POT STUDY SHOWS USE HAS 'GONE RESPECTABLE'

Cliches Burned: Image of Dropout Dopehead Far From the Norm

Educated, middle-class Canadians are making "a conscious but careful
choice to use marijuana," say researchers behind a new study
spotlighting pot smoking 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, co-author of a study in the spring edition of Substance Use
and Misuse.

"They're a little reluctant to come forward and talk about it . . .
they're still 'in the closet.' "

Osborne, of the University of Alberta, and co-author Curtis Fogel, of
the University of Calgary, say most of the participants smoke pot 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 Osborne, an associate professor of sociology.

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

The study on just 41 Canadians nationwide deliberately involved a
small sample size to yield a high amount of detailed information
through face-to-face and in-depth interviews. Osborne says it's
preliminary, exploratory research.

"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."

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.

A nationwide poll, released this week, shows 53 per cent of Canadians
support legalizing marijuana, while the United Nations 2007 World
Drug Report revealed Canadians use more cannabis than 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 Mulgrew, an award-winning
author and Vancouver Sun columnist.

The Fraser Institute estimates Canada's pot industry is worth about
$5.7 billion at the wholesale level. It is thought second only to
construction in its contribution to B.C.'s gross domestic product.

Mulgrew says the trendiest pot paraphernalia -- smokeless, and
pricey, marijuana vaporizers -- are largely targeted to
health-conscious suburban dwellers that 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," says Mulgrew. "These are smart
people with the disposable income to buy what amounts to a $700 hookah."