Tag: police state

Hemp Farmers Say Texas Bill To Rein In Intoxicating Cannabinoid Products Could Destroy State Industry

Andrew Hill, who studied and farmed hemp in California before it was legal in Texas, was a keynote speaker at the state’s first-ever agricultural hemp expo in Dallas in 2019. Amid considerable hype and excitement that followed the recent federal legalization of hemp, Hill tried to warn farmers that the industry wasn’t as profitable as state officials and seed vendors were pitching.

“There were guys running around telling farmers they could make $2,500 to $3,000 an acre on hemp. Being an actual farmer, not trying to sell seeds or clones, I couldn’t help but burst out laughing,” Hill said. “Everyone looked at me and asked what was so funny, and they gave me the mic and I said, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’ll tell you right now—I haven’t seen over $1,000 an acre since 2015.’”

Still, Texas lawmakers embraced the opportunity hemp presented in 2019, legalizing hemp products of the cannabis plant with less than 0.3 percent THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana. Hill’s Texas Star Hemp Farms was among those to make the investment necessary to profit from hemp, including owning almost all the means of production and sales and spending millions on seeds, licenses and facilities.

Six years after that initial rush, industrial hemp farming in Texas stands on the brink. Senate Bill 3, which would ban any consumable hemp products that contain even trace amounts of THC, could destroy what farmers like Hill have built.

“Now, considering things like hemp hearts, hemp seed oils, salad dressings and those health products that don’t have any cannabinoids in them to get you high, [they] will still be illegal under this law,” Hill said.

Hill is one of about 450 licensed hemp producers in the Texas Industrial Hemp Program at risk of losing a chunk of their livelihoods as Texas lawmakers have prioritized banning tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, products. Farmers say there is no way they can produce hemp without traces of THC, even for non-consumable products like clothing and paper, meaning SB 3 could deliver a death blow to the industry.

The GOP-controlled Legislature authorized the sale of consumable hemp a year after it was legalized nationwide to boost Texas agriculture by allowing the commercialization of hemp containing trace amounts of delta-9 THC.

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French Philosopher Banned from Entering UK for Anti-Migration Views

One of France’s most influential living philosophers has been prevented from entering the UK by the British government.

Renaud Camus was due to speak in the UK at a conference this week when his visa was revoked by the UK government, which said in an email to Camus that his presence in the UK was “not considered conducive to the public good.”

Camus is most famous—and controversial—for coining the term “the Great Replacement” to describe the systematic replacement of Western populations with non-Western immigrants. Contrary to mainstream media portrayals of this “conspiracy theory,” Camus has never claimed the Great Replacement is a process being driven by a single group of people.

Instead, Camus blames the Great Replacement on the spread of an attitude he calls “replace-ism,” which strips the individual citizens of Western nations of their unique identity and makes them appear as identical units that are interchangeable with other people from around the globe. Camus attributes the development of this idea to the decline of religion, democracy, industrialisation and mass entertainment, among other factors.

Speaking to Britain’s GB News on Friday, Camus said of the Home Office’s decision to prevent him from entering the UK, “I was sort of amused.”

“I very much like England and, of course, in my idea England has been the country of free speech par excellence.

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Daniel Noboa’s electoral theft will cement cartel and corporate control over Ecuador

President Daniel Noboa appears to have stolen Ecuador’s election. He’s now poised to consolidate control of a system that has benefitted cartels and multinational corporations – including his family business – at the expense of average Ecuadorians. And Washington likes what it sees.

Watch The Grayzone’s special video report on Noboa’s well-documented ties to transnational drug cartels here.

On April 13, 2025, Ecuador’s National Electoral Council proclaimed incumbent President Daniel Noboa the winner of the presidential runoff—a result that his challenger, the left-wing Luisa González, denounced as “massive fraud.”

If Noboa secures what appears to be an ill-gotten victory, he will be able to consolidate complete control over a state weakened by austerity and corrupted by deep infiltration by transnational drug cartels – a criminal network that is deeply enmeshed with his family’s business.

González, who led several polls by up to 6 points as of Friday, has demanded a vote-by-vote recount.

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For 4/20, Ben & Jerry’s Teams Up With Marijuana Justice Group To Push Governors To Free Cannabis Prisoners

As consumers and businesses across the U.S. gear up for the 4/20 holiday on Sunday, ice cream maker Ben & Jerry’s is drawing attention to the “tens of thousands of people who will spend their 4/20 in prison for the same cannabis-related activity.”

This year the company—which has regularly used 4/20 to highlight justice-related cannabis matters—has partnered with the advocacy group Last Prisoner Project (LPP) to urge state governors to grant relief to those behind bars for marijuana.

