John Stonestreet – Page 65

Legalizing Marijuana Use Fuels Rise in Self-Harm among Young Men

Apr 13, 2021John StonestreetMarijuanaMarijuana

*John Stonestreet, Radio Host and President of the Colson Center for Christian Worldview.*

Already this year, New York and Virginia have joined a growing list of states that have legalized recreational marijuana. By doing so, they’ve also joined the list of states increasing the likelihood of young men committing suicide and hurting themselves.

According to a recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, states that allow commercial marijuana sales saw “self-harm rates rise by 46% among men ages 21 to 39.” Self-harm includes suicide attempts and behaviors like cutting.

This is the latest report to suggest that recreational marijuana use, is dangerous, especially for young people and especially for young people with a certain genetic makeup. Of course, there’s no reliable way to know whether or not a young person is genetically vulnerable until it’s too late.

Despite a growing body of evidence, states continue to push for legalization as if nothing could possibly go wrong. We already know it has.

Is Buttigieg’s Confirmation Historic?

Feb 4, 2021John StonestreetLGBTLGBTQ

CNN’s Jake Tapper, along with many others in the media, used the word “historic” to announce that Pete Buttigieg would be the next U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Headlines made sure to note Buttigieg is the first Senate-confirmed LGBTQ cabinet member in U.S. history.

Buttigieg is former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, a great town but not one with a complicated public transportation system. When his nomination was announced, Buttigieg tweeted he “loved” transportation and had even proposed to his husband in an airport terminal. Other than that, it’s not clear why President Biden thought him the most qualified person for the job.

To use the term “historic” is to diminish the word, to diminish Buttigieg (who is more than his sexuality), and to diminish his new office, which merits someone with appropriate qualifications.

If firing someone because of their gender identity or sexual orientation is discriminatory, isn’t hiring someone for the same reason just as discriminatory?

Either way, it’s not progress, and it’s certainly not historic.

And Yet Another Study Shows Marijuana Is Dangerous

Jan 28, 2021John StonestreetMarijuanaMarijuana

An oft-repeated line from advocates in and out of American politics is that marijuana, unlike opioids or cocaine, is a “safe drug.” Every campaign to legalize its sale and use repeats this claim. But it’s not true.

A study just published in JAMA Pediatrics found that heavy cannabis use among adolescents and young adults with mood disorders is “associated with an elevated risk of self-harm, overall mortality, and death by unintentional overdose and homicide.”

Making this finding even more significant and ominous is the fact that mood disorders have risen significantly over the past decade among younger Americans.

According to the study’s author, a first step is to educate parents and kids about the risks. That’s true, but we also need to educate politicians and voters that promises of financial windfalls won’t somehow make pot safe, and it’s not the government’s job to incentivize risky behaviors for financial gain.