Absolutely weird. In some aspects I think the US of A are among the most conservative western countries - but by now weed consumption seems to be allowed pretty much anywhere. Whereas over here you can even still be jailed (at least overnight) by posessing as little as some grams.
Add to this that legalizing marihuana has been one of the promises of the new (-ish, it's been over a year already) government, still nothing has happened.
And also add to this that alcohol is still massively advertized - and by now, we're among the european countries where it's cheaper than pretty much anywhere else, 3/4 litre of a cheap brand of, say, Vodka, can still be had for €5.50. No wonder people are drinking like mad, alcoholism pretty much being a common disease.
Having said that, I enjoy the occasional weed here and there, guess I'll plant my own stuff next year and get into vaping (stopped smoking quite a long time ago so tobacco in standard joints isn't exactly my thing).
And fwiw, I like it much more than drinking. Stopped alcohol completely around 8-9 years ago after realizing I was somewhat approaching the "danger zone" (gigging pretty much equals loads of booze, especially over here - see above -, and as I'm doing this for a living, well...).
In general, I pretty much enjoy being sober most of the time. And fwiw, I have quite a history with weed (or rather hashish), like starting the day with the bong that still had something in it because we passed out the evening before... you get the idea.
