For the umpteenth time we have been forced to walk to the computer lab during valuable class time to record our drug histories into cyber space. And for the umpteenth time propagandizing posters will be designed and displayed all over campus reminding us all about the true drug statistics of our school.

The social norms survey and the subsequent Most of Us posters have long been the bane of the high school student’s existence. The actual taking of the survey is an annoying practice as well as a distraction from actual schoolwork. It would be one thing if the statistics that are gathered from the surveys were actually effective in any way. But the truth is that most of us don’t care.

The inherent flaw in the Most Of Us campaigns is that they are based on the assumption that all teen drug use is motivated by a desire to be a part of the crowd. They don’t take into account that most of the time the reason a teenager drinks or uses a certain drug is out of curiosity, personal desire, or other subjective reasons. Rarely have I heard a peer adamantly oppose marijuana and then suddenly change their minds when they learn that the majority of their fellow students are toking up.

The Most of Us campaign is rooted in the belief that teenagers have unrealistic beliefs about the number of their fellow students who use drugs and alcohol. It also seems to support the idea that those who do not use drugs have nowhere to go, no one to talk to, and no one to hang out with. This is absurd. There are multitudes of students who never use drugs, who never drink, and who are perfectly capable of hanging out with those that do. These kids don’t feel the need to drink or do drugs, they abide by their personal beliefs, and no one gives them any grief about it.

The unfortunate fact that all drug prohibitionists must face is that the desire to get lifted comes from the individual, not from the environment. People who party hard do so out of their own volition and nature, not because they assume they need to do so to fit in. I’ve never seen a regular weed smoker suddenly change their ways when they learn that two thirds of their peers don’t approve of their behavior. People will do as they please. Most of Us isn’t going to change that, and their attempts to do so are a waste of most everybody’s time.