The Billings Gazette, 16 Dec 2012 – With our state’s continued debate on medical marijuana use, and now with Colorado and Washington legalizing recreational marijuana use, it got me to think. As a society, are we ignoring the dangers we are exposing the majority to? I guessed the majority of the people who voted to legalize medical marijuana in the state of Montana, assumed people in need would have the prescription filled in the same procedure all current legal drugs are given. The greater concern I have is the new trend of legalizing recreational marijuana. With drug use (including marijuana) as the sixth leading cause of traffic fatalities, let’s see how as a society we have done with another legalized drug, alcohol. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), drunk driving represented 40 percent of total traffic deaths in 2006. Not good. So how are we at stopping repeated drunk drivers? According to the Century Council, in the state of Montana over 80 percent of fatal drunk driving crashes are from repeat offenders. So with such a large percentage of vehicle deaths attributed to drunk driving, and such a high percentage of repeat offenders, I would give us a failing grade in controlling this legalized drug. Can someone explain why anyone would want to add another drug to a system that is failing to protect the majority?
posted on December 16, 2012 by
