Testimonies

Beating the Marijuana Addiction Nightmare

It’s crazy how I feel so much hurt still; I cried while I was writing this. It’s been an addiction nightmare. The last time I wrote to you, it was just a temporary break from all of our drama.  I had hoped, but my daughter was not cured of her marijuana addiction at that time.  Read Marijuana Addiction is Real for background on this story. Here’s my follow-up report.

It’s been a long difficult journey with my daughter due to her drug abuse problem. She would sometimes tell me she’d hear voices and that she needed help. At first, I just thought she was kidding which I regret, but these were signs of drug abuse which I didn’t recognize at that time. She now has opened up to me, she said the first drug she tried was marijuana and it was in middle school. She also began to drink alcohol with her friends at that time. She then tried marijuana again at age 15 with her boyfriend who was known to have a marijuana drug addiction problem. Continue reading Beating the Marijuana Addiction Nightmare →

Drug Policy, Politics

Exposing Marijuana Harms at New Jersey’s Black Caucus Meeting

COALITION OF PARENTS, LAW ENFORCEMENT, RELIGIOUS LEADERS, AND EMPLOYERS TESTIFY AGAINST MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION AT LEGISLATIVE BLACK CAUCUS HEARING

At a hearing of the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus, coalition members of New Jersey Responsible Approaches to Marijuana Policy (NJ-RAMP) expressed their opposition to the legalization and commercialization of recreational marijuana in New Jersey.

Parents, law enforcement professionals, religious leaders, employers, and addiction professionals offered testimony, insights and expertise on a multitude of issues including health concerns, increase in youth use, drugged driving, and arrest rates among minorities.

According to news reports, a number of legislators would rather see decriminalization than legalization in New Jersey.  The Black Caucus prefers decriminalization as more helpful to minorities. Continue reading Exposing Marijuana Harms at New Jersey’s Black Caucus Meeting →

Driving

Alcohol and Marijuana together Magnifies Driving Difficulties

Mixing Alcohol and Marijuana Amplifies THC in the System

Three news stories exemplify the tragic results of mixing alcohol and marijuana before getting behind the wheel of a moving vehicle.  Most recently, a suspected-DUI driver crashed into a California Highway patrolman in a parked vehicle on Christmas Eve.  Andrew Camilleri, 33, died instantly.  He left behind a wife and three children. Continue reading Alcohol and Marijuana together Magnifies Driving Difficulties →

Addiction

Don’t Believe the False Claim that Marijuana Reduces Opiate Deaths

Today SAM issued a statement refuting the notion that states with medical marijuana have fewer opiate deaths.  We have noticed that marijuana is an adjunct to opiate dependence and abuse, not a replacement.   Here is what the SAM (Smart Approaches to Marijuana) statement said:

Top-Line Understanding (Download Full PDF Here):

A recent study found that before 2009, the existence of legally protected pot dispensaries in a state correlates with a lower number of opiate deaths in that state.

This correlation disappears after 2009. Authors interpret this as the “post-Ogden memo era” and surmise that pot dispensaries were more strictly controlled after 2009.

The study does not control for naloxone distribution Continue reading Don’t Believe the False Claim that Marijuana Reduces Opiate Deaths →

Bursting the Bubble of Marijuana Hype