Cannabis is likely an alternative to alcohol for some (perhaps many?) folks. Without question, the effects on health and other aspects of our well-being are different. I wrote about one aspect of cannabis here (acknowledging this is not about the occasional use of pot, but what happens to heavy users): https://robertroybritt.medium.com/what-happens-if-you-smoke-pot-all-day-every-day-fafe7cd2f29e