As marijuana legalization beneficial properties floor, detractors maintain trotting out the identical drained issues: What if youngsters get into it, and by publicity to the Satan’s Lettuce they instantly turn out to be heavy heroin customers? What if mumble mumble provide chains mumble cartels mumble mumble borders? Worst of all: What if legions of reefer-addled burnouts start inflicting havoc on the roads, by toking up and making an attempt to drive to Wendy’s?
In accordance with a brand new research out of Ontario, the danger of that final apocalyptic state of affairs is all however zero. Primarily based on over a decade of knowledge, researchers discovered that marijuana-related crashes did enhance after the nation’s 2018 legalization — however from one negligible quantity to a different. Ignore the framing from different shops, the dangers listed here are all however zero.
Primarily based on the info from Ontario, researchers discovered a 475.3 % rise in marijuana-related visitors accidents between 2010 and 2021. To be honest to the fear-mongering shops, it is a massive scary quantity that PTA sorts are going to love. However throughout greater than a decade of visitors accidents — 947,604 in complete — a mere 426 had any marijuana involvement. For the mathematics nerds on the market, that’s lower than one half of 1 tenth of 1 %.
The research breaks the info down into three sections, based mostly on time: Pre-legalization, legalization with restrictions, and post-commercialization — the final of which, coincidentally, overlaps with the COVID-19 pandemic. The research mentions that the best enhance in accidents got here with commercialization, however we all know reckless driving as a complete skyrocketed throughout that interval. The research is even cautious to say that cannabis-related crashes “might have” elevated after commercialization, slightly than making issues particular — there are just too many elements to contemplate.
To be clear, nobody must be hotboxing their automobile en path to seize a four-for-four. When you have marijuana in your system, simply keep residence — get your snacks delivered, like a accountable grownup. However to spin this research as a degree in opposition to legalization is solely laughable, when the dangers are a lot decrease than these of plain previous alcohol. Legalize it.