Marijuana-Gateway theory

Whether you call it hemp, mary jane, pot, or weed it doesn't matter. It is still Cannabis Sativa, or cannabis for short and it is still illegal. The use of marijuana as an intoxicant in the United States became a problem of public concern sometime during the 1930s. Laws were passed in 1937 instituting criminal penalties for possession and sale of the drug. The word marijuana refers to the dried leaves and flowers of the cannabis …

…was legalized that the number of people that would do it would relatively stay the same and the number people using "harder" drugs will decrease because they can just go to the village "coffee shop" and purchase a quantity of government regulated marijuana. I don't think people are going to go out and use a drug that they think might be harmful to themselves just because the government says it is legal to do so.