The Marijuana Millstone Around the Necks of Oklahoma Children.
Vote NO on State Question 820—A Generation is at stake!
By Scott Patton
“Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Matt. 18:5-6
When Jesus spoke these words two thousand years ago, he didn’t mince them! Causing a child of God to sin will bring severe judgment not only on individuals but Kingdoms, Nations, and States! If you find it hard to swim with a millstone hanging around your neck, you should think twice before tempting God’s child. Jesus gives us a vision of care, passion, and advocacy for the weak, vulnerable, and marginalized. And when we tempt His children were playing with fire!
The 820 Marijuana question up for a vote in Oklahoma is way beyond a Smoke Dopin Debate! As Oklahomans go to the polls on March 7th to vote on the legalization of recreational marijuana, the question becomes, do we really know what is at stake? The long-term effects it will have on a generation of Oklahoma children? Undoubtedly, the support for the legalization of marijuana has risen sharply over the last decade! According to a recent Pew Poll, an overwhelming segment "of U.S. adults (88%) say either that marijuana should be legal for medical and recreational use by adults (59%) or that it should be legal for medical use only (30%)." Just one-in-ten (10%) say marijuana use should not be legal, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted Oct. 10-16, 2022".
For the past decade, the proponents of the legalization of marijuana presented four primary arguments. They contend that it frees up law enforcement to focus on other types of crimes, provides economic benefits to state and local governments with the taxation of marijuana, it's safer than alcohol, and the healing and medical benefits! (In U.S., Medical Aid Top Reason Why Legal Marijuana Favored (gallup.com)). At the same time, the purpose of this column is not to debate the medical uses of marijuana. Indeed, if a doctor prescribes medical marijuana to a patient and the patient benefits from marijuana's medicinal uses—this is legal in Oklahoma.
The Marijuana Money Trail?
The Marijuana dollars for state and local governments? Oklahomans have been using the economic debate of sin taxes for decades. Remember in the 1980s, the liquor-by-the-drink debate in the dry counties? Oh, but the lottery would fix the teacher pay gap, fund our schools, and improve our roads. Or better yet, the casinos! Remember, our children and families would get a huge windfall, and we could put more cops on the streets! Not to mention the $ 8-a-pack cigarettes with $2.03 sales tax; where’s that windfall? Under the auspicious economic arguments, all the ventures have never produced the promised windfalls and overwhelmingly negatively affected minorities, the poor, and the marginalized! Further, arguing that recreational marijuana frees up law enforcement is an oxymoron. While fentanyl meth will remain the greatest threat to Oklahomans, the black market for marijuana production will only increase law enforcement activities and stretch its resources. As former Oklahoma Governor and FBI Agent Frank Keating wrote in the Tulsa World: “Oklahoma’s marijuana industry is largely a front for organized crime, much of it emanating from beyond our nation’s border. Passing SQ 820 will embolden these criminals who also bring fentanyl and illicit activities into our state. The violence and military-grade weaponry around these growing operations put so many families at risk.”
Under the auspicious economic arguments, all the ventures have never produced the promised windfalls and overwhelmingly negatively affected minorities, the poor, and the marginalized!
(Picture Source Medical Press.com)
A Better Alternative to Alcohol? Follow the Science!
For years the “Lazy Smoke Dopin Pothead” with his grape juice, a bag of Doritos, and the TV remote was the impression of many Americans. Great parenting, highly successful CEOs, Athletes, and successful citizens are not typically associated with daily marijuana use. Fair or unfair images, the long-term psychedelic effects on the brain are accurate—especially when teenagers use marijuana at a young age! Granted, marijuana will not cause significant long-term organ damage to the liver or kidneys compared to alcohol. Marijuana on the brain is what alcohol is on the liver! And yes, alcohol has wrecked and devasted families for centuries. But ease of access to marijuana will have similar if not more devasting effects. Recently the Centers for Disease Control stated that: “Marijuana use directly affects the brain, specifically the parts of the brain responsible for memory, learning, attention, decision-making, coordination, emotion, and reaction time. Infants, children, and teens (who still have developing brains) are especially susceptible to the adverse effects of marijuana.” This is significant because “the science” the National Institute for Health tells us that brains do not fully develop until age twenty-five. The CDC also stated, “Long-term or frequent marijuana use has been linked to an increased risk of psychosis or schizophrenia in some users.” According to the National Institute for Drug Abuse, considerable evidence from animal research and increasing human studies suggest that marijuana use during development can cause long-term or possibly permanent adverse changes in the brain.
Indeed, the effects on teenagers are real, coupled with legalized recreational use, and the wide use of vaping amongst adolescents will negatively impact Oklahoma for generations. Vaping Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) does not duplicate the distinctive odor of marijuana, so kids can get away with vaping versus smoking, especially when you add flavoring to mask the THC smell. According to the NIH, four percent of all 12th graders vape marijuana daily! Furthermore, the THC potency has risen drastically since the advent of vaping. The new trend of vaping nicotine and marijuana drastically increases mental health disorders in teenagers and young adults! ( Q&A: Assess mental health to reduce CVD risk for women (healio.com)). According to helio.com, anxiety was significantly more prevalent among dual vapers (60%) and nicotine-only vapers (58%) contrasted with never vapers (43%; P < .05). Depression was more common among dual vapers (52%) and nicotine-only vapers (53%) than never vapers (25%; P < .05). Furthermore, accounts of suicidal thoughts were more prevalent among dual vapers (51%).
Indeed, the effects on teenagers are real, coupled with legalized recreational use, and the wide use of vaping amongst adolescents will negatively impact Oklahoma for generations.
Like many State Questions in Oklahoma over the years, SQ 820 is not just about cannabis. Even promoters of adult recreational use will be dismayed by the language in the 16-page plan. The maximum fine for smoking marijuana in a smoke-free building is a preposterous $25. Really? Violators cannot be jailed, so if you want to vape it up at the Thunder Game—vape up! Also, as Governor Keating pointed out: included in the proposal is “A person shall not be denied custody of or visitation or parenting time with a minor child” for using marijuana around a child. So, a single mother cannot ask the courts for her dope-smoking husband to abstain from “pot” during custody visits.
Imagine a millstone around the neck of the entire state! Satan attacks our children in multiple domains every day! Christians are in the constant ebb and flow of an ungodly Kingdom, feebly wafting on a tide that we know inside is leading to spiritual death. We are warned Do not conform to the patterns of this world Romans 12:1. Conforming is deadly. A yes vote to legalize recreational marijuana will give Satan one more arrow in his arsenal! Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour 1 Peter 5:8 God warns us to be alert and self–controlled. We live in a jester's paradise, believing we can flirt with the devil’s kingdom and come out unscathed from God. Churches, Be Bold and Be Brave and vote NO on State Question 820.