Estimates of the number of slaves today range from around 21 million to 46 million, depending on the method used to form the estimate and the definition of slavery being used. The amount of money comes to about $150b.
For those living in North America they will not use the term slavery, especially as so many American blacks are descendants of slavery and they prefer to use the word ’trafficking’.
As Kathleen is a Sister of Mercy here in NZ - when working for the 'Year of Mercy' which was 2015, she and other people from 42 countries embraced a ‘theological reflection process’ and out of that they focussed on two areas - the degradation of the earth and the displacement of peoples. She was then asked by her congregational leader to be the NZ liaison person - to collaborate with people within the umbrella group - internationally. Where they use the latest technology available, including Skype to all connect up, and share resources and strategies.
As someone who has a background in Biblical studies - she has looked back through scripture and in the New Testament she says we cannot face the word ’slave’ and it is there so often - and it has been basically translated to the word - ‘servant' and by doing that it sort of obscures the words meaning. That people in the time of Jesus lived in the Roman Empire that depended entirely on slavery.
In New Zealand
She says she was privileged to go to the 'Tip of the Iceberg' conference in Wellington in August 2017 and this was where they worked and collaborated with local people to raise awareness of anyone that they may think is being entrapped by certain business or working conditions.
This was lead by the NZ Government’s Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment - and that the US Embassy was involved as well. A Rev Chris Frazer (a Diocese of Wellington deacon for social justice) was very much behind it as well.
https://www.anglicantaonga.org.nz/news/common_life/trafficking_aware
Also involved was the Wellington Anglican Cathedral. It was opened in the NZ Parliament by the current Minister of Immigration at the time. The Honourable Michael Woodhouse and he was very supportive of the whole proceedings. It brought together NGO’s - non Governmental organisations, the NZ Police and she said there were an impressive number of people there. Many of them working at the grass roots.
Food Growers Association, Faith groups - from the Catholic Church and the Salvation Army including Andrew Wallis CEO of the Anti Slavery organisation - Unseen, from the UK spoke - and though NZ has been at the forefront of having women vote, being Nuclear Free and being strongly anti apartheid as in South Africa - Andrew says that in tackling this crime NZ today is where the UK was 7 to 10 years ago. So we have a long way to go to catch up with where Britain is currently at.
The reason is that in Britain they have the 'UK Modern Slavery Act' where every business is registered and annually must put in a report stating that they know the three levels where their goods come from.
Say it is a shirt - so who did they buy it from, where was it made and where was the cotton or the fabric grown? That at each level - they must prove that they are monitoring the product all the way. Thus, following the money to the source of the produce, is how everything is being recorded. This methodology was strongly focused on at the conference - especially by the NZ police.
If any person is ‘brought’ into NZ and is suspected of being involved in human slavery - first communications has to go through the Immigration Department (as the predominant victims are usually recent arrivals into NZ) - this she says is a very complex procedure even before it gets to the police. Where as, in the UK - it comes immediately under the Crimes Act.
The take-away from the 'Tip of the Iceberg' conference - was to get new legislation like the UK passed in NZ as soon as possible.
In NZ we have had very few convictions for human slavery in this country. (Most NZers have no idea that such a thing would exist in this country.)
For the first time the NZ Police were able to convict a perpetrator of bringing 16 Fijian people to NZ with lavish promises but to then double cross and entrap them to become enslaved. See below link.
The NZ police said it took about 2,000 hours of work to get this conviction - being a huge time consumer due to the complexity of our Law. The outcome of the Conference was that we need to advocate for a change in the Law so as to have it upgraded and streamlined so as to address this horrendous bottleneck to rapid enforcement and justice.
This situation was only found out because the Fijians were allowed to go to church one Sunday and one of the congregation noticed how upset a Fijian woman was and went over to see her and ask her to come and have a cup of coffee and that was when the lady spilt out what was happening.
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/84262716/faroz-ali-found-guilty-of-human-trafficking
So Kathleen says that it’s imperative for us to be very alert and be mindful of situations popping up amidst us - because it is just below the surface and we need to know this.
Here is a list that covers points like:
If a person does not carry their passport, and do not know much about visas - or they are not willing to say where they work or for whom they work for.
Or if they are escorted to and from work and they state that they are working everyday and for long hours.
If they do not know where they live or are fearful of giving the address.
That they have not been paid. If they hesitate as to talking about who arranged their contract or visas … if they are paying off large debt. Are there signs of self harm and they seem starved.
