Cigarettes are More Dangerous than Marijuana

I met Mike. What he said as we chatted totally amazed me, and got me thinking. Mike said, “There is a lot to it, but bottom line—cigarettes are more dangerous than marijuana!”
The shock I was feeling was obvious in my voice. I skeptically said, “Many entities include marijuana with opium and heroin—and other highly addictive drugs.”
“It shouldn’t be tied to those other drugs. Fentanyl is nothing like marijuana. And, marijuana is not a drug people overdose on. Even alcohol can lead to an overdose—not pot!”
I’m not in medicine. I am not at all qualified to judge, but there was logic in what Mike was telling me. I asked, “What about marijuana being called a gateway drug? A kid starts with pot and goes on to try stronger and more dangerous, and potentially addictive ways to get their buzz. What about that?”
Sarcastically he replied, “Yeah. We eradicate marijuana from the globe and there would be no gateway drug so use of those heavy drugs would totally stop! Right!”
I nodded, saying, “Okay. I get you. People predisposed to living the ‘high life’ would get into the bad stuff anyway, one way or another. I see your point. But what about cigarettes being more dangerous than marijuana? Explain that one to me.”
Mike looked me in the eye and asked, “You ever smoke cigarettes?”
I nodded and said, “Yep.”
Then Mike asked, “You get addicted?”
Again, I nodded and said, “Yep. My mom smoked. So did my dad. I’d see some of the older kids smoking out in the school yard too. They were the cool kids, and cool kids smoked. I snagged a cigarette from mom’s pack of Pall Malls and went out behind our garage to see what this smoking thing was all about. I coughed at first. But I felt cool. The next time it was better. No coughing. Pretty soon I would get off the school bus and crave my next cigarette. By age sixteen I was a smoker. One of the hardest things I have ever done in my life was to quit cold-turkey. Did that on my thirty-fifth birthday.”
Mike smiled and asked, “Ever try pot?”
“Yep,” I replied.
He winked and asked, “More than once.”

A red and green logo for common sense. I grinned and said, “I was a professional rock musician in the 70’s and 80’s. What do you think?”
Mike said, “Okay. No judgement here. But, let me ask—you get addicted to pot? Tough to quit?”
“No,” I replied. “It was take it or leave it. I didn’t care either way.”
“So, there you go! Mike said triumphantly. “Ya don’t overdose on pot. For almost everybody, it’s not addictive. There are exceptions, but people can get addicted to all kinds of weird things. Just learned people get addicted to that nasal spray, Afrin! But pot—not addictive. Cigarettes are more dangerous than pot!”
“Look,” Mike said. “You may not agree, but pot should be legalized. Just like alcohol, there must be age limits. Buyers need to prove they are eligible based on our laws. If alcohol is legal, certainly pot should be. It just needs to be controlled and monitored so it is safe, and not laced with foreign chemicals.”
“I’m not sold yet, but you have given me a lot to think about. I’d like to get other opinions,” I told Mike.
So, what do you think?