How many drugs should be legal?

[DarkRange55]

All of them? What say you SS?

Mapped: The Most Common Illicit Drugs in the World

What are the most commonly used illicit drugs around the world?

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Mapped: Countries Where Recreational Cannabis is Legal

In total, only nine countries have fully legalized recreational cannabis use.

www.visualcapitalist.com

Ranked: The Most Prescribed Drugs in the U.S.

Here are the 30 most prescribed drugs in America, from blood pressure treatments to asthma medication.

www.visualcapitalist.com

 

[Geodude77]

I think at the very least marijuana should be legal for medical purposes + all the drugs that are currently legal. The war on drugs has been a disaster and has negatively impacted several people, especially among marginalized communities who are more likely to be arrested despite non-marginalized communities having similar drug usage rates

 

[zengiraffe]

All drugs, including prescription drugs, should be legal and available over-the-counter. Thomas Szasz, a prominent psychiatrist and libertarian thinker, argued for this. His key points summarized by ChatGPT:

1. Personal Autonomy: Szasz believed that individuals have the right to control their own bodies and make decisions about their own lives, including the use of drugs. He argued that the state should not interfere with personal choices as long as those choices do not harm others.
2. Critique of the Medical Model: Szasz was critical of the medicalization of drug use, viewing it as a way for the state and medical institutions to exert control over individuals. He argued that labeling drug use as a disease or addiction diminishes personal responsibility and autonomy.
3. Opposition to the War on Drugs: Szasz was a vocal critic of the War on Drugs, which he saw as an unjust and ineffective government policy. He argued that criminalizing drug use leads to more harm than good, including the creation of black markets, increased crime, and the erosion of civil liberties.
4. Moral and Ethical Considerations: Szasz argued that drug laws are based on moralistic judgments about what substances are considered acceptable or unacceptable, rather than on rational or scientific grounds. He believed that such laws impose one group's moral values on others, which he saw as unethical.
5. Historical Perspective: Szasz pointed out that many substances that are now illegal were once widely used and accepted in society. He argued that the criminalization of drugs is a relatively recent phenomenon and is not based on any inherent danger of the substances themselves.
6. Economic Arguments: Szasz also highlighted the economic benefits of legalizing drugs, such as reducing the costs of law enforcement, decreasing incarceration rates, and generating tax revenue from regulated drug sales.

Overall, Szasz's arguments were rooted in a strong belief in individual freedom, skepticism of state authority, and a critique of the ways in which society and the government seek to control personal behavior.

Also, Szasz argued that "mental illness" is a myth and that everyone should have the right to kill themselves. He was incredibly based.

 

[endofline2010]

100% agree with @zengiraffe - all drugs should be legal. At the same time, people should be held fully accountable for their actions whilst high/under the influence.

Imagine N and F being legal and easy to buy...

 

[LiuKang]

None of them. It's a great cope.

 

[astr4]

legalize all of them, but not before fixing current society. people won't turn to drugs in an unhealthy manner if they lead fulfilling lives, immersed in their communities, working meaningful jobs for living wages. in theory people are capable of treating even heroin the same as alcohol, pull it out for special events, but because we're all mentally unwell in one way or another, that's out of the question.

so in an ideal world legalize all the drugs, but not in this capital driven hellscape where people will keep pill pushing for profit.

 

[Pluto]

 

[Praestat_Mori]

All common drugs should be legally available in pharmacies - just to name a few: Weed, MDMA, "Speed" Amphetamines, LSD, mushrooms/psilocybine, cocaine, natural opioids.

They could be taxed by governments, the drugs would be clean and "safe", people would know what they get, the excitement of sth that is forbidden will not play a big role anymore. The illegal drug market that probably is a billion $$ business will be dried up immediately => less criminals!

If all drugs were legal new synthetic drugs would not need to be developed / produced.

I don't think there would be a lot more people consuming drugs but safer use would increase.

