Twitter rips GOP lawmaker for reviving marijuana ‘gateway drug’ trope
For generations, researchers have been debunking the myth that marijuana is a “gateway drug” — stressing that most people who use marijuana will not go on to use heroin, cocaine, PCP or crystal meth. But when members of the U.S. House of Representatives debated the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act or MORE Act — which would decriminalize marijuana at the federal level — Rep. Buddy Carter of Georgia resorted to the tired “gateway drug” claim.
The GOP congressman, speaking on the House floor, insisted, “As you know, I’m a pharmacist. I know addiction. I know and I’ve studied addiction. I can tell you, marijuana is nothing more than a gateway drug.”
Despite Carter’s forceful protests, the MORE Act — which was sponsored by Democratic House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler and others — passed 220-204. But it remains to been seen how it will fare in the U.S. Senate. In order for the MORE Act to actually become law, it will need to also be approved in the Senate and then, signed into law by President Joe Biden.
Carter’s “gateway drug” comments are drawing a great deal of ridicule on social media. Dr. Jonathan N. Stea, a clinical psychologist, tweeted:
The gateway theory has always failed because it assumes uni-variate, linear, uni-directional causality.\n\nIn other words, it's way too simplistic--to the point that it's not meaningful.\n\n#legalizecannabis— Dr. Jonathan N. Stea (@Dr. Jonathan N. Stea) 1648833406
Here are some of the other comments from Twitter users:
It's the Reefer Madness lies all over again. And those are the only arguments that they can muster against legalizing cannabis, so let's get this done already. \n\n(For the record, my grades improved after I started smoking pot in college.)— Perry Brown (@Perry Brown) 1648821751
I have grown up in a family that knows a bit about this subject. The gateway drug is actually alcohol. It kills people EVERY DAY. But as a society it is celebrated. It is an absolute shame. Marijuana cures, slows and prevents diseases. Alcohol causes them. Hypocrisy.— KathleenE\ud83d\udc99\ud83d\udc9b (@KathleenE\ud83d\udc99\ud83d\udc9b) 1648821733
Many people die from alcohol use. Not the case for marijuana use. The CDC reports that more than 30,000\u00a0annual U.S. deaths are attributed to the health effects of alcohol. The CDC does not even have a category for deaths caused by the health effects of marijuana.— mike obrien (@mike obrien) 1648822151
The gateway theory has always failed because it assumes uni-variate, linear, uni-directional causality.\n\nIn other words, it's way too simplistic--to the point that it's not meaningful.\n\n#legalizecannabis— Dr. Jonathan N. Stea (@Dr. Jonathan N. Stea) 1648833406
Have we learned nothing. Correlation is not causation. Yes, the reason that someone smokes a lot may well be the reason that someone uses heroin, but the weed does not lead.— Laughing By The Bass Bin (@Laughing By The Bass Bin) 1648826035
It's a gateway to ordering double cheese pizza and oreos every day but not to other drugs.— Leslie Jones (@Leslie Jones) 1648832394
I have reviewed thousands of medical charts in my career, and not once have I seen marijuana use as the reason that the patient was admitted to the hospital. ( And I worked in Georgia for 21 years, Buddy).— rosemary brown lewis (@rosemary brown lewis) 1648824524
Interestingly, marijuana has been shown effective in weaning patients off of opioid addiction. So, Big Pharma isn\u2019t keen on legalizing weed if it hurts their narcotics sales. This guy is obviously bought and paid for.— \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc99\ud83d\udc9b\ud83c\udf3bUnassimilated MD\ud83c\udf3b\ud83d\udc9b\ud83d\udc99\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6#SlavaUkraini (@\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83d\udc99\ud83d\udc9b\ud83c\udf3bUnassimilated MD\ud83c\udf3b\ud83d\udc9b\ud83d\udc99\ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6#SlavaUkraini) 1648824862
