Written by Kathy Valente and David E. Smith

Are elected officials in Springfield willing to approve legislation for “recreational” marijuana to resolve decades of mismanagement of state funds? Are Illinois political leaders willing to compete with organized crime and cartel bosses to become Illinois’ new drug lords?

Political editor Mike Flannery recently interviewed McHenry County’s State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally about his strong opposition to marijuana legalization on his weekly program, “Flannery Fired Up,” which airs on WFLD in Chicago.

Kenneally is very concerned about the notion that lawmakers would sell drugs to Illinois citizens to make up for financial deficits. He believes cartels won’t go away, there will be an increase in crime, and more people will die on the highways as a result of drugged drivers. His concerns are validated by what’s we are seeing in other states that have already legalized marijuana.

Watch and listen to his responses:

In an interview with the Northwest Herald, Kenneally exposes the myth about marijuana arrest and prison rates, saying, “[d]espite claims to the contrary, no one, not ever, is being sentenced to prison for possessing small or moderate amounts of marijuana in Illinois.” The article points out that in 2017, “only two people in McHenry County were sent to prison for a marijuana-related offense. Both defendants were involved in high-volume trafficking operations.”

It is important to note that Illinois lawmakers recently decriminalized marijuana, making possession of less than 10 grams merely a fine.

IFI has been working hard to make people aware of the dangers associated with high-potency marijuana. We have established a dedicated page to help Illinois residents understand this issue better, so they will be equipped to speak out before it is too late. We encourage you to visit this page, titled “Resources on the Truth and Consequences of Marijuana.”

We have organized this page by category to navigate readers easily through the links. The categories include the general effects on society; the health effects; mental health issues; marijuana-related deaths and suicides; impaired-driving accidents, including fatalities; marijuana’s effects on children, adolescents and schools; marijuana’s effects in the workplace; and marijuana’s effects on law enforcement and the medical community.

Learn more:

Webinar:  Dr. Ken Finn highlights marijuana’s negative effects on the heart and lungs, the increase in driving fatalities and the increasing problems of youth use. He also dispels the myth that marijuana legalization can help cure our opioid crisis.

Webinar: Dr. Karen Randall explains how emergency rooms in Pueblo, Colorado have been overwhelmed with marijuana overdoes, hyperemesis (known as “scromitting”), psychosis, polysubstance use/abuse, and acute cardiac issues.

Webinar: Dr. Mourad Gabriel exposes an unfolding environmental disaster as many marijuana growers are poisoning the soil and water supplies and are killing wildlife.

Video: Jo McGuire explains how recreational marijuana has affected every part of Colorado’s culture: schools and increased youth use, poisonings, car fatalities, hospital admissions. McGuire also explains the effect it’s having on neighborhoods, the environment, and homelessness.

Documentary: Chronic State: How Marijuana Normalization Impacts Communities

Resource Page: Truth and Consequences of Marijuana (Illinois Family Institute)

Addiction: Big Marijuana Targeting Children (Illinois Family Institute)

DuPont: Marijuana Has Proven to Be a Gateway Drug (New York Times)

Societal Costs: Understanding the High Costs of Legalized Pot (No Weed Illinois)

Reproduction: Marijuana Affects Genetic Makeup of Sperm (Health.com)

Article: A Second Drug Wave is Coming (Christian Medical & Dental Association)
Written by James A. Avery, MD

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Story link: MyFoxCHICAGO.com (The video has been moved to Fox’s archives)

This “news” report from Chicago Fox News is typical of how the bias of the dominant media trumps journalistic objectivity and balance. While I think Fox’s Political Editor, Mike Flannery has some good political insights and I am sure he is a nice enough fellow personally, the segment above is indicative of how the media play to one side of a debate instead of remaining neutral.

To his credit, Flannery interviews our good friend and pro-family attorney Peter Breen of the Thomas More Society. But notice that Flannery challenges Breen to clarify his objection to the pending “civil unions” bill in Springfield.

Next, Flannery interviewed three pro-gay politicians (four if you add Gov. Quinn’s sound bite), including the sponsor of the same-sex “civil unions” bill — openly gay State Representative Greg Harris (D-Chicago). Harris argues that homosexual partners should not be denied hospital visitation rights for sick or dying loved ones. Where was Flannery’s challenge on this one? While I personally believe this to be a straw-man argument, the fact is earlier this year (April 15th to be exact), President Barack Obama issued an executive order mandating that nearly all hospitals extend visitation rights to the partners of gay men and lesbians and respect patients’ choices about who may make critical health-care decisions for them. It is a non-issue.

So why didn’t Flannery challenge Rep. Harris on this highly emotional and specious appeal?

Lastly, you will note that Flannery refers to religious and pro-family opposition to this legislation as “foes.” This choice of language is purposeful and intended to communicate a negative connotation about our opposition to this radical political agenda. We are the enemy? Ironically, this label could be used to describe the pro-gay side of this debate — but I doubt that you will hear a main street media type refer to homosexual activists as “foes” of traditional marriage and morality anytime soon.

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was at least one dominate news outlet that would uphold true journalistic standards?