April 26, 2013
What on earth are the promoters of legalized Marijuana
thinking? How can anyone think that the legalization of a “dangerous” mind
bending drug be a good thing for our country? I have to believe that anyone
endorsing smoking pot as beneficial to society in any manner must themselves be
partaking in this mind-numbing pastime.
Any argument about Cannabis being useful for medicinal
purposes to say the least is unwarranted. We currently have an array of legal
and controlled prescription drugs that can accomplish and exceed the benefits
of Pot. Some are a derivative of THC
combined with Cannabidiol and delivered in a mouth spray while avoiding the
adverse effects of smoked marijuana. With the passage of the “Affordable Health
Act” (Obamacare) and its supposedly all inclusive coverage for everyone, there
is no reason for anyone to resort to street drugs for pain control. These drugs
are also controlled for a reason and are monitored by a physician for both
effectiveness and addictiveness. If for
some reason these drugs are not available to everyone, perhaps we should spend
more time, effort and money in curing this problem instead of creating a new
one.
Who thinks the workplace will be enhanced by these new
laws? Loss of productivity, which is a given, can only exacerbate our problems
in an already competitive business arena where competition from overseas and
other drug free parts of the world is so keen. Make no mistake productivity
will be severely impacted. According to
the National Institute on Drug Abuse, a study done among postal workers found
that employees who tested positive for marijuana on a pre-employment urine drug
test had 55 percent more industrial
accidents, 85 percent more injuries, and a 75 percent increase in absenteeism
compared with those who tested negative for marijuana use. The question I have with this study is why
were these people who tested positive for drug use hired in the first place,
but that’s another topic for another blog.
Another area to be considered is the ability of someone
under the influence of Cannabis to make intelligent decisions. According to the
NIH, “marijuana’s negative effect on attention, memory, and learning can last
for days or weeks after the acute effects of the drug wear off. Consequently, someone who smokes marijuana
daily may be functioning at a reduced level most or all of the time.” Who would
knowingly hire someone who is not up to full speed? Think about this! Would
you?
I am not aware of anyone who has done a study on the
overall negative costs associated with marijuana use but I’m sure the amount
would be staggering. Can you imagine how many business decisions alone are made
on a daily basis, while under the influence of this supposedly recreational
drug? The argument most often put forth by the pro marijuana lobby is that
people are going to use this drug anyway so why not make it legal and enjoy tax
benefits from it. This a totally absurd argument as the loss in productivity
not to mention the social malaise resulting from this mind-bending drug more
than offset any potential tax gain. How irrational a thought we would throw the
welfare of our country overboard just to collect more in taxes.
There are many other arguments to be made with regards to
this idiotic rush to legalize stupid behavior, but I will save them for future
blogs. We haven’t touched on the effect
of this drug on our youth, health, driving…….. Well you get the point. This is
a Pandora’s Box and I hope we come to our senses before it’s too late to close
the lid.
Richard Charron
