Support Naturally Occurring, Controlled Substances - Victoria

note: sign down the bottom of the page please =)

Many of our greatest industrial, natural resources as we all know come from plants. The aim of this petition is to speak out against the controlling of valuable naturally occurring chemicals in some of our most controversial plants due to the intermingling of our governments and corporations and more recently miss-information within our media.

Aside from industrial use many controlled plants/compounds have various medicinal applications (like that of; Symphytum (Comfrey), Lobelia, Gelsemium, Ephedra, Coltsfoot). Many of these controlled substances are even used for the rehabilitation of chemical drum depenancies.
Industrial applications include; textiles, materials, bio-degradable plastics, fuel, rope, construction materials, & many many many more.

I am initially going into detail on one plant in-particular, and probably the most controversial due to the extent of its recreational usage.

Thank you very much for taking the time to check this out.
Every signature is greatly appreciated and does count.
– Rael Lovell-Gamble

Hemp - Wikipedia
Hemp (from Old English hænep, see cannabis (etymology)) is the common name for plants of the entire genus Cannabis, although the term is often used to refer only to Cannabis strains cultivated for industrial (non-drug) use.

Industrial hemp has many uses, including paper, textiles, biodegradable plastics, health food, and fuel.[citation needed] It is one of the fastest growing biomasses known,[citation needed] and one of the earliest domesticated plants known.[1] It also runs parallel with the "Green Future" objectives that are becoming increasingly popular. Hemp requires little to no pesticides,[2] no herbicides,[3] controls erosion of the topsoil,[citation needed] and produces oxygen. Furthermore, hemp can be used to replace many potentially harmful products, such as tree paper (the processing of which uses bleaches and other toxic chemicals, and contributes to deforestation), cosmetics, and plastics, most of which are petroleum-based and do not decompose easily.

Licenses for hemp cultivation are issued in the European Union and Canada. In the United Kingdom, these licenses are issued by the Home Office under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. When grown for non-drug purposes hemp is referred to as industrial hemp, and a common product is fiber for use in a wide variety of products, as well as the seed for nutritional aspects as well as for the oil. Feral hemp or ditch weed is usually a naturalized fiber or oilseed strain of Cannabis that has escaped from cultivation and is self-seeding.

Cannabis sativa L. subsp. sativa var. sativa is the variety grown for industrial use in Europe, Canada, and elsewhere, while C. sativa subsp. indica generally has poor fiber quality and is primarily used for production of recreational and medicinal drugs. The major difference between the two types of plants is the appearance and the amount of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) secreted in a resinous mixture by epidermal hairs called glandular trichomes. Strains of Cannabis approved for industrial hemp production produce only minute amounts of this psychoactive drug, not enough for any physical or psychological effects. Typically, Hemp contains below 0.3% THC, while Cannabis grown for marijuana can contain anywhere from 6 or 7 % to 20% or even more.

Comfrey
Medicinal uses

Contemporary herbalists view comfrey as an ambivalent and controversial herb that may offer therapeutic benefits but at the potential risk of liver toxicity.
One of its country names for comfrey was ‘knitbone’, a reminder of its traditional use in healing. Modern science confirms that comfrey can influence the course of bone ailments.[2] [3] [4] [5]
The herb contains allantoin, a cell proliferant that speeds up the natural replacement of body cells. Comfrey was used to treat a wide variety of ailments ranging from bronchial problems, broken bones, sprains, arthritis, gastric and varicose ulcers, severe burns, acne and other skin conditions. It was reputed to have bone and teeth building properties in children, and have value in treating ‘many female disorders’. In past times comfrey baths were popular to repair the hymen and thus ‘restore virginity’. Constituents of comfrey also include mucilage, steroidal saponins, tannins, pyrrolizidine alkaloids, inulin, vitamin B12 and proteins.

