# To the boys in my dorm: **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 22, 2006, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465 "2006-03-22T18:48:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/161 "2006-03-24T17:57:47Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Our entire way of functioning in this country revolves around pills. Over-the-counter, prescription, recreational, fun, dangerous, coping…you name it. We LIKE pills. We teach ourselves that drugs can fix whatever ails ya. Presidential elections can be won or lost based on how a candidate wants to dole out the pills. In fact, we have one president who openly admitted toying with drugs, and another who is widely believed to have used cocaine recreationally. We’ve had addicted First Ladies, senators, cops and soldiers. Dressing it up in congressional clothing or a Coco Chanel suit doesn’t change the fact that drugs are used by the very people who tell the commoners they can’t. I agree with those observations, and I think it’s bad thing. Legal drugs are prescribed too freely, like the often-cited case of kids on Ritalin. Before Ritalin was invented, people somehow raised their kids without it. Now it’s given out way too easily. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/162 "2006-03-24T18:03:41Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > So you are suggesting that because you are incapable of limiting your alcohol intake to just a glass of wine or two, we should prohibit the sale of alcohol? Swing and a miss. I’m saying that the last person to realize how ‘victimless’ his or her **ab** use of intoxicating or mind-altering substances is the person using. And not every drug is condusive to ‘recreational’ use. Drugs like meth, crack, heroin and its derivatives - it takes an extreme level of willpower to just use these ‘recreationally’. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/163 "2006-03-24T18:04:17Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Everything is not black and white. Alcohol is indeed like a drug, and addictive to some people. It’s not exactly good for you, but mild enough to be legal. Something like crack cocaine or crystal meth is not legal, and for very good reasons. They are highly addictive and destructive. > > When it comes right down to it, most things can harm you in sufficient quantities. Even water. But drugs do it much more quickly, and are addictive to boot. Yes, they’re illegal. If you don’t agree with them being illegal, then work to get the laws changed. Good luck though, because the majority of Americans won’t agree with you. Alcohol is far more dangerous and addictive than marijuana. Yet we continue to treat pot smokers like hardened criminals. The harm alcohol can do to some people is legend. And I don’t think you’ll find too many people who will agree that alcohol is “mild.” ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/164 "2006-03-24T18:15:48Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > To quote another doper in a separete thread: > > **Assertions aren’t facts.** > > Not everything is about “society”, is it? Don’t individual rights and liberties mean anything anymore? Well if you’re going to single out my assertions, let me throw some facts into the discussion: All from [http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm](http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm) -In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs. -In 2004, 3.9% of homicides where drug related -In 2000, arrestees testing positive for cocaine: 49% in Atlanta and New York to 11% in Des Moines for males. -“More than two-thirds of local jail inmates (68%) were found to be dependent on drugs or alcohol or abusing them, according to a 2002 survey of men and women held in local jails.” Drugs and crime are good buddies. Seems the mind-altering properties of drugs causes people to commit crimes, and the addictive properties cause people to steal to get money for more drugs. Maybe that’s why drugs are illegal perhaps? Yes, you can safely use drugs, but a **very significant number of people cannot** , and many lives have been ruined or ended because of it. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/165 "2006-03-24T18:20:58Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Alcohol is far more dangerous and addictive than marijuana. Yet we continue to treat pot smokers like hardened criminals. The harm alcohol can do to some people is legend. And I don’t think you’ll find too many people who will agree that alcohol is “mild.” I think a lot of people would consider Bud Light mild. Depends on the drink. I would even be open to condsidering the legalization of marijuana, as it does seem to be a mostly mild drug. The trouble is right now pot is illegal, and anyone who would cross the legality line to smoke it might as well cross the line to do meth or ecstacy. