Support for legalization is an anti-science position, because the policy works against what the science says. The science clearly shows that the cannabinoids in marijuana are destructive to brain health, and that massive marijuana grows are terrible for the health of the planet. Honest politicians who believe in science, or care about science, will not support the marijuana industry by getting behind the banner of marijuana legalization.
Not only is the science against legalization, but it’s also failed economic policy and fails in promises related to social justice
We’re running newspaper advertisements across the country to educate the public and support our new initiative, Every Brain Matters. Please use the hashtag, #EveryBrainMatters and #MarijuanaLegalizationisAntiScience. Here’s some documentation and resources for the public to read.
1.Marijuana Legalization is an anti-science Public Health disaster.
It increases hospitalizations from psychosis, vomiting and vaping lung disease traced to vapes from state-regulated stores!
https://www.newsbreak.com/news/1578818483529/cases-of-cannabis-induced-psychosis-increase-during-covid-19-pandemic (Illinois legalized marijuana 1/1/20)
https://www.theolympian.com/news/local/marijuana/article54985485.html (Washington legalized in mid-20140
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6625695/?fbclid=IwAR00OTBKqrL-IZvhKRs_zbcTo2w1YvbMCeFEcRlTZwg5WNs_iJda6DWYaIE
https://www.9news.com/article/news/health/local-teen-wants-more-people-to-know-about-a-rare-medical-condition-linked-to-marijuana-use/73-45dca14a-bf8d-4f9e-8f42-0cf3623b193d
Cyclic Vomiting Presentations Following Marijuana Liberalization in Colorado https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4469074/
https://www.karger.com/Article/FullText/494992
The CDC says that 82% of vaping illnesses linked to THC, one sixth of them were bought at state-regulated marijuana stores.
https://learnaboutsam.org/marijuana-vaping-outbreak-not-just-a-black-market-issue/
For a comprehensive view of marijuana and public health, check out the Missouri Medical Association’s website: https://www.msma.org/marijuana-education-resources.html
Marijuana is the #1 substance involved in deaths from child abuse and neglect in the states that track the substances linked to child abuse. https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/About_DFPS/Reports_and_Presentations/PEI/documents/2019/2019-03-01_FY2018_Child_Fatality_and_Near_Fatality_Annual_Report.pdf
https://www.azdhs.gov/documents/prevention/womens-childrens-health/reports-fact-sheets/child-fatality-review-annual-reports/cfr-annual-report-2018.pdf
For a comprehensive view of the mental health impacts of marijuana, including the links to schizophrenia, Dr. Mary Cannon: https://youtu.be/6vcv-FjzMp8
- Marijuana Legalization is an anti-science environmental policy which increases fires, pesticides use, water shortages, and climate change harms. The logging industry was shut down in Northern California to save the sequoia trees which are necessary to sequester carbon and prevent global warming. Unfortunately, the marijuana industry moved in and cuts down sequoia trees indiscriminately. The result, as we have seen this year, is massive fires in the west and more destruction. Marijuana growers use 5 gallons of water per plant, per day and contribute to California’s water shortages and droughts.
http://www.takepart.com/feature/2016/04/18/greenrush https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/03/marijuana-weed-pot-farming-environmental-impacts/ https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/03/backcountry-drug-war/521352/ https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2014/03/marijuana-pot-weed-statistics-climate-change/
- Data shows that Marijuana Legalization is an Anti-Science assault on public safety.
In the first two states to legalize, crime rose significantly, and traffic fatalities involving THC-impaired drivers increased 50-100%.
