I was having dinner at my parent’s house last Sunday when my sainted 91-year-old mother casually asked me whether she should start vaping medical marijuana for her arthritis. Taken aback, I suggested she pose the question to her physician.

Welcome to contemporary America, where at family gatherings you’ll increasingly encounter mom, apple pie and…weed. Anecdotal evidence of the mainstreaming of marijuana, such as my mother’s question to me, is abundant. But the empirical evidence is even more persuasive.

Case in point: A new poll released to coincide with the week of 420 reveals that a solid majority of Americans continue to support marijuana legalization.

First, some clarification about the 420 holiday and why it was appropriate to purposely release the poll results during the festivities this year.

The annual marijuana holiday, celebrated on April 20, begs the question: where did the numerals 420 come from? Therein you’ll find many interesting urban legends.

Some point out that 420 is police code for “marijuana smoking in progress.” Others note that 4/20 is Adolf Hitler’s birthday, although I fail to see the connection between marijuana and Der Fuhrer. That said, historians have discovered in recent years that Hitler was constantly amped up on methamphetamine and cocaine. (Perhaps the Nazi salute should have been: “High Hitler.”)

In another farfetched theory, Bob Dylan’s song Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 is the source, because 12 multiplied by 35 equals 420.

For me, the most believable story is about five students at San Rafael (CA) High School in the early 1970s who would meet at 4:20 p.m. every day to partake, saying “420” to each other as code for marijuana. The school’s extracurricular activities would end at 4:20 p.m.

Fact is, no one really knows the exact derivation of 420. Regardless, over the past four decades, April 20 has become an international holiday for marijuana, when millions of people from all walks of life get together to celebrate, consume and advocate for marijuana.

Read This Story: Happy 420 Day!

Meanwhile, April 19 holds significance in the world of psychedelics.

On April 19, 1943, Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann ingested a compound from ergot fungus. He felt so disoriented that he rode his bicycle home, where he experienced the first recorded instance of a “trip” on lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD).

Hence the reference to the “silver bike” in Donovan’s 1966 song “Fat Angel.” Psychedelic enthusiasts now commemorate Hofmann’s discovery of LSD’s effects every April 19, aka “Bicycle Day.”

Now let’s get to those marijuana poll findings.

A new poll of Americans’ habits, opinions and expectations around cannabis finds that nearly 6 in 10 adults are “surprised marijuana hasn’t been legalized across the United States yet.”

The new Harris Poll report, released on Thursday, April 18, also found that 4 in 10 U.S. adults are current cannabis consumers, with about a quarter of those using the substance at least weekly (see chart).

Source: The Harris Poll

Additional highlights in the poll:

• Most Americans expect many changes in the next five years for the marijuana industry, with two-thirds (68%) expecting medical marijuana to be used as commonly as prescription medicines.
• A majority of Americans have faith in weed’s future, with seven in 10 believing marijuana is only going to get more popular (72%) and that marijuana will someday be accessible for everyone (70%).
• Nearly two thirds (64%) said that “marijuana no longer carries the stigma it used to have.”

“The numbers speak volumes,” Libby Rodney, chief strategy officer at The Harris Poll, a research and consulting company, said in a statement about the group’s findings. “With 4 in 10 Americans using marijuana, it’s not a trend—it’s a cultural shift. What was once taboo is now mainstream, reflecting changing attitudes and norms.”

The survey was conducted online within the U.S. by The Harris Poll from March 22 to 24, 2024, among a nationally representative sample of 2,043 U.S. adults. The research comprises 204 Gen Z (ages 18-26), 619 Millennials (ages 27-42), 529 Gen X (ages 43-58), and 691 Boomers (ages 59 and older).

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Read This Story: Cannabis and Crypto: The “Disruptive Duo”

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John Persinos is the editorial director of Investing Daily.

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