Finally if the are young people and are absent from school.
So the imperative is for us to be mindful and aware of people - particularly immigrants, because had that lady at church not been crying and a parishioner notice and kindly offered to ask to help and assist - those 16 Fijians could still be enslaved today.
[What would their family in Fiji think when they were cut off from these workers here in NZ? It must have been very concerning for them.]
Stop the Traffic - Fuzz Kitto - who says that traffickers are really smart so we have to be smarter … traffickers are creative - so we have to be more creative … traffickers are organised - we have to be more organised … traffickers have smart systems so we have to have better ones. Traffickers disempower people - we have to empower people. Traffickers try to make people invisible - we have to make them visible. Traffickers work across borders - we must work better across borders. Traffickers do more for less - we have to do more for less.
https://beslaveryfree.com/australianfashionforum
Remember the vehicle driver in Britain recently where a large number of Vietnamese people died in a container on the back of his truck. This type of trafficking is everywhere. We only hear about it, if the police or customs catch them red handed or in a horrific disaster as in this case.
Kathleen mentions the documentary film Blue Jeans about workers in sweatshop conditions and terrible pay and long hours - where she mentions that NZ clothing firms have now closed and taken the business offshore to Asia. With the same ‘old reason’ - that it is un economic to run a business in NZ. Hence sweatshops produce cheap goods.
The British want to always name it as Human Slavery - as against Trafficking - and horrendous as it is we are told that 12.5% of victims are in the sex industry and that the vast majority of others say 25% are children are slaves being under 18 and the rest are labour slaves.
Also mentioned were crew on ships coming to NZ ports, be it cargo ships or fishing boats and that many of the crew are found to be horrendously exploited. For with fishing boats they can be at sea for months on end and when they dock in NZ ports there is no real ‘haven’ for crew to go and enjoy ‘recreation and rest’ and she even states that though NZ has signed an agreement to offer up a place where visiting crew upon landing can find as a safe ‘location’ to reorient themselves - that has not been forthcoming. To the degree it was mentioned that the crew are often paid in US dollars and in Lyttelton she said there is no bank, they are for US$1.00 given change in NZ$1.00 - (one for one) which is totally immoral.
Kevin Bales a very courageous advocate - Free the slaves - blood and earth - uncovers many dreadful situations around our planet - smart phones = mining rare earth minerals especially in the Congo.
https://www.freetheslaves.net/ He links the exploitation of the poor people to the exploitation of the earth.
Kathleen said with regards to paedaphile networks and sex traffic or organ harvesting etc - this was outside her field of expertise.
Yes, the Jeffrey Epstein saga is the tip of the iceberg and there is a huge white slave trade going on that has lots of East European girls conned into applying for modelling careers outside of Eastern Europe and then once away from their own country are kidnapped and pushed into prostitution etc.
Finally Tim mentioned the Executive Order signed on the 21st December 2017 by Donald Trump.
Executive Order Blocking the Property of Persons Involved in Serious Human Rights Abuse or Corruption
Issued on: December 21, 2017
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA), the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (Public Law 114-328) (the “Act”), section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)) (INA), and section 301 of title 3, United States Code,
I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, find that the prevalence and severity of human rights abuse and corruption that have their source, in whole or in substantial part, outside the United States, such as those committed or directed by persons listed in the Annex to this order, have reached such scope and gravity that they threaten the stability of international political and economic systems. Human rights abuse and corruption undermine the values that form an essential foundation of stable, secure, and functioning societies; have devastating impacts on individuals; weaken democratic institutions; degrade the rule of law; perpetuate violent conflicts; facilitate the activities of dangerous persons; and undermine economic markets. The United States seeks to impose tangible and significant consequences on those who commit serious human rights abuse or engage in corruption, as well as to protect the financial system of the United States from abuse by these same persons.
I therefore determine that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States, and I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat.
He says, “In my lectures I will present the current scientific knowledge as well as the current lack of scientific research on the biological and health effects of the 5G millimeter-waves. I will also present the evidence, and the reasoning, for the invocation of the Precautionary Principle and for the temporary moratorium on 5G deployment, while awaiting for the much needed scientific research on millimeter-waves.”
Dr. Dariusz Leszczynski, PhD, DSc is Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry, Division of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Finland.
He says: “I am scientist with keen interest in molecular biology research, or work as an expert/consultant, or as journal/book editor. Thanks to my age and working in universities around the world, I have a very broad experience in scientific research, in science publishing and in dissemination of scientific information to expert and lay-person audiences.”
