Tag Archives: hash oil explosions

California, Oregon

Hash Oil Explosions Kill, Harm Neighbors

A hash oil explosion in North Portland on July 24, killed two men, annihilated a home and caused significant danger to the home next door.  While the man next door explained that his wife was shook up and his children at day camp, the family cat died in the fire.  The neighbor is lucky to be alive considering the extent of this explosion.

People use marijuana to make butane hash oil labs, also called honey oil.  These are the dangerous drug labs that are blowing up people and homes, particularly in California and in the West.

By April, 2015, the California Alliance of Drug-Endangered Children had tracked 41 marijuana lab deaths in that state between 2011 and 2015.   It’s not clear how many have happened since that time. Continue reading Hash Oil Explosions Kill, Harm Neighbors →

California, Environment

Big Sur Wildfire Smokes Out Illegal Pot Growers

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Big-Sur-Wildfire
Wildfire rages out of control. Did pot smoking growers start this fire?

Illegal Pot Growers Claim to be Hikers When Rescued in Big Sur

It may not be making the national news, but on local TV news  in California, we learn that firemen discovered illegal pot growers amongst those individuals they rescued from the fiery inferno. See KSBW News report “Hikers” Rescued from Soberanes Fire were Illegal Pot Growers. Officials suspect as many as eleven rescued people were actually involved in a 900 plant marijuana farm. The marijuana growers culpability in starting the fire at this point is unknown, and subject to further investigation.

The fire is raging out of control and fire authorities expect it to burn all through the month of August. Five thousand fireman are working the blaze, which has consumed over 57 homes and more than 33,000 acres. It is now spreading into the Los Padres National Forest according to The Mercury News.

Careless smokers are often the start of such forest fires. If these growers were smoking their product or burning their trash, they very well could have started the fire.

This fire is just one of the many examples of the carelessness of our politicians who are pushing to turn this illicit drug into a big industry. The legalizers often use the argument that legal weed will end illegal activities surrounding the drug. We know from stories out of Colorado, Washington and Oregon that legal marijuana attracts more illegal activity. Each of these states is seeing an increase in  illegal drug activities, both growing and sales. Here is a recent example of an illegal grow operation in Oregon in the Statesman Journal.

Illegal growers destroy the forest floor and tribal lands to plant their ‘crops’, they use toxic chemicals, poison animals and leave unbelievable piles of trash. NBC Bay Area news investigated the environmental damage. The Pacific Fisher is a mammal at risk for extinction, and in this news report 6 of the remaining 300 in Northern California have died, and 86% of those researchers have tested, are found to be exposed to the illegal rat poison used on this marijuana. Just think of what this potent poison could do to the human health of those who smoke this illegally grown drug.

Watch the Video on Environmental Impact of Illegal Marijuana Grows

It is also increasing fire hazards, such as the hash oil explosions. The most recent case was in Nederland, Colorado, and took place in a rented house with an absentee landlord. See the TV news report from a Denver station: Hash Oil Explosion Causes Large House Fire. If wind conditions were favorable, the report says a wildfire could have easily erupted, causing more property loss and forest fire. See Parents Opposed to Pot series of articles on Hash Oil Explosions to learn more about this negative consequence of legalizing marijuana.

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Addiction, California, Child Endangerment, Drug Policy, Editorial, Environment, Featured, Informational, Local Issues, Medical Marijuana

2016 Marijuana Legalization Initiative Comparison

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SAFE AND DRUG FREE COMMUNITY ACT COMPARED TO NEWSOM’S MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION INITIATIVE

Since Prop 215 (The Compassionate Use Act) was enacted in 1996, California has devolved into de facto legalization.  Over 50,000 cultivation sites grow marijuana under the guise of medicine, then illegally sell it to 60% of the United States market for recreational use.  In the meantime, massive quantities of our precious water is being used for marijuana cultivation, resulting in destruction of our natural resources and ruining the quality of life in once fine communities.

Currently, a whopping 19.5% of the California budget is directed towards dealing with issues related to substance abuse. However, surprisingly only 1% of this 19.5% is spent on prevention. Most of it is used for shoveling up the damage and treating the wounded, horrible economic policy. Furthermore, out of the 129 Americans who die every day of drug overdose, almost all started their drug journey with marijuana, and 59% of people arrested (Sacramento) test positive for marijuana.

Against this background, two contrasting ballot initiatives will be introduced to the California voters in the 2016 elections: The Safe and Drug-Free Community Act and Newsom’s Adult Use of Marijuana Act. The former seeks to prevent our California communities from transforming into drug production and consumption havens, and preserve our natural resources for our future generations; the latter seeks to make marijuana, universally known as the “gateway drug”  widely available, without considering the social, economic and environmental cost of the drug.

SAFE AND DRUG-FREE COMMUNITY ACT

The Safe and Drug-Free Community Act which which seeks to prevent marijuana use will save lives, cut crime, improve academic achievement, save taxpayers billions of dollars and help regain and retain all that made California and this nation great.

