Pro-Life

To Pregnancy Resource Centers, from Eric Johnston The Alabama Human Life Protection Act (“AHLPA”) was signed into law on May 15, 2019. A federal court lawsuit was filed resulting in a preliminary injunction, which subsequently was dissolved by court order on June 24, 2022, as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in  Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The AHLPA went into legal effect that very same day. It is now enforceable in the State of Alabama. The purpose of this memo is to briefly outline and comment on the operative provisions of the Act as follows: * 26-23H-3, 1975 Code of Alabama :                       (1) The definition of abortion includes the surgical or medical (chemical) termination of the pregnancy. It does not include an activity done with the intent to:                                     (a) save the life or preserve the health of an unborn child                                     (b) remove a dead

An Educational Update from Eric Johnston of the Southeast Law Institute In 2018, the Alabama Pro-Life Coalition thought the time might be ripe for a review of Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey, which legalized abortion on demand.  In 2019, we authored the Alabama Human Life Protection Act (“AHLPA”), with the idea of being among those states which may be bringing cases to SCOTUS for review.  Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case involving a Mississippi law limiting abortion to before fifteen weeks, was the first case to make it. In a five-four majority, Justice Samuel Alito writing for the court, rejected any incremental approach and completely threw out the right to abortion as a federal right under the U.S. Constitution.  The opinion leaves the decision to the states.  The opinion concentrated on two issues.   The first is whether there is a U.S. Constitutional right to an

On Wednesday, October 19, attorney Eric Johnston of The Southeast Law Institute joined ALCAP President and CEO Greg Davis on Priority Talk to update the citizens of Alabama on various gambling issues in the state. They walk through the history of gambling in the state, and bring the conversation to the present day. With the development of technology, there is a new frontier that must also be addressed: electronic and online gambling. Gambling goes beyond simple card games these days, and Christians need to be aware of its various forms. “A lot of our legislators, both Republican and Democrat, are all for comprehensive gambling and/or a lottery here in the state of Alabama,” Greg said. Let your local representatives know that you are not! You can find the podcast episode here.

On Thursday, October 13, ALCAP President and CEO Greg Davis joined with ALCAP advisor Christine Carr in releasing an open letter to Alabama urging them to be aware and act against the acceptance of medical marijuana in their community. They write that many innocent people with honest intentions are tricked into supporting a movement that only leads to addiction and other destructive practices. The letter is designed to help inform and educate its readers so that they will not believe lies on this important issue. The letter, published by The Alabama Baptist, states: “The profit-driven marijuana industry will wreak havoc in your community, as they have done in other states before us, if you do not speak out and help stem the coming tide.” Greg Davis and Christine Carr go on to discuss the devastation that marijuana causes, why the term “medical marijuana” is misleading, the money motives behind the

On Tuesday, October 4, Pat Ellis joined ALCAP President and CEO Greg Davis on Priority Talk to discuss the pornographic material being shown and taught in our Alabama classrooms all across the state. They talked about how our leaders in places of power (federal, state, school administrators, and more) are trying to quietly indoctrinate our kids into perverse sexual behavior, without parents knowing about it or consenting to it. “If you don’t think this is happening or could happen in your schools, you’re in denial,” Greg said. Pat Ellis, a Jasper resident, served on Congressman Robert Aderholt’s staff from 1997-2012. She has been a board member with Eagle Forum of Alabama since 2000. She recently wrote an explosive article on 1819.com titled “Pornography in Alabama Schools and Youth Organizations? You Be the Judge.” You can listen to the conversation here, and on all major podcast carriers.

By Erin Davis WSFA News, Apr. 4, 2022

Prepared by Drug Free America Foundation, Inc.

By Rev. Mark CreechChristian Action LeagueMarch 18, 2022 Now and then, North Carolinians read or hear a news story about someone who won big bucks playing the state lottery. For instance, Fox 8 reported that Kelly Wyatt of Statesville bought a $30 scratch-off ticket and won $1 million last week. She bought the ticket at a convenience store. After required state and federal tax withholdings, Wyatt took home a little over $426,000. The excitement of winning hundreds of thousands of dollars is what most people think about when they think of the lottery. Rarely do they ever consider its original purpose, which was to fund education in the state. That objective has proven to be a sham.

By Sandee LaMotte, CNN March 19, 2022 Some people with pain, anxiety or depression who obtain medical marijuana cards may overuse marijuana within a short time frame, leading to cannabis use disorder while failing to improve their symptoms, a new study found.

