cannabisnews.com: DNA Technique Separates Hemp from Marijuana





DNA Technique Separates Hemp from Marijuana
Posted by CN Staff on March 22, 2006 at 19:00:18 PT
Press Release
Source: EurekAlert 
Washington -- Using new DNA "fingerprinting" techniques, two University of Minnesota researchers have become the first to unequivocally separate hemp plants from marijuana plants with genetic markers. Hemp, a crop grown for durable fiber and nutritious seed, and marijuana, the most abundant illegal drug of abuse in the United States, both belong to the species Cannabis sativa. They differ in levels of the psychoactive drug tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) but are otherwise difficult to tell apart. The technique holds promise for distinguishing different cultivars (domesticated plant lines) in U.S. criminal cases. It may also prove useful in countries where the cultivation of hemp is permitted but marijuana is illegal, as in Canada and Europe. The work appears in the March issue (volume 51, No. 2) of the Journal of Forensic Science. 
The new technique is an improvement on previous means of separating the two types of Cannabis, said author George Weiblen, an assistant professor of plant biology in the university's College of Biological Sciences and College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. For decades it has been possible to identify THC chemically, but the drug is not present in all plant tissues or throughout a plant's life cycle. And other researchers have found that genetic markers known as "short tandem repeats," which are used to identify individuals in paternity and criminal cases, lack the power to distinguish Cannabis cultivars unequivocally. In tests with three different cultivars of hemp and one of marijuana, the DNA fingerprints of all the cultivars were distinct and nonoverlapping. Weiblen and Shannon L. Datwyler, a postdoctoral associate who is now on the faculty of California State University, Sacramento, found that the AFLP (amplified fragment length polymorphism) technique generated hundreds of genetic markers that together established separate identities for each of the four cultivars. "We think this technique has the potential to distinguish marijuana varieties as well," said Weiblen. "It has implications not just for separating hemp from marijuana in countries where hemp cultivation is permitted, but in establishing origins of seized drugs and, therefore, conspiracy in drug distribution networks. It also could be used in criminal defenses against claims of conspiracy." The technique chops up DNA and generates numerous fragments of DNA, each defined by particular "marker" DNA sequences that act like bookends. The lengths of the fragments within the bookends were found to vary according to the cultivar. Thus, the pattern of fragment lengths adds up to a composite picture of each cultivar. "With this technique, we find hundreds of markers scattered across the genome," said Weiblen. "The larger number of markers, compared to other techniques, gives us the power to separate the cultivars." The Cannabis plant has been cultivated for millennia and is important in the global economy as both a licit and an illicit crop, said Weiblen. Hemp is a source of durable fiber that provides an alternative to cotton fabric, among other uses. Cotton requires pesticide application and a hot climate, whereas hemp does not, which makes it suitable for local Minnesota agriculture. Weiblen seeks to screen a wider range of Cannabis cultivars to refine the technique. He is also working to identify regions of the Cannabis genome responsible for drug content in marijuana. If enough can be learned about the genome, it may one day be possible to produce an entirely drug-free hemp plant that looks different from marijuana. Currently, all hemp products are imported into the United States. Developing a new variety that could be cultivated in the United States would reduce American dependence on foreign products while creating a new alternative crop for American farmers. The work was funded by the University of Minnesota and the David and Lucille Packard Foundation.Complete Title: New DNA 'Fingerprinting' Technique Separates Hemp from MarijuanaContact: Mark CassuttPhone: 612-624-8038University of Minnesota E-Mail: cassu003 umn.eduSource: EurekAlert (DC)Published: March 22, 2006Copyright: 2006 by AAAS, the Science SocietyContact: jsheehy psg.ucsf.eduWebsite: http://www.eurekalert.org/CannabisNews Hemp Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/hemp.shtml
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Comment #51 posted by jose melendez on March 26, 2006 at 06:14:26 PT
ssdp on npr
NPR's Claudio Sanchez is breaking the media blackout and interviewing SSDP, now . . .
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Comment #50 posted by b4daylight on March 25, 2006 at 15:43:07 PT
peace
Well I always wondered. Why they can not make a hemp plant stand out that it is hemp. This is the reason we cannot grow it now. Hemp I belive is the wonder plant. 
