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Written by SAFER
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Friday, 03 July 2009 |
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Last summer, chancellors and presidents of universities and colleges across the United States signed on to the Amethyst Initiative , a public statement that encourages schools to consider lowering the drinking age to address the fact that "the problem of irresponsible drinking by young people continues despite the minimum legal drinking age of 21, and there is a culture of dangerous binge drinking on many campuses." Despite recent efforts, the dangerous campus culture of binge drinking prevails :
A recent study has confirmed something university officials have been aware of for some time: Drinking among college students is on the rise. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism study showed the number of college students binge drinking between 1998 and 2005 rose from 42 percent to 45 percent. The number of alcohol-related deaths among 18-to-24-year olds rose to 1,825 from 1,440 during the same seven-year period.
At the University of Maryland, where University President Dan Mote and University System of Maryland Chancellor Brit Kirwan are both signatories of the Amethyst Initiative, their campus alcohol coalition understands that students reflect society at large, and as long as drinking is accepted and promoted, it's no wonder they'll just keep boozing.  "National trends getting worse are quite concerning," Kelley said. "Our students aren't immune from the direction of society and culture, and if it continues to get worse, I suspect we'll see the evidence here as well." We hope President Dan Mote and University System Chancellor Brit Kirwan will also be open to the Emerald Initiative , which is part of SAFER's new Campuses Initiative campaign, though we have yet to hear back from them.
The Emerald Initiative is SAFERs response to the Amethyst Initiative, calling on college presidents and chancellors particularly those who have signed on to the Amethyst Initiative and those at schools where SAFER Referendums have been adopted to "support an informed and dispassionate public debate" on whether allowing college students to use marijuana more freely could result in fewer students engaging in dangerous drinking. Students at the University of Maryland voted strongly in favor of a SAFER Referendum in 2006.
Learn more about the SAFER Campuses Initiative here .
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Written by SAFER
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Monday, 29 June 2009 |
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We recently discussed the local ballot initiative campaign underway in Breckenridge, and it's been making headlines in various local outlets. The latest is a column that appeared this weekend penned by Breckenridge Town Council Member Jeffrey Bergeron, who agrees it's time we allow adults to make the safer choice: ...the proponents hope the police will abide by the will of the voters and
stop citing Breckenridge adults for possessing a drug less harmful than
alcohol.
I would agree that marijuana is a drug as is
tobacco, anti-inflammatories, Viagra and booze. Some of the dumbest
things I've ever done in my life were under the influence of alcohol.
Admittedly I've done a few foolish things while stoned, but I did them
very slowly.
We know booze causes death on our highways, is a contributing factor in domestic abuse, violent crimes and karaoke... ...And you don't have to look far to find businesses and lives ruined
by booze... The worse
result I have seen of pot use is watching Beverly Hillbilly reruns and
driving 40 in a 50 mph zone.
CLICK HERE to read the entire column.
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Written by SAFER
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Sunday, 28 June 2009 |
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From our friends at Sensible Colorado:  Sensible Breckenridge, a local reform group working with Sensible Colorado, recently began gathering signatures to remove criminal penalties for adult marijuana possession under the Breckenridge City Code. This prestigious group, led by Breckenridge Town Councilman Jeffrey Bergeron and local attorney Sean McAllister, needs YOUR help gathering signatures to qualify the measure for the November 2009 ballot. Signature gathering started last week, and the group must turn in 1000 signatures by July 13 to make the ballot.
In addition to removing criminal penalties for the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by adults 21 and older, the ordinance would also remove adult paraphernalia penalties.
If you wish to volunteer, please call 970 453 6594 or email
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
. To read more about this campaign, click HERE and HERE.
To learn more about Sensible Colorado's work, or to donate to this important cause, check out our website at www.sensiblecolorado.org.
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Written by SAFER
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Monday, 08 June 2009 |
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 An interview with SAFER Executive Director Mason Tvert is included in this week's edition of 4:20 Drug War News on the Drug Truth Network. The piece is centered on the recent news that marijuana use is up and dangerous drinking is down in Colorado, the site of many highly publicized SAFER campaigns and other activities.
Click HERE to to listen!
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