Dr. Leszczynski, who researches non-ionizing radiation, emphasizes that, “there is a continuous talk about assuring that the 5G maintains low levels of EMF exposure. However, there is not sufficient scientific research to show that low levels assure no health effects in short- and long-term exposures (acute and chronic exposures). It seems that the telecom industry assumes that their low level exposures will not cause- ever -any health effects and the telecom industry forcefully imposes this scientifically unsupported assumption on others, especially governmental decision-makers.”
Rd. Leszczynski says there is an urgent need to start research studies examining effects of millimeter-waves on human health. However, there is a strong resistance from the telecom industry and from the decision-makers to start new research programs. The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), and the telecom industry, strongly propagate the idea that the low power of EMF emissions from the 5G devices will guarantee that human health will not be affected.
However, the same assurances were made in the 70’s when the first generation of cell phones was commercialized, followed by the unlimited spread of the 2G, 3G and 4G devices – as long as the device emits radiation within the ICNIRP guidelines it is considered as safe, which is not necessarily the case as shown by a number of research studies. As a direct consequence of the scientific research, in 2011 the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified radiation emitted by the cell phones and cell towers as a possible human carcinogen. This classification appears to be strengthened by the new research studies on 3G and 4G-emitted EMF published after 2011. However, what the biomedical research on millimeter-waves, performed in the future, will show is a complete enigma.
Why hasn’t the media taken this up and warned us all? Dr. Leszczynski explained that in many cases new outlets rely on Telecom businesses to advertise with them and so it could be a financial hit if they spoke out against these companies. He also explained that the media is reluctant to be seen as scaremongering and looking like tin foil hat wearers. The same probably goes for universities and tertiary institutions relative silence on this.
I asked the professor what the difference between 4G and 5G were. He explained that 5g builds on 4G but then includes millimetre waves that are much shorter and higher energy waves. While they can carry more information, their range is less and they are easily blocked by buildings and trees etc, therefore requiring more transmitters at closer proximity.
I asked about the effect on trees and it appears to be inconclusive, but certainly it is possible that trees could suffer damage from the energy from cell phone towers.
Again not enough experiments have been carried out and we rely on anecdotal evidence.
It is the same with bees. Dr. Leszczynski said there was a study done in Belgium that showed that the millimetre waves caused increased temperatures in bees, which could cause problems with bee behaviour, such as losing the way back to their hives, but there needs to be more study.
No matter what the future research will show, 5G technology will be by then fully deployed and without any possibility of reverse because the whole future life of humanity will be based and dependent on the functioning of the 5G radiation-emitting devices. He says, “This is a unique situation in the history of the human kind when the whole human population will be exposed to man-made devices emitting non-ionizing radiation that was insufficiently tested before deployment. What is and what will be the responsibility of the scientists, decision-makers and industry leaders who permit deployment of insufficiently tested technology that will affect us all? The answer is simple – no responsibility … because if any health problems will show up in the future, these will most likely take tens of years of time to manifest and, by then the persons that currently enable deployment of insufficiently tested radiation-emitting 5G technology will be retired or the proverbial “six feet under”.”
What would Dr. Leszcynski say to the government?
*The IARC classification of RF-EMF as possible carcinogen is sufficient to trigger consideration of the Precautionary Principle.
*Recommendations concerning RF-EMF and health effects should be based on science. However, many committees (SCENIHR, ICNIRP, WHO, HPA, SSI) simply disregard evidence of effects from epidemiological case-control studies and animal studies and say that the effects are not seen in scientific studies. Such statements disregard the evidence at hand.
*General public, decision makers and scientists at large have no idea what are the “criteria” used by these committees to dismiss the positive studies because, description of these “criteria”, is not provided.
What would Dr. Leszcynski advise the government to do?
The Precautionary Principle should be used for RF-EMF and should include, among others:
*Stop saying that there are no established non-thermal effect - if cancer risk increases in epidemiological studies it indicates that non-thermal effects happen.
*Strengthen the safety standards; change them to reflect the current scientific evidence, showing the possibility of health effects.
*Protect the children – applies to cell phone use; not so much cell towers.
*Develop better technologies that emit less radiation. Reduce exposures of general population by making health agencies to advise people to do so.
Many of the concerns of NZ youth in their 14 to 15th years is all to do with ‘image and likes’ – it all involves smartphones and messaging and being and staying relevant within their peer group.
