Drug

Jray Nels's picture

Cocaine Cowboys

The film explores the rise of cocaine and resulting crime epidemic that swept the American city of Miami, Florida in the 1970s and 1980s.

Jray Nels's picture

The Union: the business behind getting high

Ever wonder what British Columbia's most profitable industries are? Logging? Fishing? Tourism? Ever think to include marijuana? If you haven't, think again. No longer a hobby for the stereotypical hippie culture of the ‘60s, BC's illegal marijuana trade industry has evolved into an unstoppable business giant, dubbed by those involved as 'The Union'. Commanding upwards of $7 billion Canadian annually, The Union’s roots stretch far and wide. With up to 85% of all 'BC Bud' being exported to the United States, the BC marijuana trade has become an international issue with consequences that extend far beyond our borders. When record profits are to be made, who are the players, and when do their motives become questionable?

- Why is marijuana illegal?
- What health risks do we really face?
- Does prohibition work?
- What would happen if we taxed it?
- Medicine, paper, fuel, textiles, food, etc. Are we missing something?

Follow filmmaker Adam Scorgie as he dives head first into Canada's most socially acceptable illegal activity. Along the way, Adam demystifies the underground market and brings to light how such a large industry can function while remaining illegal. By interviewing experts from around the globe, including growers, clippers, police officers, criminologists, economists, medical doctors, politicians and pop culture icons, Scorgie examines the cause and effect nature of the business behind getting high.

Nobody's innocent in this exploration of an industry that may be profiting more by being illegal. Join Adam Scorgie as he unravels the mystery of The Union.

Charles Clayton's picture

The Hunt for Wild Magic Mushrooms

Introduces the novice fungi hunter to the basics of field identification!
Shroomhunter 101 focuses on members of the genus Psilocybe (MAGIC MUSHROOMS), which can be found in urban and suburban environments!

The Conscious Reader's picture

William Henry - Lost Symbols

Coast to Coast AM on 2009/09/22: Investigative mythologist and author William Henry talked about the significance of the art and symbols in the U.S. Capitol. The Capitol was thought of as a recreation of Solomon's Temple by its builders, Freemasons, who conceived of the building as a "beehive" buzzing with energy, he said. Higher wisdom flows through the Capitol's spiritual imagery, particularly in the painting, The Apotheosis of Washington, which is featured in the dome of the Rotunda, he shared, adding that the dome of the Capitol is a mirror image of the one in the Vatican. The painting depicts the first President as a deified being along with five pagan gods who are symbols for alchemy.

He noted that a scene in Dan Brown's new bestseller, The Lost Symbol, features a character staring up into the Capitol dome and seeing the painting transform into a gateway. This imagery shares similarities to Henry's work into stargates or portals, which he believes humans can ascend to higher consciousness. The bell-shaped Capitol Dome could be thought of as a kind of stupa that creates a vortex or field of energy, he continued.

Interestingly, Henry detailed that the Capitol contains a "crypt", one story beneath the Rotunda. It has 40 columns and was modeled after the ancient Temple of Poseidon - this was a way for the United States to pay homage to Atlantis, he commented.

The Conscious Reader's picture

Neil Kramer - Increasing Polarity of Consciousness

How those who walk the path of selfhood, gnosis and integrity find it harder and harder to relate to those with lower consciousness, the difficulty of talking to the people around you, at work or even your family.

Is there a schism in humanity? Neil shares with us a microcosm version of this experience that he had in Glastonbury.

We discuss the idea that the Soul or the Essence of a person is something that you create/find or locate during your lifetime and refine over many lifetimes.

We talk about the concept of Free Will, The Holographic Universe, Multiple Universes, The 4D Experience, How to pick up "Echoes" or "Resonators" from the Future, CERN, Entheogenic medicine, psilocybin, the importance of the connection to nature.

We continue to discuss the "LRP flash analysis", how the Occult media spinners manifesting reality and enforcing their own world view with the help of other unaware people. We round this up to discuss Philip K Dick, Downloading Gnosis and his VALIS book. Do not miss this program!

chefstephen's picture

Rick Steves talks at Hempfest 2008

It’s HEMPFEST in Seattle this up coming weekend August 15 & 16! If You have not been to HEMPFEST in Seattle I cannot recommend it highly enough! It’s a great event! It’s FREE! And I ALWAYS meet the most interesting people.
Here’s some video from last year’s HEMPFEST Rick Steves

Preston Ames's picture

Eco Solutions : Vertical Farming

CNN interviews Professor Dickson Despommier about a new concept in farming produce, and that idea is called Vertical Farming. "It has grown into something now quite out of my control. It has blossomed into a concept, which suggests strongly that, if we can grow our food inside tall buildings, then it would save a lot of space outdoors; we could replant trees into, something where the ecosystems were damaged by farming. We could also supply a healthier food supply for people living in urban centers..." - Professor Dickson Despommier

Jray Nels's picture

Controversial Crop

Controversial Crop is the story of the quest to re-establish industrial hemp farming in the United States. Told from an agricultural perspective, the show has profiles of prospective farmers, agricultural experts, researchers, processors, and retailers as well as clear information about the crop. From Episode 315 of America's Heartland, a production of KVIE TV-6 in Sacramento, California.

Jray Nels's picture

Something to Celebrate - Hemp Legalized in Oregon!

