Pubdate: Sat, 15 Feb 2014
Source: Deseret News (Salt Lake City, UT)
Copyright: 2014 Deseret News Publishing Corp.
Contact:  http://www.deseretnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/124

MARIJUANA IS STILL DANGEROUS

If educated adults do not speak out about the real hazards, lives
could be lost. And if Washington continues to stand idly by as the
falsehoods persist, it will be increasingly difficult to stop the
momentum toward public acceptance.

If educated adults do not speak out about the real hazards, lives
could be lost. And if Washington continues to stand idly by as the
falsehoods persist, it will be increasingly difficult to stop the
momentum toward public acceptance. Smoking marijuana alters
perceptions, impairs coordination, makes it difficult to think and
solve problems and inhibits the brain's ability to learn and remember.
It leads to respiratory problems similar to those caused by smoking
tobacco, increases the risk of heart attack and can lead to mental
illness. And just like tobacco, it is addictive.

It is important to present this information in clear and
straightforward terms, given the increasing normalization of marijuana
- - even as tobacco use is increasingly unacceptable behavior.

Colorado and Washington State have both legalized marijuana for
recreational purposes. Several other states have legalized it for
medicinal purposes. Teenagers around the country are developing a more
casual and even welcoming attitude toward the drug. That is dangerous:
marijuana's hazards are magnified when applied to the developing
bodies of young people.

Educated adults, including leaders in politics, entertainment, sports
and business, need to speak out about the hazards of marijuana. But
some political leaders in Washington seem determined to minimize its
harmful effects.

Indeed, the Justice Department has effectively abandoned enforcement
of the federal Controlled Substances Act in regards to marijuana. In
December 2012, the administration weighed a number of legal actions
against the states of Colorado and Washington. But eight months later,
the administration reversed course. In failing to enforce federal laws
against the production, distribution and use of marijuana, it is
effectively re-writing drug law.

Yesterday, the administration went further. It issued rules allowing
banks to open accounts for marijuana sellers, even as selling the drug
remains illegal under federal law.

The risks of the substance are carefully outlined on the federal
government's website, drugabuse.gov. And buried on the website of the
White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy is this statement
by an office deputy director and the president of the National
Association for School Nurses: "There is grave concern that marijuana
use, given its impact on cognitive development, motor skills, and
attention, will be detrimental to the learning environment for our young
people. We encourage professionals in all health fields, parents,
educators, and communities to get involved with this issue. We all must
work together to reduce marijuana use and prevent substance use
disorders among our young people."

This sort of factual information about marijuana has been a casualty
in the growing acceptance of the drug. So have consistency and common
sense. It makes little sense for the nation to be systematically
discouraging cigarette smoking, regulating trans fatty acids, limiting
the size of soft drinks - all while many are turning a blind eye to
the dangers of marijuana.

A Drug Control Policy spokesman told the Deseret News that the
administration continues to regard the drug as a harmful substance.
Spokesman Rafael Lemaitre said, "drug policy is a public health, and
not just a criminal justice issue." He added that "the policy of the
administration is to pursue innovative strategies of preventing drug
abuse before it begins."

That message needs to be delivered more frequently, and more often -
because it is not sinking in.

As Salt Lake police officer Doug Teerlink told the Deseret News, "You
talk to the kids and with everything that's going on with it being
legalized in Colorado and comments being made that it's just not that
bad for you, the kids are taking it one step further and they're
telling me, 'It's just an herb. It's OK. In fact, it's used for
medical purposes, it's not bad for you. It's good for you.' And that's
the belief that our kids are getting," he said.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse's Monitoring the Future Survey
found similar trends nationwide. The graph of usage by 12th-graders
tells much of the story: tobacco and alcohol use are down among
teenagers. With marijuana, unfortunately, the trajectory is in the
other direction.  
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D