cannabisnews.com: Officials: Marijuana, Driving is Deadly





Officials: Marijuana, Driving is Deadly
Posted by CN Staff on November 09, 2003 at 14:52:43 PT
By Mike Bockoven 
Source: Grand Island Independent 
The Drug Recognition Experts of the Grand Island Police Department are trained to recognize the effects of drugs on a person. Of the 18 traffic stops the seven officers have made this year in which a person was driving under the influence of one or more drugs, all have something in common."Marijuana has been a component in all of them," Sgt. Dale Hildebrandt said. "Oftentimes it's a poly-drug situation where the person is on more than one, but all of them included marijuana."
Preconceptions aside, marijuana slows reaction time, makes it harder to concentrate and generally has the same effects as alcohol on driving, Hildebrandt said. While there have been only 18 stops this year, considering the number of DREs in proportion to the number of stops, Hildebrandt said it's definitely an issue in Grand Island.The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy agrees. The organization started the "Steer Clear of Pot," campaign in September aimed at informing young people of the dangers of driving under the influence. The program is nationwide, but Brian Blake, a spokesperson for the ONDCP, said it's a battle that needs to be fought on a local and national level."For the past year the administration has been trying to educate the public about marijuana and driving," he said. "The problem is people have had 'don't drink and drive' pounded into their heads for 20 years. We need to do the same thing with marijuana, from the schoolhouse to the statehouse."Given some of the statistics on the issue, it appears as if Blake has a point. In 2001, 34.7 percent of high school students in Nebraska reported using marijuana, with 5.8 percent using it before the age of 13. Nationally, 38,000 high school students reported that they crashed while driving under the influence of marijuana in 2001.The culture tells children that a high driver poses little threat, Blake said. Getting the contrary message out to youths is an important thing to do, given the number using the drug."There's definitely a problem out there," Blake said. "Marijuana and driving is something we felt wasn't being touched on."Blake said for more information, parents or youths can go to www.TheAntiDrug.com.Another reason to get the message to every school, DMV and driving instructor in the country, Blake said, is that teens are still learning the rules of the road most times. Throwing marijuana into the mix usually is dangerous.Hildebrandt said a good number of those pulled over for driving under the influence of a drug other than alcohol are youths, and educating them about the dangers is never a bad idea. In his experience, youths under the influence are usually unaware of the problem driving on a drug presents."Most of them, if you ask, will tell you they're high," he said. "They shrug their shoulders and ask, 'What's the big deal? It's just pot.'"That attitude is a big part of the problem, Hildebrandt said. While their numbers aren't going through the roof, those driving under the influence of marijuana often constitute an accident waiting to happen."It's prevalent," he said. "We have goals of educating more officers, but educating the public is also good."Note: A lethal mix on the roads. Pot similar to alcohol on driving; officials say it's an issue in G.I. Source: Grand Island Independent (NE)Author: Mike Bockoven Published: Sunday, November 9, 2003Copyright: 2003 Grand Island IndependentContact: ayoub theindependent.comWebsite: http://www.theindependent.com/Related Articles: Paranoid Pot Smokers Drive More Carefullyhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16445.shtmlAlcohol Impairs Driving More Than Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12299.shtml Cannabis May Make You a Safer Driverhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6717.shtml
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Comment #10 posted by Dankhank on November 10, 2003 at 19:45:25 PT:
Stoned Driving
I can count on Observer to post the relevant links to ACTUAL STUDIES that know ANYTHING about Cannabis and driving. I confess that I have collected all the stories and links, and have copied and saved Observer's comment once so as to the keep the info handy. Thanks for the info!I have never said to anyone, "Get Stoned and Drive."I have heard many times, "Let's do this/these doobie/doobs/joint/jays/spliffs/numbers/hooters/ and go to ..... usually by driving.I have driven many thousands of miles cross-country in a liberated state, often an extremely liberated state .. :-).I ride regularly in autos piloted by liberated drivers, and are no more paranoid of them as of anyone else. I had Steve Hagar in the front pass seat of my minivan in Philly at the Shadow Convention when driving to the Hemp Rally to at the Liberty Bell and was zooming in the lefthand lane toward Downtown at a good clip when the cars in front of me stopped suddenly. As I always endeavor to always know where the gaps are, I jerked the wheel to the right, hit the other lane and was gone, Steve turned to me, grinning slightly and acknowledged the feat of skill, or luck, who knows? OK 'nuff 'bout meI know a woman who has driven sober for years and scares the shit out or everyone who rides with her, and has had two recent accidents with some physical injury in each, luckily, mostly to herself ... but I digress.Apparently NO STUDY EXISTS to say that Cannabis use ALONE causes unsafe driving. If such a study existed, they'd tell us, wouldn't they?All they can do is to parrot false logic by asking us to assume with them that Cannabis use is detrimental to driving skills.They speak of the "fact" that Cannabis use is detrimental to driving skills when all they can do is lie and hope we believe. 