We will make plastics out of hmep in the future. Bio-plastic. IT is all in the chemical make-up.
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Comment #49 posted by Hope on March 24, 2006 at 12:05:08 PT
Jose
You are someone wonderful and unique. You make me smile. 
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Comment #48 posted by jose melendez on March 24, 2006 at 02:58:56 PT
Hope
Don't you worry, dear. The incident was a life lesson and motivating reminder of the power of truth over oppression and injustice. It was also was a great story to tell at the Canadian Border when I was going to film Jack Cole and Alison Myrden.Plus, it will make a great scene in my documentary, especially if I can find the court transcript, for accuracy.The other night my new business partner (of the MicMac tribe) was pulled over on his bicycle, despite having lights.They asked where he worked and lived, he proudly informed them that he owns 49 percent of the Crew Cab Camino Company, a division of International Hydrocarbon Corp, that his partner is a tree hugger and we both live at the drop zone in DeLand.Things went OK until an old record of his arrest for violation of probation over a gram of marijuana that led to prison time popped up on the computer.So, the officer changed his demeanor to aggressive and nasty, and called in the K-9.Not finding anything, the frustrated officers must not have believed him, because six or eight hours later they were doing the drive by and hanging their heads (Apparently it is a pattern, remember Sergeant Gillotti? see: http://pipepeace.com/z ) as we both waved, my partner by his tent and me by my 4 door remanufactured and restored 1985 Caprice Classic with a pickup bed where the trunk was . . . - - -Advertisement "International Hydrocarbon introduces the '007 line of multifuel utility vehicles with condensing exhaust and optional hybrid disc propulsion. Got green? Order now: 888 247-8183" - - -I smiled, waved and said, "good morning guys", and they grimaced a bit, looked away again and drove off. Maybe it was the big pot leaf on my shirt. Or maybe they were tired after reading of my plans to require a written apology from them and the city, and to criminalize prohibition.It was not until later that I found out it was the same cop and K-9, wish I'd already installed the cameras in the car.
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Comment #47 posted by Hope on March 24, 2006 at 00:53:57 PT
videographer
Oh. I'm sorry.All because of a liar who freaked over a seed or two.
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Comment #46 posted by Hope on March 24, 2006 at 00:50:54 PT
Lol!
"k-deekee-deek-k-deekee-deekee!"Yeah...and not cushioned against the imaginary roach.
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Comment #45 posted by jose melendez on March 23, 2006 at 18:25:53 PT
giggle
It's kind of funny now, but not for most I agree. Thanks to such frivolous prosecution I was many years later not allowed to be the primary parachuting videographer into the 1996 World Cup Soccer match, because Secret Service did not have time to do background checks and the vice president was scheduled to attend.I wrote him a nice letter about all this, but the White House staff then said it was too long. Sigh. 
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Comment #44 posted by mayan on March 23, 2006 at 18:15:06 PT
No Excuse Now
It may also prove useful in countries where the cultivation of hemp is permitted but marijuana is illegal, as in Canada and Europe.There's now no excuse to maintain the ban on industrial hemp cultivation here in the U.S. is there??? 
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Comment #43 posted by jose melendez on March 23, 2006 at 17:05:29 PT
fun-in
I really should find out if there is still a court transcript.People really do seem to know what two seeds in a film canister sounds like.
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Comment #42 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 14:57:51 PT
Jose
 Except its not at all funny you were in a courtroom facing charges...of course! Something I know a bit about myself. There was no levity on my day. But I let go and was fairly mellow. Anyway, you know... was just funnin.
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Comment #41 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 14:43:33 PT
Two seeds
 Does not a maraca make. Funny story though Jose. :) But 2 seeds in a film container goes k-deekee-deek-k-deekee-deekee! My shaker is truly powerful. 1000's of seeds! Years in the making! I must keep the container a secret for now. Its about the size of a lava lamp!
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Comment #40 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 13:22:42 PT
Softer than rock
Two seeds! Somewhat alive.That is so wonderful. I mean it's not right that you had to have a lawyer. It WAS cool that you fired him....and I just love it. Except for the expense and misery of it.Definition of a "downer"? Heh?Sorry.Funny...but it's like kicking a hurt place.