Notes from this important interview:
This was a real insight for me as a person in their 70’s.
Here is the gist.
Just living for the present is essentially where they are at. Nature and whales for example - are not really an issue.
He says that global warming is on the radar but not that big as yet – Greta Thunberg is not yet big - though some of the young girls have started to put out a ‘care’ on their smartphones as to sort of – look relevant - not so much with the boys – but some have … He also mentions that some will ‘put out’ that they care – but actually they will not take any action. So if there is a ‘viral concern’ this would be it.
As for the future – that’s still a way off – it’s essentially having fun and it's girls, guys and partying - and then there is school and academic studies.
Stating that when they hit 25 years of age - they may have another look at what’s up and what is important.
Relationships between guys and gals – he says after a long in-breath – are not good. He puts it down to social media – texting to each other – there is not a lot of communication that is grounded in a good vocabulary – how?
He says we should not blame social media – it’s how we are using it (all the time) that it has changed lives and promotes things – but he says other things have festered out of it – and there are pros and cons – and as a result of social media - relationships are quite messy.
Jesse says he is in a relationship and dating a gal, and he is not into texting to her. He wants to talk with her, see her expressions on her face, the tonalities of her voice - as well as body actions – and he says you just can’t get this out of text.
Sex between the younger generation – is in his words - messy.
The girls in many ways to remain relevant – it is all about relevancy – and many may succumb to exposing themselves. So texts and photos that are intimate are often unscrupulously passed around - and this sort of thing comes back as a vengeance and many embarrassing situations occur. It’s a lose-lose situation – but to be relevant– it continues to happen.
Covering sex, pregnancy and abortion … Suicide - listen
Instagram – now does not show likes on posts … to stop people comparing themselves with other people's ‘likes’ this is to curtail negative feelings and even suicide – such is the need for many of the youth to compare themselves with others - but they are still ‘worried’ about getting the most likes …
Most of the youth are on Instagram and snap chat plus the new one coming up called tick tock – it’s a 'lip synching' app. He said some youth are still on FB but not as much as the others.
When asked if the younger generation feel fortunate – especially to be living in NZ – and the answer is that in most cases the youth of today are so caught up in their life with its drama, frustrations and challenges that they do not see themselves as being fortunate. Even though NZ has so much physical beauty, as well as freedom of speech that a lot of other countries don’t have. NZ is a fairly peaceful country too. A majority healthy country !! Youth are so fortunate here - but they do not take time to realise it.
When asked about God for today's young teens – to admit to God – it is considered and embarrassment – listen to this …
Karma – he personally believes in this – that good things and good vibes generate good things and good vibes … but, it is not prevalent as a word in the daily narrative of present day youth. He himself does good by just doing life with no expectation that he is going to receive some wonderful good karmic event – he is just basically doing life and doing it without any expectation ...
Baby boomers – he is not hard on them – as he sees his generations as not doing a lot as well.
5G tech – that the baby boomers are concerned about but what of the youth of today who are wedded to 4 G? What is youths take on 5G? Essentially unaware of the health risks etc. However he himself is very aware of what these new technologies can cause.
Rubbish on the footpath and rubbish on the beach – Jesse – picks it up. Is happy to be a role model. But, this too is not an issue.
Covering transgender issues – especially males entering females races and weight lifting and winning is this fair? – the challenge around transgender toilets – listen
Parent's – how he is very close to his parents and love is warmly expressed. They love each other. When asked about his friends relationships with their parents, he said that there is a lot of difficulty at that level. However, he gets on really well with all his friends parents.
Communication skills need to be taught especially around being able to coherently express oneself. Verbal skills he says are very important. That it is imperative for good communication - as far too many people are being caught up in the minutiae of millennial problems. Alcohol is a huge problem – not weed.
I came away from this interview basically very concerned about the focus of today’s teenage youth. It's as if a huge manifested bubble based on a construct of social media habits perpetuates itself to compel youth to think that having a new smartphone and texting each other is all that is relevant.
This is where we as a country need to address the concerns of our young ones and this has to be led from both the grass roots and from leadership at the very top of our country.
Cannabidiol (CBD) is non intoxicating and is safe to use, yet it is heavily regulated, unnecessarily expensive, and there is much prejudice from lack of knowledge about this product.
How it can become more easily accessible in New Zealand may be centred around whether it ends up becoming regulated as a food or as a medicine, and the results of the upcoming referendum.