By Kim Henderson, WNG – January 27, 2022 At Southeastern Louisiana University, the pitcher’s mound belonging to Alumni Field lies in the shadow of the press box belonging to Strawberry Stadium. Both arenas, like most of the school, are closed off, cold. The only hint of an approaching spring semester is hurried workers, on all fours, hand-floating concrete in a new section of sidewalk along North General Pershing Street.  As students return to the state’s third-largest public university, academic fresh starts won’t be the only opportunity coming their way. Lawmakers last summer voted to bring betting to the bayous, and mobile sports betting apps are expected to launch in Louisiana any day. Or at least in time for the Super Bowl.  David Cranford pastors First Baptist Church in nearby Ponchatoula, and he was president of the Louisiana Baptist Convention when that group went up against powerful political operatives backing the

Albert Mohler, President, Southern Baptist Seminary PART 1: The Big Story of the Super Bowl LVI? Gambling. — How the Snowball of Legal Gambling Predictably Turned into an Avalanche PART 2: You Simply Bought A Chance to Win a Game of Chance: The Temptations of Sports Betting and the Waning Evangelical Concern of Legalized Gambling PART 3: An Unfolding Series of Moral Challenges in the Beijing Olympic Games: Russia Finds Itself Mixed Up in Another Doping Controversy To listen further to these discussions about the important issues of today, follow the link included below. https://albertmohler.com/2022/02/14/briefing-2-14-22 You can also listen on Apple Podcasts at the following link. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-briefing-albertmohler-com/id390278738?i=1000551020061

By Gregory Wallace, CNN – February 12, 2022 Deaths and crashes linked to drunken driving dropped almost 20% in Utah, the only state with a lower legal limit of .05, according to a new study. The conclusions are a piece of encouraging news for highway safety, where the number of deaths rose at the highest rate ever recorded during the pandemic, despite fewer cars on the road, shorter distances driven, and more safety features in new cars. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration study looked at collisions in Utah, where in late 2018, the blood alcohol content legal limit lowered to .05 from .08. To read more about this encouraging update, follow the link to the original article included below. https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/12/us/utah-dui-drunken-driving-law/index.html

CNN Opinion by Jonathan Reiner www.cnn.com Updated 9:16 PM ET, Sun January 23, 2022 For many years it was thought moderate doses of alcohol were associated with a reduced risk of death, whereas higher amounts of drinking were associated with increased risk. And while there has been research to suggest a glass of wine a day can promote longevity or heart health, the consensus on alcohol’s salutary effects has started to change. Click on the following link to read the full article. https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/22/opinions/alcohol-heart-health-reiner/index.html

By Rob Chambers / November 23, 2021 The following article was written by Rob Chambers, current President of the American Council on Addiction & Alcohol Problems (ACAAP). While ALCAP agrees with most of the article, we would discourage accepting government funds by faith-based ministries (ALCAP does not accept government funding). Those funds usually have conditions attached (if not presently, in the future) that would restrict what faith-based ministries can and cannot teach. The latest provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) shows the U.S. on track to exceed 100,000 overdose deaths in 2021, the first time such a grim milestone would be reached. America clearly has a drug problem that will require a massive effort from all walks of society to bring under control. As one physician put it, the current drug crisis the United States is experiencing is “worse than the crack epidemic” that upended American society

Partnership to End Addiction By Partnership Staff at drugfree.org October 2021 The rate of teens who said they’ve ever tried vaping marijuana more than doubled between 2013 and 2020, from 6.1% to 13.6%, according to a new analysis of studies reported in JAMA Pediatrics. Researchers analyzed 17 studies conducted in the United States and Canada, with a total of almost 200,000 teens. They found past-year marijuana vaping doubled from 2017 to 2020 — from 7.2% to 13.2%. The percentage of teens who said they had vaped marijuana in the past month rose from less than 2% to more than 8%. Teens’ preference for cannabis products may be shifting from less potent products like dried herbal cannabis to highly potent vape oil and concentrates, the researchers noted. Click here to read the full article on the Partnership to End Addiction website and access article links.

The misuse of prescription pain relievers, tranquilizers, sedatives, and stimulants among youth and young adults aged 12 to 25 is a major public health issue in the United States. Click here to read this report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Click here to visit the SAMHSA website for more publications and digital products.

