SOC 4108
DRUGS & SOCIETY
Instructor: Sarah Whetstone
February 3, 2014
drug problem pie
Public health
Psychology
- Emotional trauma
- Mental illness
- Cognitive-behavioral
Neurobiology
- Brain chemicals
- Role of genetics
- Disease rates
- Distribution of addiction
- Risk factors for drug use
Criminal Justice
- Drug schedules
- Containment
- Addiction & criminal behavior
SOCIOLOGICAL
IMAGINATION
1. Analyze drugs as social facts.
For social facts, we search
for social causes.
D-I-V-O-R-C-E
- A non-drug example
- Divorce is a personal
trouble
- And a public issue-Possible social causes?
-
Women’s liberation
Economic conflict
Weakened religious authority
Cultural obsessions with soul mates.
2. Use critical thinking to get
beyond cultural assumptions.
Cultural myth: Welfare recipients
tend to be drug addicts.
Reality: National survey research
shows that drug dependence among aid
recipients is rare–- often lower rates
than the general population.
3. Avoid the “choices trap.”
Just say NO to
“Just say no!”
- Personal choice & self control:
- Conditioned by external forces
- Dependent upon knowledge,
resources, and context
- Exists in degrees: not an “all” or
“nothing!”
- Complex product of environment,
biology, history, culture, society,
etc.
Sociology’s Slice of the Pie
- How do social factors influence drug use/addiction?
- Race, class, gender, age
- Social bonds, networks
- Social institutions
- Neighborhoods
- Social construction of drugs and drug control
- Definition, status, and beliefs about drugs change across
time and place
- Actors & institutions make claims about drugs
- Stigmatized populations become tied to drugs
Sociology’s Slice of the Pie, cont.
- Large-scale cultural transformations  drug use
- Drugs as meaningful cultural objects
- Role of drugs in identity formation, subculture
- Rituals around drug use
- Drugs in comparative context
- US leads the world in illegal drug use. Americans are 4x more
likely to use cocaine than New Zealanders (World Health Org.)
- Drugs as site of power – Social response to drugs and community
impact
- Justifiable use of force & surveillance
- Discourse – defining what is possible
A-bomb ace Assassin of Youth bammy banana Bazooka blow a stick Budda cheroot chillums chips Colas ditchweed fire up Funk funny stuff ganja
get on ghanja giggle weed good stuff grefa grifa gunga gungeon gunja gunney gunney sack hit hookah hubbly bubbly Indian hemp Indiana
ditchweed Indiana hay Johnson grass Kif lamb's bread light up limbo loco Lucas Lumber Moocah Muggles Munchies paca lolo peace weed
Phillies Blunt picked up pin pinhead poke potlikker pot liquor P.R. Shlook Shotgun Skin Snop Spring Steamboat Sticks super grass super
weed taking on a number tea head tighten someone's wig Tijuana TJ Toak toke pipes toke up vipe viper Wacky terbacky Zombie weed
Acapulco gold Acapulco red Ace African black African bush African woodbine Airhead Airplane Alice B. Toklas Amp joint Angola Ashes
Atom bomb Atshitshi Aunt Mary B B-40 Baby Baby bhang Bad seed Bale Bambalacha Bar Bash Basuco Belyando spruce Bhang Bite one's lips Black
Black bart Black ganga Black gold Black gungi Black gunion Black mo/black moat Black mote Blanket Blast Blast a joint Blast a roach Blast a stick
Block Blonde Blow Blow a stick Blow one's roof Blowing smoke Blue de hue Blue sage Blue sky blond Blunt Bo-bo Bobo bush Bogart a joint Bohd
Bomb Bomber Bone Bong Boo Boom Boot the gong Brick Broccoli Brown Bud Buda Bullyon Burn one Burnie Bush Butter Butter flower Cam trip
Cambodian red/Cam red Can Canadian black Canamo Canappa Cancelled stick Cannabis tea Carmabis Cartucho Catnip Cavite all star Charas
Charge Chase Cheeba Cheeo Chiba chiba Chicago black Chicago green Chira Christmas tree Chronic Churus Citrol Climb Cochornis Cocktail Cocoa
puff Coli Coliflor tostao Colorado cocktail Columbian Columbus black Cosa Crack back Crazy weed Cripple Crying weed Cubes Culican Dagga
