Time to get mad, change attitudes about stoned driving, part 2

Read Part I: Time to get mad about stoned driving.  The next step is to change attitudes about stoned driving.

Marijuana Policy Project promoted marijuana as an alternative to alcohol in the 2012 campaign to legalize pot in Colorado.  However, the recent Rocky Mountain HIDTA Report revealed the overlap between those who use marijuana and drink before driving.   It’s not a substitution, but an adjunct to alcohol.  The alcohol industry has been selling more since legalization. Continue reading Time to get mad, change attitudes about stoned driving, part 2

The genius behind Washington’s marijuana ballot

Alison Holcomb designed I-502 and the state changed the terms

Alison Holcomb of the ACLU used her genius to write I-502, the 2012 ballot which legalized pot in Washington.  She addressed the public’s biggest concerns about accepting the legalization of marijuana, and wrote the ballot to appeal to non-users.  It was a brilliant tactic.  Soon after legalization, the state disregarded many of those terms.

I-502 had safeguards to prevent stoned driving, public smoking of marijuana, home grows and under-age usage.

Yet, passage of I-502 created many new victims. To a strong extent, the 5-nanogram allowance for THC in drivers is not protecting public health and safety.

Continue reading The genius behind Washington’s marijuana ballot

Time to Get Mad against Stoned Driving

Driver, allegedly high on marijuana, killed father of four

Joseph Bresnyan, a 40-year-old father of four, was changing a flat tire along Interstate 80 near Sacramento on May 3.  A passing motorist drifted onto the shoulder of the highway,  struck him and killed him.   California Highway Patrol arrested the other driver on suspicion of driving under the influence and vehicular homicide.   He tested positive for THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.

Californians approved pot legalization last November, but the impaired driver didn’t realize that driving after smoking is dangerous.  The public shares much of this ignorance and technology has not caught up with policy.   Law enforcement is scrambling to find good ways to test for and control stoned Continue reading Time to Get Mad against Stoned Driving

Let’s tackle drugs during domestic violence awareness month

Marijuana-induced psychosis leads to domestic violence

Domestic Violence Awareness month comes around each year in October.   Violence prevention groups would gain ground by targeting drug use and alcohol abuse, which trigger most cases of domestic violence.

Too many people are still deceived by the image of the laid back pot smoker.  A significant subset of stoners become psychotic and violent from using marijuana.   Davie Dauzat, who beheaded his wife on August 25, 2016, told the police it was a  “battle between good and evil.”  He and his wife had smoked pot together before he killed her.  Dauzat  was having the type of psychotic break that overwhelms certain pot users, leading them to commit acts of violence.   A similar event happened to Tyler Denning on March 25, when he jumped from a 4th floor window clutching his son.  He had smoked marijuana that day and claimed that God had made him do it.

Continue reading Let’s tackle drugs during domestic violence awareness month

Bursting the Bubble of Marijuana Hype