A commenter named Christopher on the NORML Blog had this to mention about my previous Who Are You? post:
I would like to know the percentage of smokers, from those charts, that are successful. The biggest argument I hear is that Marijuana makes you lazy and unable to do real work. So what percentage of average smokers are bums and what percentage are productive members of society?
Ask and ye shall receive. According to the Quick Tables at SAMHDA based on results from the 2007 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, people who have smoked pot are better educated and work harder than people who never have smoked pot.
| EMPLOYED FULL TIME | EMPLOYED PART TIME | |
| NEVER USED MARIJUANA | 48.7% | 56.5% |
| HAVE USED MARIJUANA | 51.3% | 43.5% |
| UNEMPLOYED | OTHER/NOT IN LABOR FORCE | |
| NEVER USED MARIJUANA | 46.2% | 73.7% |
| HAVE USED MARIJUANA | 53.8% | 26.3% |
Now it’s likely the employment data have changed since 2007, but at first glance, it appears that the majority of people employed full-time and the majority of the unemployed have smoked marijuana. The 43.5% figure for the part time workers makes sense, if you figure that more low-skilled, part-time positions are likely to face a drug test.
Employment Status of American Adults
Based on the responses, about two-thirds (67.8%) of all American adults are employed part-time or full-time, and the unemployed account for 3.2% of all adults (remember, 2007 figures, plus these numbers will vary from official unemployment statistics because some of those “others” would be counted as unemployed, but aren’t in this survey.)
Employment Status of American Adults Who Have Ever Used Marijuana
But when you break these numbers down for only those American adults who have used marijuana, we find that over three-quarters (78.3%) of all marijuana users are employed part-time or full-time. To be fair, a larger proportion (4% vs. 3.2%) of marijuana users are unemployed than the proportion for all adults, but not so much as to be statistically significant.
Frequency of Marijuana Use by Full-Time Employed Adults who Used Marijuana at least Once per Year
There are 12.9 million American Adults, out of the 22 million total who have smoked at least once a year, who are employed full time. When we break down their use by frequency, we find the largest proportion, well over a third (36%) of full-time employed marijuana smokers are using more than 100 days per year. That’s 4.7 million full-time employed chronic marijuana users – and they can’t all be snowboarders, rappers, and head shop owners.
Educational Attainment vs. Marijuana Usage
Finally, almost half of American Adults who have one year or more of college education have smoked marijuana, while among those with only a high school diploma / GED or less educational attainment, about one-third have smoked marijuana. I’m not saying that smoking marijuana will make you smarter, but it seems the smarter you are, the more likely you’ll smoke marijuana.
So there you have it. The “average” pot smoker, if there is such a thing, is a white, college educated, full-time employed male under the age of fifty. In other words… ME! 
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[...] are 25,000,000 of us, Miles, who will consume cannabis this year. We tend to be better educated and have higher incomes than those who don’t. Rather than reaching for tired stoner [...]
[...] are 25,000,000 of us, Miles, who will consume cannabis this year. We tend to be better educated and have higher incomes than those who don’t. Rather than reaching for tired stoner [...]
I’m one of the older (64 yrs) marijuana users. I started at 29yrs old when I was first diagnosed with psoriasis. It was taking over my life. My body was completely covered in plaques. The itching was horrific! Reefers have contained the itching and about 75% of plaques are gone although I do have alot of scarring. To make it work;you must stick to a daily regimen. I smoke 4 to 6 reefers per day. I am not ashamed to talk about it! I spent time and money going from this dermatoligist to another and always to no avail! I will never give this up because it is the ONLY thing that has ever helped me;and yes I do work part time to supplement my ss. I have never been late for work and only missed time on job when I had surgery. I have 13 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren although they all know that I smoke; I have Never smoked it in front of them! I spent 8 yrs in college all the time smoking pot with great grades! The gov should just legalize it and forget it!! I,m tired of having to sneak around to buy it as if I were a common criminal……
[...] logic. The government’s own figures tell us that people who have used marijuana are more likely to be employed than non-users, with 71% to 81% of pot smokers employed, depending on frequency of use, vs. 67% of [...]