Medical Marijuana Laws Endanger Children

Medical marijuana laws in Michigan and probably other states put children at risk because lawmakers did not provide adequate protection for minor children.

While it remains legal to smoke marijuana inside your household and be in possession of a limited amount there is nothing stopping or preventing children from being exposed to second hand smoke or to prevent them from witnessing the “legal” use of drugs.

Whether you believe in a “contact high” where someone can get high from second hand smoke being in an closed area is irrelevant, although there are many claims both supporting and repudiating this claim that go beyond the point of this article.

It is widely known, accepted, and scientifically supported that smoke in general is bad for your lungs. When inhaled by minor children it can cause all sorts of ailments and even stunt lung and brain development.

Children with a contact high is wrong in itself, especially if there is an infant in the household, which is precisely the predicament I found myself in when my ex’s boyfriend, who has a medical marijuana card, smokes in his household with my 7 month old daughter there.

What choice does she have when their mother will not stand up for her?

Also in the home are my 7 and 12 year old daughter, scratch the contact high and lung damage out of the equation, is it right to show that some people can do drugs legally? Why do drugs in front of children? What message does that send to our youth?

There’s a reason why some states have banned public smoking…because there is a real danger to second hand smoke. Second hand smoke from marijuana is no different. While it may cross the lines of property rights I believe the founding fathers put our rights in the “right” order.

Life, Liberty, and property or pursuit of happiness, whichever phrase you want to use.

So your first right is always life. When you expose others to second hand smoke you are taking away their right to a healthy life and this is why smoking has been banned in some states in public places.

Property rights should never ever over ride the right to life, therefore, it only makes sense that smoking anything around minor children who do not have a choice, whether in your home or not, should also be illegal.

You would think that our government would have put proper precautions in place to stop the irresponsibility of parents and to protect our children. After all, parents do not own their children and they do not have a right to subject them to harm. I have come to find out in Michigan that they have not.

I have requested the police go over to their household to protect my children because I know that their mother is also using marijuana. My daughter has reported to us that she has witnessed when it happens while they are home. All of my kids are sick, coughing and more, whenever I get them. Prior to them living with a pot head, my children were never sick.

So what did the police tell me? What did the friend of court tell me? What did the only government officials that could provide an immediate response necessary to protect my children tell me?

They told me there is really nothing we can do about it, you’ll have to file a complaint with Child Protective Services.

“But they are smoking pot right now as we speak I just dropped them off, go over there, they are high as a kite.”

“I’m sorry there is nothing we can do you’ll have to contact Child Protective Services.”

So at this point you’re thinking, call child protective services, right?

Unfortunately, in Michigan, there is no immediate response team setup to stop the neglect or harm of minor children, in fact, all calls go to a central processing center now and then are forwarded out to their appropriate areas.

So if you need to protect your children within the next week, you’ll have to do it yourself because no one will keep your children safe.

I filed a phone complaint, the lady on the phone said it was a serious issue and I’d receive a call if they’d investigate. A week later I got a letter in the mail saying that my claim didn’t meet the requirements for child abuse and neglect.

Child Protective Services official stance on smoking marijuana in front of children is that it’s perfectly okay to smoke marijuana in front of your kids. They didn’t care that the parents were both stoned off their ass and could barely carry a conversation and they didn’t care that the kids were always sick. They didn’t care that there was a 7 month old infant who really had no choice and was subject to the irresponsibility of those high parents.

Meanwhile I’m left waiting for that phone call that says something awful has happened to your children. This is never a good feeling for a parent to have. No parent should have to worry about their children and stand by helpless. It’s our job as parents to keep our children safe.

So I filed another complaint, a nicely written out letter, down to the detail of the abuse and neglect that conforms with the child neglect laws. I am still waiting for a response on this one. Most likely they won’t take action on this either and I’ll be left to the slow court process to change custody and order there to be no use of marijuana while the children are present.

But for those of you who support marijuana, medical or not; I have nothing against you, but no child should ever suffer from your choices. There needs to be better child protection laws in this country.

Some of you might like to compare marijuana to alcohol and while I definitely understand that you can have a few drinks in front of the children and besides the difficulty of explaining to them that you’re trying to catch a buzz or get drunk, I must point out that no one gets drunk from being around another person that drinks. No one is sweating alcohol out onto people and getting people drunk when they breathe or exposing other people to the dangers except through their stupidity and actions.