Straight facts and conversation scheduled for Tuesday, December 3rd at the Sedona YMCA.
Sedona AZ (December 1, 2013) – The goal of this event is to give the community the straight facts, so people can make smart choices and be their best self – without drugs. The Sedona Y along with Matforce is encouraging all parents, teachers, business owners and caring individuals to attend this FREE event.
People smoke pot for a lot of different reasons: to feel good, to feel better, to feel different, or to fit in. Whatever the reason, drug use has consequences.
All forms of marijuana are mind-altering (psychoactive). In other words, they change how the brain works. Marijuana contains more than 400 chemicals, including THC (delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol). Since THC is the main active chemical in marijuana, the amount of THC in marijuana determines its strength or potency and therefore its effects. The THC content of marijuana has been increasing since the 1980s.
One teen said in a comment submitted to NIDA’s Sara Bellum Blog “I used to smoke pot until I had an anxiety attack and thought. I couldn’t breathe…I was wheezing, and I got really paranoid.”
“The effects are rather subtle: downward life trajectory, erosion of IQ, impaired cognitive development, mental health issues, low education attainment, and the escalation of delinquency” says Sheila Polk, Yavapai County Attorney. “Disintegration over months or years is not easily identified nor does it garner headlines. I see the harms — child abuse inflicted by the neglectful pot-smoking parent; traffic fatalities by the marijuana impaired driver. I see the subtle signs of destruction in the growing number of addicted young adults. Our job as adults is to create an environment to fuel our kids’ success. To that end, we must educate them and the voting public about the value of the brain and the damage of marijuana. Already an uphill battle, the legalization movement feeds teens’ perception that marijuana is safe. We can’t sit passively by and watch this slow decline.” Sheila Polk is the Yavapai County Attorney and co-chairwoman of MATFORCE, the Yavapai County Substance Abuse Coalition.
If you’re still not certain about attending this free event, read what local experts in the community are saying:
“Many people who grew up in the ’60s as part of the “hip” generation tried marijuana as a natural substance and still think it’s the same. It’s not! Marijuana has become a genetically-engineered business product that intensifies its impact on the brain and nervous system. It’s now “super-pot” that easily creates physical addiction instead of a relaxing “high.” – Harvey Grady
“The presentation, “Marijuana Harmless Think Again” is vitally important to Parents in order for them to learn of the very real damage that can occur in our young people should marijuana become legalized and more readily available. Brain damage can occur in the developing youthful brain up to age twenty five which can account for a drop in IQ of 8 to 10 points, permanent harm can occur also to a person’s basic initiative and therefore affect our entire Society.” – Dr. Leon Cattolico
“Both students and parents get mixed messages in our culture concerning marijuana usage. Teenagers often listen only to what they want to hear. It is important that both parents and teens have access to the facts about the dangers of marijuana usage, especially during the formative years.” – Jay Litwicki, Assistant Principal – Sedona Red Rock High School
“Marijuana induces what is called State Dependent Learning. Students reading and studying while intoxicated on marijuana cannot remember what has been learned unless they use the drug again. Adolescents that use marijuana frequently during high school may find when they quit using the drug they have poor recall for what they learned in high school.” – Guy C. Lamunyon MSN, Registered Nurse – Certified Addictions Specialist
“Parents and students can greatly benefit from this presentation for several reasons. Sheila Polk is the County Attorney, there is no one better to explain the history and facts of medical marijuana, the laws surrounding dispensaries, and the ramifications for parents and teens. Secondly, this presentation will show what specifically is medicinal about Marijuana and what is not, and how children are carrying the idea that Marijuana is a safe drug to use for recreation. This presentation will give facts about the potency of Marijuana in the 21st Century, and the damage it can cause to young developing brains and bodies.” – Dr. Lisa Hirsch, Principal West Sedona School
“It is extremely important that parents have a better understanding of the harms that marijuana poses to youth and young adults. It sometimes can be easy to just accept that because many states have allowed its use for medical purposes that it is safe. This presentation will provide parents clear information that they can use to have open discussions with their children, whether they are 10 years old or 20 years old, about marijuana usage and the harms it can bring to their lives.” – Raymond O. Cota, Chief of Police – Sedona Police Department
The “Marijuana Harmless? Think Again” presentation happens Tuesday, December 3rd at 7:00PM-8:00PM at the Sedona YMCA located at 525-B Posse Ground Road in Posse Grounds Park next to the skate park.
