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
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