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/166 "2006-03-24T18:21:41Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Well if you’re going to single out my assertions, let me throw some facts into the discussion: > > All from [http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm](http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm) > -In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs. > -In 2004, 3.9% of homicides where drug related > -In 2000, arrestees testing positive for cocaine: 49% in Atlanta and New York to 11% in Des Moines for males. > -“More than two-thirds of local jail inmates (68%) were found to be dependent on drugs or alcohol or abusing them, according to a 2002 survey of men and women held in local jails.” > > Drugs and crime are good buddies. Seems the mind-altering properties of drugs causes people to commit crimes, and the addictive properties cause people to steal to get money for more drugs. Maybe that’s why drugs are illegal perhaps? > > Yes, you can safely use drugs, but a **very significant number of people cannot** , and many lives have been ruined or ended because of it. A significant number of people may have a difficult time with substance use, but a more significant number of people do not. Your figures don’t take into account the number of people who use responsibly. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/167 "2006-03-24T18:23:47Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > I think a lot of people would consider Bud Light mild. Depends on the drink. > > I would even be open to condsidering the legalization of marijuana, as it does seem to be a mostly mild drug. The trouble is right now pot is illegal, and anyone who would cross the legality line to smoke it might as well cross the line to do meth or ecstacy. Alcohol is alcohol. I know drunks who drink light beer and who get mean or violent the same as a person who drinks whiskey. If you drink enough, you consume the same amount of alcohol. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/168 "2006-03-24T18:46:20Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Well if you’re going to single out my assertions, let me throw some facts into the discussion: > > All from [http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm](http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/duc.htm) > -In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs. > -In 2004, 3.9% of homicides where drug related > -In 2000, arrestees testing positive for cocaine: 49% in Atlanta and New York to 11% in Des Moines for males. > -“More than two-thirds of local jail inmates (68%) were found to be dependent on drugs or alcohol or abusing them, according to a 2002 survey of men and women held in local jails.” > > Drugs and crime are good buddies. Seems the mind-altering properties of drugs causes people to commit crimes, and the addictive properties cause people to steal to get money for more drugs. Maybe that’s why drugs are illegal perhaps? > > Yes, you can safely use drugs, but a **very significant number of people cannot** , and many lives have been ruined or ended because of it. Correlation is not causality. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/169 "2006-03-24T19:11:59Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Correlation is not causality. Aaargh, you know, you can shut down most of the discussions on this message board if you keep doing that! I would submit that some of these statistics not only show correlation but causality, because crimes are being committed to get drugs. Such as “In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs.” ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/170 "2006-03-24T19:15:04Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > Swing and a miss. > > I’m saying that the last person to realize how ‘victimless’ his or her **ab** use of intoxicating or mind-altering substances is the person using. And not every drug is condusive to ‘recreational’ use. Drugs like meth, crack, heroin and its derivatives - it takes an extreme level of willpower to just use these ‘recreationally’. It would move the discussion further along if you took the time to ask yourself if the same can be said for alcohol (ab)use. Even tobacco to a lesser extent. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/171 "2006-03-24T19:16:32Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > A significant number of people may have a difficult time with substance use, but a more significant number of people do not. Your figures don’t take into account the number of people who use responsibly. Following QuickSilver’s lead, “a more significant number” doesn’t cut it. Let me invite you to find statistics for responsible substance use. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/172 "2006-03-24T19:18:39Z")
> [@Greathouse](#): > > I do think that because monica is not directly harmed by the actions of these people it serves no purpose and has no benifit to her to NOT mind her own business. > > What does she gain by outting these people? In that case, why are you telling her what to do? After all, you are not personally harmed by **monica** ’s actions – not in the least. So by your own logic, shouldn’t you stop bothering her and mind your own business? ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/173 "2006-03-24T19:19:11Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Aaargh, you know, you can shut down most of the discussions on this message board if you keep doing that! > > I would submit that some of these statistics not only show correlation but causality, because crimes are being committed to get drugs. Such as “In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs.” I have known drug users since I was in my early teens. Nearly every single person I hung out with for the past 35 years has used drugs to some degree (that includes my 76 year old father). In that time, I know of NO ONE who committed a crime in order to get drugs (other than the obvious crime of buying them in the first place). It’s ridiculous to assume that crime and drug use go hand in hand. It simply ain’t so. