> Hopefully one day Cannabis will mostly supplant alcohol as the social drug of choice.
I hope not. I find the smell of Cannabis to be nauseating (almost like a swamp or distant sewage plant), and I wish people would consider that more often before smoking it in social settings. I realize that alcohol can smell as well, but it usually takes quite a lot of it for me to notice at least.
Another consideration: It's a lot easier for non-participating guests to abstain from alcohol than from Cannabis. Apart from peer pressure concerns, I can abstain or moderate my alcohol intake while still participating in social activities, regardless of the alcohol intake of my friends. When Cannabis is smoked in an enclosed hotbox though, I have to choose between intoxication and leaving.
I know this is a little off topic, but I always wonder if Cannabis becoming legal in more places, like the US, would result in more innovation with regards to the actual smell of cannabis. Perhaps more convenient ways of ingesting/inhaling that don't result in such a strong odor? Maybe biological manipulation of the strains to specifically eliminate the aspects of the plant that give it such a strong smell while maintaining the effects? You have to think that the primary providers of Cannabis to date have not had much incentive to tackle this problem, but like you said, the more and more prevalent it becomes in society, the more necessary it may become.
I found the recent episode of the tv show VICE that focused on the booming entrepreneurship in Colorado around cannabis to be really interesting and it will be interesting to see what comes of that test environment within the US.
You may find UCLA professor Mark Kleiman's thoughts on the future of legalization interesting. Basically he predicts a big shift towards vaporization, e-cig style.
smoking (or vaporing) makes much more sense in a social situation. eating pot food takes a while to kick in, sometimes hours. it's not ideal and the experiences are not identical.
Personally I don't mind the smell but, as other posters have suggested, I think it's likely that less intrusive and safer methods of consumption will become popular as Cannabis moves into the mainstream. Vaporizers and edibles are both good alternatives.
I hope not. I find the smell of Cannabis to be nauseating (almost like a swamp or distant sewage plant), and I wish people would consider that more often before smoking it in social settings. I realize that alcohol can smell as well, but it usually takes quite a lot of it for me to notice at least.
Another consideration: It's a lot easier for non-participating guests to abstain from alcohol than from Cannabis. Apart from peer pressure concerns, I can abstain or moderate my alcohol intake while still participating in social activities, regardless of the alcohol intake of my friends. When Cannabis is smoked in an enclosed hotbox though, I have to choose between intoxication and leaving.
I don't mind the brownies though.