call it "hemp" to differentiate - I don´t think that was of ANY concern back in the days when henry made a car out of it - I mean the THC does not make the oil less oily or the fibres of the plant less fibrous and on top you could sell it for "medicine" to the queen.

[#22 posted by failix, May 22, 2009 4:45 AM]

Hemp is just a common name for Cannabis, just as Wheat is a common name for Triticum. It's the same thing. But people generally use the word hemp to designate Cannabis that is grown for everything else than the buds, hence the distinction between the two, which I think is ridiculous. To breed a strain that contains less THC is even more ridiculous...

[#23 posted by Anonymous, May 22, 2009 8:26 AM]

I was always under the impression that the distinction between hemp and marijuana had something to do with male and female plants, or those that can get you high and those that can't.

I am pretty liberal minded but am on the fence about whether or not one should legalese pot. Since we've legalized alcohol I see very little reason to keep all other drugs illegal. But I also think that drugs (alcohol included) are not a good thing for the human body and a full-scale legalization will only increase hospital visits. I come from a socialized medicine country and part of me believes that it is not right for a government to ban products of nature, but if you need your life saved because of their use the hospital bill will be sent to your house and not the governments. Our medical system is already overloaded by people who've overeaten, oversmoked or overdrank themselves and it really does not help those who've health problems are not due to their own choices.
But again, this is tricky so I am still trying to determine how I feel about it. And I've used a number of drugs over many years so I am not simply a puritan.

[#24 posted by Kehaar, May 22, 2009 9:26 AM]

marijuana criminalized 1937 same year Dupont Chemicals patents and begins mass production of nylon and plastics. Kinda coincidentally no doubt how the two events follow each other....[/sarcasm]

[#25 posted by ADavies, May 22, 2009 9:38 AM]

So which do you think we'll win first? The war on drugs or the war on terror?

[#26 posted by Dilapidus, May 22, 2009 10:47 AM]

Aha! Thank you all very much for the correction.

I never realized that .. the marketing campaign to make Cannabis less scary even worked on me (and to say the least, I'm not afraid).

Boy.. that makes it all seem so very ridiculous, but I am now back to my original question. Where could I find unimpeachable sources for the facts quoted in this video? Does anyone know. Simple googles did not even come close.

I am afraid a book sponsor by NRML or some such would be of the same use as Exxon's book on climate change. Although it would probably be far more accurate, it would be better to come from independent sources.

Thanks in advance if anyone can help

[#27 posted by Anonymous, May 22, 2009 9:29 PM]

In 1891 Queen Victoria was 72. I doubt she was having menstrual cramps.

[#28 posted by Anonymous, May 22, 2009 11:05 PM]

Dilapidus,

I have tried to do this same research as you and have come up with similar results. I have had a hard time finding objective information regarding cannabis and the history of it. There are a few good things I have found though:

There is a very interesting and succinct History Channel special on marijuana, you may want to check that out. http://www.history.com/shows.do?action=detail&episodeId=303144

There is a book called Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market by Eric Schlosser. It is an awesome read and has a good section on marijuana. There is a works cited/bibliography in the back. I have not personally checked those sources but it seems very well researched.

The best sources seem to be off the internet. Usually it is obvious whether or not the source will have bias, for example, there is a book written by Larry Sloman, former editor of High Times, called Reefer Madness: A History of Marijuana. I have not read it because I heard that it was biased in some parts which is not surprising.

I seem to remember there being a website that I read a while back that provided some excellent facts, but I cannot find it. If I do, I will post again and let you know.

I hope this helps. Have a great day!

[#29 posted by failix, May 23, 2009 8:05 AM]

The facts presented in the video are correct. There is no "marketing campaign" to make cannabis less scary, there is one to make it look dangerous though.

[#30 posted by Anonymous, May 24, 2009 2:19 AM]

There are definitely some comedic moments in Weeds, but I don't know that I would characterize it as a "sitcom".