In this informative interview, Tadhg speaks in depth about this, the history of cannabis, the extensive uses of hemp, and medical cannabis.
Tadhg asks:
Are you concerned about the state of the world? I am.
Lord Rutherford, (atom splitter), said that "we don't have money, so we have to think". It's time that we did that, because the status quo is failing. So, what do we need, and how do we get it?
A wealthy society needs good food, fibre/chemical feedstock, and medicine.
Imagine getting all of that from one plant, and it all being of the best quality.
That's the kind of crop we need in a climate changing world, a sustainable competitor to the petro-chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
Its curious to note, that despite Hemp offering us these gifts, it is that rare thing; a prohibited plant.
In NZ and much of the world, hemp is only able to be grown under strict conditions, and farmers usually struggle against hostile bureaucrats. In Canada, for example, farmers were prevented from selling fifty two billion dollars worth of hemp products over the last twenty years. The same practices exist here in NZ.
But Hemp is so useful, that it was a crime not to grow it in both Britain and the USA. In fact, you could even pay US taxes in hemp. Hemp was as good as gold, and used to make everything from dollar bills to the US Declaration of Independence (both Washington and Jefferson were Hemp farmers).
Hemp clothes are tougher and more breathable than cotton, and anti-bacterial too. (Hemp does not require the water and pesticides of cotton either).
Hemp makes breathable fireproof building materials, superconductors, plastics, fuels, and produces four times the cellulose of pine in only six months.
Hemp nut foods are better than anything else nutritionally. 30% digestible protein, all Omegas (3, 6, 9) and aminos, with Calcium, Magnesium and other essential elements in unusually generous quantities.
Most Renaissance painting was done on hemp, and with hemp paint. empen paints, hemp plastics, hemp medicines, the basis of Imperial power for millennia, and then imagine it being prohibited on the irrational grounds that hemp is a dangerous narcotic that causes interracial rape and murder.
The removal of this premier sustainable product left world markets open for the petro-chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
Despite written records of its medicinal use dating back 4,750 years, (including fifty years where it was a major European/US medicine), the modern medical system seems strangely opposed to the notion of hemp medicine.
This is especially curious given that hemp is full of 'our bodies own medicine'.
To clarify, Hemp contains molecules called 'cannabinoids', and so do we.
In our body we make 'endocannabinoids' (endo means 'inside').
We are cellular beings, and for six hundred million years these molecules have been natures standard means for information exchange at the cellular level.
They are 'signalling metabolites', like essential little e-mails inside us.
Without them, we cannot maintain normal function/health. Without them, we die.
That's why hemp is connected with a ludicrous array of therapeutic effects. Not because it's a magic hippy thing, but because the plant contains analogues of the molecules we make and need to maintain 'homeostasis', or balance/normal function.
So when we use hemp properly, as a food, we are supporting our bodies ability to maintain its own health through our cannabinoid system of G-Protein Coupled Receptors.
Its interesting to note that GPCRs are 'highly responsive to nutrition', that medical schools do not teach nutrition, and that medical schools do not teach about GPCRs-despite them being our mechanism of health regulation and protection.
'Medical cannabis' is a bit of a swindle, because all we really need to improve health outcomes is to return hemp to the food web and markets.
You can see the impact non-advertised legal hemp flower has had on medicine sales in Italy here
https://www.york.ac.uk/media/economics/documents/hedg/workingpapers/1907.pdf
Italian medicine sales are down everywhere, and by 11% in some categories.
This is why. Here are seven of the 140+ plant cannabinoids, and their proven effects.
Niccolo Machiavelli said that "there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order." But we all know that the current order of things is destroying our habitat and creating an authoritarian corporate neo-feudalism. To change this we must increase our economic sovereignty and environmental sustainability. The premier natural resource for achieving this is industrial hemp, but to get it we must understand it and demand better from our politicians.
The Hemp Foundation - www.thehempfoundation.org.nz
------------------------------------------
Community Notices re 5g:
'5G Technology on Health and the Environment'
Lecture by Professor Dariusz Leszczynski
6:30pm Tuesday 19th November
Auckland University Library Lecture Theatre B15
Princes St and Alfred St corner (Building 109) across from Albert Park
Doors open 6:00pm. Donations towards costs gratefully received.
Prof Leszczynski will also be speaking in
Hawkes Bay Sun 24Nov
Wellington Weds 27 Nov
Nelson Fri 29 Nov.
