It's generally the same for serious drunks...

partially coincidence my friend. there just as many people as you describe above that DON'T do it, probably more numerically speaking. sorry people come in all "types

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tip for new truckers: to err is human, to forgive is not D.O.T. policy.

No, my point was that they'll take what little money they have and blow it on weed or booze. Yes, there are other things you see stupid people do while the baby needs shoes (I've actually known people with kids who had only one pair), but it's very prevalent amongst drunks and druggies. The intimated point is that there is little difference between the hard drug user and the weedheads in this respect: it DOES have addictive value.
I should know; I used to smoke it, back in the day. It always seemed more important than other bills, or, as "Freeloadin' Freddie" used to say in the comix, "A day with weed and no money is better than a day with money and no weed!"
Yeh, right.

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"We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."
~George Orwell

LOL it is passively addictive, like caffiene. although one's personality really dictates whether they are gonna be a "pothead" or an occasional user.
myself, have an addictive personality. my brain thinks if a little is good then hell, alot must better!

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tip for new truckers: to err is human, to forgive is not D.O.T. policy.

How many people you know will spend there last $5 on a pack of cigarretes instead of food?

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Never Underestimate the power of the Schwartz!

Tons
Almost every homeless person I see is smoking, broke and hungry

I'm like panhandlepat: better off without anything addictive. Good point about the smokes. Funny thing about the panhandlers at the ramps: I offered one a sandwich one day and he said he didn't want it; didn't like cheese!
Unbelievable. I'll bet he wouldn't have been so picky if it were booze I'd offered.

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"We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."
~George Orwell

That's strange, I know several people who smoke pot that have well paying jobs and are regular productive members of society. Who are "those people" that you are referring to?

ABC just did a study showing over 40% of the public now agrees marijuana should be taxed and regulated. Further, studies show for the agegroup of 50 - 59, only 8% have ever even tried it. But for the group 40 - 49, it spikes to about 50%, then increases again for lower age groups. What's the average age in Washington? About 54. It's coming folks. ABC predicts a super majority agreeing with legalizing pot by 2020. It's time to quit sending non-violent pot smokers to prison, it's time to stop at least 50% of the violent crime on the Mexican boarder due to the illegal drug traide, it's time to end this prohibition.

And you can't compair MJ to harder drugs like meth or heroine. That's nonsense. Point is, the prohibition of MJ is more damaging than the drug itself. It is time to stop this.

Anyone who smokes pot is a fool for taking a chance on throwing your job away. Almost all job fields have randoms. Especially a truck driver. Point is it is illegal. Time to grow up and be responsible. It amazes me how people are willing to gamble with their futures for what? Something that a teenager would try to get by with.

I know you weren't speaking directly to me, so don't take offense. But I'm going to answer as though you were. It's not a matter of if I can smoke it or not. Honestly, even if marijuana was to become legal, do you think truck drivers will be able to use it? Heck no. I simply know what's best for this country.

Also, looking at DATA and FACTS on SAMHDA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Data Archive), we get some interesting info. I wanted to find out who "those people" (pot smokers) are. Some interesting data:

EMPLOYED
FULL TIME EMPLOYED
PART TIME UNEMPLOYED OTHER/ NOT
IN LABOR FORCE NEVER USED MARIJUANA 48.7%56.5%46.2%73.7%HAVE USED MARIJUANA 51.3%43.5%53.8%26.3%

So if you smoke marijuana, you're more likely to have a full time job. Interesting. The 43.5% figure and the unemployment figure make sense, if you figure that more low skilled and part time work are more likely to face drug tests. Their fault for failing them? Yes, but it shows that marijuana smokers do actually have productive lives if they're allowed to.

This can be further broken down:

Based on responses, about two-thirds (67.8%) of all American adults are employed part-time or full-time, and the unemployed account for 3.2% of all adults. But when you break these numbers down for only those American adults who have used marijuana, we find that over three-quarters (78.3%) of all marijuana users are employed part-time or full-time. To be fair, a larger proportion (4% vs. 3.2%) of marijuana users are unemployed than the proportion for all adults, but not so much as to be statistically significant.

There are 12.9 million American Adults, out of the 22 million total who have smoked at least once a year, who are employed full time. When we break down their use by frequency, we find the largest proportion, well over a third (36%) of full-time employed marijuana smokers are using more than 100 days per year. That’s 4.7 million full-time employed chronic marijuana users - and they can’t all be snowboarders, rappers, and head shop owners.

Finally, almost half of American Adults who have one year or more of college education have smoked marijuana, while among those with only a high school diploma / GED or less educational attainment, about one-third have smoked marijuana. I’m not saying that smoking marijuana will make you smarter, but it seems the smarter you are, the more likely you’ll smoke marijuana.

Now, I've done a little cutting and pasting instead of using my own words (I don't have THAT much time), but you can see what the stats say about "those people" who smoke pot. Is it possible pot smokers can be productive members of society? Are those anti-drug commercials exaggerating a little bit? No....can't be!

Why do I care about this so much? Well, first of all, you won't find me at any pot rallies protesting for an end to the prohibition. But when I have the chance on a forum, I'll pipe up. This is because I did a very extensive research study on this in college in one of my LAW ENFORCEMENT classes. We were given subjects at random, and I was given legalizing marijuana and how that would effect society. Ever since then, I've sort of taken it a little more personal, because I actually see the damage this prohibition is doing to our country. If more people knew the violence and hard crime that occurs from this drug, simply due to it being illegal, people would throw a fit.