Gallop Poll: 44% Have Tried Marijuana

[SGOS]

This sounds low to me.  I wonder how Gallop insures honesty in strangers taking the poll?  I would guess 90%.  All it asks is how many have tried it, not how many are rampant users.  I live in a rural area with mostly older farmer types.  Granted, I only know a few users, but we are talking about a population of people who have had 50 to 70 years under their belts, and all of them were one time teenagers and young adults... and they never tried it??  Even if they "didn't inhale and didn't like it."?? 

[GSOgymrat]

That number seems low to me as well. I assess people who present to the emergency department and often have this interaction:

Do you use any drugs or recreational substances.-- "No."
How about marijuana?-- "No."
Your urine screen is positive for cannabis. -- "Oh, well I don't use regularly."

I honestly have never once tried marijuana and from talking to people I am definitely in the minority. We should do a forum poll.

[SGOS]

Do you use any drugs or recreational substances.-- "No."
How about marijuana?-- "No."
Your urine screen is positive for cannabis. -- "Oh, well I don't use regularly."

This is quite telling.  Here you have people being treated for an emergency during what they believe is serious, and their first reaction is to fib over an important piece of information that may solve the problem.  In a poll, no one is facing an emergency, and a little white lie won't hurt anyone, so why not?  Many people will protect their image, even when it serves no purpose.

[Mike Cl]

This has to be low.  I'm sure most have at least, tried it  once. 

[SGOS]

Back in the 70s, just after marijuana came out of nowhere and hit the scene big time, in an attempt to counter the "epidemic", my home town sponsored a informational meeting featuring some cop who was putting these things on.  I suspect he was more of a motivational speaker on a circuit than a full time cop.  I went to the meeting to see what it was all about.  I entered the high school gymnasium where it was being held, and in the back two or three rows were my "head" friends who were all laughing and flashing me the peace sign. 

I thought, "OMG!  Call attention to ourselves, why don't you?"  I was convinced the cops standing at the doorway were writing down names and getting ready for a big investigation, and I may have been right.  They probably knew who most of the local pot smokers were, but only one of my friends was arrested that I recall.  Actually, he was arrested 3 times, and was eventually sent to prison for a year for selling pot to a guy that got arrested and squealed.  I was with him during the sale he was convicted for, which took place in a church parking lot.  The cops obviously knew I was there, but I managed to avoid any direct contact with the police.

The day they arrested my friend for selling pot, another friend came to my house in a panic, and we flushed our drugs down the toilet.  But the authorities never came knocking at our doors.  I'm sure we were on a list and probably being watched, although probably not too closely.  I think you had to be really careless to get arrested.  Sure you could just get unlucky, but most of the time, I think it was just from being too out in the open.

Christ!  People went to prison for using pot.  Still do, and they let rapists out because of overcrowding.  What a waste of money and manpower.

[Mike Cl]

Back in the 70s, just after marijuana came out of nowhere and hit the scene big time, in an attempt to counter the "epidemic", my home town sponsored a informational meeting featuring some cop who was putting these things on.  I suspect he was more of a motivational speaker on a circuit than a full time cop.  I went to the meeting to see what it was all about.  I entered the high school gymnasium where it was being held, and in the back two or three rows were my "head" friends who were all laughing and flashing me the peace sign. 

I thought, "OMG!  Call attention to ourselves, why don't you?"  I was convinced the cops standing at the doorway were writing down names and getting ready for a big investigation, and I may have been right.  They probably knew who most of the local pot smokers were, but only one of my friends was arrested that I recall.  Actually, he was arrested 3 times, and was eventually sent to prison for a year for selling pot to a guy that got arrested and squealed.  I was with him during the sale he was convicted for, which took place in a church parking lot.  The cops obviously knew I was there, but I managed to avoid any direct contact with the police.

The day they arrested my friend for selling pot, another friend came to my house in a panic, and we flushed our drugs down the toilet.  But the authorities never came knocking at our doors.  I'm sure we were on a list and probably being watched, although probably not too closely.  I think you had to be really careless to get arrested.  Sure you could just get unlucky, but most of the time, I think it was just from being too out in the open.

Christ!  People went to prison for using pot.  Still do, and they let rapists out because of overcrowding.  What a waste of money and manpower.

Yeah, it is a crock.  And the war on drugs has been the biggest boon to organized crime in our history.

[Termin]

 Does it count as trying if you don't inhale ? :)

[SGOS]

Does it count as trying if you don't inhale ? :)

I depends on which branch of the government you're in.

[AllPurposeAtheist]

Beer leads to heroin. .no doubt about it. .  Seriously though the number seems somewhat legit being that so many employers test for drug use and this is the ultimate nanny state with kids getting arrested for very minor offenses, even doodling on a desk in school.
I have heard kids tell me that even one puff of marijuana can kill you or have you sent to prison.

Seriously. ..no shit. .

[SGOS]

Beer leads to heroin. .no doubt about it. I have heard kids tell me that even one puff of marijuana can kill you or have you sent to prison.
Seriously. ..no shit. .

.

I grew up being taught by sincere adults that marijuana was addictive and led to heroin.  We all were so educated that way back in the 40s and 50s.  I went through college not knowing a single person who had ever tried pot or had even been around it.  I graduated in 1967, and had been busily starting my career.  In 1969 I ran into an old friend on the ski hill, who invited me to stay the night at his cabin out in the middle of the woods.  He had been finishing up college during the last two years at Missoula, and was now teaching at a one room school house in the Yaak River Valley.

After his wife went to bed we sat by the wood stove and he told me about what was happening on campus since I was gone.  It seems that music concerts were now the thing, and coming on in a very big way, and all the kids were listening to this guitar player named Jimmy Hendrix, and everyone was smoking marijuana.  I was startled.  I too was living in a small logging community and become out of touch.  I said, "Marijuana?  Really?"  He nodded knowingly and then informed me, "And marijuana is NOT addictive."

I went from startled to dumbfounded.  I added, "Really?  You can smoke it without becoming an addict?"  He nodded again, knowing full well that he was blowing my mind, because he had grown up in the same type of social environment that I had.  "Yes, you can smoke it every day, and not get addicted," he added with unusual authority.

That was absolutely amazing to me.  It seems like perhaps the older generation could not be trusted at all.  No wonder the hippy generation was reacting against the establishment, and exploring new things, and adopting a new morality.  Doing crazy unthinkable things like opposing the war in Vietnam, and burning flags, and pushing for women's rights, and civil rights.  The whole world was turning upside down.  Bad mouth those days if you must, but things were taking a turn toward progress, and good things came out of those years.

[doorknob]

.

"Yes, you can smoke it every day, and not get addicted," he added with unusual authority.

LMAO hillarious!

Yes people do end up in rehab for mary jane. Stupid people but it does happen!

I support marijuana for recreational use. I see it as no more harmful than alcohol. I know many, many people who use it with out ever getting into trouble. And the ones that do get into trouble are no different than alcoholics IMO already pre disposed to it.

and yes the poll seems way too low to me. I think some people were Fibonacci.