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Comment #39 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 13:16:45 PT
Jose....that's wonderfu!
Thanks for sharing.K-shuck-K-shuck:0)
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Comment #38 posted by whig on March 23, 2006 at 11:55:31 PT
Jose
Fine, then you're not my attorney.LOL.
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Comment #37 posted by jose melendez on March 23, 2006 at 11:54:31 PT
(true story type=maracas)
Prosecutor: Mr. Melendez was caught with a roach, which if anyone here did not know is a portion of a marijuana cigarette . . . Jose Melendez: She's lying!!Attorney: (hushed) You can't do that.Jose Melendez: Fine, then you're not my attorney. Your Honor, she's lying. I had two seeds!Prosecutor: Let me see the evidence.Cop slumps, hands over film canister. Prosecutor shakes canister.Apparently everyone in that Northampton MA courtroom knew what two cannabis seeds in a film canister sounds like . . . . . . because they all burst out in laughter, and my case was dismissed. (/true story)sorry for the typo in previous post
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Comment #36 posted by jose melendez on March 23, 2006 at 11:52:03 PT
(true story type=maracas)
Prosecutor: Mr. Melendez was caught with a roach, which if anyone here did not know is a portion of a marijuana cigarette . . . Jose Melendez: She's lying!!Attorney: (hushed) You can't do that.Jose Melendez: Fine, then you're not my attorney. Your Honor, she's lying. I had two seeds!Prosecutor: Let me see the evidence.Cop slumps, hands over fim csanister. Prosecutor shakes canister.Apparently everyone in that Northampton MA courtroom knew what two cannabis seeds in a film canister sounds like . . . . . . because they all burst out in laughter, and my case was dismissed. (/true story)
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Comment #35 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 11:31:29 PT
Greenjoy
:0)
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Comment #34 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 11:23:18 PT
Unless it sounds like a crime to you.
LOL Good one. That shaker is criminally cool! And the next time a song calls for it I'm gonna tempt just a little tiny itsy bitsy fate and borrow it back for track.....Jack.
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Comment #33 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 11:16:44 PT
dongenaro
 I will always smile when I type your name. :-)Many thanks for your good wishes! Yes, I found Castenada's books to be very enjoyable. I first read "The Teachings of don Juan", when I was 14. Never quite looked at the world the same afterwards. Particularly fond of "A Seperate Reality" and "Journey To Ixtlan".
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Comment #32 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 11:13:01 PT
Ker-Plunk
I always liked that one.P-Dip. P-Dip. P-Dip.
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Comment #31 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 11:11:22 PT
"sh-ka-sh-ka"
Great sound capture. I labor sometimes to find the spelling for a sound. I'm seldom...if ever successful at it.
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Comment #30 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 11:09:58 PT
:0)
People like to shake stuff...don't they? Goes back to the rattle days, I guess.Yesterday I noticed myself enjoying shaking crushed ice in a large container with a lid I was drinking from.Cannabis seeds have a nice friendly rattle. Unless it sounds like a crime to you.
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Comment #29 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 11:04:29 PT
Save Your Seeds
 I made a shaker from Cannabis seeds. It had the sh-ka-sh-ka thing goin ON. Used it on several recordings. I had to give it away. :-( Woulda' made a great rattle! 
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Comment #28 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 11:01:35 PT
 Time. Thought. Attention. Love.
There you go!
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Comment #27 posted by dongenero on March 23, 2006 at 10:42:58 PT
right- hash oil
I would consider that extraction. It is tasty as I recall.I would never want to mess with the flammable solvents necessary to extract the oil. It seems dangerous!
Then I still wonder if any residual component of the solvent is left after evaporation.Give me natural and organic any day!
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Comment #26 posted by dongenero on March 23, 2006 at 10:40:22 PT
Greenjoy
I just thought I would throw that explanation out there. Quite a natural process for hashish.
Congratulations to you on the new baby as well. Best of luck with everything.Actually the Don Genaro from Castaneda's books, is the source of my moniker. As I began using that name several years ago, I mispelled it though! 
It stuck and now I am don genero.Great reading aren't they? 
