Cannabis Party Has Answer To The Recession

Bill English's first budget as Finance Minister demonstrates that neither he nor the Government has any idea how to survive the recession. While other political parties debate how to deal with the Global Financial Crisis, only one party has the solution to the problem: the ALCP.

Any currency is only as valuable as the primary commodity that backs it. In modern civilisation that commodity is oil. The value of the fuel backed dollar has been vital to rapid economic development in the west. However in recent times this paradigm has been challenged, due to dwindling fuel reserves and environmental concerns surrounding fossil fuel use.

The rise of fossil fuels in the west coincided with the prohibition of cannabis. These two seemingly unrelated events are in fact causally connected. Prior to the the introduction of fossil fuels, cannabis hemp was the most important resource in the world. Cannabis hemp was the source of almost all paper, fabric, canvas, sails, ropes and lamp oil. Cannabis, amongst other things, allowed people to travel the oceans, record written knowledge and see things at night.

Just one year prior to cannabis prohibition, a machine was invented that would have revolutionised the Hemp Industry if prohibition had not come into effect. The decordicator separated hurds from the strong hemp fibers, an extremely difficult job when done by hand. Hemp Hurds are 100% cellulose and can be turned into fuel in the same way as crude oil. Hemp produces far more cellulose than any other plant, with the next best crop only producing a quarter of the yield.

Thus, the motivation behind cannabis prohibition was the competitive threat that the Hemp Industry posed to the burgeoning fossil fuel industry. This can be seen by the close connections between DuPont Petrochemicals and U.S. Drug Czar Harry Anslinger. These facts are at the core of ALCP's concerns about cannabis prohibition. They demonstrate that cannabis was banned not because it's a drug but because of vested interests in the fossil fuel industry. The ban on cannabis continues to this day. Interestingly, recreational cannabis use did not become common in the west until the 1960s, over forty years after prohibition was introduced.

Now as the oil industry faces decline, cannabis hemp once again emerges as the economic saviour of mankind. All of New Zealand's fuel requirements for transportation and electricity production could be met with locally grown Hemp. Hemp fuel could be produced at low cost, with practically no environmental impact. The proof of this is the $100,000 challenge. For over twenty years US$ 100,000 has been offered to anyone who can prove the following claim wrong:

"If all fossil fuels and their derivatives, as well as trees for paper and construction were banned in order to save the planet, reverse the Greenhouse Effect and stop deforestation, then there is only one known annually renewable natural resource that is capable of providing the overall majority of the world’s paper and textiles; meeting all of the world’s transportation, industrial and home energy needs; simultaneously reducing pollution, rebuilding the soil, and cleaning the atmosphere all at the same time. And that substance is—the same one that did it all before — Cannabis, Hemp, Marijuana!" (www.jackherer.com)

The $100,000 has never been claimed.

If elected to parliament, the ALCP will introduce the following measures to bring the country out of recession:

1. Immediate tolerance of adult personal cannabis use This will save New Zealand $500 million each year, from money needlessly spent on law enforcement, prosecution and imprisonment of cannabis users.

2. Regulate and tax all retail sales of cannabis. Cannabis is the most popular illicit drug. Taxation gathered from an R18 cannabis industry would add $500 million plus to the economy each year. This would also create a boom in tourism.

3. Produce all fuel and energy needs locally Hemp will be planted on a scale similar to Pine Forests, at a density of around 500 plants per square metre. In one year Hemp will produce more resources than pine could in 30 years. All fuel for cars, trucks, buses and aeroplanes as well as coal fueled power stations could be produced locally, with profits staying in New Zealand. Hemp fuel is carbon neutral and does not contain sulphur. New Zealand could lead the world in renewable resource management and environmentally friendly energy production.

4. Create new jobs. Both the cannabis and hemp industry will create tens of thousands of new jobs, including Hemp farming, processing, manufacturing and retail sales. A wide range of products from textiles, to bio-plastics, to cosmetics and medicines will offer many new opportunities.

5. Grow the economy. Cannabis is a highly economic cash crop. Just as fuel oil has maintained the economy up until now, hemp fuel could continue to do so. The only difference with hemp is that it is annually renewable and therefore never runs out. Cannabis Regulation would undermine the lucrative black market and generate revenue for the benefit of all New Zealanders.

6. Social Advantages - A prosperous economy creates a financially stable society, All evidence shows an economically stable society is a happier less needy society resulting in less crime and associated costs.

Due to the first two steps alone, NZ is losing a billion plus per year while cannabis prohibition is maintained. ALCP policy will add a billion dollars to the economy each year. The cumulative social, environmental and economic effects of legalising cannabis will be massive.

Any voter who wants to end the economic recession should vote for the ALCP, the only party with the solution. Please support Dakta Green in the Mt Albert By election and join the party online at www.alcp.org.nz

ENDS

© Scoop Media