Oregon Hemp Farming Bill Becomes Law

New State Program for Hemp Farmers to be Established


Salem, Oregon, Aug. 4, 2009 -- Vote Hemp, the leading grassroots advocacy organization working to give back farmers the right to grow industrial hemp (the oilseed and fiber varieties of Cannabis), enthusiastically supports the decision of Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski to sign SB 676 into law today. The bill, which passed the House by a vote of 46 to 11 and the Senate by a vote of 27 to 2, permits the production, trade and possession of industrial hemp commodities and products. With the Governor's signature, it now makes a politically bold commitment to develop hemp in a state whose slogan is "Oregon - We Love Dreamers."


"I am glad that Oregon has joined the other states that have agreed that American farmers should have the right to re-introduce industrial hemp as an agricultural crop," says SB 676 sponsor, Sen. Floyd Prozanski. "By signing SB 676 into law, which passed the Oregon Legislature with strong bi-partisan support, Governor Kulongoski has taken a proactive position allowing our farmers the right to grow industrial hemp, to provide American manufacturers with domestically grown hemp, and to profit from that effort." The new law sets up a state-regulated program for farmers to grow industrial hemp which is used in a wide variety of products, including nutritious foods, cosmetics, body care, clothing, tree-free paper, auto parts, building materials, fuels and much more. Learn more about hemp at the affiliated websites below.


"Oregon's federal delegation can now take this law to the U.S. Congress and call for a fix to this problem, so American companies will no longer need to import hemp and American farmers will no longer be denied a profitable new crop," comments Vote Hemp Director, Patrick Goggin. "Under current federal policy, industrial hemp can be imported, but it cannot be grown by American farmers. Hemp is an environmentally friendly crop that has not been grown commercially in the U.S. for over fifty years because of a politicized and misguided interpretation of the nation's drug laws by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). While a new federal bill in Congress, HR 1866, is a welcome step, the hemp industry is hopeful that the Obama administration will recognize hemp's myriad benefits to farmers, businesses and the environment," adds Goggin.


Many businesses in Oregon manufacture, market and sell hemp products, including Living Harvest, The Merry Hempsters, Wilderness Poets, Earthbound Creations, Sweetgrass Natural Fibers, Sympatico Clothing, Mama's Herbal Soaps and Hempire. Living Harvest of Portland was recently ranked the third fastest growing company in Oregon, as awarded by The Portland Business Journal's "Fastest Growing Private 100 Companies" annual award. "We are looking forward to the opportunity to invest in hemp processing and production locally," says Hans Fastre, CEO of Living Harvest. "This new law represents another step towards heightening the hemp industry's profile within mainstream America and making hemp products more accessible to businesses and consumers."


These Oregon-based companies have been on the leading edge of the growing hemp food and body care markets, which are currently estimated by the Hemp Industries Association (HIA) to be $113 million in North American annual retail sales. The HIA estimates the 2008 annual retail sales of all hemp products in North America to be about $360 million. By allowing U.S. farmers to once again grow hemp, legislators can clear the way for a "New Billion-Dollar Crop."


Hemp Farming Gains Support from More State Governments and Law Enforcement


According to the Illinois Valley News, Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilbertson said that he supports the legalization of industrial hemp. "I think it's a good idea," Gilbertson said in the article which appeared on July 29. "I think it's a viable crop, and the entire county could benefit from it."


On June 9, with little fanfare, Maine Governor John Baldacci signed the Maine hemp farming bill, LD 1159, into law. Maine's House had previously passed the bill without objection, and the Senate later passed it by a strong vote of 25 to 10. The bill establishes a licensing regime for farming industrial hemp, although the licensing is contingent upon action by the federal government. Maine had previously passed a study bill that also defined industrial hemp. Like North Dakota, the new law in Oregon does not require a federal permit to grow industrial hemp.


During the 2009 legislative session, Maine, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota and Vermont all passed pro-hemp laws, resolutions or memorials. Sixteen states have passed pro-hemp legislation to date, and eight states (Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Montana, North Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia) have removed barriers to its production or research. Like North Dakota, where farmers are in a federal court battle over their rights to grow hemp under state law without fear of federal prosecution, the new law in Oregon does not require a federal DEA permit to grow hemp.


Vote Hemp is a national, single-issue, non-profit organization dedicated to the acceptance of and a free market for low-THC industrial hemp and to changes in current law to allow U.S. farmers to once again grow this agricultural crop. More information about hemp legislation and the crop's many uses may be found at the affiliated websites. BETA SP or DVD Video News Releases featuring footage of hemp farming in other countries are available upon request from Adam Eidinger at 202-744-2671.

Jray Nels's picture

Tales From The Jungle: Carlos Castaneda (2007)

Carlos Castaneda rose to fame after the publication of his book, The Teachings Of Don Juan. The book is based on his anthropological fieldwork in the Mexican desert in the Sixties with a Yaqui Indian shaman, whom he called Don Juan. The Teachings Of Don Juan was an instant success for Castaneda, persuading thousands of Americans to set off for Mexico in search of drugs, nirvana and enlightenment. Castaneda was dubbed the "grandfather of the New Age movement" by Time magazine and awarded a doctorate in anthropology from UCLA. But an investigative journalist claimed Castaneda had faked his fieldwork and that Don Juan was merely a figment of his imagination. This film investigates the controversy that surrounded Castaneda's book and explores the practices of today's Yaqui Indians with Dr David Shorter, who has spent the last decade working among them in Mexico.

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