Dear Citizens of the Chelsea Area:
Monday is Memorial Day, or Decoration Day as my Grandma used to say. It is a day set aside to remember the sacrifices to preserve our liberty of many thousands of American men, women, and families since the founding of our country. As we pause to remember, I hope that we can take a few moments to consider what freedom and liberty really mean with regards to the latest controversy related to our freedom in Michigan.
Judge Learned Hand, who served as a federal judge from 1909 to 1951, said in his famous address at “I am an American” Day, “Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it…And what is this liberty which must lie in the hearts of men and women? It is not the ruthless, the unbridled will; it is not freedom to do as one likes. That is the denial of liberty, and leads straight to its overthrow. A society in which men recognize no check upon their freedom soon becomes a society where freedom is the possession of only a savage few; as we have learned to our sorrow.”
This month, the Michigan Coalition to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol filed their ballot proposal to the Michigan State Board of Canvassers, and it has now been approved. “The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol says the … proposal would include more generous limitations for possession and cultivation of marijuana than any other state, making Michigan “the leader in personal liberties.” (M-live, April 3, 2017).
Just what would these “liberties” achieve for the people of Michigan? I urge every voter in Michigan to do some homework. We will soon be the objects of a sophisticated, highly-funded public relations marketing campaign to win our hearts in favor of legalizing pot. The marijuana legalization movement has been spearheaded since 1996 by the late billionaire Peter Lewis and his Marijuana Policy Project and billionaire George Soros’ Drug Policy Alliance. These organizations are powerful and savvy. The Marijuana Policy Project coordinated the effort to legalize marijuana as medicine in 2008 in Michigan. Now, they are back with their sights set on 2018. The Coalition has acquired PR expert and spokesman Josh Hovey, creator of award-winning PR campaigns and a Senior Vice President at Truscott Rossman PR firm in Lansing. They already have canvassers out gathering signatures, per M-live reports.
Those advocating for the proposal guarantee a windfall of tax dollars (only for those who allow growers in their municipalities and townships) and promise to fund K-12 education, fix our roads, help our veterans, and fund local governments (only those who welcome growers, of course). With all their claims, I’m surprised they are not also promising to replace all the lead service pipes in our cities and keep Asian Carp out of the Great Lakes. Their rallying cry is that the war on drugs has failed, so we need to legalize marijuana so that law enforcement doesn’t have to work so hard. They claim that marijuana is not addictive; it is safe, much safer than heroin or meth. Now they claim that marijuana should be considered an “exit drug,” not a “gateway drug.” They argue, “So many people like it, we should just make it legal! It’s our right!”
Before jumping on board or even considering legalizing marijuana for personal use, I urge you to take the time to find out for yourself what legalization would mean for our state. I highly recommend two documents which are available online. The first is a new report (2017) by National Families in Action called “Tracking the Money That’s Legalizing Marijuana and Why It Matters.” This easy-to-read document reveals how three billionaires have influenced our entire country towards marijuana legalization since 1996, some of whom (namely the Drug Policy Alliance) have the ultimate goal of legalizing ALL illicit drugs. The report also reveals their strategy to legalize marijuana as “medicine” to open the door to full legalization. It shows how the marijuana industry is behaving just like the Big Tobacco industry, which funded research and deceived people the world over, resulting in millions of ruined lives through nicotine addiction.
The second document I highly recommend is the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area report: The Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact–September 2016. This 171-page document reveals the impact that marijuana legalization has had in Colorado in the first two years following full legalization in 2013. You only need to read the Executive Summary on pages 1-5 to see that this had not gone well for the State of Colorado, which now is #1 in the nation for youth marijuana use. In Colorado, the Marijuana Industry has not brought about dramatic increases in tax revenue, but it has brought increased crime, hospitalizations, traffic deaths and ER visits directly related to marijuana. Meanwhile, the illegal drug trade remains unchanged. You can be sure that the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Just Like Alcohol will not be referencing this report as they set up their marketing campaign. This report also refers readers to the data coming out of Washington State, which has seen remarkably similar results.
In addition, if you are a business owner or are interested in how marijuana legalization would impact business in Michigan, there is another recent report from National Families in Action called What Will Legal Marijuana Cost Employers? A White Paper.
If you are interested in the health and social impact of marijuana on youth as I, a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, am, I would encourage you to look at the Website: DFAA Drug Free Action Alliance. The DFAA is a community anti-drug coalition in Ohio, and they have posted a long list of research articles from reputable scientific journals which address the health and mental health impact of marijuana use on youth.
If you care about the future of our state and our children, do not blindly accept the misinformation and deception inherent in TV and magazine reports or in political campaigns. Question the source and educate yourself! Talk to your friends and neighbors who work in law enforcement, public safety or in health care–especially those working in emergency rooms, pain clinics, substance abuse treatment or mental health. Get their take on marijuana before you vote!
If you are a parent, please talk to your kids about marijuana. If you work in health care or public safety, please consider your position on this issue and begin sharing your thoughts with those in your sphere of influence. Marijuana is addictive for many, especially youth. It diminishes motivation and IQ and impairs thinking and response times. Where marijuana has been legalized, consumption has increased in all age groups. It robs many of their money and future education while growers and distributors in the industry get rich. We need to ask ourselves if it is ethically and morally right to enact a law which would undoubtedly have negative financial and health repercussions for many, especially our youth.
Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and considering this issue. We need to start having conversations with our families and communities and standing for what we each feel is right.
Sincerely,
Dianne Dobos
Well said. Thank you for taking the time to write this.
It matters!
I, as a physician, agree with Ms. Dobos.
Fear-based and untrue. The health benefits are real.
Thank you so much Ms. Dobos for this well-cited and thought out article. Let us hope that the we can remain off the ‘Weed Maps.’ Our children and communities deserve so much better. May your voice as an educated, professional care-giver be heard loudly by many.