The Safe and Drug-Free Community Act addresses the marijuana related issues faced by California communities as follows:

  • Keeps marijuana illegal. Today’s high potency marijuana is known to cause brain damage, mental illness, psychotic breaks, suicidal depression, harms to a fetus, and increased traffic deaths.
  • Would prevent privately owned cultivation sites which are destroying our natural resources, sucking up mass quantities of water (6 gallons/day/plan) and causing irreparable ecological damage.  One cultivation site will remain, owned and controlled by the government to fulfill the intent of Prop 215.
  • Privately owned dispensaries will be banned to stop the enormous abuse that has and continues to take place.   State owned dispensaries will be allowed where local communities choose to allow them and “medical marijuana” will be more tightly controlled with lab testing, packaging, potency and consists. 
  • The legal age of “medical marijuana” will be raised from 18 to 21. The American Society of Addictive Medicine recommends no one under age 25 use marijuana based on scientific evidence that the human brain isn’t fully developed until then.  Ages 18, 19 and 20 are critical years for brain development, and at least closer to brain maturity, where the vulnerability to harm is far less. 
  • Imposes strict standards on doctors who recommend marijuana, something currently lacking. 
  • Requires dispensaries to report marijuana as part of CURES Act so pharmacists can safe guard against adverse interactions with conflicting medicines that could cause harm. 
  • Sets a standard for marijuana impaired driving.  Currently 12.6% of drivers (one-in-eight) are driving impaired to some degree by marijuana.  Traffic deaths owing to marijuana have doubled in California.  Stoned drivers are even killing people on sidewalks. 
  • Mandates a statewide educational program for parents, teachers, students and the general public so people can make an informed decision about using marijuana, allowing their children to use it, or what and whom to vote for.

NEWSOM’S ADULT USE OF MARIJUANA ACT THREATENS OUR FUTURE

As with Prop 215, this ballot initiative is once again financed by drug money that flows from and through out-of-state billionaires who are putting millions into their campaign to persuade California citizens to overlook the harmful effects of the drug. New York billionaire Sean Parker has been recruited to augment money that will flow from George Soros and the DPA. Despite openly stating that he doesn’t want marijuana near his own children, Lt Governor Gavin Newsom, is leading the legalization effort full force. Their stated benefits of legalization and arguments for it are frankly an affront to one’s intellect:

  1. They Say It Will Protect Our Kids – They want to tax and regulate marijuana so we have money to teach our kids not to use it.  Brilliant!  Expanding the availability and access will increase adolescent use as it has in Colorado, Washington and all places in the world where it has been decriminalized.
  2. They Say It Is For Adult Use Only – Today’s highly potent pot can cause permanent physical and chemical changes in the brains of anyone under 25 years old.  Marijuana use peaks at age 20 and tapers off rather rapidly after age 25, so the focus from a marketing standpoint is on young people, just like Big Tobacco.   Governor Brown has stated, “…How many people can be stoned and still enable us to have a great state and nation?”  Actually it’s worse than just getting stoned. Diminished intellect, mental illness, psychotic breaks, depression, suicidal tendencies and addiction are life-long chronic conditions.   You can’t just sleep it off. 
  3. They Say It Can Be Regulated – If the government was capable of, or cared about regulation, God knows they would have demonstrated it by now. California has over 50,000 mostly illegal cultivation sites producing pot under the guise of medicine, then illegally selling to 60% of the US market.  In the meantime, the pot plantations are inflicting irreparable harm on our precious ecosystems.
  4. They Say It Will Benefit The State Economically – The social costs of marijuana, like alcohol and tobacco, are 10 times greater than tax revenues.  Expanding the use of marijuana for the sake of the 8% who want to get high, or make money on those who do, will cost the other 92% more. Nor will the black market go away.  Cartels don’t pay taxes so they have a price advantage.  
  5. They Say They Want Local Government Control – Over 83% of California communities currently have bans or moratoriums on marijuana because they don’t want this junk in their communities.  Under the Newsom initiative local communities would lose that control unless the people, through a ballot initiative, decide they don’t want it.  How’s that for “slipping it to you?”
  6. It Would Retain “Medical Marijuana” – The existing program which allows anyone over 18, for any purported illness, to access all of the pot they want for personal consumption or to sell, doesn’t go away.  We already have de facto legalization, producing more pot than Californians can consume. 

Marijuana is a dangerous drug, with proven ability to destroy the brains of our youth, inflict irreparable harm on our natural resources and pose a public health and safety problem for everyone.  Anyone that aspires to be Governor of this fine state needs to demonstrate that protecting people, the planet and our tax dollars are of higher priority than pandering for drug money for his or her personal campaign.

In the interest of public safety and environmental protection, just defeating full legalization isn’t adequate.  We need to roll back what exists.

TELL THE OUT-OF-STATE BILLIONAIRES TO GO PACKING!