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Comment #25 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 10:22:30 PT
Hope
 :-) Yes! Time.
 Thought.
 Attention.
 Love. 
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Comment #24 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 10:16:50 PT
Aha
 But hash oil could be considered an extract. According to Webster's anyway. GJ
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Comment #23 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 10:07:56 PT
Lunatics we've seen and recognized before.
http://www.wweek.com/editorial/3220/7368/
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Comment #22 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 10:03:13 PT
Greenjoy
Someone's gonna love you like you ain't never been loved before.
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Comment #21 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:58:08 PT
"SAVE your seeds"
Seige is likely right. Make that in a safe place, too.It's so sad to see mankind run amuck.My grandmother still saves seeds. She keeps a dish, as in days of old, near her sink, where she saves every seed and pit that passes through there. Then she plants them. It's lovely.
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Comment #20 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 09:53:30 PT
Thanks dongenaro
 I knew I was on thin ice with the hash bit. More than happy to agree with your clarification! Knockin the thingies off seems kind of close to extraction though. I always think of don Genaro from the Castaneda books when I see your screen name. What a great character! One of my favorites. Hope. You are Rockin! :-) 
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Comment #19 posted by siege on March 23, 2006 at 09:52:05 PT
seeds
modulate this gene so as to develop strains of Cannabis with no THC, or no cannabinoids ...
So we can look for a new seed market from the U S govt.. SAVE your seeds...
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Comment #18 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:48:59 PT
My gosh!
Forty three and a first time Dad! That's even more wonderful than you know. You will likely be sure and be able to take the time and thought it takes to be a really good dad.I'm so happy for you!
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Comment #17 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 09:46:16 PT
Thanks FoM, Hope!
 I've been glowing lately. And it ain't from good smoke. Or standing too close to the tv. I'm 43. Finally got around to it! We're due in early September. That's right prohibs. I...we, are breeding. 
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Comment #16 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:45:31 PT
Pink Floyd
What was it they said about "Lunatics".There's two sides to this coin. "And other researchers have found that genetic markers known as "short tandem repeats," which are used to identify individuals in paternity and criminal cases, lack the power to distinguish Cannabis cultivars unequivocally."They want to wipe out a plant because so many people like it?It's use can heal depression and lift sorrow.It can purify the air. Few people are allergic to it. It has valuable fuel worthy calories. It can stimulate mind and body.It can relieve pain. It can calm.It can cause wounds to close. It's, at it's best, anti-bacterial and anti-cancer. It opens the lungs. It doctors the eyes. It can soothe. You can build stuff with it. It's a beautiful plant. It's aroma can heal and bless. It has nutrition in it and strength of fiber. How dare they risk the very earth to assuage their fetishes about drug use?How dare they?How dare they?How dare they?What's going on here?"God help us." and "How dare they?"Cannabis Sativa...the answer and cure to all kinds of flu...even Bird Flu are likely waiting quietly within the plant to be discovered.What fools, what "lunatics", would destroy and throw away something like that?Another rejected gift?They usurp my humanity. How dare they take my right to choose whether I want that gift from the Earth, from the Creator? It is a remarkable plant. A truly remarkable plant. It gives so much...yet is so despised by so many.They shouldn't even want to hurt it…much less to destroy it. A gift to the birds…they take it away? They rejoice of depriving the birds and animals of the field this blessing that was given them to help them heal and remain as whole as possible. A gift to the sky and water. They hate it?Got to stop. I can barely breathe from the upsetness.
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Comment #15 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:07:10 PT
Little fungus cop,
Speaking to the Cannabis Sativa plant. "May I see your DNA please?"
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Comment #14 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:04:46 PT
Gimme a jar full of sprinkles!
"Think of it as knocking the sprinkles off the top of a cookie then eating them separately." :0)Sounds kind of lovely.
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Comment #13 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 09:02:01 PT
:0)  Whoooa! Greenjoy!!! That's wonderful news!
 "Thanks! I've been really busy. Mostly have the time to read and that's about it. Working very hard on my musical endeavors, home renovations, and preparing to be a father! :-)"
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Comment #12 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 08:59:11 PT
Yeah, right. They think?
