HIGH TIMES FOR CANNABIS: MIDDLE CLASS LOVES IT, TOO

A new study says the drug is a hit with all kinds of Canadians.

A variety of educated, middle-class Canadians are "making a
conscious, but careful choice to use marijuana" to relax or focus on
leisure activities, say researchers behind a new study spotlighting
smoking of the drug behind the nation's picket fences.

These people might drive minivans to their full-time jobs or run a
household, but, come time to unwind, it's not Dr. Phil who's calming
their nerves.

"It's an illegal activity, so it's still something people do in
secret, usually in the privacy of their own home," says Geraint
Osborne, whose study is published in the spring edition of the
journal Substance Use and Misuse. "They're a little reluctant to come
forward and talk about it, using the phrase that they're still 'in
the closet.'"

A qualitative study of 41 adult Canadians nationwide suggests people
of all ages and educational backgrounds are lighting up. Mr. Osborne,
from the University of Alberta, and the University of Calgary's
Curtis Fogel led the study, which shows most of the participants
smoke marijuana to loosen up or enhance various leisure activities.

"Music, television, movies, computer games, creative endeavours, the
outdoors, sex ... they find marijuana makes all those things more
pleasurable," says Mr. Osborne, an associate professor of sociology.

"When they're using it to relax, it's typically being smoked when
they come home from work. It might be while they're preparing supper,
or socializing with friends, or just having a few puffs before they go to bed."

Study participants were predominantly middle-class and worked in
white-collar jobs in industries such as health care, retail, social
work, service and communications, and 68 per cent held post-secondary
degrees, while another 11 per cent had earned high school diplomas.

A qualitative study involves a small sample size that yields a high
amount of detailed information because interviews are face-to-face
and in-depth. Mr. Osborne says the findings should be seen as
preliminary exploratory research that provides a detailed snapshot of
this demographic of marijuana user.

"The movies focus on the average marijuana user as a burnout, a
slacker, and certainly there are those people out there, but it's not
everyone," he says. "Eventually, I think we're going to see its
decriminalization and legalization, with the government taxing it and
making money off it."

The study also found its middle-class participants consider
themselves responsible users of the drug, defined by "moderate use in
an appropriate social setting and not allowing it to cause harm to others."

According to a survey released last month by the Centre for Addiction
and Mental Health, the average age of cannabis users in Canada has
increased from 26 to 31 since 1977.

Ian Mulgrew, author of Bud Inc., says the trend has been wafting
beneath academia's radar for years and is only starting to surface
because of increased cultural tolerance for the drug. A nationwide
poll released this week showed 53 per cent of Canadians supported
legalization of marijuana, while the United Nations 2007 World Drug
Report revealed Canadians used more cannabis than people in any
country in Europe, Asia or Latin America.

"People are finally starting to recognize that judges and lawyers and
cops and doctors and other people who hold responsible jobs in
society like to have a reefer," says Mr. Mulgrew, an award-winning
writer from Vancouver.

The Fraser Institute estimates Canada's wholesale marijuana industry
is worth $5.7 billion. It is reportedly second only to construction,
and ahead of forestry, in terms of its contribution to the gross
domestic product of British Columbia.

Mr. Mulgrew says the trendiest marijuana paraphernalia -- smokeless,
and pricey, marijuana vaporizers -- are largely targeted to
health-conscious suburban dwellers who want to cut down on their
inhalation of respiratory toxins and keep the odour of cannabis out
of their upholstery.

"We're not talking about a 17-year-old buying a glass pipe and
thinking it's a big investment," he says. "These are smart people
with the disposable income to buy what amounts to a $700 hookah."