Don’t Blame Pot — There’s No Such Thing as a “Gateway Drug”

Anti-drug zealots created the “gateway” theory from thin air. And it’s easily refuted: most marijuana users just don’t use other drugs.

The surging debate surrounding the legalization of marijuana has brought with it the resurrection of the “gateway theory,” which alleges that experimenting with marijuana leads to the use of harder drugs like cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. The gateway debate was reborn last week, thanks to a video of FBI director Robert Mueller testifying before Congress that marijuana should be illegal because it leads to more dangerous drug use.

Although the Mueller video has provoked amusement on pot-friendly websites, the unfortunate reality is that the “gateway drug” stigma continues to present an impediment to the reform of marijuana laws. A new Rasmussen poll found that a large percentage of Americans believe the gateway argument:

The new survey also shows that nearly half of voters (46%) believe marijuana use leads to use of harder drugs. Thirty-seven percent (37%) do not see marijuana as a “gateway” drug.

More Concerns About NSA’s “Stellar Wind” and Meta-Data Collection

“… But an even more interesting revelation — one ultimately far more troubling — can be found in a regrettably less prominent sidebar to the main Newsweek story, entitled “Now we know what the battle was about”, by Daniel Klaidman. Put together with other reports about the program, it lends considerable credence to claims that telephone companies (including my alma matter AT&T) provided the NSA with wholesale access to purely domestic calling records, on a scale beyond what has been previously acknowledged…”

See also:

Court Rules Patriot Act’s “National Security Letter” Gag Provisions Unconstitutional

In Courtroom Showdown, Bush Demands Amnesty for Spying Telecoms

A Cover for Illegal Domestic Operations?

Information Commissioner publishes freedom of information guidance for personal data