cannabisnews.com: Youth Factor Heats Up Medical Marijuana Debate
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Youth Factor Heats Up Medical Marijuana Debate
Posted by CN Staff on March 08, 2010 at 04:09:56 PT
By John Ingold, The Denver Post
Source: Denver Post 
Denver -- The divisions between the pro - and anti-marijuana crowds at the state House Judiciary Committee meeting were already clear last week when the young man who described himself as a recovering heroin addict approached the microphone.As the man spoke about marijuana use leading kids to harder drugs and fears that medical marijuana from dispensaries would make it into teenage hands, the lines became even clearer.
Law enforcement officers and treatment counselors in the audience looked on with interest, some nodding their heads. Several members of the marijuana community snickered or exchanged incredulous whispers during the testimony.In the debate over Colorado's medical-marijuana system, there is no issue that is as sharply divisive as the system's impact on young people.To many members of the law enforcement community, the growth of the state's medical-marijuana industry is a plague that threatens to increase marijuana use of all kinds among teens and young adults — with disastrous results for the state."The revenue generated from the marijuana industry," state Attorney General John Suthers wrote to lawmakers in a letter opposing a bill to regulate dispensaries, "will not cover the societal costs we will all incur."To many members of the marijuana community, statements like that amount to fearmongering. Dispensary owners say they resent the implication that they are indifferent to the well-being of young people. Marijuana-legalization activists say law enforcement officials are inflating the drug's dangers. Snipped   Complete Article: http://www.denverpost.com/commented/ci_14631814Source: Denver Post (CO)Author: John Ingold, The Denver PostPublished: March 8, 2010Copyright: 2010 The Denver Post CorpWebsite: http://www.denverpost.com/Contact: openforum denverpost.comCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml 
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Comment #1 posted by hotrodtommy on March 15, 2010 at 12:36:31 PT:
Youth Factor
I have two teen aged kids, and I suspect that they will at some point experiment with intoxicants. I would rather that my 16 year old daughter try a few puffs from a joint than a few chugs from a whiskey bottle, and for many obvious reasons. Alcohol is addictive and a person gets progressively more intoxicated, and can even pass out, or worse - die. Not so with MJ. I've made my feelings known to our president, and other elected officials on down, and I stand by my position. The legalization of MJ in other countries has shown that this does not increase in it's abuse among youths. The 'Reefer Madness' mentality of America is simply preposterous. Politics and money, as usual. This doesn't even touch on the Rx factor, and I am certain that many people on Rx meds would be much better off using medical MJ as a way to deal with depression and anxiety. Perhaps in the not to distant future...
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