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/174 "2006-03-24T19:21:01Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Following QuickSilver’s lead, “a more significant number” doesn’t cut it. Let me invite you to find statistics for responsible substance use. You’re never going to get accurate numbers because so many people fear being arrested. My own example above can be matched by others around here, I’m sure. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/175 "2006-03-24T19:23:00Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Aaargh, you know, you can shut down most of the discussions on this message board if you keep doing that! > > I would submit that some of these statistics not only show correlation but causality, because crimes are being committed to get drugs. Such as “In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs.” Why is it so hard to accept that criminals engage in criminal behaviour for their own benefit. If a person capable of mugging somebody for his wallet then goes on to blow the cash on hookers, is he then considered a sex addict? Did his sexual addiction cause him to mug somebody? ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/176 "2006-03-24T19:32:20Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > Why is it so hard to accept that criminals engage in criminal behaviour for their own benefit. If a person capable of mugging somebody for his wallet then goes on to blow the cash on hookers, is he then considered a sex addict? Did his sexual addiction cause him to mug somebody? I’d say if he routinely mugs people to pay for hookers, then yes he would fit the definition of a sex addict. What I’m trying to illustrate is that drug addiction causes crime. Just because you take drugs doesn’t mean you’ll get addicted. But everyone has that “it can’t happen to me” mentality that doesn’t hold up so well in reality. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/177 "2006-03-24T19:36:43Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > I’d say if he routinely mugs people to pay for hookers, then yes he would fit the definition of a sex addict. > > What I’m trying to illustrate is that drug addiction causes crime. Just because you take drugs doesn’t mean you’ll get addicted. But everyone has that “it can’t happen to me” mentality that doesn’t hold up so well in reality. You’re grouping users in with addicts. The percentage of users who are addicted is small. It’s apples and oranges. ---
**Author:** ![Greathouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/greathouse/32/2992_2.png) [@Greathouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greathouse)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/178 "2006-03-24T19:38:14Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > In that case, why are you telling her what to do? After all, you are not personally harmed by **monica** ’s actions – not in the least. So by your own logic, shouldn’t you stop bothering her and mind your own business? The difference is that she has posted this onto a public forum which invites comments. If the guys in her dorm are sitting in the common room, doing rails off the glass top coffee table then she _might_ be right in saying something. And, for the last fucking time…seriously, pay attention…I never told her what to do. I was addressing the person who said that she should talk to an RA about it. I never even once addressed monica in any of my posts. If someone can post how they think it is a great idea to tell the RA, then I can post to them and tell them I disagree and think that she should mind her own business. And actually, I haven’t seen her post anything at all about if she even considers going to the RA. Do you really think the world would be a better place if more people were willing to drop a dime on someone for doing something that doesn’t really harm anyone, but is illegal? If so, then I guess we just disagree on that. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/179 "2006-03-24T19:41:11Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Aaargh, you know, you can shut down most of the discussions on this message board if you keep doing that! > > I would submit that some of these statistics not only show correlation but causality, because crimes are being committed to get drugs. Such as “In 2002, 16.4% of jail inmates commited their offense to get money for drugs.” Why is it so hard to accept that criminals engage in criminal behaviour for their own benefit. If a person capable of mugging somebody for his wallet then goes on to blow the cash on hookers, is he then considered a sex addict? Did his sexual addiction cause him to mug somebody? ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [March 24, 2006, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465/180 "2006-03-24T19:52:28Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > It would move the discussion further along if you took the time to ask yourself if the same can be said for alcohol (ab)use. Even tobacco to a lesser extent. I thought I made that clear. The answer is yes. The comment was regarding ‘victimless’. **Ab** users (and possibly even chronic heavy users) often selfishly see their indulgences as victimless. Usually they are poor judges of that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-the-boys-in-my-dorm/349465.md?page=10)