US take note: This is how you fight the War on Drugs

[benEzra]

As for making drugs safer after legalization you are correct. That however doesn't change the nature of the drug itself and its ability to addict and or reduce its addict to a walking skeleton. If made inexpensive by legalization I bet there are going to be even more people looking like a walking bag of bones. Cheaper only means more money for the drug. At some point the stealing and other crime will begin again.

Do you know why people use meth?

Because the softer drugs aren't any easier to get, and meth is easier to smuggle than pot and more profitable on a per-dose basis. The meth epidemic was created by the prohibition of less extreme drugs.

I have never used pot (or any other illegal drug); the hardest thing I've ever used is hydrocodone cough syrup, at the prescribed dose. I used to be a convinced "drug warrior." But I've come to the realization that our current war on non-approved herbs is idiotic, especially the war on the cannabis plant.

 

[theinvisibleheart]

soft to hard drug and basing legality on perceived harm

I've actually known drug addicts (have hired them and interacted with them) and have had training in narcotics.

1. in my experiences, I've seen addicts go from "soft" drugs progressively up to harder drugs. I've also known hard drug users go back to "soft" drugs when hard drug was not available.

The problem with any drug is that human body is an open loop system.

Our body adjusts so that with the same drug and dosage, we no longer get the same "high." So we either have to increase the dosage or at some point, switch to harder drugs to get the same level of perceived "high."

2. people who were drug addicts had other problems but drug addiction made their problem worse because now, they spent their time in drug addiction instead of spending time with their families or working. In general, drug addiction made them a less responsible citizen.

3. I don't see how any responsible citizen of a free republic who wish to remain free can be an addict and yet still be a responsible citizen. In my book, freedom does not equal licentiousness. It's very hard to be free if you are not in control of yourself...if you are in bondage to anything, it's hard to be truly free.

4. The hard drug users I knew cannot hold a steady job or if they had one, had problem because of drug addiction.

5. Drug addiction also had really ugly effect on families. It's hard to be a good husband or father or mother if drug occupied No. 1 place in one's life.

Best regards.


--John

 

[Redworm]

So we either have to increase the dosage or at some point, switch to harder drugs to get the same level of perceived "high."

Eh, not necessarily. I get the same level of high when I smoke pot today as I did when I smoked for the first time eight years ago. I don't seek a harder high because pot does more than enough for me and combining it with alcohol will really throw me for a loop...so I don't worry about wanting a meth or heroin high because I don't even enjoy mixing booze and the wacky tabacky at the same time.

Depends on the individual in question. Some people can't even handle the high of marijuana. At all.

 

[Let it Bleed]

Admiral Horatio Nelson, Sigmund Freud, and Sir Winston Churchill - what a bunch of loser addicts.

I don't think anyone is advocating that drug use be required, only that cause and effect be differentiated. Many who struggle mightily in life turn to substance abuse for escape. Often addicts are pathetic, but it is not always drugs that made their lives wretched to begin with.

 

[theinvisibleheart]

Let it Bleed

Admiral Horatio Nelson, Sigmund Freud, and Sir Winston Churchill - what a bunch of loser addicts.

I don't think anyone is advocating that drug use be required, only that cause and effect be differentiated. Many who struggle mightily in life turn to substance abuse for escape. Often addicts are pathetic, but it is not always drugs that made their lives wretched to begin with.

I didn't know that these individuals were addicts or drug users. Thanks for letting me know.

However, I don't think Nelson, Freud, or Churchill are representative of typical drug users. I don't even think they are representative of average citizens.

Depending on the drugs, psychological and/or physiological addiction can develop from continued use. Previously, addictive nature of drugs such as morphine and opium were not known before...only the medicinal and therapeutic aspect of it was understood.

I don't see how the high probability of psychological and/or physiological addiction from continued use can help anybody. How can escape from reality and impairment of one's cognitive functions help anybody?

While Nelson, Freud, and Churchchill were great men, if they were drug addicts, then they became great despite taking addictive substances.

--John