All drugs should be legal

[Chupperson Weird]

Apparently whether you buy cigarettes for minors affects how well you can drive.

[bobman37]

I agree with Glorb and Suffix. Legalization of drugs works in theory... but that's it. You can prance about all you want, proclaiming that people will have self control and lose interest in mind-numbingly addictive substances the instant they become legal. Seriously?

If anything, it would provide the innocent never-tried-it bystander with even more opportunites to get hooked. All of a sudden, the people who are too poor to afford pot from dealers will be able to get it anywhere, and for cheaper, which increases the potential for other people to be exposed, spreading the virus. People don't do things because it's illegal, they do it because it's fun or they're addicted.

I sincerely hope illegal potent drugs are never legalized. In fact, I hope cigarettes and other tobacco products are made illegal eventually. Sure, it'll probably never happen, but the world would benefit infinitely from it.

[Shyguy92]

I agree that all highly addicting drugs should stay illegal, for obvious reasons. However, I think that the strict laws on pot, and other, non-addicting drugs should definitely be lifted, if not significantly reduced. Someone who gets high occasionally should not be considered a criminal.

[Glorb]

pot

non-addicting

Ha.

[Markio]

Yes, only those who are addicted and no longer voluntarily choose to do drugs should be considered criminals.

In a class on Social Problems we read a book about selling crack in East Harlem and how Puerto Ricans are institutionally marginalized because of cultural, stereotypical and bureaucratic barriers that prevent them from being able to easily enter the legal business.  At the conclusion of the book, he says that the first step towards reducing bureaucratic racism and marginalization of these ethnic groups would be to legalize drugs such as cocaine.  The profit for selling these drugs would diminish, the money would enter the legal economy, and marginalized youth would no longer aspire to sell drugs; they also would not be bombarded by drug dealers in their community looking for new clients.

The name of the book is "In Search of Respect: Selling Crack in El Barrio" by Philippe Bourgois.  It's more informative than my post, and it gives more in depth information regarding the possible legalization of drugs than any of us can know as of now.

EDIT: marijuana is psychologically addictive, but not physically.

[Suffix]

The somatic symptoms of psychological addiction are physical.

[Chupperson Weird]

Purely psychosomatic.
That boy needs therapy.
                               Purely psychosomatic.
                               That boy needs therapy.

[Eclipsed Moon]

Let's ban everything that is addictive, physically or psychologically.

[Trainman]

Any drug-dealing crime drop caused by legalizing all drugs would be nullified by the fact that we'd have people:

driving stoned
getting high on PCP and killing each other
throwing their lives away since they're content to sit on their couch smoking pot day after day
etc. etc. etc. etc.

Really, it'd just make everything way worse. Of course, one alternative is making commercial variants of hard drugs that are less potent, but all that'd do is just make addicts go poorer buying more drugs to get the same fix.

-There are people driving drunk too. Have you read my post about restrictions? (marijuana only; screw other stuff, keep it illegal) When you smoke pot, you are not thrown in this dream world where crap's changing colors and you just have no control overself as some of you seem to think... so I mean, I don't believe that thousands of people are just going to rampage in their car if they smoke. I don't see hoards coming out right now although people are smoking as we speak. How many collisions have you heard of that are caused directly by marijuana vs. how many collisions directly related to drinking?
-I agree.
-If they want to waste their lives away blowing all their money on green, well, then that's DEFINITELY their problem, not yours. Smoking weed does not make you turn into a zombie with teeth falling out and bruises all over you like meth would do. Worse on your lungs, I'll add, but not going to straight kill you.

I'm for legalizing drugs like marijuana, which have medicinal properties.  They should be available through prescription, in addition to having an age limit, and an advisory to use the drug responsibly, because it's the idiots who abuse the substance that screws over those who actually need it.

You've never heard of medical marijuana that follows virtually the same guidelines you just mentioned?

What license? Don't tell me you would need a license for the drugs.

.....no, seriously, what license do you think I'm talking about? A military license or CDL? It's your DRIVER's license that can be taken away.

[Chupperson Weird]

Obviously there is no way to know unless you test it, but the fact that "people are already smoking it" does not mean "no one else will smoke it if it becomes legal". I don't think I have problems with it being legalized, but I don't think "people are already driving drunk" is a good justification. And no, it might not make you see crazy stuff but it will make you slow and euphoric, which is not advisable for anything but laying on the couch.

[Trainman]

Point I was trying to make is that some people are assuming if you legalize it, thousands of people will go mad and traffic collisions will soar although thousands are already smoking it and I see no mobs of people under the influence causing major trouble... and that marijuana-related traffic accidents have not really gone anywhere in relation to alcohol-related accidents (that being why I said, "People are already drinking" as in no one seems to be worried about alcohol which is legal and causes more accidents but are so freaked out about something illegal for a long time being legalized) ....so..... point deeper than that: people need to stop freaking out so much about it.

[Chupperson Weird]

And you foresee no increase in the people smoking it and their possibility of traffic accidents. Interesting.

[TEM]

Regarding marijuana being called psychologically addictive; remember, you can be psychologically addicted to anything.

[Turtlekid1]

Oh, the irony; we're talking about psychological addiction on a video game forum.

[Shyguy92]

I think the point is (at least for me) that someone who does drugs should not be considered a criminal.

Yes, only those who are addicted and no longer voluntarily choose to do drugs should be considered criminals.

I didn't say that.