Comfrey is a particularly valuable source of fertility to the organic gardener. It is very deep rooted and acts as a dynamic accumulator, mining a host of nutrients from the soil. These are then made available through its fast growing leaves (up to 4-5 pounds per plant per cut) which, lacking fibre, quickly break down to a thick black liquid. There is also no risk of nitrogen robbery when comfrey is dug into the soil as the C:N ratio of the leaves is lower than that of well-rotted compost. Comfrey is an excellent source of potassium, an essential plant nutrient needed for flower, seeds and fruit production. Its leaves contain 2-3 times more potassium than farmyard manure, mined from deep in the subsoil, tapping into reserves that would not normally be available to plants.
There are various ways in which comfrey can be utilised as a fertiliser, these include:
Comfrey for potatoes - freshly cut comfrey should be wilted for a day or two, then laid along potato trenches about 2 inches deep. Avoid using flowering stems as these can root. The leaves will rapidly break down and supply potassium rich fertiliser for the developing potato plants.
Comfrey as a compost activator- include 2-3 inch deep layers of comfrey in the compost heap to encourage bacterial activity and help to heat the heap. Comfrey should not be added in quantity as it will quickly break down into a dark sludgey liquid that needs to be balanced with more fibrous, carbon rich material.
Comfrey liquid fertiliser- can be produced by either rotting leaves down in rainwater for 4-5 weeks to produce a ready to use ‘comfrey tea’, or by stacking dry leaves under a weight in a container with a hole in the base. When the leaves decompose a thick black comfrey concentrate is collected. This must be diluted at 15:1 before use.
Comfrey as a mulch- a 2 inch layer of comfrey leaves placed around a crop will slowly break down and release plant nutrients. it is especially useful for crops that need extra potassium, such as tomatoes, and also fruit bushes like gooseberries and currants.
Comfrey potting mixture- originally devised using peat, environmental awareness has led to a leaf mold-based alternative being adopted instead. Two year old, well decayed leaf mold should be used, this will absorb the nutrient-rich liquid released by the decaying comfrey.
In a black plastic sack alternate 3-4 inch layers of leaf mould and chopped comfrey leaves. Add a little dolomitic limestone to slightly raise pH. Leave for between 2-5 months depending on the season, checking that it does not dry out or become too wet. The mixture is ready when the comfrey leaves have rotted and are no longer visible. Use as a general potting compost, although it is too strong for seedlings.

Lobelia
Cultivation and uses

Several species are cultivated as ornamental plants in gardens. These include Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal Flower or Indian Pink), Lobelia siphilitica (Blue Lobelia), Lobelia fulgens and Lobelia erinus, as well as some hybrids.
Lobelia erinus, a South African annual plant that includes many cultivated selections in a wide variety of colours. They are grown in beds, large pots, window boxes and in hanging baskets. The plants are most often grown away from sunny hot southern exposures (northern exposure's in the southern hemisphere) in soils that are moisture retentive.
In the Victorian language of flowers, the lobelia symbolizes malevolence and ill will.
[edit]Medicinal use
Native Americans used lobelia to treat respiratory and muscle disorders, and as a purgative. Today it is used to treat asthma and food poisoning, and is often used as part of smoking cessation programs. It is a physical relaxant, and can serve as a nerve depressant, easing tension and panic. The species used most commonly in modern herbalism is Lobelia inflata (Indian Tobacco).[2]
Extracts of Lobelia inflata contain lobeline, which showed positive effects in the treatment of multidrug-resistant tumor cells.[3] Furthermore, lobeline can be modified to lobelane which decreased methamphetamine self-administration in rats.[4] It therefore opens a perspective in methamphetamine dependency treatment.[5]
As used in North America, lobelia's medicinal properties include the following: emetic (induces vomiting), stimulant, antispasmodic, expectorant, diaphoretic, relaxant, nauseant, sedative, diuretic, and nervine.
Because of its similarity to nicotine, the internal use of lobelia may be dangerous to susceptible populations, including children, pregnant women, and individuals with cardiac disease. Excessive use will cause nausea and vomiting. It is not recommended for use by pregnant women and is best administered by a practitioner qualified in its use.
Two species, Lobelia siphilitica and Lobelia cardinalis, were considered a cure for syphilis[6].
Herbalist Samuel Thompson popularized medicinal use of lobelia in the United States in the early 19th century, as well as other medicinal plants like goldenseal.[2]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Lobelia
One species, L. chinensis (called bàn biān lián, 半边莲 in Chinese), is used as one of the fifty fundamental herbs in traditional Chinese medicine.

