A recent telephone survey done by Rasmussen Reports found that some Americans believe Alcohol and Cigarettes are more dangerous than Marijuana. According to this survey nearly half of all Americans believe both of these legal substances are riskier than Marijuana - an illegal drug.
The survey article does a great job of describing American sentiment saying, "A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey finds that just 17% of Adults rate use of marijuana as riskier than drinking alcohol. Fifty percent (50%) say alcohol is more dangerous, while 26% rate the two as equally risky... Similarly, 46% say smoking cigarettes is more dangerous than smoking pot. Twenty-four percent (24%) disagree and say marijuana use is more dangerous. One-in-four (25%) view the two as equally dangerous." This raises some puzzling questions about why marijuana is illegal, while other "riskier" drugs have become common in social settings.
I could see Americans believing alcohol and cigarettes to be more dangerous because they are commodities that are available to the general public. So it's possible that the results came out like they did because the respondents could have been ignorant in the sense of thinking because something is illegal that it is harder to get. I don't know, I'm just speculating!
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