I believe these people either have their facts misconstrued or they are intentionally misleasing us.
It is true that many people who currently use hard drugs like cocaine, heroine or crystal meth have tried marijauna first. But, here is the fallacy in their arguments: Most people who have tried marijuana have also illegally tried cigarettes or alcohol first. I say illegally because they were probably under 18 and 21 when they first tried cigarettes or alcohol.
Of course, the alcohol and tobacco industry would argue that marijuana is the main gateway drug, but their argument is based on self interests; mainly on billions of dollars of potentially lost revenue. These two industries could care less about our health, as long as we continue to spend our money on their products, they’re happy.
So to reiterate, Alcohol and Tobacco are the ultimate gateway drugs; the real root of the problem.
Really shouldn’t need any drugs.
Comment by Beeg Juan — July 11, 2009 @ 8:57 am
depends on your charecter ive only ever done weed !
Comment by Jennie — July 12, 2009 @ 5:43 am
Woah… that’s some wild stuff… pass the doobie…
Comment by Answerer — July 12, 2009 @ 8:58 am
My friend used to use mary jane but every time he used more and more and now he uses more drugs and can’t stop he will probroly die soon so i don’t recommend u use anything the doctor didn’t proscribe.
Comment by sheldon — July 15, 2009 @ 6:57 pm
well, from personal experience i have seen people go straight to weed before alchohol or tobacco. but its really bad since a friend of mine just had a seizure and started throwing up blood, due to weed
Comment by hugemarkus — July 16, 2009 @ 10:01 pm
True. But I think that when people say that marijuana is a gateway drug, I think that they mean to other illegal substances. There are a lot of people who try cigs or alcohol that do not try illegal drugs and there are people who do marijuana that do not do anything else.
Comment by Colette B — July 19, 2009 @ 11:15 am
To me, it really dosent matter which one is a “gateway” drug, the fact is that people use drugs to escape from reality, or deal with pain in their lives…if marijuana dosent cut it, yes, i believe they will pick up the “next best thing”, whatever that may be for them.
Comment by Smiley — July 22, 2009 @ 1:27 pm
I don’t really think there is a gateway drug if you aren’t an idiot. Stupid people use one drug, then want to use others like cocaine and meth just to expirement. If you are a responsible person who wants to use marijuana once or twice just to calm down and relax, theres no problem with that. But if someone goes as far as to start buying other drugs and selling crap, then thats how it becomes a gateway drug. Thats how the politicians keep it illegal.
Comment by ahock45 — July 23, 2009 @ 1:50 pm
if you will lie you will steal
same thing with that, if you will do mary jane, eventually you will end up trying something else
Comment by ED M — July 23, 2009 @ 10:08 pm
all kind of drugs are for losers
Comment by Doeffy — July 26, 2009 @ 2:07 am
Marijuana does not in itself make people want to take other drugs.
Its the people who use it (and like it) desire to try bigger and better things that causes the problem.
Marijuana, like many things….i/e ciggarettes/alchahol….can become habit forming if used to excess. The harder drugs that give “bigger thrills” usually give “bigger addictions”.
Free advice for you to think about….”If You Play with Fire….Your going to get Burned”.
Comment by we_are_legion99 — July 27, 2009 @ 8:54 am
I think they say this because Marijuana is used be a certain type of person, like a punker rocker will relate to heavy metal like a rapper would relate to hip-hop. Well, someone who would use marijuana might also be interested in using cocaine or crack, like someone who drinks beer might also be interested in drinking vodka or wine. It’s called a gateway, because since that person is already doing the lessor drug, why not move on to something harder.
Just a guess, I don’t know who said this to begin with or how much weight it actually holds in a true scientific argument.
Comment by Sedit — July 30, 2009 @ 12:34 pm
Yes – tobacco and alcohol are mind altering substances. However, they are legal and can be used without getting high.
One drink wont get most people drunk and one cig wont get you high….. however – one joint will.
Ive often thought that if we legalize pot – the government can just tax it and consider it an additional source of income
Comment by Valerie H — July 31, 2009 @ 9:48 am
I didn’t use pot until way late into my drug use…and my mom never does anything else…so I don’t think you can really draw a conclusion like that. plus, so many people have done it, you could just as easilly argue that it leads to being college educated and successful.
Comment by Ithilrien F — August 2, 2009 @ 3:50 am
The use of any drug is unnatural. I do believe that marijuana use can lead to the use of more harmful drugs. I also believe that marijuana is useful in some cases as a medication and its use should be prescribed by a doctor. The trouble seems to be that some people are addictive personalities. Some reach a level of being other than themselves with beer or marijuana but some need stronger drugs to get themselves lost in. It’s a pity really that they can’t face life as the person they are.
Comment by william a — August 5, 2009 @ 7:02 am