What a great read & flash down 'memory lane'! - I found it largely correct but it all depended where & who you were n' knew - Buddah sticks are what changed NZ's pot quality - In 1973, 3 of us paid $17 for each of our first two sticks and there was my intro to Cannabis- It wasted us, just the first two shared joints, and we then got the mega-munchies & then I threw it all up half an hour later ! - ( if you vomit after having too much booze, it's your body saying that that amount is toxic to your system) - Pilgrim days but it changed my life, as I was in the Army at the time and couldn't handle their boozing, but pot was a secret world of fellow users and I also didn't know I was an hereditary alcoholic back then - It was years later that that surfaced - I chose to keep using pot gently because it was my way of being able to imbibe & relax and it was also the well of my creativity. - Once through this gateway there were all the other drugs and I eventually ended up doing the full "tour of duty", coming off hard stuff (smack & crank (P) ) by using booze, and then leaving that behind 21 years ago ( I am a recovering alcoholic), continuing all the way till now, just toking occasionally -

Cannabis Sativa was from Asia, via the Clarke Empire, & some of the buddah sticks were laced with the liquid residue from the opium harvest, as the Sativa were grown around the Opium fields up in the mountains of the Shan people in the tri-state Golden Triangle, (Thailand, Laos & Cambodia) - That's why Terry Clarke & Co moved into bringing Heroin down here, it was even more lucrative - I have a friend who spent time with Fulcher at Witako Prison in Trentham & he passed on his story -

Cannabis Indica is largely Middle Eastern, the "Golden Crescent" and is the main source of Hashish - ( I met many folk from there in Melbourne and the "Lebanese Blond" hash is really strong & tasty ) - That's where the "Red hash oil" mentioned came from, the Middle East, although I remember it as a very strong 'brown' oil, as opposed to our indigenous cannabis oil which was usually green - Indica is also grown in Mexico, the famous "telephone book" sized block of pressed pot which was used in the USA -
However, our domestic strain was beefed-up by buddah stick seeds and then what was bought in by travelers and then also by the mail-order seeds which makes our gear here in NZ very good generally - Tourist Quality, in fact -

As we saw with the greed that surrounds cannabis, I believe that it's irresponsible of this Govt. not to include "Decriminalization" as a preference next to Legalization - The latter is saying it's all okay to do cannabis for young & old - I don't think cannabis should be anywhere around kids or young folk, it should have an age limit of say 20 - I was 19 when I went into the Army to learn a trade but the drinking age was 21, and I couldn't handle alcohol then - Young folk need to get their education sorted and cannabis is not conducive to that - Then there are those who can suffer a undiagnosed mental health event using strong pot for the first time, especially with alcohol - Also, quantity of over an ounce should be a fine - And paying a licence fee to grow 6 plants say, would generate Govt. income, they sure as hell are going to bust us for drugged-driving soon ! - LEGALIZATION is not about health cares, hemp can cover that, it's all about MONEY FOR THE GOVT & licenced growers of the corporate variety - In other words, the GOVT. wants to be the DEALER -

Thank you, I offer food for thought, I hope we get a happy outcome for all ~

At Last ! - Thank you Russell Brown for dragging this gross misuse of 'Cannabis' by saddling it with the word 'Synthetic' - It's pure deliberate propaganda from National Party types and other unintelligent right-wing species -

'Synthies' are bloody dangerous drugs, should be biffed in the "P/Meth" bag and are no comparison to Cannabis -

- Many folk don't seem to realize that this small country that punches far above it's weight is partially due to those many few out there that imbibe in an odd smoke and are naturally great sports, creatives, innovative peoples in so many fields - It is also true though that it is not the drug for everyone to try- It can have serious mental effects on certain folk and there is no way to tell who they are going to be- Usually if someone tries it and doesn't like it, leave it there & abstain - I say this especially for the sake of OUR children -

- I believe there is no place for Cannabis around Our children, period - Any banter about " Legalization" is selfishly ignorant of the potential harm that could happen if OUR children are lead to think it's okay to smoke cannabis - When they're adults, that's their choice and if age is to be a factor then 20 -25 yrs old will give them a great head start in Life - Lets face it, Politicians will say Anything to get their fix, "Power"-

Decriminalization is the only way the Cannabis Referendum should go, so, so many people have had their Lives seriously harmed by being busted for just use or minor possession charges- (Meanwhile Booze still continues to carves it's way through our people seemingly unabated) -

The other overlooked point is if Cannabis were Legalized, it would have a very serious effect on our economy - Politicians have no idea just how much this country runs on the "Underground Dollars" and if there are any brains in these money-hungry Govt's. they will stick to making their dollars from the many advantages that Hemp offers and helping those that need Medical Marijuana - No lollies or edibles though, as there's the ever-present danger of children getting them and that's especially dangerous when eaten by the littly's -

Thanks Russell, that's a huge relief to have that aerated publically, they all NEED to know ~