<rant>
Geez Uncle Ben, is it that important to you to be viewed as correct, that you would find a "newbie" in a thread to go pick on and be rude to? I had lots of respect for you and kinda looked up to you (considering I use your techniques), but you are defeating your purpose brother! If you wanna catch honey, don't kick over the bee hive! Before you say something like "this noob has no honey to offer me", just remember, alot of folks watch your behavior and look up to you. You could have handled this so much more gracefully. Kinda like how the "noob" handled it when you cam into his thread insulting and clkaiming he is wrong. If you think he is wrong, then say it and provide sources but insulting will get you no where when it comes to persuading your target.
Anyway, I have been growing outdoor for 12 years and indoor for two years. I am able to grow A+ quality organic buds and achieve excellent yields. I have tried and seen the results of defoliation (just like I have TRIED and SEEN the benefits of LST, super-cropping, FIM, topping, mainlining etc). I support defoliation in many circumstances. It's a great technique. Am I a noob because I see the value in something that you don't? I fail to see the relevance of that article you linked. The research in the article was in regards to the potential correlations between stretching and nitrogen which has NOTHING to do with defol. Are you just upset because he thinks hes being scientific and you see that he is not being scientific enough according to your standards, or are you upset because he is promoting defoliation when you think it's a foolish thing? What is your point any way?