And a percentage will use pot then move on to heroin. They move on possibly because they are naturally predisposed to drug use OR peer-pressure, OR they're exposed to it by their dealer, OR a number of reasons.
That's the group my hypothetical targets. Take away the pot, reduce the gateway effect.
In fact you would likely have more, because some who would have been satsified with pot will turn to heroin instead."
That's a big jump. More likely they would switch to another illegal soft drug or legal alcohol.
But the "gateway effect" isn't supposed to have anything to do with the pot, remember? It just states that people who will smoke pot are more likely to try heroin than people who don't. The same goes for people who use alcohol, nicotine, or abuse prescription drugs.
Getting rid of the pot won't eliminate the other gateways, and won't change the predisposition. Do you really think you're going to make any discernible difference in the number of heroin users by eliminatiting pot, or is it another exercise in absolutes? If it saves just one, it's worth any price?
"Taking away the pot" puts us right back into magic-wand land. You're hopeless.
You contradict yourself.