Cannabis Freedom

Turns out, not all cannabis users fit the "Stoners in the Mist" stereotype the ONDCP creates for us. It's no surprise that average middle-class individuals can enjoy cannabis and find it easy to incorporate their use into their lives. According to the press release:

A qualitative study of 41 Canadians surveyed in 2005-06 by U of A researchers showed that there is no such thing as a ‘typical’ marijuana user, but that people of all ages are selectively lighting up the drug as a way to enhance activities ranging from watching television and playing sports to having sex, painting or writing.

“For some of the participants, marijuana enhanced their ability to relax by taking their minds off daily stresses and pressures. Others found it helpful in focusing on the activity at hand,” said Geraint Osborne, a professor of sociology at the University of Alberta’s Augustana Campus in Camrose, and one of the study’s authors.

The study was published recently in the journal Substance Use and Misuse.

The focus was on adult users who were employed, ranging in age from 21 to 61, including 25 men and 16 women from Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and Newfoundland whose use of the drug ranged from daily to once or twice a year. They were predominantly middle class and worked in the retail and service industries, in communications, as white-collar employees, or as health-care and social workers. As well, 68 per cent of the users held post-secondary degrees, while another 11 survey participants had earned their high school diplomas.

The study also found that the participants considered themselves responsible users of the drug, defined by moderate use in an appropriate social setting and not allowing it to cause harm to others.

Government propagandists and the main stream media have been working tirelessly for the last 70 years to scare Americans into thinking that cannabis is a "demon weed" that corrupts people and drives them to lives of crime. This superstitious witch hunt has cost billions of dollars and ruined countless lives, while ignoring the fact that users are harmless, contributing members of society. The reason these propaganda campaigns fail to decrease cannabis consumption is because the claims are patently false and cannabis users know it.