NIAAA SpectrumVolume 13, Issue 3 | Fall 2021 Stay-at-home and physical distancing orders during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to increased stress, anxiety, depression, and boredom, and reports suggest that some people may be consuming more alcohol as a coping mechanism. A recent study supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism now reveals changes in patterns of alcohol and marijuana use during the pandemic, as well as changes in motives for use among young adults. Click here to read the rest of the article.

Partnership to End AddictionNovember 2021 The $1 trillion infrastructure package expected to be signed soon by President Biden includes a provision requiring automakers to include new technology to prevent drunk driving, the Associated Press reports. The legislation requires automakers to include monitoring systems to stop intoxicated drivers in all new vehicles as early as 2026. The Transportation Department must first determine the best type of technology to install in vehicles, the article notes. The legislation mandates that the technology must “passively monitor the performance of a driver of a motor vehicle to accurately identify whether that driver may be impaired.” More than 10,000 people died in drunk-driving crashes in the United States in 2019, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The new legislation “will virtually eliminate the No. 1 killer on America’s roads,” Mothers Against Drunk Driving National President Alex Otte said in a news release. “We need

SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) has developed a resource guide to review the literature on prevention of marijuana use among youth, distill the research into recommendations for practice, and provide examples of the ways these recommendations can be implemented. Abstract Marijuana use among youth and young adults is a major public health concern. Early youth marijuana use is associated with:1. Neuropsychological and neurodevelopmental decline2. Poor school performance3. Increased school drop-out rates4. Increased risk for psychotic disorders in adulthood5. Increased risk for later depression6. Suicidal ideation or behavior As policy and legalization efforts evolve and the availability of legal marijuana increases, communities and families need guidance to support the prevention of marijuana use among youth. This guide covers programs and policies to prevent marijuana use among youth aged 12 to 17, including:1. Environmental strategies, such as regulating the price of marijuana products, where these products are sold, the

September 15, 2021 / NPR.org / Bill Chappell, Reporter, Producer The World Anti-Doping Agency will review its ban on cannabis, in what the agency says is a response to “requests from a number of stakeholders” in international athletics. But it’s not clear when, or if, a change to the controversial policy might take effect: cannabis will remain forbidden for the 2022 athletic season. The news comes after WADA’s ban on cannabis prevented U.S. sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson from competing in the Tokyo Olympics, despite her victory in the 100-meter race at the U.S. Olympic trials. Click here to read the rest of the article on NPR.org.

Hillsdale College • Imprimis • June/July 2021 • Volume 50, Number 6/7 • Abigail Shrier The following is adapted from a speech delivered on April 27, 2021, in Franklin, Tennessee, at a Hillsdale College National Leadership Seminar. In 2007, America had one pediatric gender clinic; today there are hundreds. Testosterone is readily available to adolescents from places like Planned Parenthood and Kaiser, often on a first visit—without even a therapist’s note. How did we get to this point? How is it that we are all supposed to pretend that the only way you can know I’m a woman is if I tell you my pronouns? How did we get to an America in which a 13-year-old in the State of Washington can begin “gender affirming” therapy without her parents’ consent? How did we get to an America in which a 15-year-old in Oregon can undergo “top surgery”—elective double mastectomy—without her

American Lung Association / https://www.lung.org The American Lung Association is concerned about the health impacts of marijuana use, especially on lung health. We caution the public against smoking marijuana because of the risks it poses to the lungs. Scientists are researching marijuana now, and the American Lung Association encourages continued research into the effects of marijuana use on lung health. Smoke is harmful to lung health. Whether from burning wood, tobacco or marijuana, toxins and carcinogens are released from the combustion of materials. Smoke from marijuana combustion has been shown to contain many of the same toxins, irritants and carcinogens as tobacco smoke. Beyond just what’s in the smoke alone, marijuana is typically smoked differently than tobacco. Marijuana smokers tend to inhale more deeply and hold their breath longer than cigarette smokers, which leads to a greater exposure per breath to tar. Secondhand marijuana smoke contains many of the same

July 23, 2021 www.ntdailey.comby Tania Amador The first electronic cigarettes were successfully manufactured and patented in 2003 by Hon Lik, a 52-year-old pharmacist and smoker after his father died of lung cancer. He hoped this would help him quit smoking. It did not. Known as “vapes,” “pens,” or “carts,” electronic cigarettes were first introduced in the United States in August 2006. What was originally marketed as a cessation tool and healthier alternative to smoking has actually become a step backward for public health. Click here to read the rest of the article.

