This page was created to provide information and research material on the harms of legalizing marijuana for both “medical” and recreational purposes.
Some Illinois lawmakers want legalize recreational marijuana for the purpose of taxing and securing a new revenue source. However, the high costs to society far outweigh any revenue stream, which they are hopeful will bail out decades of wasteful spending. It may not be the panacea they were hoping for.
Be sure to WATCH…
VIDEO – The chemicals being used to grow today’s marijuana are causing an environmental disaster.
Marijuana growers are poisoning the soil, water supplies and are killing wildlife.Dr. Mourad Gabriel, Ph.D in Comparative Pathology (emphasis on wildlife disease ecology). He is the Co-founder of the Integral Ecology Research Center.
VIDEO – Marijuana in Your Schools.
Ron Castagna, educator and retired Colorado high school principal of 27 years, 2012 Principal of the Year
VIDEO – Cannabis in the Emergency Room.
Dr. Karen Randall talks about the terrible financial burden legalization has put on their hospitals and Medicaid system, due to the increase in homelessness and THC potency. Dr. Karen Randall, Emergency Room Physician in the 3rd busiest Emergency Department in Colorado; trained in emergency medicine, pediatrics and family practice; holds a certificate in Cannabis Science and Medicine from the University of Vermont.
VIDEO – Black market thrives, crime and driving fatalities increase.
Chelsea Clarke, Strategic Intelligence Unit Supervisor for the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area. She is a primary contributor to the annual Threat Assessment and The Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact reports, as well as a leader in the Colorado Heroin Response Work Group.
oger Morgan, Chairman/founder of Take Back America Campaign; former chairman and executive director of the Coalition for a Drug-Free California; founding chairman of the Colorado SAFE Foundation in 1997; prior Board Member of the San Diego Prevention Coalition; member of the National Coalition for Student Drug Testing.
VIDEO – “It’s Changed My Home.”
Aubree Adam’s son started using marijuana in the 8th grade, soon after Colorado legalized the drug for recreational use. As a freshman, Aubree’s son had a psychotic break and tried to kill himself. Her son continued a cycle of addiction and mental illness for several years. He is now in recovery, and admits marijuana almost killed him and was his gateway to other drugs.
Dr. Ken Finn, Board Certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Board Certified in Pain Medicine and Pain Management; licensed in Colorado, Utah and Arizona; president and founder of several Rehab Medicine businesses; serves on the American Board of Pain Medicine Executive Board and Exam Council; Volunteer Clinical Instructor at University of Colorado, Colorado Springs Medical Branch; published several papers related to cannabis in the face of the opioid epidemic and societal effects.
VIDEO – “If It’s Legal, Why Test? Addressing the Marijuana Bully in the Workplace.”
Illinois business owners must be aware of the implications legalization will have on their business. Chuck Marting serves on the Board of the National Drug and Alcohol Screening Association; former law enforcement officer where he spent 17 years as a Drug Recognition Expert; expertise in workplace impact, has trained district attorneys, school administrators and business owners on workplace impairment testing.
Rocky Mountain High Brings State to New Lows Recreational marijuana has negatively affected every part of Colorado’s culture: schools with increased youth use, poisonings, car fatalities, hospital admissions… But what’s little known, and Big Marijuana wants to keep it that way, is the effect it’s having on neighborhoods, the environment, and homelessness. Big Marijuana lied to Coloradans. Illinois residents should expect the same to happen here. Watch this.
Effects on Society
Colorado Law Officer Warns Other States Not to Legalize
Five Years Later, Colorado Sees Toll of Pot Legalization
Colorado Impact Study by Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area
Analyzing Colorado’s Grand Experiment
Colorado’s $1 Billion Pot Industry Saves Towns as it Sows Mayhem
What to Expect if a Marijuana Cultivation Center or Dispensary Opens in Your Community
Denver Drug Agent: Our problems ‘Have Exploded’ with Pot Legalization
Costs to Teens and Adolescents
[VIDEO] Truth and Consequences of Medical Marijuana by Peter Bensinger
Marijuana Legalization: The Issues
Addictive, Stronger & Dangerous
9 in 10 Teens at Drug Clinics Being Treated for Marijuana Use
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- Cannabis is responsible for 91% of drug addiction cases involving teenagers
- Skunk – high-potency herbal cannabis – causing more people to seek treatment
- Backs up research that skunk is having detrimental impact on mental health
How safe is super-concentrated marijuana?