What is known about the potential cumulative long term exposure to untested 5G technology? What does the science tell us?
Does this require invocation of the precautionary principle until it can be proven safe?
Leszczynski, is a leading International expert on Electromagnetic Bioeffects Research, who will present the Pros and Cons of 5G Technology in the academic arena. It is a rare opportunity for the NZ public to have informed debate on the issue.
We need to raise more money for Prof Leszczynski’s tour.
You can help at the Givealittle page -
https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/help-bring-a-world-5g-expert-to-nz-in-november
You may also like to sign our 5G petition asking for the precautionary principle until 5G is proven safe.
https://www.toko.org.nz/petitions/precautionary-principle-for-5g-in-aotearoa-1
—————————-
Are you concerned about the state of the world? I am.
Lord Rutherford, (atom splitter), said that "we don't have money, so we have to think". It's time that we did that, because the status quo is failing. So, what do we need, and how do we get it?
A wealthy society needs good food, fibre/chemical feedstock, and medicine.
Imagine getting all of that from one plant, and it all being of the best quality.
That's the kind of crop we need in a climate changing world, a sustainable competitor to the petro-chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
Its curious to note, that despite Hemp offering us these gifts, it is that rare thing; a prohibited plant.
In NZ and much of the world, hemp is only able to be grown under strict conditions, and farmers usually struggle against hostile bureaucrats. In Canada, for example, farmers were prevented from selling fifty two billion dollars worth of hemp products over the last twenty years. The same practices exist here in NZ.
But Hemp is so useful, that it was a crime not to grow it in both Britain and the USA. In fact, you could even pay US taxes in hemp. Hemp was as good as gold, and used to make everything from dollar bills to the US Declaration of Independence (both Washington and Jefferson were Hemp farmers).
Hemp clothes are tougher and more breathable than cotton, and anti-bacterial too. (Hemp does not require the water and pesticides of cotton either).
Hemp makes breathable fireproof building materials, superconductors, plastics, fuels, and produces four times the cellulose of pine in only six months.
Hemp nut foods are better than anything else nutritionally. 30% digestible protein, all Omegas (3, 6, 9) and aminos, with Calcium, Magnesium and other essential elements in unusually generous quantities.
Most Renaissance painting was done on hemp, and with hemp paint. empen paints, hemp plastics, hemp medicines, the basis of Imperial power for millennia, and then imagine it being prohibited on the irrational grounds that hemp is a dangerous narcotic that causes interracial rape and murder.
The removal of this premier sustainable product left world markets open for the petro-chemical and pharmaceutical industries.
Despite written records of its medicinal use dating back 4,750 years, (including fifty years where it was a major European/US medicine), the modern medical system seems strangely opposed to the notion of hemp medicine.
This is especially curious given that hemp is full of 'our bodies own medicine'.
To clarify, Hemp contains molecules called 'cannabinoids', and so do we.
In our body we make 'endocannabinoids' (endo means 'inside').
We are cellular beings, and for six hundred million years these molecules have been natures standard means for information exchange at the cellular level.
They are 'signalling metabolites', like essential little e-mails inside us.
Without them, we cannot maintain normal function/health. Without them, we die.
That's why hemp is connected with a ludicrous array of therapeutic effects. Not because it's a magic hippy thing, but because the plant contains analogues of the molecules we make and need to maintain 'homeostasis', or balance/normal function.
So when we use hemp properly, as a food, we are supporting our bodies ability to maintain its own health through our cannabinoid system of G-Protein Coupled Receptors.
Its interesting to note that GPCRs are 'highly responsive to nutrition', that medical schools do not teach nutrition, and that medical schools do not teach about GPCRs-despite them being our mechanism of health regulation and protection.
'Medical cannabis' is a bit of a swindle, because all we really need to improve health outcomes is to return hemp to the food web and markets.
You can see the impact non-advertised legal hemp flower has had on medicine sales in Italy here
https://www.york.ac.uk/media/economics/documents/hedg/workingpapers/1907.pdf
Italian medicine sales are down everywhere, and by 11% in some categories.
This is why. Here are seven of the 140+ plant cannabinoids, and their proven effects.
Niccolo Machiavelli said that "there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than to initiate a new order of things. For the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order." But we all know that the current order of things is destroying our habitat and creating an authoritarian corporate neo-feudalism. To change this we must increase our economic sovereignty and environmental sustainability. The premier natural resource for achieving this is industrial hemp, but to get it we must understand it and demand better from our politicians.