July 28, 2021 / John Horvat II / tfp.org People today live in make-believe worlds. They are conditioned to believe they can be or do whatever they want. Usually, such fantasies are limited by the real world. However, modern technologies now facilitate the illusions of making believe by creating illusions. The business world is not far behind by providing products that humor people into believing their fantasies can be real. People can then effortlessly indulge in them if they pay the right amount of money. The latest craze in fantasy-enabling is the Non-Fungible Token (NFT) mania shaking the virtual world. People can claim to own original digital images (often readily available online) by registering their purchases on blockchain platforms. Buyers have nothing to show for their purchase save the original code of historical video moments, gifs and other digital creations. These digital assets often sell for tens of thousands of

SAMHSA / Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services AdministrationNew Publication: July 27, 2021 / https://store.samhsa.gov Alcohol remains the number one substance used by young people. These 24 legal policy summaries allow you to track how your state regulates underage drinking as compared to other states in order to help inform your prevention work. Click here to download a copy of the document.

14-Jul-2021 4:35 PM EDT, by Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) Newswise — July 14, 2021 (Toronto) A new study from the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), published in the journal Lancet Oncology, has found an association between alcohol and a substantially higher risk of several forms of cancer, including breast, colon, and oral cancers. Increased risk was evident even among light to moderate drinkers (up to two drinks a day), who represented 1 in 7 of all new cancers in 2020 and more than 100,000 cases worldwide. In Canada, alcohol use was linked to 7,000 new cases of cancer in 2020, including 24 per cent of breast cancer cases, 20 per cent of colon cancers, 15 per cent of rectal cancers, and 13 per cent of oral and liver cancers. “All drinking involves risk,” said study co-author Dr. Jürgen Rehm, Senior Scientist,

By THE TIMES EDITORIAL BOARD / July 15, 2021 / https://www.latimes.com Nearly five years after Californians voted to create a legal marijuana industry through Proposition 64, the illegal weed market is as big as or even bigger than it was before the ballot measure passed. The end of prohibition at the state level was supposed to be the beginning of a highly regulated marijuana market served by legitimate, taxpaying companies (even though marijuana remains illegal under federal law). Legalization was billed as a way to tame the Wild West-style marijuana industry, which often flouted environmental and health strictures and was a bastion for organized crime. It hasn’t worked out that way for a variety of reasons. Nowhere is the failure of Proposition 64 more apparent than in the deserts of Southern California, where a booming illegal marijuana industry has spread across the arid landscape. Click here to read the rest

By Lambeth Hochwald / June 28, 2021 / https://www.webmd.com The pandemic was more than unnerving, lonely, and isolating. It ended up being a drinker’s dream, with margarita Mondays and wine Wednesdays becoming a regular occurrence on top of nightly happy hours. In fact, nearly 1 in 4 adults said they managed pandemic stress by drinking more, according to an American Psychological Association survey released in February. “Drinking particularly increased among people who don’t consider themselves to have an alcohol problem,” says Joseph Volpicelli, MD, executive director of the Institute of Addiction Medicine in Plymouth Meeting, PA. “It creeped up on people.” On the other end of the spectrum, COVID-19 prompted many Americans to start taking steps to eliminate alcohol entirely. If you’re among this group, science is definitely on your side, with recent studies increasingly showing that no amount of alcohol is healthy and that alcohol can be cancer-causing. Click

By Partnership Staff / July, 2021 / https://drugfree.org E-cigarette maker Juul Labs agreed to pay North Carolina $40 million to settle a lawsuit that claimed the company’s marketing practices encouraged teenagers to vape, The New York Times reports. Click here to read the article on the drugfree.org website.

By Michael Greenwood / June 28, 2021 / https://news.yale.edu/ While alcohol consumption during pregnancy may result in harm to developing embryos and fetuses, a new study led by the Yale School of Public health finds that a significant number of pregnancies that result in live birth still involve alcohol exposure. Click here to read the rest of the article.

We are grateful the University of Alabama Athletics Department placed restrictions on student athlete sponsorships. Student athletes may not accept sponsorships from the following: a tobacco company or brand, including alternative nicotine products; any alcoholic beverage company or brand; any seller or distributor of a controlled substance, including but not limited to, marijuana; any adult entertainment business; and any casino or entities that sponsor or promote gambling activities. We also hope these restrictions will stand. Please click on the link to read the full article. By: TYLER MARTIN AND JOEY BLACKWELL JUL 2, 2021 A new era of college athletics arrived at midnight on July 1. For the first time ever, all NCAA athletes can begin to make money off of their name, image and likeness. Click here to read the full article.

