Teen Pot Use Falling In States With Medical Marijuana Laws
Washington, DC: States that have enacted legislation authorizing the use of medical cannabis by qualified patients have not experienced an increase in the drug’s use by the general population, according to a report issued this week by the Marijuana Policy Project and co-authored by NORML Advisory Board Member Mitch Earleywine.
Among the twelve states that have legalized the use and cultivation of medical cannabis, all but one (New Mexico) have experienced an overall decline in teen marijuana use since the enactment of their medi-pot laws. (Data was unavailable for New Mexico, which passed its law last year.) In seven of the twelve states, marijuana use among young people declined at rates that exceeded the national average.
“Opponents of medical use of marijuana regularly argue that such laws ’send the wrong message to children,’ but there is just no sign of that effect in the data,” said Earleywine. “In every state for which there’s data, teen marijuana use has gone down since the medical marijuana law was passed, often a much larger decline than nationally.”
This is exactly the same effect as in the Netherlands, where adults have been allowed to smoke weed for quite some time now. Yet compared to surrounding countries the Dutch have a (much) lower rate in cannabis usage.
Seems to me that the “war on drugs” isn’t working like its supposed to.
The war on “drugs” is a joke, its a war on people who would rather use marijuana a save drug in comparison to alcohol which cliams the second most lives every year of any drug. Hell aspirin kills more people every year and no one is worried about that.
If you want to get more involved look at this Medical Marijuana Source.
Right you are, mmj. Thanks for the link!