Hemp N Stuff
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Comment #9 posted by observer on November 10, 2003 at 13:55:59 PT
Pot Will Make You A Safer Driver
"The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy agrees. The organization started the 'Steer Clear of Pot,' campaign in September aimed at informing young people of the dangers of driving under the influence."What prohibitionists don't want you to know -Cannabis/Driving Studies
Australia: No Proof Cannabis Put Drivers At Risk (2001) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v01/n1849/a09.htmlUK: Cannabis May Make You A Safer Driver (2000) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1161/a02.html University Of Toronto Study Shows Marijuana Not A Factor In Driving Accidents (1999) http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases\1999\03\990325110700.htm Australia: Cannabis Crash Risk Less: Study (1998) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98/n945/a08.html Australia: Study Goes to Pot (1998) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98/n947/a06.html (Sigh. They don't believe us when we speak of the ability of cannabis to kill cancer, either.)
breaking pot news at the speed of bot http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/pot
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Comment #8 posted by RasAric on November 10, 2003 at 09:28:57 PT
Thanks FoM for re-registering my old name...
For more disinformation, propaganda, and outright lies, go to: www.theantidrug.com and/or the ONDCP.Government propaganda is finally beginning to give way to the truth. In there last dying gasp for air they want to justify their little cannabis war by claiming it's dangerous to use when operating heavy machinery. Driving while fatigued, is just as dangerous as driving high, if not moreso. Of course you should drive responsibly. As well to should have the right to enjoy good herb responsibly.By the way, speaking of the king of liars, the link below will steer you to the John Walters interview on C-Span. So, break out the popcorn and get ready to chuckle as you watch a spider get trapped in his own web of lies when numerous callers put Mr. Walters in the hot seat. His dishonesty becomes quite apparent with his increasing facial twitches and thumb twiddling while attempting to tell EVERY caller that they are wrong and that he is right. This is also a link to the Quentin Hardy(Forbes) interview.After watching these you'll know the drug war, at least regarding cannabis, is nearing it's end.Click here for the RealTime Video:
http://www.c-span.org/search/basic.asp?ResultStart=1&ResultCount=10&BasicQueryText=marijuana
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Comment #7 posted by Richard Paul Zuckerm on November 10, 2003 at 08:56:50 PT:
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE VITIATES THE CONCLUSIONS!
I can tell you from personal experience that driving while intoxicated after smoking a joint or two does not appreciably impair driving ability sufficient to cause a traffic accident.
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Comment #6 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on November 10, 2003 at 01:48:25 PT
LTE
Sirs,  Just because officers detect marijuana as part of a "poly-drug" mixture when pulling people over does not mean marijuana alone impairs the ability to drive. A recent study performed by the Canadian senate concluded that "marijuana alone, particularly in low doses, has little impact on the skills involved in automobile driving." Their main reccomendation involved a poly-drug situation which the Grand Island officers probably see regularly - alcohol and marijuana use together. In these situations, the Canadian senators reccomended lowering the blood-alcohol limit from .1% to .04%.  And why does the driving issue get used as a reason to keep arresting marijuana smokers whether they are driving or not? We draw a legal line between a responsible adult who is drinking at home and a drunk driver. We don't ban all alcohol sales because some people make bad decisions with it. Marijuana is equally illegal at home and in the car, which often forces people who want to hide their illegal activity to smoke it in their cars. And even though marijuana has been prohibited in this country for over 30 years, children still report it is easier to buy than booze. Drug prohibition is a colossal failure, a waste of $40 billion annually, and an insult to the taxpayer who funds this war against himself. It's time to do something different - vastly different.
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Comment #5 posted by Ferre on November 09, 2003 at 19:04:38 PT:
The Drug Recognition Experts Talk Crap!
All the tests I know of, and there's been a few, report that people driving on cannabis are driving more carefull then usual. tests have not found evidence of using cannabis while driving is dangerous.
Myself I have been driving stoned since 1977, as I use cannabis every day, even had a period as a taxi driver once and I have a 80 % discount on my car insurance becouse of safe driving and no accidents untill today. (knock-on-wood)It's all meant to get more healthy people in jail to work in the U.S. prison slave system or get money out of them some other way.
Amsterdam Cannabis Ministry (boards)
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on November 09, 2003 at 16:46:19 PT
BGreen
Yes, Cell Phones. My husband has a Cell Phone but I won't call him on it. He calls me when he is parked. I would call him if there was an absolute emergency but that would be the only reason. I don't want to contribute to an accident by distracting him from the road. 
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Comment #3 posted by afterburner on November 09, 2003 at 15:37:05 PT:
Marijuana... Same Effects as Alcohol: The Big Lie!
"marijuana slows reaction time, makes it harder to concentrate and generally has the same effects as alcohol on driving, Hildebrandt said." What great scientific evidence does this law enforcement officer have which contradicts most reputable studies indicating minimal danger to driving while using marijuana? See the Canadian Senate Report, for example. "Same effects as alcohol," indeed not. This is just more scare story. However, indiscriminately mixing cannabis with other drugs/substances is an unwise action and definitely unsafe for the road. Also novice tokers who are also novice drivers should not be trying to learn the rules of the road at the same time as they are learning how to expand their consciousnesses.
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Comment #2 posted by BGreen on November 09, 2003 at 15:29:31 PT
Even Truckers Are Using Cell Phones
I saw so many horrible drivers yesterday when I was on a road trip. The common factor was people on their cell phones.ANY IDIOT that wants to call me a hazard on the road because of cannabis should look a little closer at the real hazardous drivers when even truckers are driving 80 mph pulling a full load in heavy traffic while holding one hand up to their ear talking on their phone.Police LIES and B.S..The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #1 posted by OverwhelmSam on November 09, 2003 at 15:01:04 PT:
I Agree
Not only should minors not be using marijuana in the first place, but responsible marijuana users shouldn't smoke and drive. No doubt that the ONDCP will turn it into an anti-legalization argument.
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