Sioux Center, Iowa — “Medical marijuana is not the same thing as recreational marijuana.” That’s from Iowa State Senator Randy Feenstra, who will be one of the members of a panel discussion about marijuana this Wednesday night, December 13th.
The discussion is aimed at college students but is open to the public. It’s going to be on the Dordt College campus in Sioux Center at 7:00 p.m.
Feenstra, Trooper Vince Kurtz, and Cheryl Buntsma will be presenting the latest information regarding legislation, prevention, and impairments.
Buntsma is a Prevention Specialist with Compass Pointe Behavioral Health Services. She says that it will be a wonderful opportunity to share knowledge with the college students and the community, including the difference between medical and recreational marijuana, its impairment affects, and what citizens can do to protect their communities should it ever be fully legalized.
Senator Feenstra says that the media has led us to believe that this drug does little harm. But he says that if one looks at Colorado where it is legal, one can quickly see the dramatic affects it has on people, society, and the cost of government. he says while limited medical marijuana use is legal now in Iowa, most lawmakers are not in favor of fully legalizing the drug for general use.
He says they will talk about the seriousness of marijuana abuse.
Trooper Vince Kurtz, Public Resource Officer with the Iowa State Patrol will lend his knowledge on what is happening in Iowa regarding impairment issues. Kurtz says that even though Iowa has not legalized recreational marijuana, the effects of other states’ actions are already having an impact on statistics here in Iowa. He says that marijuana impairment is similar to that of alcohol, and should be considered just as dangerous.
Again, the discussion is open to the public and there will be ample time for questions and answers after all presenters have shared.
It will be in the Commons area near the Grill on Dordt’s main campus.
