More Than 60 Ministers, Church Leaders Sign Letter Thanking Gov. Hutchinson

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On May 13 the Obama Administration issued a set of guidelines instructing schools and colleges to let biological males who claim to be female use the girls’ restrooms, locker rooms, and similar facilities–and vice versa. Failure to do so, the guidelines said, could jeopardize federal funding for schools.

Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson and Attorney General Leslie Rutledge were swift in denouncing the guidelines and encouraging public schools to disregard them.

Today we delivered a letter to Governor Hutchinson’s office signed by 62 ministers and church leaders thanking the governor for his strong stand.

Pastor Iverson Jackson from Little Rock wrote the letter. The leaders who signed it represent a broad cross-section of churches and denominations from communities across Arkansas.

We join these ministers in thanking Governor Asa Hutchinson and Attorney General Leslie Rutledge for their strong leadership on this issue.

You can read the letter and the list of ministers who signed it here.

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7-Year-Old Paralyzed in Washington DUI Crash

Marijuana

Purple_KushAccording to news sources, police in Washington State report a 15-year-old girl in a BMW crashed into a pickup truck carrying a man and his 7-year-old son earlier this week.

Police say the BMW was traveling at “incredibly high speed,” and they have reason to believe the driver may have been operating under the influence of marijuana. The father was critically injured as a result of the crash, and his son was paralyzed.

In Colorado, news reports indicate a teen driver charged in a fatal crash earlier this month is suspected of using marijuana. The Associated Press writes,

Police say the teen rear-ended two cars stopped at a red light on May 7 and that there was “minimal breaking” before the crash.

Two people in one of the cars, 39-year-old Joe Ramas and 30-year-old Stacey Reynolds, both died after being taken to the hospital.

Sadly, these stories continue to demonstrate what we have been saying for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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Major News Outlet: Marijuana Edibles “Sending Kids to the ER”

Marijuana

Marijuana-Cannabis-Weed-Bud-GramWe have written repeatedly about how hospitals and emergency rooms are seeing more and more cases of accidental marijuana ingestion by children.

Because marijuana edibles often look like normal snack food, children mistake them as harmless. And because marijuana edibles often contain high concentrations of marijuana’s active ingredients, the effects of the marijuana are much more dangerous–particularly in small children, who seem to be most at risk.

NBC’s “Today” writes,

Marijuana is now legal for either recreational or medical use in 24 states and the District of Columbia. But “edibles” containing marijuana are spreading everywhere, and kids are getting hurt from California to New York. Last year alone, poison control facilities across the country reported 4,000 kids and teens exposed to marijuana.

Another issue we have highlighted before is the dangerous method many marijuana users employ to extract marijuana’s active ingredients.

Volatile chemicals–like butane–are used to extract hash oil from marijuana. Earlier this month police say a New Mexico man caused an explosion when he lit a pipe to smoke marijuana, but accidentally ignited the butane gas police say he was using to extract hash oil.

Situations like this one are particularly dangerous for apartment dwellers; in November of 2013 Seattle news outlets reported an elderly Washington resident was killed after a neighbor’s apartment exploded as a result of a hash oil operation.

These stories underscore what we continue to say: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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