Marijuana-Infused Cookie Sends Boy to Hospital

Marijuana

According to news sources, an eight-year-old Oregon boy was taken to the hospital last weekend after eating a marijuana-infused cookie he found.

The cookie was sealed and labeled that it contained approximately 50 milligrams of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana. According to the label, the cookie was intended to be divided into two “servings”–not eaten all at once, as the boy did.

Unfortunately, as states continue to legalize or relax regulations on marijuana, stories like this one are becoming more common.

For example, in February of 2015 a 20-month-old Canadian toddler overdosed after eating a marijuana-laced cookie authorities said the child’s father baked. The child survived, but suffered seizures and had to be admitted to a hospital.

According to The Aspen Times, in 2014 a seven-year-old girl was taken to the hospital after eating marijuana-laced candy her mother brought home from work at an area hotel. The candy was left by a hotel guest–presumably as a tip.

Also in 2014, students in Oklahoma and Connecticut were hospitalized in separate incidents following marijuana overdose at school.

Last year four students at one high school were hospitalized after eating brownies laced with marijuana hash oil. One student was actually found unresponsive in a school bathroom.

We could go on, but these examples underscore what we have said time and time again: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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Religious Freedom Law Lets AR Ministry Continue Serving Those in Need

Religious Freedom, ,

Rep. BallingerA Christian outreach in Carroll County is continuing to serve those in need thanks in part to the Religious Freedom Restoration Act the Arkansas Legislature passed last year.

The law prevents state government from burdening a person’s free exercise of religion unless it has a compelling governmental interest at stake.

In this case, A Cup of Love Ministry–which serves food to those in need–was told by the state Department of Health that if it was going to serve soup to the homeless, the soup had to “be prepared in an institutional kitchen and served in the same building.”

Rep. Bob Ballinger (R-Hindsville) who sponsored the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in 2015 told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, “It was a perfect example of government having too much regulation and not enough reason. For any government to try to shut down a person who’s just trying to feed the homeless, it’s pretty foolish. The Health Department was very willing to work with us.”

The story is reminiscent of a case in Texas from a few years ago: The City of Dallas passed an ordinance effectively preventing several ministries from providing food to the homeless within city limits. In that case, the Texas ministries actually sued the city under Texas’ Religious Freedom Restoration Act; ultimately, the court ruled these ministries could continue feeding the homeless.

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Lottery Pays Less Than 24% to Scholarships Despite Skyrocketing Ticket Sales

Arkansas Lottery

According to financial reports published by the Arkansas Lottery this week, the Lottery took in $58.7 million last month, but paid out $13.8 million for college scholarships–less than 24% of its gross revenue for the month.

Below is a breakdown of the numbers since Fiscal Year 2016 started at the Arkansas Lottery last July.

Month Gross Lottery Revenue Paid to Scholarships % Gross Revenue
July $31,665,651.14 $5,784,683.09 18.3%
August 31,265,177.55 5,490,094.00 17.6%
September 36,134,389.63 6,624,967.11 18.3%
October 35,261,533.80 6,020,642.32 17.1%
November 32,226,599.28 5,725,139.09 17.8%
December 38,670,746.09 6,425,754.66 16.6%
January, 2016 58,746,249.00 13,831,359.75 23.5%
Total $263,970,346.49 $49,902,640.02 18.9%

All told, seven months into Fiscal Year 2016, the Arkansas Lottery has spent only about 19% of its gross revenue on college scholarships.

While Lottery officials may tout the high number of PowerBall tickets sold last month due to the record jackpots, the fact remains the Arkansas Lottery continues to allocate a pitiful percentage of its gross revenue for college scholarships. The average state lottery allocates around 30%. In Louisiana, 35% of lottery revenue goes to education. In Arkansas it is much, much less.

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