“This 4/20, the need for cannabis justice is at an all-time HIGH,” Ben & Jerry’s said about the new effort.

The groups are also encouraging supporters to take action, recommending they reach out to their state governors to call for clemency, sign petitions to free people incarcerated for cannabis crimes, spread the word using the #420ForFreedom on social media and attend a Washington, D.C. event—the Cannabis Unity Week of Action, held April 29 through May 1—aimed at promoting broader marijuana legalization.

The company says that as “cannabis businesses will rack up sales, public figures will use their platforms to highlight cannabis culture, and millions of Americans will take advantage of their freedom and consume with friends and family” on 4/20, it’s crucial that advocates continue pushing to right the wrongs of prohibition.

“When we say legalization without justice is half baked, we mean that legalization while people, disproportionately Black and Brown, are still sitting in prison for cannabis or reeling from the detrimental impacts of having a cannabis conviction on their records is simply not justice fully realized,” Palika Makam, Ben & Jerry’s U.S. activism manager, said in a statement.

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US wants UK to ditch ‘hate speech’ laws to secure trade deal – media

The administration of US President Donald Trump wants the UK government to repeal hate speech laws in order to secure a trade deal between the two nations, the Independent reported on Wednesday, citing claims by sources close to US Vice President J.D. Vance. 

In a recent interview, Vance spoke of his admiration for the UK and expressed optimism about the negotiations.

Washington and London are “working very hard on a trade deal” within the new US tariff regime, he told the British website UnHerd on Tuesday. 

However, the sources reportedly claimed to the Independent that Vance’s optimism on a trade deal “is a way of putting further pressure on the UK over free speech.” 

“If a deal does not go through, it makes Labour look bad,” they reportedly said. 

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Tulsi Gabbard Declassifies Biden ‘Domestic Terrorism’ Strategy: What’s Inside

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard on April 16 fulfilled her past promise to declassify information related to President Joe Biden’s domestic counterterrorism strategy.

Dubbed the “Strategic Implementation Plan” (SIP), the 15-page-long document details the Biden administration’s findings and action plan to counter an alleged increase in homegrown domestic terrorism.

Gabbard released the documents in response to prompting from conservative groups like America First Legal, which expressed concerns about the Biden administration allegedly “censoring disfavored speech on the Internet by labeling such speech ‘misinformation,’ ‘disinformation,’ ‘hate speech,’ ‘domestic terrorism.’”

Coming in the wake of the Jan. 6 Capitol breach, after which the Biden administration claimed that domestic terrorism was the greatest terror threat the United States faced, the SIP represents the government-wide counterterrorism strategy.

Here’s what the declassified documents show.

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Declassified Biden-Era Domestic Terror Strategy Reveals Broad Surveillance, Tech Partnerships, and Global Speech Regulation Agenda

A once-classified federal strategy paper has surfaced, pulling back the curtain on how the Biden administration planned to address domestic terrorism. Released by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard after legal pressure from America First Legal (AFL), the document shows a government effort that stretches far beyond traditional national security work.

We obtained a copy of the documents for you here.

The 15-page plan, dated June 2021, outlines a series of objectives aimed at curbing domestic extremism. What’s caught critics’ attention, however, is how broadly the strategy defines the threat. Violence is only part of the concern. The rest seems focused on speech, ideology, and the online flow of information.

AFL sounded the alarm in an April 2 letter, accusing the administration of turning federal power inward. The group warned that officials were labeling “disfavored views” as “misinformation,” “disinformation,” or “hate speech” and then moving to suppress them under the banner of national security. The letter called it an attempt to “weaponize” the government against its own citizens.

We obtained a copy of the letter for you here.

Tulsi Gabbard responded on April 5, thanking AFL “for your work” and promising action. “We are already on this,” she said, “and look forward to declassifying this and other instances of the government being weaponized against Americans.” She pledged to restore “transparency and accountability” across the intelligence community.

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Arkansas GOP Governor Vetoes Bill To Allow Drive-Thru Medical Marijuana Sales At Dispensaries And Ease Delivery Rules

The Republican governor of Arkansas has vetoed a bill that would have allowed medical cannabis sales at drive-thru windows at dispensaries, while also easing certain rules around marijuana delivery services for patients and caregivers.

After the legislation from Rep. Aaron Pilkington (R) narrowly advanced through the legislature, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) returned the measure with a veto message on Wednesday.

“This legislation would expand access to usable marijuana, therefore I am vetoing this legislation,” Sanders said.

Under the bill, licensed dispensaries would be have been authorized to “deliver usable marijuana to a qualified patient or designated caregiver via a drive-through window located at the dispensary,” the text says.

