Gateway drug? Dealers sell what makes them profits. I tried a few things back when I was in High School, but for the most part, nothing else really appealed to me. Never went near any needles, and neither did any of those people I knew who indulged in marijuana.
I have some practically pure extract that you can get relatively cheap these days, something over 93% pure THCa. And again, for this stuff, just a little bit will do the trick.
To each their own, but to look down upon recreational MJ users doesn't make much sense to me as I've seen the results of many different products that are legal which tend to destroy a person faster and much more thoroughly than MJ.
My friend could have probably gotten us whatever we wanted. He was really into it and for many years, decades. And lost out on life — he was really smart and could have become an engineer or scientist. Instead, he used his smarts to deal and use drugs. A “loser” like my son's friends. It was probably lucrative for him. He always seem to have a lot of money. So there is that. :)
I am thankful that my son resisted the temptation otherwise he'd probably be like his friends. I don't know if he even tried it but I know that he was really angry the last time he saw his friend. He left his friend stoned in the corner. That was the last time he saw or talked with his friend.
Anyway, our son has a masters in EE and is working in the Bay Area. He worked hard for it and he earned it. And he has lots of potential in his future. We are blessed.