MEDICAL MARIJUANA IS A BAD IDEA IN ARIZONA

Editor:

Proposition 203 calls itself "medical" marijuana for serious illness,
but that's dishonest. In other states only 2-3 percent of medical
marijuana patients have cancer, AIDS or glaucoma.

The rest have mild problems or none at all. Most are under age 40. In
Boulder, Colorado, all the marijuana dispensaries are on college
campuses. They're just using people with cancer to play on our sympathies.

Besides, the American Cancer Society, American Glaucoma Society and
National Multiple Sclerosis Society are all against medical marijuana.

The demand for medical marijuana isn't coming from doctors or the
seriously ill; it's coming from pot smokers.

And the law gives them unbelievable protections. Under Prop. 203,
employees can come to work high on marijuana and can't be fired or
sent home for the day -- even if they're heavy equipment operators or
schoolteachers.

Child Protective Services can't tell abusive, drug-addicted parents to
stop smoking pot. And people can drive under the influence of
marijuana and can't be charged with DUI. Prop. 203 strips away basic
protections for children, employers, co-workers, and users of
Arizona's highways, and instead protects pot smokers.

Medical marijuana states have the highest rates of teenage marijuana
use. Research shows teenage pot smokers do worse in school and are
more likely to drop out.

Medical marijuana states also have far more traffic fatalities caused
by marijuana, which is just as deadly behind the wheel as alcohol.
After California passed a similar law, the number of deadly car
crashes caused by marijuana doubled. Please vote no on 203.

Gino Madrid