The YMCA is located at 525-B Posse Ground Road in Posse Grounds Park. Office hours: 2:30-6:00PM, M-F. Phone: (928) 282-1695. Website: SedonaYMCA.org Email: Jim Allen at jallen23@vosymca.org Facebook: Sedona YMCA
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4 Comments
Marijuana Harmless? How ridiculous. Everyone knows pot is a killer drug that destroys the moral fabric of our youth and their young minds. There has never been any accomplishment of any worth to our society by a pot head. You can check that out on the internet. Pot heads contribute nothing. Nothing! Pot heads are lazy, slow witted, have lower IQs, lack creativity and have absolutely no motivation. People need to see the movie “Reefer Madness” made in the 1950’s once again to understand how pernicious it is. For those not familiar with the movie it is an excellent film that tells the truth about the drug, with no punches pulled. Put it into your search engine and check it out. Watch it with your kids. You will never look at pot the same way again. This movie should be shown before the meeting to help parents truly understand what it can do. Pot lowers the morals of young women who end up having illicit relationships with older pot smoking musicians regardless of gender or diversity (Lord knows there are plenty of those in Sedona). Pot leads kids to hard drugs like heroin and crack and it’s been proven over and over again. Pot is a million times more harmful than alcohol and that has been proven beyond reasonable doubt as well. Marijuana is being pushed by the enemies of America like China, Russia, Afghanistan and Iraq to turn our youth into mindless, video game-playing salivating idiots that will not be able to defend our country should they invade.
Marijuana is the main reason there are so many fat people in America. This may not be a politically correct thing to say but marijuana makes people gorge themselves on food through a phenomenon called “the munchies” where the corpulent eat anything they can get their hands on in an eating frenzy rivaling that of starving killer whale ripping a baby seal apart. And don’t believe the horrific lie promulgated by left-wing “America Haters” who claim it helps alleviate medical conditions. What the heck is wrong with the legal drugs made by our respected and established pharmaceutical providers that spend millions to create life saving medicines like Chemo and Ritalin? It’s all lies that weed helps the the ill deal with their sicknesses. It’s a placebo effect and nothing more. Pot is an abomination and should be sent back to the dark ages where it used to be and still belongs today. I’m glad the City of Sedona and the Sedona School District totally agree with me as well. I expect hundreds of community residents to show support at this meeting. It’s about time people knew the truth about this insidious scourge.
And look at all the people who don’t smoke pot who STILL accomplish nothing and manage to make the world an ever worse place. It’s their lives, their money, their future. They should choose whether they smoke or not. The ones who will have the ambition will achieve, and the ones who never had the ambition will not achieve, whether pot is in the picture or not.
Prohibition was a disaster – it only created a black market and helped to solidify mafia connections with corrupt businesses and governments. During the depression, alcohol was made legal because the tax dollars were needed and the populace clamored for the end of the criminal alcohol trade. History doesn’t repeat itself – but it sure does rhyme. Now as we enter even bigger financial woes than those of the 1930’s, we really could use a boost to the economy. We need the tax dollars and we need to end the demonization of pot. I vote to make it legal for those 21 and older. BTW: I don’t think marijuana could surpass sugar, caffeine, alcohol or tobacco to make it to #1 best-selling drug. https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2013/11/30/5-jaw-dropping-facts-about-legal-marijuana.aspx#commentsBoxAnchor
Marijuana is a psychotropic substance which expands one’s consciousness. The people who are running the planet do not want the inhabitants of the planet to be awake to the fact that the world we are presented with is intended to keep us asleep so we can be controlled and be good little consumers. Wake up people. Manipulation and control are the games so we won’t discover the true nature and purpose on life on planet earth.