"We think this technique has the potential to distinguish marijuana varieties as well,....." 
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Comment #11 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 08:57:42 PT
Wow! Dongenero.
"In a microscope, these trichomes look like a layer of clear mushrooms on the plant surface."That's so cool that you got to see that. Sounds beautiful.
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Comment #10 posted by Hope on March 23, 2006 at 08:55:51 PT
Hemp
There's a great hemp lotion that is popularly available,now...even at Wal-mart. It's wonderful stuff. A real Balm. It's glorious stuff to the moisture deprived.How can they send a killer fungus after our glorious medicine plant and not kill the hemp?They can't.Cuss word. Cuss word. Cuss word.
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Comment #9 posted by dongenero on March 23, 2006 at 08:52:41 PT
hash clarified
Hashish is not really distilled or extracted, I would say.The surface of the cannabis plant is covered with very tiny resinous stalks with a bubble on the end. This is called a trichome and contains the essential oils that are of interest to cannabis users.
In a microscope, these trichomes look like a layer of clear mushrooms on the plant surface.To make hashish, these trichomes are knocked off of the plant material and then just pressed together, as they are sticky.Think of it as knocking the sprinkles off the top of a cookie then eating them separately. They aren't distilled from what they were when on the cookie, they are just knocked off of the cookie. No chemical or synthetic processing, just shaking them loose from the surface of the plant
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on March 23, 2006 at 08:32:50 PT
GreenJoy
Once again I agree with you. I use Saint John's Wort and it works like a drug but it's an herb. You said: Working very hard on my musical endeavors, home renovations, and preparing to be a father! :-)That made me and my husband smile. How wonderful.
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Comment #7 posted by afterburner on March 23, 2006 at 08:24:32 PT
The Weaponization of Technology
Any technology, new or old, can be used for war or for peace. The prohibitionists continually dredge up new ways to abuse technology by turning it into weapons against people and their needs. The heavy hand of the law is used in the workplace and on the street to attempt to control people and to investigate and to punish people for making choices not approved by our corporate and governmental "masters." Prohibitionists fear and do not trust human nature. "Be the change you want." "Walk out your dreams." Trust human nature with discretion and love.
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Comment #6 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 08:18:44 PT
Hi FoM
 Thanks! I've been really busy. Mostly have the time to read and that's about it. Working very hard on my musical endeavors, home renovations, and preparing to be a father! :-) I guess we can all *agree*, Cannabis is a plant. I say its not a drug until man gets his hands on it and distills and extracts. So I guess hash would qualify for me. Perhaps its just mincing words. "Drug" is a bad word unless it comes from a smock. I don't think it should be attached to Cannabis and when it is its just vilification. Perhaps what The Reverend was getting at. Anyway, garlic lowers blood pressure among other things. Is it a drug? St. John's Wort could be said to be mood altering. Is it a drug? Hmmmmm. Oh bother. 
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Comment #5 posted by whig on March 23, 2006 at 08:18:01 PT
It's a plant
More than that, it's a species. (Actually, it's even a whole genus.) While the world mourns the extinction of so many species, and they pass laws like the Endangered Species Act to make it a crime to kill or injure even one member, they seek to exterminate, extinguish and murder this helpful plant.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on March 23, 2006 at 07:27:37 PT
GreenJoy
It's good to see you. It's a plant I agree.
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Comment #3 posted by GreenJoy on March 23, 2006 at 07:06:13 PT
Drug?
 "Hemp, a crop grown for its durable fiber and nutritious seed, and marijuana, the most abundant illegal drug of abuse in the United States, both belong to the species Cannabis sativa." It's not a drug. Its a plant.
 Drugs are made by humans.
 Use is not abuse. GJ
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Comment #2 posted by BGreen on March 22, 2006 at 19:24:51 PT
It's not necessary to vilify the cannabis plant
to add any worth to hemp.If God would have wanted to "produce an entirely drug-free hemp plant that looks different from marijuana" it was certainly His decision to make.In reality, His choice IS reality, and we don't need to modify the work of the Perfect Being.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on March 22, 2006 at 19:01:25 PT
Well This Is Interesting
I hope we get more articles on this development.
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