The argument that the use of cannabis leads to the use of hard drugs, known as the Gateway Theory is seldom used by the British Government, any more. Others, however, continually state this as if it were fact, whilst still others, even some who advocate the full legalisation of cannabis, continue to insist that it is the social setting in which cannabis is taken that leads to hard drug use. Such an argument is often based on the idea that for drinkers of alcohol in an environment where tobacco is smoked may start or restart the use of tobacco. Such arguments may often have prohibitionist undertones. The truth is that it is generally people who lead themselves or other people to try something new. There is nothing within cannabis itself that automatically leads one to try a hard drug, although people with a propensity to experiment with drugs may first try cannabis and the availability of different substances in the same place will help make that easier for them to achieve.
This is what the Shafer Report (USA) said about progression theory:
Statistically marijuana users are more likely to experiment with other drugs
than are non-users.
The Jamaican Studies 1970 said:
The use of ganja appears to be a benevolent alternative to alcohol by the
working class. There is no problem with drug escalation in the Jamaican working
class.
The LaGuardia sub-committee of New York 1944 said:
The use of marijuana does not lead to morphine or heroin or cocaine
addiction and no effort is made to create a market for these narcotics by
stimulating the practice of marijuana smoking.
UK: Study Finds No Cannabis Link To Hard Drugs: Sunday Times, 16 December 2001
Contact webmaster