 

[Ashu]

One hundred and twelve.

 

[whywere]

Weed yes, the rest no. Example, the rate of folks driving under the influence of weed. It is bad enough to have all the DUI/DWI, I live in the U.S., from alcohol and now the state that I live in has made weed legal.

Now I can take a stand against making more legal for the driving aspect alone. I was in a nasty car crash where the other driver blew through the stop sign without even slowing down. Now since April 2015, I live every second with hellish chronic pain. I would never wish what I have to endure in anyone ever.

The state that I live in has made weed legal and I am ok with it, however now law enforcement has seen more impaired drivers now, so it is both alcohol and/or weed.

I do not think that weed leads to harder drugs, nope, it is the same as having a bottle of beer as far as I am concerned, but there will be more deaths and folks like me who will live out their lives messed up.

AS far as harder drugs, I have never even tried weed much less other street drugs. Yes, I am on Hydromorphone for the chronic pain, but I walk a tight rope with my pain doctor so that I can keep getting it to make life at least bearable.

Look at the state in the U.S. of Oregon and in particular Portland. Oregon has decriminalized hard drugs, where if one gets caught it is a $100 dollar fine. Parts of Portland are so bad now that they are considering going back to the original laws, much harsher of course.

It is human nature in so far as when there is no governing done, like on hard drugs, then some are going to not only damage themselves but others business and have a city go into decline.

I travel for work a lot and I look at downtown San Francsico, as it used to be so vibrant with lots of great food and shopping but now, the main downtown mall is just a shell of its former self, so sad.

There are never any easy answers to anything and as long as there are humans there will be vices good or not so good to ply human nature with, it is where is the balance so that others do not feel the pain of someone else's vice(s).

Now, PLEASE do NOT give me crap and or to a few on here be juvenile towards me, as we ALL have the right of our own thoughts and /or opinions and I respect everyone's rights on here and I hope that I am afforded the same rights.

Walter

 

[asaṅkhata]

We can't even stay off our phones for more than five minutes...

 

[Steff1337]

When it comes to me, absolutely all drugs that exist.

 

[locked*n*loaded]

None.

 

[Plentiful_Despair]

All of them. Why should I care if someone dies from a drug overdose? Good for them honestly, they escaped sooner than me.

 

[WithTheFlow]

All of them.

 

[avoid]

tl;dr — Only 8 drugs should be legal. 9 Is too many.

The only drugs that should be legal are those that benefit (long-term) health. Sadly the reality is that some drugs are legalized to take the wind out of the drug dealers' sails. You can argue that legalizing a substance — properly regulating its manufacturing process, distribution and consumption — would decrease addictions, ODs and other nasty problems. But in a utopia without drug dealers, governments would not consider legalizing mind-altering substances at all.

Another problem is normalizing drugs before the public knows the full scope of their immediate and long-term effects. For example, the immediate effect of caffeine is fatigue alleviation, and alcohol enhances your social interactions. You would think these drugs are amazing if no one would tell you about the dangers that lie in regular (over)consumption. People of the past didn't concern themselves with these consequences and as a result, coffee and alcoholic beverages were normalized. And today, it's normal enough for people not to think of caffeine and alcohol as a drug. Just imagine if caffeine and alcohol were discovered in this day and age. I'm confident that the government would prohibit widespread consumption of these drugs and heavily regulate it.

And I noticed some people want to legalize all drugs. You can have your reasons for your opinion, as I have mine. But I find giving everyone unregulated access to harmful drugs so that you can gain easy access to deadly drugs to commit suicide an incredibly selfish reason. Giving everyone the "freedom" to choose whichever drugs they want is not a responsible argument in my eyes. I believe it sustains the cycle of self-destruction by letting addictions go rampant, causing lives to be ruined, and resulting in a dramatic increase in depression and suicide (ideation) rates. You deserve and reserve the right to die, but not at the cost of others' lives.