THINK YOU KNOW THE CHRONIC?

The Real Dope on Dope

So today is Marijuana Legislation Day here at the DA Opinion page. I
was under the impression that Marijuana Day, if such a thing exists,
occurred around late April - the calendar manifestation of the
international pot-smoking code 420.

Four-twenty, in case you were wondering, has mythical origins. Popular
belief claimed it was derived from police code for dope-smoking; in
fact, nowhere in the United States is 420 a code for marijuana. Other
theories attributed 420 to the number of chemicals in
tetrahydrocannabinol (wrong, there are only about 315 of them) or the
date of Hitler's birthday (right, because I always associate weed and
Hitler). In fact, it is believed the true beginnings of the three
digits that took a generation by storm began with a group of
California stoners in the early 1970s who called themselves The
Waldos. Unbeknownst to the history they were making, they designated
4:20 as their time to gather at the foot of a statue of Louis Pasteur
and toke up after school. They employed the term "420" as a secret
code to discuss herb in front of their unknowing parents.

In case you were wondering. Now what was I talking about again? Oh
yes. If you've read this far, you're probably interested in the
history behind the counterculture's beloved pet cause/mascot.
Marijuana has been around for thousands of years; used throughout
history to treat ailments and alter mood, perception and
consciousness. Its ability to heighten the senses and provoke mystical
experiences has garnered dope a place in history, religion and
medicine as far back as 4000 B.C., when the Chinese used it as an anesthetic.

It was downhill from there. For millenia marijuana has been used in
religious ceremonies in South America, Africa and India, where it was
once prescribed by shamans and even today is used to cure ills from
muscle spasms and pain to indigestion.

Marijuana and hemp have also been used for a myriad of other
functions. Assyrians used it as incense in the ninth century; hemp
fibers have been found in archaeological dig sites dating as far back
as 3000 B.C. Greek scholar Galen wrote about hemp being given to
dinner guests to promote a good time. Thus began the tradition of
party favors, perhaps?

In 1611, hemp was cultivated for fiber in Jamestown, Va.; 20 years
later the Pilgrims brought the motherland marijuana over to New
England. That's right. You heard me. Those Pilgrims were smokin' the
cheebah too. Fast forward a few centuries to when Mexican laborers
introduced recreational weed-smoking to the United States. The trend
spread to - where else? - 1920s New Orleans. Since then, Mary Jane
found her niche with artists and writers seeking a catalyst for
creativity, which would later fuel literary and political movements
that would mark American history (the Beat generation, hippies).

Marijuana was outlawed in 1937 when drug czar Henry Anslinger's Reefer
Madness propaganda campaign claimed that weed provoked murderous
rampages and adulterous behavior, pinning the blame on immigrants and
minorities. It was then briefly re-legalized in 1969 in a court case
championed by Timothy Leary; this achievement was short-lived when the
Controlled Substance Act was passed in 1970.

Today the debate over the legality of marijuana continues. In
California, according to my friend Christoph, a resident of Humboldt
County, a patient can be prescribed and carry up to 2 lbs. of
marijuana. And so the sweet sativa story goes. The best history lesson
you ever learned? Perhaps. But then, history tends to repeat itself.
So arm yourself with knowledge to fight the good fight, and you'll
never know what one generation might achieve.