Quote:
Originally posted by CaramonLS@May 27 2005, 04:34 PM
FDW I'm just curious as to where it stops?
Where do you draw the line at what to legalize and what not.
If we decided to Legalize pot, would you like Exstacy or Shrooms legal as well? I'm asking this seriously, where do *you* draw the line.
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I don't have a clearcut answer.
Personally I believe education is probably the best way. And I believe that not enough research has gone into most drugs. A lot of prescription drugs may turn out in the future to have had worse side effects than a lot of the controlled substances. Doctors are prescribing mood changers left, right and centre.
All I know is that the current line they've drawn is very arbitrary and illogical. More discussion is needed. More awareness is needed. More research is needed and more education is needed.
With the internet and global communication the way it is, society or gov't can't just say "drugs are bad" and expect everybody to believe it. Especially when the inconsistencies are right in front of our eyes (prescription vs legal vs banned.) And especially when someone tries a so called "gateway" drug and realizes that hmmm, these "drugs" aren't as bad as society was trying to tell me they are.
I personally believe that people should be allowed to do anything they want that doesn't infringe upon the rights of others. With alcohol we make the distinction that alcohol is legal but driving under the influence is not. Being a drunken, rowdy idiot who is trashing the place will get you thrown in the drunk tank. I tend to think we should treat most drugs the same way. If you can do it safely and responsibly then you should be allowed to IMO. But even I am torn. There are drugs that I won't try because their effects scare me. But I've made the personal choice. Should those ones be illegal? I don't think I'm informed enough about the side effects of all drugs to say. There probably are some that should be illegal.
People can kill themselves, they can become addicted to gambling and screw up their lives, they can become addicted to drugs and screw up their lives. This stuff will happen.
I think you just have to be consistent. If you wanna allow rampant gambling even though it's known it can ruin people's lives then some drugs should be treated the same. If you wanna allow one drug to be perfectly legal but another similar drug is outlawed, that just doesn't make sense.
What would you say to someone who's done let's say mushrooms a few times, does not find them addictive in the slightest and tells you that the first time they did it was the single most profound experience of their life and that it changed their world-view or mindset for the positive? I've had people say that to me. It's clear to me that mushrooms is a drug that can have a positive effect. But it's also a drug that could make people do some really stupid stuff and perhaps even kill themselves because they didn't make sure they had someone sober enough to watch over them.
If you had that information about mushrooms and you felt the same, what would your opinion be? On the one hand I believe it can be a very positive drug. On the other hand I recognize that it can be inherently dangerous if someone doesn't understand the risks. And it can be a very uncomfortable experience for many because of the way it affects you. I'm not sure I'd want kids playing around with it and yet I'd have to recommend the experience to every stable, mature, responsible adult. I wouldn't want them readily available for anyone to stumble across and yet I don't think a mature, responsible adult who chooses to experience it should be jailed if they are caught.
There is very little black and white in the issue and you are asking me to judge it black and white. It's a HUGE grey area.
Cars, guns, and other things can kill people. Are they outlawed? No. We have systems in place to try and ensure that responsible people are the only ones who can own these things. We try and teach people about the consequences of screw ups with these dangerous tools we have. I think we might have to end up taking the same approach with drugs. Some of them are double edged swords. Something that can be positive if used responsibly, but at the same time is dangerous to anyone who is careless and doesn't understand the ramifications and consequences.