& THE CRIMINALIZATION OF THE ART OF GLASS BLOWING
Operation
Pipe Dream V
BY DAV I D N A D E L
irtually every cannabis enthusiast has, at one point or another, purchased a glass pipe of some kind, whether it be a tiny little one-hitter or a bong large enough to rival the height of its owner. Glass pipes are so common in our cannabis-friendly society that we do not think anything of them when we come across them in gas stations, flea markets, and other family-friendly businesses. But, if you ask a handful of glassblowers about their passion, they will tell you that there was a time when they felt endangered by their own occupations.
Back in 2003, the Federal Government created an initiative to put an end to glass blowing specifically for the purpose of making pipes, and its consequences make us question why the initiative ever started. Operation Pipe Dream was a questionable era in our country’s cannabis-dotted history, and many of us, including the most cannabis savvy among us, never even knew it was happening.
A BIT OF HISTORY
The art of glass blowing dates back to the 1st century, likely in Syria and its surrounding regions. Although glass blowing wasn’t developed primarily for pipes, archaeologists over the years have uncovered ancient glass pipes that were clearly intended for smoking cannabis. The glass pipes of the old days were far more fragile than today’s pipes, as the borosilicate glass material used today was not invented until the 19th century. By the 1960s, as marijuana became more mainstream, glass pipes were sold in emerging head shops around the country, starting in San Francisco at the height of the hippie era. They were every bit as dazzling to consumers as they are today, with gorgeous patterns and colors allowing every pipe to be unique in its own 6
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way. And, decades later, glass pipes remain one of the most popular ways to consume cannabis, with the glass blowing industry continuing to thrive as a result, allowing artisans to put their skills to good use.
So, were glass pipes ever illegal? Well, that is a complicated question. Under federal law, glass pipes are classified as “drug paraphernalia,” but they aren’t illegal on their own, and therefore owning one does not necessarily mean you will get into trouble with the law, although they can be legally confiscated. And, in some states, they are illegal due to state laws that can differ from federal ones. It is even more complicated than that, however, because technically, glass pipes are not solely for smoking marijuana. They can be used to smoke tobacco. Until recently, many glassblowers and head shops have tried to fly under the radar by advertising their pipes as tobacco pipes. ‘Tobacco use only’ signs were common at most head shops. Further, since 2018, hemp has been legal, and so glass pipes can be used to smoke hemp, which is a federally legal substance that is also legal in all 50 states except for Idaho and Iowa.
OPERATION PIPE DREAM & CRIMINALIZING GLASS BLOWING Operation Pipe Dream was first set up in 2003, with essentially no warning, as a federal initiative to crack down on the glass blowing industry in what was referred to as an effort to crack down on marijuana use in general. The initiative was the brainchild of Attorney General John Ashcroft and U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan of the Western District of Pennsylvania, aiming to use a relatively outdated statute to enforce a restriction against the sales of glass pipes, while putting many glassblowers out of a job in the process.
Supposedly, the effort coincided with the emerging e-commerce world, where cannabis users could purchase glass pipes through the online marketplace. Operation Pipe Dream had the ultimate goal of stopping
Glass pipes are a long-standing tradition that goes back thousands of years, and this tradition is culturally and artistically significant in a way that should be honored and dignified rather than scrutinized for political gain and profit. the glass pipe industry completely throughout the country, but they quickly ran into a bit of an obstacle: by and large, law enforcement officials throughout the country had little interest in taking part in this operation, both because of the lack of resources and the lack of interest, combined with the fact that technically glass pipes were never considered illegal on their own in most states.
However, Pennsylvania and Iowa are two states in which law states that drug paraphernalia cannot cross state lines, and so it did not take long for the initiative to focus all of their resources on these states in an effort to follow through with their goals. However, their means for enforcement were questionable, to say the least. In the end, on February 24th, 2003, 55 individual glass blowing operations were shut down, but the means for doing so were considerably aggressive. Homes were raided at abnormal hours, and glass blowers hogtied, handcuffed, and taken into custody. Ultimately, all of these business owners were released from jail quickly as the initiative proved to be a disaster.
THE CHONG CONNECTION
One notable name was Tommy Chong, who was incarcerated as a result of Operation Pipe Dream. He was the only manufacturer who actually served time in jail, and it’s since been determined that this was to set an example to other glassblowers throughout the country, as he was specifically targeted. Chong, at the time, was promoting his son Paris’ glass blowing business, having financed it in order to help his son’s dreams come true. The business, called Chong Glass Works/Nice Dreams, employed 25 glassblowers, and sold high-end pieces to discerning customers desiring aesthetically exceptional pipes of all kinds. To arrest Chong, federal agents pretended to be head shop owners and tried to pressure Paris into selling his pieces to a Pennsylvania business. Chong had been adamant that he would not sell glass pipes to Pennsylvania due to the state’s paraphernalia laws, so the agents posed as employees at the