People would have needed to place an online order and pick up their products on the same day of the transaction.

The measure also would have revised existing statute to allow visitors to tour dispensaries in additional to cultivation facilities. And it would have made it so conventional medical cannabis deliveries could be handled by one employee, instead of the current minimum of two, if additional security measures were taken.

The governor didn’t address any of the specifics of the bill, instead simply voicing opposition to the idea of expanding access to cannabis.

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Florida House Committee Approves Hemp Regulatory Bill That Would Impose 15% Tax On All THC Products

All hemp-derived THC products would be taxed at 15 percent under a proposal passed in a Florida House committee on Wednesday.

The measure is one of two regarding regulation of hemp-derived THC products sponsored by Panhandle Republican Rep. Michelle Salzman that were approved unanimously in the House Budget Committee.

The main bill (HB 7027) is a companion to a Senate bill (SB 438) that has already passed unanimously in that chamber, although they do contain significant differences. Among them is that Salzman’s bill would not ban delta-8, the hemp-derived THC product that has grown in popularity since hemp was legalized in the United States through the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill.

Like its Senate companion, the House bill limits the amount of delta-9 THC in hemp-derived products such as beverages and gummies. It says edibles must contain no more than 2 milligrams, be individually wrapped and be sold in containers with no more than 20 edibles.

That raised objections from Patrick Shatzer of Sunmed/Your CBD Store, who says his company is the largest CBD brick-and-mortar business in the country, with 260 locations nationwide and 42 in Florida.

“The size of the gummies—limited to 2 grams—that’s just a tiny little pinkie size wide,” he said to the committee. “That’s not the industry standard. The industry standard is anywhere from 5 to 8 grams.”

Shatzer also objected to the provision limiting 20 servings per container, saying the average dietary supplements permit 30 gummies in a container. And he raised objections to a prohibition on selling, delivering, bartering, giving or furnishing hemp consumables that total more than 100 milligrams of THC to a person in a 24-hour period, saying it would be unenforceable.

Rep. Salzman replied that, while she is open to changing some of those limits, she is holding firm on limiting personal consumption of such products to 100 milligrams of THC a day.

“If somebody knows that they can’t buy more than 100 milligrams in that day, it’s going to give them a warning subconsciously, ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have more than 100 milligrams of this stuff in a day,’” she said. “And if you want more than 100 milligrams of this stuff a day, you probably need to get a medical cannabis card.”

Regarding the proposed 15 percent excise tax on hemp products, Jodi James of the Florida Cannabis Action Network said that not all hemp products are intoxicating, and that those that aren’t should not be taxed at all.

“In the state of Florida, we don’t tax vitamins, we don’t tax supplements,” she said.

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Ready for Your Home to Become a Government School?

One hundred years ago, in the case of Pierce v. Society of Sisters, the Supreme Court struck down an Oregon law that required all children to attend public schools, affirming that parents had the right under the 14th Amendment to direct the upbringing and education of their children.  

The Supreme Court wrote, “The child is not the mere creature of the State; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.”

This court decision launched the parental rights movement that has become controversial since the pandemic school lockdown.

The longstanding trust in public schools was shattered when parents were given an unprecedented window into what was happening in the classrooms.  The most common response from parents was, “I had no idea!”  Parents who had never known much about what students did all day were suddenly alarmed by the prevalence of radical dogmas.

As a result, many turned to homeschooling, which now has become the fastest growing type of education in the nation, across all demographics.  In the black community, there has been a fivefold increase over a few short months of parents homeschooling their offspring.

As expected, the left is fighting back.  Leftists have no intention of allowing “domestic terrorist” parents to leave the public school system because it would mean loss of government control over what students are taught and over shaping their worldview.

Hillary Clinton popularized the phrase “it takes a village to raise a child,” which signals that children are considered wards of the state, to be reared and educated as the state sees fit.

In Illinois, Democrats have filed a bill that, if passed, will expand vastly the control of government over the education of children.  House Bill 2827, dubbed the Homeschool Bill, would bring government control of home schools as well as private and religious schools.  Home schools and private schools would become de facto government schools. 

Homeschool parents would be required to provide local and state education authorities annual reports with their children’s personal information, including gender identity, without any restrictions on what data would be mandated.  If parents fail to file this home school paperwork properly or in a timely fashion, they could be charged with a Class C misdemeanor and spend up to 30 days in jail. 

The question is, why do public school educators and politicians believe they need personal information on students and families not enrolled in public schools?  The Supreme Court has already ruled that parents have the sole right to direct the education and upbringing of their children. 

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