By Paige Cockburn ABC Health & Wellbeing / https://www.abc.net.au/news/health What would be a good enough reason for you to actually cut back on booze? If you were gaining weight? If you were tired all the time? Having relationship difficulties? What about cancer? Chances are, this one didn’t make your list. But five in every 100 Australians who exceed 14 drinks a week will develop cancer by age 85, according to Dr Peter Sarich, who led a landmark study published in the British Journal of Cancer. Dr Sarich found by age 85, the absolute risk of alcohol-related cancer was 17.3 per cent for men and 25 per cent for women who were drinking less than 14 drinks a week. Click here to read the rest of the article.

Partnership to End Addiction / By Partnership Staff / May 2021 www.drugfree.org As more states legalize marijuana, how can parents and policymakers protect young people from the risks marijuana can cause? Partnership to End Addiction CEO Creighton Drury spoke with Kevin Sabet, Ph.D., CEO of Smart Approaches to Marijuana and author of Smoke Screen: What the Marijuana Industry Doesn’t Want You to Know, and Linda Richter, Ph.D., Vice President, Prevention Research and Analysis at Partnership to End Addiction, about the issue and possible solutions. Click here to read the rest of the article.

Wednesday, 26 May 2021 Newfangled marijuana products — edibles, concentrates, vapes — are driving an overall increase in pot-related calls to U.S. poison control centers, a new study shows. There were more than 11,100 calls related to marijuana use in 2019, up from about 8,200 in 2017, researchers said. More and more of those calls are related to manufactured products that contain distilled amounts of THC, CBD, and other chemicals found in cannabis. “We saw this generalized increase in calls nationally,” said lead researcher Julia Dilley, an epidemiologist with the Oregon Public Health Division in Portland. “But when we dug into it, that increase is being driven by these manufactured products,” Dilley continued. “Flower cannabis exposure calls are actually declining.” Pot plant exposures made up the bulk of calls to centers in 2017, with 7,146 pertaining to marijuana plants and just 1,094 related to manufactured products. But by 2019, calls

Author: Tracie White / April 16, 2021 / https://scopeblog.stanford.edu April 16, 2021 States that legalize recreational marijuana use, and in some cases allow retail sales of the drug, may see more suicide attempts and other self-harm among younger men, a new Stanford Medicine study suggests. Researchers examined whether rates of self harm injuries — which include suicide attempts and non-suicidal behaviors like cutting — correlate with changing marijuana laws and found an increase among men younger than 40 in states that allow recreational use. The study indicated no such correlation with states that allow only medical marijuana use. “States that legalize, but still constrain commercialization, may be better positioned to protect populations from unintended harms,” said Keith Humphreys, PhD, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. Humphreys is the senior author of the study published March 18 in JAMA Network Open. Ellicott Matthay, PhD, a post doctoral scholar at UC-San Francisco,

NIAAA Spectrum / Volume 13, Issue 2 News reports of college drinking tragedies, and concerns about increased access to alcohol in the home during the pandemic, make clear that COVID-19 has provided no reprieve from the problems of underage drinking. A perennial public health priority, alcohol misuse by young people increases the likelihood of myriad serious consequences, including altered brain development, academic problems, unsafe sexual behavior, physical and sexual assault, traffic crashes, injuries, overdoses, and alcohol use disorder (AUD). To be sure, efforts to reduce underage drinking have seen success in recent decades. Epidemiological data from the annual Monitoring the Future survey, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, show that by 2020, proportional declines in the prevalence of binge drinking, following recent peaks reached in the 1990s, were 66 percent, 60 percent, and 47 percent for grades 8, 10, and 12, respectively. George. F. Koob, Ph.D., Director of

Study authors hypothesize that ethanol is the ‘biological pathway to damage’By Kayla Rivas | Fox Newshttps://www.foxnews.com/health/alcohol-harm-brain-health Any amount of alcohol can cause damage to the brain, and more so than previously realized, according to a study in what researchers call one of the largest of its kind to date. The preliminary findings from Oxford University were recently posted to medRxiv ahead of peer review, drawing on clinical data and imaging samples from over 25,000 adults in the U.K. Biobank study. Subjects were aged 40 to 69 years when they were first recruited from 2006 to 2010. Nearly all participants were classified as current drinkers, while just 5.2% were non-drinkers, per the study. Almost half of participants were consuming alcohol at levels above U.K. ‘low risk’ guidelines, though few were considered heavy drinkers, researchers wrote. Through MRI analyses, the team looked for correlations between alcohol use and grey matter in the

