Pubdate: Tue, 22 Nov 2005
Source: Chronicle Herald (CN NS)
Copyright: 2005 The Halifax Herald Limited
Contact:  http://thechronicleherald.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/180
Author: Jennifer Stewart
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?224 (Cannabis and Driving)

CAMPAIGN DISCOURAGES DRIVING AFTER SMOKING POT

Imagine how you'd react if you were told the pilot in charge of your flight 
had just smoked a joint. Feeling a little uneasy, right?

So why do some people think it's OK to drive a vehicle while under the 
influence of marijuana?

That's the idea a new national campaign, Pot and Driving, is trying to 
plant in the minds of young Canadians so they don't get behind the wheel 
while impaired.

"This is not a Just Say No campaign," Dr. Elinor Wilson, chief executive 
officer for the Canadian Public Health Association, said Monday.

"This is a campaign to have young people at the end of it go: 'Huh. Maybe 
these people have a point here. I'd never thought about that before.' "

Launched in Ottawa on Monday, the campaign includes a website geared toward 
young people, specifically 14- to 18-year-olds, and their parents. The site 
features information on the campaign, as well as questions and answers to 
help parents start discussions with their kids about how dangerous it is to 
drive while high.

"We know from focus groups and stats that young people still have a high 
level of non-understanding and confusion about the effects of pot and 
driving," Dr. Wilson said.

"We're with pot and driving where we were with alcohol and driving about 15 
years ago."

According to the website ( www.potanddriving.cpha.ca), young Canadians have 
the highest rates of cannabis use in the world, viewing marijuana "as a 
benign, mainstream drug with no significant negative consequences."

That point is reiterated by an October 2005 study by the Canadian Institute 
for Health Information that shows 15 per cent of 16- to 18-year-olds 
surveyed in Atlantic Canada have driven under the influence of cannabis in 
the past year. The same study shows 12 per cent of the same group drove 
while drunk.

Although the difference seems small, the figures have a greater impact in 
the context of the percentage of young people (62.6) who drank alcohol in 
the past year, compared with the 33.6 per cent who used marijuana.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom