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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM
It's possible for people to go either way; they might stick to drugs they like, or they might be drugs users in general, willing to try different things. But it does look like going from legal to illegal drug takes quite a leap. Most people that smoke or drink in recreation don't think of using heroin. Drinking especially; my Thanksgiving lunch gathering had some wine-tasting and people there aren't drug addicts.
..And now I'm thinking that marijuana being a borderline drug helps bridge the two categories, creating an actual gateway.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:12:59 PM by Trivialis
Eh, it's not quite that simple, joesolo. If that was the case, then everyone who's smoked pot and liked it would be a crackhead. And that's very much not the case. There's lots that simply stick with the pot. Not to mention that getting addicted is a multi-step process.
And would make a very respectable income growing it if it was legal, so hey, there's the small business man the Republicans want to create opportunities for.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:17:06 PM by AceofSpades
Considering that nicotine is both more addictive and more damaging to one's health than cannabis, the idea that only the latter is a "gateway" drug fails to pass the WTF test. The major difference is that one is illegal and the other is not.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Then how about swapping the two 'round then, or making both illegal?
Keep Rolling OnWith how often you'd get people circumventing regulatory and tax costs via black market or growing and sharing their own stuff (cannabis is a ridiculously resilient plant compared to tobacco), I'd be surprised if it paid for its own regulatory agency.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:36:27 PM by Pykrete
If we're bringing anecdotal evidence into it, a good chunk of my peer group at university were weed smokers (including myself) and I never even saw any evidence of harder drugs, never mind being tempted to try them.
With cannon shot and gun blast smash the alien. With laser beam and searing plasma scatter the alien to the stars.Greenmantle, there is no chance that tobacco or cigarettes would become illegal at this time. It's too ingrained into popular culture, and so is "to make smoking inconvenient and unpopular", as Fighteer put it. The status quo is very strong here.
I guess that is due to general public acceptance of cannibis and the growing culture that sets them apart from "really bad things" like methamphetamine.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:33:54 PM by Trivialis
Greenmantle, we're not going to illegalize tobacco here, and I don't understand why you seem to be pushing that.
Pykrete, well, that doesn't seem to have stopped the dispensaries in California from making a profit. Or Colorado and Washington from deciding to try it. I'm pretty sure that it'll pay for its own self just fine.
My point is that there is no argument for marijuana as a gateway drug that does not apply in equal measure to tobacco, except that one is legal and the other is not. Making both legal would eliminate the validity of the argument.
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"You mean the ones that was a practically unregulated and unaccountable free-for-all in the first place, and continually dodged what little was there? Yeah, they made shitloads of money. Surprise.
California dispensaries were like, a prime example of how not to go about regulating it.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:52:46 PM by Pykrete
@ Ace:
All right, I'm not for smoking. I've got asthma, and I think cigarettes are a waste of money and of life. I think it is just a means of slowly committing suicide. And it smells.
Simple.
Not very conservative, I'd admit. But I'm human, and allowed to have exceptions.
edited 12th Dec '12 2:52:52 PM by Greenmantle
Keep Rolling OnGreenmantle, I have weaker, but similar problems due to cigarette smoke. It's affected me terribly, making it harder to do my job, and I already feel like an old man. And I'm only 29. I understand your position.
However, making it illegal will not stop it at all. Moderating it through therapy, taxes, and so on will do something better. I also agree with the pubic place thing. I do not agree with actual making it illegal, only because it fails to actually do anything useful.
Quest 64 threadYeah, it should be noted smoking bans in buildings isn't to make smokers quit, and while customer tastes and complaints are a factor it's not the primary one. The main focus of those laws is to protect employees who would be exposed to it for long enough periods of time to actually be a considerable health hazard.
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Ha, ha, you said "pubic".
Anyway, making marijuana legal would allow it to serve as a place for experimenters (young and old) to go to experience a "high" without needing to take the additional step of breaking the law. The motivation to move on to something harder like cocaine, meth, etc., is actually less at that point.
Now, no matter what you do there will be people seeking out more intense highs and/or seeking out drugs for their other side effects, like GHB. Although frankly, alcohol is the biggest date rape drug there is; it's just harder to "conceal".
edited 12th Dec '12 3:00:23 PM by Fighteer
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"Yeah, the best thing we've done to stop smoking isn't making it illegal. Making drugs illegal makes them cool, desirable, and something people don't feel they can get help for without ruining their lives.
What really works to discourage drug use is making it uncool and socially unacceptable. That's what all the smoking bans do. They make it unattractive. It's what really killed the amount of crack users too. Crack users have a media reputation of being ugly and uncool and socially unacceptable. As a result, the amount of people who did crack plummeted.
Make it legal. Make it very uncool. And encourage people to get help without locking them away forever.
The biggest push to keep these things illegal is the private prison systems.
Reality is that, which when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. -Philip K. DickUmm, topic guys?
Any news on the replacement of Jim DeMint? I've heard good things about Herb Silverman.
Share it so that people can get into this conversation, 'cause we're not the only ones who think like this.@Fighteer: I would change that, but that's too funny.
I should probably take a break from looking at porn, eh?
Anyway, I still have to get to the doctor to see why I'm quite literally so out of breath.
Quest 64 threadBen Bernanke: Fed's ability to support US economy is limited
Norquist: Tax pledge means accountability
Michigan Senate OKs bill tightening rules on Michigan abortion clinics
edited 12th Dec '12 4:30:37 PM by DeviantBraeburn
Everything is Possible. But some things are more Probable than others. JEBAGEDDON 2016

Considering it's illegal stuff either way, science can't easily get accurate statistics.
I'm baaaaaaack