Marijuana is a Gateway Drug

    GMarijuana is not a gateway drug, and does not lead to users trying harder drugs. Although most sources and studies are correct, this is a distorted truth.

    There are reports that claim that "a marijuana user is 85 times more likely to try cocaine than a non-marijuana user". This statistic is created by taking the proportion of marijuana users who have ever used cocaine (17%) and dividing it by the proportion of cocaine users who have never used marijuana (.2%). All this means is that most cocaine user tried marijuana first. But the truth is, that most marijuana users will never try cocaine, because in fact, 83% of marijuana users will never try cocaine.

    The same could be said about cigarette smoking. For example, if 75% of people that smoke marijuana also smoke cigarettes, then the conclusion could be drawn that tobacco is a gateway to marijuana. But this is false. The vast majority of people that smoke tobacco will never try marijuana, so tobacco is not a gateway drug. The same can be said for marijuana users, the vast majority of them will never try harder drugs.

Another way of putting it...

    "The so called "gateway theory" is true for a lot of people. Someone I went to highschool with died from and OC overdose on the 17th. You know what they started with? Pot, in highschool."

    "Wrong. They started with milk. They watched a few thousand hours of television. They probably had a few burgers along the way. Maybe a beer or two. And some cigarettes.

    Just because one thing precedes another does not imply that the first causes the second. This is a logical fallacy called Post hoc, ergo propter hoc.

    The only way in which marijuana is a "gateway" to other drugs is caused by prohibition. Because it's illegal, marijuana is sold by black market dealers who are happy to sell anyone any drug. If marijuana was available at the corner convenience store it wouldn't be sold by the same guys who are dealing meth, cocaine, and heroin." ⁴
 

Sources:

1. The Vaults of Erowid, (2005), Marijuana Myths:  http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_myth13.shtml

2. Schaffer Library of Drug Policy, (2006), The Myth of Marijuana's Gateway Effect   http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/LIBRARY/mjgate.htm