Coltsfoot
Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) is a plant in the family Asteraceae.
It has been used medicinally as a cough suppressant. The name "tussilago" itself means "cough suppressant." The plant has been used since at least historical times to treat lung ailments such as asthma as well as various coughs by way of smoking. Crushed flowers supposedly cured skin conditions, and the plant has been consumed as a food item.
Coltsfoot is a perennial herbaceous plant that spreads by seeds and rhizomes. Tussilago is often found in colonies of dozens of plants. The flowers, which superficially resemble dandelions, appear in early spring before dandelions appear. The leaves, which resemble a colt's foot in cross section, do not appear usually until after the seeds are set. Thus, the flowers appear on stems with no apparent leaves, and the later appearing leaves then wither and die during the season without seeming to set flowers.
The plant is typically between 10 - 30cm in height.
Coltsfoot is native to several locations in Europe and Asia. It is also a common plant in North America and South America where it has been introduced, most likely by settlers as a medicinal item. The plant is often found in waste and disturbed places and along roadsides and paths. In some areas it is considered an invasive species.
Coltsfoot is used as a food plant by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including The Gothic and Small Angle Shades. The Coltsfoot is also worked by the honey bee (Apis mellifera mellifera).
Other common names include Ass's foot, Bull's foot, Butterbur, Coughwort, Farfara, Foal's foot, Foalswort, Horse Foot and Winter heliotrope.
Sometimes it is confused as Western coltsfoot.
Dried coltsfoot is often used as a tobacco alternative, notably in Amsterdam, since the legal status of tobacco was tightened in August 2008.

My thoughts and the reasons behind the start of the outlawing of naturally occurring substances:
The facts are there for those who wish to hear them, from everything from nutrition, medicinal usage, the production of; cothes, tablets (something like 10000% more efficient than chopping down our beautiful slow growing trees), and countless other uses.

Cannabis was the most utilized and paramount of materials employed to make.. well... anything. Another example is that of building materials, the hardest construction material known to man just so happens to be a composite make up of concrete and the fibers of the cannabis plant. 90% of the worlds rope at the time was also produced with the fibers of the cannabis plant. You can even power a car off your plants with current technologies.

Remember, I'm not talking DIRECTLY about smoking the drug, rather about its unsurpassed usability within our society. There are so many other things that cannabis is unsurpassed in so I'll go onto the reasons it was in fact banned.

In 1936 Popular Mechanics Magazine hailed the invention of a method and machine tool to drastically increase the viability and speed of the production of hemp and predicted that it would again become the most valuable industrial material. Many people were threatened greatly by this. Then well established bodies including; Herst Paper Manufacturers, Kimberly Clark, and many other Governmentally connected multi-national corporation who also owned large timber holdings at the time. Let alone the force we know as DuPont (Chemical Company) as the processing of cannabis uses only 1/5 as much chemicals as compared to wood pulp processing. On top of that they had just patented a brand new Wood Pulp Solphide Process.

DuPont's previously patented plastic fibers had just surpassed cannabis at #2 fiber just behind cotton. They didn't want any of this to change. Regardless of the impact on our environment. In early American settlements you could even be jailed for NOT growing Cannabis. They realized the incredible importance of sustainability.

Furthermore, on the medical subject; You cannot patent a naturally occurring bio-chemical, It has to be synthetic.

Thanks... Raél

sources:
Common Sense, Care, & Wikipedia :P
http://www.speak.bravehost.com (coming soon!)