Dawamesk Dew Diambista Dimba Ding Dinkie dow Dirt grass Ditch Ditch weed Djamba Do a joint Domestic Don jem Dona Juana Dona Juanita
Doobie/dubbe/duby Dope Dope smoke Doradilla Draf weed Drag weed Dry high Durog Duros Dust Dusting Earth El diablito El diablo Endo Esra
Fallbrook redhair Fatty Feed bag Fiend Fine stuff Finger Fir Fire it up Flower Flower tops Fly Mexican airlines Fraho/frajo Frios Fry daddy Fu Fuel
Fuma D'Angola Gage/gauge Gange Gangster Ganja Gash Gasper Gasper stick Gauge butt Geek Get a gage up Get high Get the wind Ghana Giggle
smoke Gimmie Go loco Gold Gold star Golden leaf Gong Good butt Good giggles Goof butt Grass Grass brownies Grata Green Green goddess
Greeter Greta Griefo Griff Griffa Griffo Gungun Gyve Hanhich Happy cigarette Has Hawaiin Hay Hay butt Hemp Herb Herb and Al Herba Hit Hit the
hay Hocus Homegrown Honey blunts Hooch Hooter Hot stick Indian boy Indian hay Indo Indonesian bud J Jane Jay smoke Jay Jim Jones Jive Jive
stick Joint Jolly green Joy smoke Joy stick Ju-ju Juan Valdez Juanita Juice joint Kali Kaya Kentucky blue KGB (killer green bud) Kick stick Kiff Killer
Killer weed (1980s) Killer weed (1960s) Kilter Kind Kumba L.L. Lace Lakbay diva Laughing grass Laughing weed Leaf Lid Light stuff Lima Little
smoke Llesca Loaf Lobo Locoweed Log Love boat Love weed Lovelies Lubage M M.J. M.O. M.U. Machinery Macon Magic smoke Manhattan silver
Mari Mary Mary and Johnny Mary Ann Mary Jane Mary Jonas Mary Warner Mary Weaver Matchbox Maui wauie Meg Megg Meggie Messorole
Mexican brown Mexican red Mighty mezz Modams Mohasky Monte Mooca/moocah Mooster Moota/mutah Mooters Mootie Mootos Mor a grifa
Mota/moto Mother Mow the grass Muggie Mutha Nail Number O.J. P.R. (Panama Red) Pack Pack of rocks Pakalolo Pakistani black Panama cut
Panama gold Panama red Panatella Paper blunts Parsley Pat Pin Pipe Pocket rocket Pod Poke Pot Potten bush Prescription Pretendica Pretendo
Primo Puff the dragon Queen Ann's lace Ragweed Railroad weed Rainy day woman Rangood Rasta weed Red cross Red dirt Reefer Righteous
bush Roach Roach clip Rockets Root Rope Rose marie Salt and pepper Santa Marta Sasfras Scissors Seeds Sen Sess Sezz Shake Siddi Sinse
Sinsemilla Skunk Smoke Smoke Canada Snop Spark it up Speed boat Spliff Splim Square mackerel Squirrel Stack Stems Stick Stink weed Straw
Sugar weed Supergrass Sweet Lucy T Taima Takkouri Tea Tea party Tex-mex Texas pot Texas tea Thai sticks Thirteen Thumb Tin Toke Toke up Torch
Torch up Torpedo Turbo Twist Twistum Up against the stem Viper's weed Wac Wacky weed Weed Weed tea Wheat White-haired lady Wollie
Woolah Woolas Woolies Wooly blunts X Yeh Yellow submarine Yen pop Yerba Yerba mala Yesca Yesco Zacatecas purple Zambi Zig Zag man Zol
Zooie Zoom parker burrito Marley 4:20 four twenty fry wack wet-wet amp water-water wetdaddy
Drug (n) - any substance
that in small amounts
produces significant
changes in the body,
mind, or both.
Four Categories of Drug-Taking Behavior
Legal
Instrumental Use Smoking legal
Recreational Use
Illegal
Smoking a joint you
medical marijuana to bought from a friend
cope with
to relieve chronic
chemotherapy for
tension headaches
cancer
Smoking a legal
Smoking a bag of
synthetic marijuana illicit weed to
like “K2” to get high achieve a
at a party
pleasurable, relaxed
feeling
Which of the following categories
does marijuana belong in? Check
all that apply.
1. Illegal Drug?

2. Therapeutic medicine? 
3. Delicious food?

What influences our perception of how
dangerous a drug is?
– Extent of public use
– Information we have about bodily effects
– Legality of the drug
– Marketing and pharmaceutical companies
– The drug’s connection to other social
problems
– Shifting cultural and political attitudes
– Media framing
More risk
Less risk
Taken from Nicholas Saunders, E is for Ecstasy, 1993