Finally, The Death Of The Stoner Stereotype!

The Death of the Stoner Stereotype

A “stoner” is someone who smokes weed on a regular basis. The term was originally invented to discriminate against the cannabis user, attempting to associate use with lifestyle. However, “stoners” didn’t take it as such.

Rather, cannabis users became affectionate to the term. “Are you a stoner?” “HELL YES!” Once the stoner culture developed, a wealth of music and movies came to be as a result proliferating the stereotype of the stoner.

Now, one must remember that this term is a few decades old but only truly picked up post-Woodstock.

People like Tommy Chong and Cheech Marin gave the “stoner” an international platform and red-eyed toksters from all over the world assumed the identity of stoner.

How times have changed

These days however, “stoners” are no longer long haired, semen stained morons that love to play hacky-sack all day long. Rather, the image of stoner has changed quite a bit over the past two decades. Nowadays we have people of all walks of life partaking. While many of them would not consider themselves “stoners”, the fact of the matter is that they are…whether they like it or not.

However, nowadays the image of the stoner has evolved to such a point that even soccer moms could be considered as such.

Since 1996, when California first legalized medical marijuana there has been a growing acceptance of the use of cannabis. Countries that were once staunchly opposed to legalization are now considering to make a shift to the legal cannabis market.

Now, that more than twenty-three states have some sort of marijuana program in play and with many other countries now giving cannabis to their medical patients, the idea of the “lazy stoner” simply doesn’t measure up.

How statistics dispels the stereotype

Did you know that one in ten people smoke marijuana in the US on a regular basis? That figure is only growing as cannabis is legalized in individual states. With roughly 30 million regular smokers and 20 million (not so regular smokers), the US is quickly embracing the idea of legal cannabis.

However, if we consider that 30 million people in the United States smoke weed on a regular basis, then the stereotype portrayed by the media simply doesn’t cut it.

That would mean that every one in ten people you know would be a stoner. I’m sure you know hundreds of people and I’m also certain that in some cases the stereotype holds true. But for the most part, people who smoke marijuana are just regular folks like you and me.

It is becoming ever increasingly difficult to know whether someone smokes marijuana or not. Some of the most “proper” folk you know could have a hidden cannabis habit they don’t want to share with the world.

Why?

It’s quite simple really, “Fear of the stigma”. To be associated as a “stoner” for some people, specifically those who abide by the rules of the “system”, is considered wrong.

“What would people think of me?” “I might lose my job” and a wealth of other thoughts pop into your head the moment you go public with your weed consumption. These are legitimate fears that have been induced into your brain to make you stay away from pot.

However, as more people spark up, the idea of “Stoners = Losers” is no longer sustainable. Some of the greatest minds of history smoked marijuana including; Carl Saga, Allan Watts, William Shakespeare just to name a few.

Once the use of cannabis has been “normalized”, people might still attach a stereotype to the typical stoner. However, for the most part, people will just accept the behavior similarly to someone drinking a beer.

In the future, the negative stereotyping of a stoner will no longer exist. Hopefully, this comes sooner than later.

One day the “stoner” will no longer be demonized and his use would be once more tolerated in this already “drugged up” society.