Pot Contains Heavy Metals & Fungus
Stop Pretending Marijuana is Harmless
Bigger Habit for College Students than Cigarettes
Cannabis Can be Highly Addictive, Major Study Finds
Getting Marijuana Addiction Treatment
Journal of Addiction Research & Therapy
“Marijuana is currently a growing risk to the public in the United States. Following expanding public opinion that marijuana provides little risk to health, state and federal legislatures have begun changing laws that will significantly increase accessibility of marijuana. Greater marijuana accessibility, resulting in more use, will lead to increased health risks in all demographic categories across the country. Violence is a well-publicized, prominent risk from the more potent, current marijuana available.”
Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago’s EVIDENCE-BASED POSITION STATEMENT
In Opposition to Legalization of Possession and Use of Marijuana for Non-Medical Reasons by Adults in Illinois
According to Narconon:
- Of all the people who use marijuana, about one in eleven will become addicted.
- When a young person begins smoking marijuana in his or her TEENS, he (or she) has a one in six chance of becoming addicted.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine:
“Marijuana is a mood-altering drug capable of producing dependency. While popularly thought to be a fairly benign ‘drug,’ marijuana can have adverse effects on memory and learning, perception, behavior and functioning, and on pregnancy.”
The American Psychiatric Association:
“There is no current scientific evidence that marijuana is in any way beneficial for the treatment of any psychiatric disorder. In contrast, current evidence supports, at minimum, a strong association of cannabis use with the onset of psychiatric disorders. Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to harm, given the effects of cannabis on neurological development.”
Psychotic/Violent Incidents
INCONTROVERTIBLE – Heavy Cannabis Use Increases Risk of Psychosis
Cannabis-Induced Psychosis – Judge Rules
Teen Killed for Smoking His Friend’s Weed
5 Teens Face 1st Degree Murder Over Pot and Meth
Psychotic Episode – Man Beats 82-yr-old Mother to Death
Strong Cannabis Causes 1 in 4 Cases of Psychosis
“American Sniper” Chris Kyle Murdered
This Is How One Pot Smoker Learned That Weed Plays a Mysterious Role in Psychosis
Pothead gets 25 Yrs for Attempted Murder of President
Lancaster County Mom Charged with Infant Daughter’s Asphyxiation Death
High on Edibles Pleads Guilty to Wife’s Murder
Tucson Massacre: 6 Killed, 14 Injured
PA Man High on Pot Charged with Killing Infant Daughter
CO Theatre Shooter Killed 12, Injured Dozens
Clackamas Shooter “Smoked a Bowl” Before Killing 2, Injuring 1
Chattanooga Shooter Changed After Mideast Visit, Friend Says
Chilling Account of O.C. Mansion Slayings
Robert Durst, ‘The Jinx,’ Charged with First-Degree Murder
Poisoned by the Weed: Marijuana and Pretty Little Killers
Marijuana Use Increases Violent Behavior
1-Armed Man Accused in Pot-Fueled Samurai Sword Attack
Deaths & Suicides
Synthetic Marijuana Cause of 3 Dead, 107 Hospitalized, Severe Bleeding
Mother Fell Asleep, Rolled on Top of Child After Using Marijuana
Mom Charged in Baby Smothering Death
Highland County Coroner: Marijuana is ‘gateway to hell’
How safe is super-concentrated marijuana?
Marijuana Blamed in More Deaths
Edibles Linked to Attempted Suicide
Babysitter Crushes Toddler under Vehicle
Who Said No One Ever Died From Marijuana?
Denver Coroner: Man Fell to Death After Eating Marijuana Cookies
Jacksonville Police: Girlfriend Shot in Face While Playing with Gun, Smoking Marijuana
Couple Dies in Marijuana-Related Crash
Hash Oil Explosion Leaves 1 Dead
Father, Son Staged Slain Alaska Troopers’ Bodies, Indictment Says
Impaired Driving & Fatalities
More Drivers Killed Under the Influence of Drugs Than Alcohol
Driver High on Pot Kills 3 (2 are kids)
Illinois Marijuana Drivers Involved in Fatal Crashes are Increasing
Legalizing Recreational Marijuana Linked to Increased Crashes
Woman Accused of DUI in Fatal Crash Ordered to Stand Trial
Fatal Road Crashes Involving Marijuana Double
Effects of Marijuana on Driving Performance
Children
3-Year-Old Hospitalized After Ingesting Marijuana
More Children Hospitalized for Mistaking Pot Brownies, Cookies for Treats
Rise in babies Born with Marijuana in System
Study Shows What Happens to Babies of Mother Smokes Marijuana
The American Medical Association:
“Heavy cannabis use in adolescence causes persistent impairments in neurocognitive performance and IQ, and use is associated with increased rates of anxiety, mood and psychotic thought disorders.”