May 7, 2021 / SAMHSAhttps://blog.samhsa.gov The global coronavirus pandemic has forced us to learn new ways of doing many things. Employees in some job sectors learned to work from home, while others had to find entirely new sources of income. Parents learned to be teachers for their kids, while teachers themselves learned to do their jobs in less-than-ideal remote environments. We figured out how to use technology to celebrate birthday parties, host award shows, and even conduct a presidential inauguration. One thing we can do to benefit ourselves as a nation is talking with friends, family, and neighbors about underage drinking and adult problem drinking prevention. According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 54.3 percent (or 18.3 million) people ages 18 to 25 and 55 percent (or 119.1 million) people ages 26 or older drank alcohol in the past month. Alcohol misuse stays under the radar

By DR. GREGORY SHANGOLDHARTFORD COURANTAPR 05, 2021 Legalizing recreational marijuana has been cast as a state budget matter, but to physicians, marijuana use is a public health matter. At the start of each physician’s career, we take the Hippocratic Oath, committing ourselves to science and a set of ethical principles that promote health, honesty, trust and service to all patients in need of medical care. Fragments of the oath can be traced back thousands of years, making it sacred to medical providers like me. The Connecticut State Medical Society believes it must ensure that Connecticut policymakers and their constituents — our patients — are informed about the health and societal ramifications of public policies. One such issue is legalizing recreational marijuana, which the CSMS sees as a bad idea. Click here to read the full op-ed.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month! So, Johnny’s Ambassadors is hosting Marijuana Mental Health Awareness Month, to draw attention to the mental harms that can come to youth who use marijuana! Please join the Marijuana Prevention Challenge! Click on the following link to be a part of Johnny’s Ambassadors Marijuana Prevention Challenge.https://johnnysambassadors.org/mentalhealth/

OPIOIDS AND COVID-19The opioid overdose epidemic surges and rages alongside the coronavirus pandemicJoseph Friedman and Morgan Godvin, Los Angeles Times The opioid overdose epidemic surges and rages alongside the coronavirus pandemic While Americans have focused on the COVID-19 pandemic, another epidemic has also been killing people across the country in unprecedented numbers: overdose deaths. And the two crises are connected. Click on the following link to read the article. https://birminghamnews-al-app.newsmemory.com/?publink=0617df7bc

FEBRUARY 1, 2021 EDITOR https://poppot.org Black market growers of marijuana destroyed my Colorado retreatWhenever you listen to or read dialog from the pro-marijuana crowd, they say that legalizing marijuana will make the black market go away. This statement is a blatant lie. Rather, legalizing marijuana invites criminal organizations into your state and allows them to grow pot illegally under the guise of running a legal operation. I am the owner of a summer home in rural Colorado with beautiful mountain views. In the midst of this beauty, a Chinese group purchased a ten-acre parcel with a house near my home. Within a year, they had cleared a section of the indigenous vegetation, which is so important to the survival of the local wildlife, and illegally grew thousands of marijuana plants. These marijuana plants are not even native to Colorado or North America; in fact, they had to grow them in

Minority experience worsening of symptoms over time, especially younger peopleDate: January 8, 2021Source: Michigan Medicine – University of MichiganSummary: More than half of people who use medical marijuana products to ease pain also experience clusters of multiple withdrawal symptoms when they’re between uses, a new study finds. And about 10% of the patients taking part in the study experienced worsening changes to their sleep, mood, mental state, energy and appetite over the next two years as they continued to use cannabis. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/01/210108142134.htm

The following is copied by permission from an article in the MICAP/RECAP Newsletter, published by the Michigan Council on Alcohol Problems (MICAP) and was written by Vernon Smith, PhD, and a member of the MICAP Board The biggest news in decades about recommendations for alcohol use came from the CDC in August 2020. In an 835-page report, the CDC indicated that it is making significant changes to its recommendations on alcohol use, and the recommendation is clear: consume less alcohol. Regarding alcohol consumption, the [“2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans”] report makes two major changes to previous guidance. Until this year, the Dietary Guidelines recommended no more than “moderate” alcohol intake, defined as no more than one drink per day for women, and two drinks per day for men. The new report will change that recommendation to no more than one drink per day, eliminating the distinction between men and women. Equally significant,

