Things Jeff says . . .

My friend Jeff is a great guy. One of the reasons I really like hanging with him is that he has very strong opinions about everything. He is eloquent, educated and passionate in his "rants." We often debate the issues, being polar opposites in our beliefs, but yesterday he said that farmers should plant hemp as a crop. I laughed at first as I do not have a great deal of knowledge of hemp outside of its alignment with marijuana. He gave me a few facts about production, fiber and cellulose research, and he got me thinking.

I did some research and found out that it is easier to cultivate, faster and less costly to produce as well. Harvesting hemp would be a better solution all around and better for the ecology. Then why aren't we planting and using hemp? If research shows it could replace plastic then why not put more money into the research? 

I suppose in conjunction with reading Ishmael, I have started to further question everything I have been taught. I think back to ten years ago when I was always up in arms about some idiot politician or ineffective law. I marched on Washington; inspired students to speak from a soapbox in the middle of campus; launched petitions to protect smoker's rights; protested in my bra for the rights of lesbians -- what happened to the girl who wanted to know Why?

My very honest and beautiful friend Emma said the book was a little preachy, possibly pretentious, and snotty, and it may be, but how many books have to be written about questioning, about being environmentally conscious, about thinking of how your actions will affect everyone else? I say more people need to read, preachy, pretentious, snotty literature in order to knock some sense into those "captive" minds!