file:///C:/Users/Owner/AppData/Local/Temp/19-0637_AAAFTS-WA-State-Cannabis-Use-Among-Drivers-in-Fatal-Crashes_r4.pdf
See pp. 88-96 about crime in the state of Washington: http://www.mfiles.org/docs/marijuanaimpact2017.pdf
Crime rate in Colorado increases much faster than rest of country: https://www.denverpost.com/2017/07/11/colorado-sees-big-increase-crime-10-percent-higher-murder-rate/
And there was an 18.6% increase in violent crime for 2017, retrieved 2019 https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cbi/colorado-crime-stats
- Marijuana Legalization increases the black market for all drugs, and overdose deaths. https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-gavin-newsom-crackdown-pot-black-market-20190219-story.html https://mjbizdaily.com/californias-legal-marijuana-market-struggles-with-financial-woes-as-it-battles-illicit-market/
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-colorados-marijuana-legalization-strengthened-the-drugs-black-market
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/marijuana-in-california-black-market-weed-buzzkills-for-california-legal-weed-industry-60-minutes-2020-08-02/?fbclid=IwAR3GiH1JzNv5eVnctAq25405wWy-S1zZZbRKJzj31zQPU30J75rHyd0I_TY
Overdose deaths rise after legalization in Colorado. See p. 38. https://rmhidta.org/files/D2DF/RMHIDTA%20Marijuana%20Report%202020.pdf
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/15/upshot/drug-overdose-deaths.html
- Youth and Marijuana, the problems with legalization
Problematic youth use rises after legalization, according to research from Columbia University. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/11/191113153049.htm
In states that have legal pot, teens are using mainly the most potent varieties available in marijuana stores, such as “vapes.” “dabs,” “wax” or “shatter.”
Sources: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/healthy-kids-colorado-survey-data-tables-and-reports https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2020-01/2019-NDTA-final-01-14-2020_Low_Web-DIR-007-20_2019.pdf
In 2019, the daily use of marijuana among 10th graders rose more than 41% from 2018 and rose almost 86% for 8th graders—to the highest rates in many years.
In 2019, 6.4% of 12th graders used marijuana every day. By comparison, only 2.4% used cigarettes every day and 1.7% of 12th graders drank alcohol every day in 2019.
In 2019, 3.6% of teens vaped marijuana daily.
Colorado had the highest rate of teen vaping. (first state with legal pot sales)
Source: https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/monitoring-future-survey
Once you allow marijuana in a state, the industry fights all sensible regulation such as caps on THC potency.
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/proposed-concentrates-ban-goes-down-in-flames-in-washington/
- Tax revenue disappoints. Legalization doesn’t get rid of black markets. In states with recreational pot, tax income from pot sales stays significantly below one percent of state revenue https://mjbizdaily.com/california-recreational-marijuana-in-crisis-after-two-years/
https://learnaboutsam.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Revenues-vs-Reality-0520-4.
https://www.politico.com/agenda/story/2019/10/14/marijuana-tax-revenue-001062/
A Los Angeles Times article tries to explain why tax revenue comes in way lower than expected. https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2019-10-17/california-cannabis-taxes
Where there’s “medical” pot, too, big loopholes prevent states from getting the promised tax revenue on “recreational.” https://420intel.com/articles/2020/01/28/illinois-more-people-apply-medical-marijuana-avoid-paying-high-taxes https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/04/01/marijuana/getting-medical-marijuana-card-is-easier-than-you-think/
- Legalization has not fulfilled the social and racial justice outcomes that were promised, in any states that legalized pot. Legalization unfairly causes more harm in low income neighborhoods; discrepancies in arrest rates don’t go down after legalization. https://learnaboutsam.org/marijuana-and-social-justice/
One article calls it the Marijuana Industry’s War on the Poor:
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/what-works-colorado-denver-marijuana-pot-industry-legalization-neighborhoods-dispensaries-negative-213906
Only a few players, mainly large corporations, some owned by Big Tobacco, are benefitting from the legalization of pot. By all other measures, it’s failed policy.
The time of COVID-19 is the worst time to add marijuana in the communities: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/04/health/covid-vaping-smoking.html
On every measure marijuana legalization is failed policy. No state has been successful at regulating marijuana. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAxotrdvWzI
Please consider a donation to combat our nation’s addiction epidemic:
https://poppot.org/stop-pot-join-pop/
Parents Opposed to Pot , PO Box 2462, Merrifield, VA 22116
Join our campaign, Every Brain Matters, an initiative of
Parents Opposed to Pot