MONTGOMERY – Governor Kay Ivey on Friday issued the following statement:  “Earlier this year, I established the Study Group on Gambling Policy to thoroughly review and gather all the facts surrounding the seemingly endless debate on gambling in Alabama. They were tasked with providing detailed information to allow public officials and the people of our state to make the most informed decision possible, should we decide to pursue legislation to deal with this issue.  “I offer my sincerest thanks to Mayor Todd Strange and the members of the Study Group for their diligent work, especially for adapting when COVID-19 interrupted in-person meetings.   “After initial discussions with them regarding their report, I believe their research will be pivotal as gambling policies are being considered, debated and potentially voted on. As my team and I pour over the findings, I encourage the Legislature and the people of Alabama to do the same.

Is marijuana really safer than alcohol? Parents Opposed to Pot tackles this common misconception with provoking facts. With the proliferation of ads for CBD products across the U.S., it is important to know what a Colorado psychiatrist has to say about such products. Joseph C. Godfrey, Executive Director, ALCAP

Chris Woodward (OneNewsNow.com) THE HEAD OF AN ORGANIZATION THAT BELIEVES THE PROBLEMS RELATING TO ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUGS ARE IN DIRECT PROPORTION TO CONSUMPTION IS SPEAKING OUT AGAINST THE FEDERAL EFFORT TO DECRIMINALIZE MARIJUANA. Dr. Joe Godfrey, president of the American Council on Addiction and Alcohol Problems (ACAAP)), says the House bill is all about money. “It’s being pushed by the marijuana industry, people who stand to make billions of dollars from people that get addicted to their drug,” Dr. Godfrey continues. He further acknowledges the argument that marijuana is not addictive as “bogus.” “State governments and the federal government see it as a tax revenue source, but they’re all ignoring the social costs,” Dr. Godfrey submits. “They don’t count the cost of broken homes and families and destroyed lives [or] lost time at work. The marijuana industry is ignoring all of that.” He believes the same could be said

Partnership to End Addiciton / www.drugfree.org A young person’s brain is not fully developed until they reach their mid- to late 20s, and any drinking while the brain is still developing can be problematic. Regardless of age, alcohol lowers inhibitions and impairs judgment and coordination. It can also increase the incidence of aggressive or violent acts. Consuming large quantities in a short period of time — or binge drinking, which is defined as having 4-5 drinks on one occasion and is common among young people — can cause alcohol poisoning and even death. More than 16 million Americans misuse or are addicted to alcohol, which is a substance that is legal, widely available and normalized in our society. Prolonged, heavy use of alcohol can lead to addiction (known as alcohol use disorder, or alcoholism), liver and heart disease, and other health consequences such as a weakened immune system and increased risk

What is already known about this topic? Excessive drinking is a leading cause of preventable death in the United States and is associated with numerous health and social problems. What is added by this report? During 2011–2015, excessive drinking was responsible for an average of 93,296 deaths (255 per day) and 2.7 million years of potential life lost (29 years lost per death, on average) in the United States each year. What are the implications for public health practice? Widespread implementation of prevention strategies, including those recommended by the Community Preventive Services Task Force (e.g., increasing alcohol taxes and regulating the number and concentration of places that sell alcohol) could help reduce deaths and years of potential life lost from excessive drinking. Click here for a printable copy of this report. Citation: Esser MB, Sherk A, Liu Y, et al. Deaths and Years of Potential Life Lost From Excessive Alcohol Use —

Alcohol weakens your immune system and can put you at a greater risk for COVID-19. How much is too much? Mercey Livingston https://www.cnet.com Alcohol, especially frequent and excessive drinking, can present some serious risks to your health, especially when it comes to COVID-19, your immune system and overall risk for developing serious complications from the virus. Click here for the full article.

www.drugfree.org Partnership to End Addiction offers various support options during this difficult time. Click here to find addiction support for families and individuals.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) In 2019, more than five million, or 28 percent, of high school students reported nicotine vaping in the past 30 days, a significant increase from 2018 (21 percent) and more than double the rates in 2017 (12 percent). Evidence suggests that some youth who would not otherwise use nicotine or tobacco products are vaping. SAMHSA developed a guide that discusses effective programs and policies to prevent vaping among youth and young adults, challenges to reducing e-cigarette use and vaping, and program and policy implementation strategies that can be used to address those challenges. Click here for a copy of Reducing Vaping Among Youth and Young Adults.