Adolescents, Teens & Schools
Legalized pot sends more teens to ER in Colorado, study finds
Adolescent Pot Use & Abnormal Conditions
Middle School Drug Cases Increase
Scores Arrested for Underage Possession
Colorado School’s #1 Problem is Pot
Northwestern Study Poor Memory Loss in Teens
The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America:
“As a national organization that builds coalitions to prevent youth alcohol, tobacco and other drug use, CADCA has long believed that marijuana legalization is a bad idea that will increase youth drug use.”
Drug Use in the Work Place
Workplace Drug Use at a 12-Year High
Drug Use a Problem for Employers
Employers Can Fire for Off-Duty Pot Use
Study Confirms Pot Use Up Drastically in Workforce
Company Says Pot Pushed Them out of State
Marijuana’s Effects on Health
Cannabis Linked to Bipolar Symptoms in Young Adults
Greater Marijuana Use Linked to More Severe Schizophrenia
Cannabis & the Brain: NIDA Sounds the Alarm
New Study is Bad News if You’re a Marijuana Supporter
[VIDEO] Dr. Andrea Barthwell on Marijuana as Medicine [Part 1] [Part 2]
American Society of Addiction Medicine: White Paper on State-Level Proposals to Legalize Marijuana
Cannabis toxicity and adverse biological activity
Regular pot smokers have shrunken brains, study says
Additional resources on the health effects of marijuana can be found HERE.
Marijuana Decriminalization and Legalization
Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No
Prisons Not Filled With Pot Users
Criminal Justice: Myths and Facts
National Association of Drug Court Professionals: The Facts on Marijuana
Legalizing Marijuana: Why Citizens Should Just Say No
State Worker Becomes New Marijuana Lobbyist
Colorado Rethinks Legalization
Pacific Garden Mission Letter Opposing Decriminalization
Medical & Law Enforcement Nightmare
The Hidden Costs of Marijuana Use in CO: One Emergency Department’s Experience
Lawsuit Against Marijuana Company for Fatal Shooting
Hospital Incurs $20 Million in Loss Due to Marijuana-Related Admissions
Former Drug Czar Opposes Legalization
Few IL Doctors Will Certify Patients for Medical Marijuana
Prosecutors & Law Enforcement Sue Colorado Press Release
Black Market
Big Marijuana Trashes Democratic Process
Black Market Thriving in Colorado
A pro-marijuana group admits the key to full legalization is legalizing “medical marijuana” first.
“The key to it is medical access, because once you have hundreds of thousands of people using marijuana under medical supervision the whole scam is going to be bought. Once there’s medical access…then we will get full legalization.”
~Richard Cowan, former director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana.
Most Medical Organizations Oppose Marijuana as Medicine
The American Academy of Pediatrics opposes medical marijuana outside the regulatory process of the FDA and opposes legalization because of the potential harms to children and adolescents.
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s policy statement warns of the negative effects.
The American Academy of Neurology warns that medical marijuana legislation is not supported by medical research.
The American Society of Addiction Medicine recognizes “there are several potential medical and public health consequences of marijuana use that require further research.”
The Glaucoma Research Institute’s position: “To date, no studies have shown that marijuana— or any of its approximately 400 chemical components—can safely and effectively lower intraocular pressure better than the variety of drugs currently on the market. Currently, there are no National Eye Institute studies in the United States concerning the use of marijuana to treat glaucoma.”
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has sounded the alarm over a possible increase in unknown cognitive and behavioral harms that widespread cannabis use may unmask.
Pot Not Medicine
No Approved ‘Medicine’ in Marijuana
Scant Evidence Medical Pot Helps Many Illnesses
A Bust for “Medical” Marijuana: Health Benefits Go Up in Smoke
Colorado Rejects Pot for PTSD Treatment, Cites Lack of Research
Videos
