Re: drug abuse among the homeless

On Tue, 02 Dec 2003 16:45:30 +0100, Eric Johnson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> 

>On 02-12-2003 13:39, in article [EMAIL PROTECTED], "Brother Nate"
><[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
>> Personally I doubt that question can be definitively
>> answered one way or the other.  We know that legal drugs
>> face less societal disapproval than illegal ones
>
>
>Do you mean to say there is still a "societal stamp of approval," on
>cigarettes?

Well, there is a certain amount of tolerance, although there is also a
growing prejudice against smokers as well.

>
>This is the most outrageous part of the hypocrisy behind the wrong color
>weed.
>
>Smokers are a demonstrable minority, 

roughly 25%, give or take a few percentage points (probably up to 5),
depending on what sampling you're using.

>and their rights are curtailed
>severely. 

As a (tobacco) smoker I don't feel too infringed upon except at bars in
cities with smoking bans encompassing the bars.

And those bars only get my business if they happen to have a very good
band playing there.

If a bar willingly implements its own smoking ban, that would be fine
(I've only ever heard of 1 like this), but since tobacco smokers are
addicts, they should be catered to under the ADA.

>And they have to pay a huge tariff in the form of sin taxes.

I don't mind the sin taxes that much, but the interesting thing is, I
spend more on cigarettes than I do on marijuana.  Sure, I smoke more
tobacco than marijuana, but that's the nature of nicotine addiction.

If I had to steal to support my habit, guess which habit I would have to
steal for?  

I wonder if Bro' Nate thinks the gov't force me into treatment for my
nicotine addiction or for my marijuana use - or both - or neither.

>
>How does cigarette smoking enjoy greater "approval," of society than say
>marijuana smoking or XTC taking?

I think it does because of deeply entrenched cultural "DNA".

>
>Most who smoke pot or take XTC in the USA don't smoke.

Yeah, but as you pointed out, most people don't smoke.  I'm one of the
few who still seems to smoke both.  (<g> I don't smoke X (obviously) - I
wouldn't touch that shit with a 420 cm pole).

>
>My point is, there is so much disapproval of tobacco smoking and smokers
>that it should simply not be legal.

But the lobby is too big, although I personally wouldn't bother to buy
it on the black market if it were illegal.  

>
>EJ