e-cigarettes.surgeongeneral.gov Over the last half century, the U.S. Surgeon General has released 32 comprehensive reports outlining the impact of tobacco use on this nation’s health and well-being. The 33rd report, which addresses e-cigarette use among youth and young adults, adds significant data and analysis to the science of this important public health issue. Surgeon General’s Reports are the gold standard of scientific reports, and each is developed and reviewed by hundreds of expert researchers. More than 150 scientists and public health professionals contributed to the development of this latest Surgeon General’s Report. Click here to get the facts!

What’s the Bottom Line on the Risks of E-cigarettes for Kids, Teens, and Young Adults? The use of e-cigarettes is unsafe for kids, teens, and young adults. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine. Nicotine is highly addictive and can harm adolescent brain development, which continues into the early to mid-20s. E-cigarettes can contain other harmful substances besides nicotine. Young people who use e-cigarettes may be more likely to smoke cigarettes in the future. Click here to visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more information

Partnership to End Addictionwww.drugfree.org If you’ve just discovered or have reason to believe your child is using substances, the first thing to do is sit down and take a deep breath. We know this is scary, but you’re in the right place. Take a beat and prepare yourself for the important conversations ahead. Some brief preparation now can lay a foundation for more positive outcomes ahead. Click here for resources available through Partnership to End Addiction.

By: Rob Chambers, President, American Council on Addiction and Alcohol ProblemsTownhall October 30, 2019 The United States is currently fighting one of the worst addiction problems in its history by way of the opioid crisis. While many Americans are aware of its existence, few likely understand the ongoing issues surrounding this large-scale public health emergency and the extent to which it is undermining the foundations of our great country. The human and financial toll of this crisis is staggering. In 2018 alone over 47,000 people died from opioid-related overdoses. Meanwhile, a recent analysis from the Society of Actuaries found that over a four-year period from 2015 to 2018, the total economic cost of the opioid crisis was $631 billion. This crisis is also destroying families and stretching social service programs to the brink. During that same four-year period, an additional $39 billion was spent on child and family assistance programs and education programs. Every day children

getsmartaboutdrugs.gov Vaping marijuana continues to dramatically increase in popularity among teens, according to numbers from the latest Monitoring the Future study. “Vaping” is the use of an e-cigarette to inhale vapors from nicotine, marijuana or flavorings. About 37 percent of 12th graders admitted to “vaping” within the last year; an increase from 27.8 percent in 2017. In addition, 13.1 percent of 12th graders reported vaping marijuana within the past year — an increase from the 9.5 percent in 2017. Researchers have been conducting this survey each year since 1975. This year, they surveyed over 44,000 8th, 10th, and 12th graders across the country about their drug use. Click here for more information.

www.fda.gov FDA Statement on consumer warning to stop using THC vaping products amid ongoing investigation into lung illnesses – October 4, 2019 Both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are working tirelessly to investigate the distressing incidents of severe respiratory illness associated with use of vaping products. The FDA and CDC are working closely with state and local health officials to investigate these incidents as quickly as possible, and we are committed to taking appropriate actions as a clearer picture of the facts emerges. While the work by federal and state health officials to identify more information about the products used, where they were obtained and what substances they contain is ongoing, the FDA is providing consumers with some information to help protect themselves. Click here for more information.

OCTOBER 3, 2019www.drugfree.orgBY PARTNERSHIP NEWS SERVICE STAFF Doctors who examined lung tissue from patients suffering from vaping-related lung illnesses report the damage resembles exposure to toxic chemicals. In this week’s New England Journal of Medicine, doctors from the Mayo Clinic write that the injuries look like those seen in people exposed to poisons such as mustard gas, a chemical weapon used in World War I, The New York Times reports. The doctors examined lung tissue from 17 patients who became ill after vaping nicotine or marijuana products. Two of the patients died. About 70 percent had a history of vaping marijuana or cannabis oils, the article notes. Scientists initially thought vaping-related lung injuries were caused by the oils being vaped, such as THC oil or vitamin E oil. But the Mayo Clinic researchers said they did not see any signs of oil accumulating in lung tissue. Lead researcher Brandon Larson said it is