Gingersnap
08-19-2009, 02:38 PM
Smoke signals: Baby Boomers still getting high, U.S. agency reports
Posted: August 19, 2009, 9:55 AM by Karen Hawthorne
World, Health
Woodstock may be long gone — the music concert love-in that "defined a generation" marked its 40th last weekend — but Boomers are still smoking pot and turning to other illegal drugs. Don't be fooled by the short haircuts and more conservative dress — sideburns and long, shaggy hair aren't as fashionable as they once were, and don't really fit with tailored suits and loafers.
The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported Wednesday that rates of illegal drug use by the older generation have doubled in recent years. Doubled! As Reuters reports on the statistics:
The rates of people aged 50 to 59 who admit to using illicit drugs in the past year nearly doubled from 5.1% in 2002 to 9.4% in 2007 while rates among all other age groups are the same or decreasing...
So the good people of the Woodstock generation has continued to use illicit drugs as they age. The data used in the study came from various surveys including 16,656 men and women participating in the 2002 through 2007 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, Reuters notes.
Why? Is it dissatisfaction with stereotypical Boomer wealth, security and cushy retirement plans — or do they just like getting high? Probably while they're sitting in their home entertainment centre watching an episode of "Weeds".
Well, that explains the last election cycle.
National Post (http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posted/archive/2009/08/19/smoke-signals-baby-boomers-still-getting-high-u-s-agency-reports.aspx)
Posted: August 19, 2009, 9:55 AM by Karen Hawthorne
World, Health
Woodstock may be long gone — the music concert love-in that "defined a generation" marked its 40th last weekend — but Boomers are still smoking pot and turning to other illegal drugs. Don't be fooled by the short haircuts and more conservative dress — sideburns and long, shaggy hair aren't as fashionable as they once were, and don't really fit with tailored suits and loafers.
The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reported Wednesday that rates of illegal drug use by the older generation have doubled in recent years. Doubled! As Reuters reports on the statistics:
The rates of people aged 50 to 59 who admit to using illicit drugs in the past year nearly doubled from 5.1% in 2002 to 9.4% in 2007 while rates among all other age groups are the same or decreasing...
So the good people of the Woodstock generation has continued to use illicit drugs as they age. The data used in the study came from various surveys including 16,656 men and women participating in the 2002 through 2007 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, Reuters notes.
Why? Is it dissatisfaction with stereotypical Boomer wealth, security and cushy retirement plans — or do they just like getting high? Probably while they're sitting in their home entertainment centre watching an episode of "Weeds".
Well, that explains the last election cycle.
National Post (http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/posted/archive/2009/08/19/smoke-signals-baby-boomers-still-getting-high-u-s-agency-reports.aspx)