UTK wrote:The Legend wrote:I would agree that marijuana should be decriminalized, but I would stop there. Other drugs that alter people's behavior or perception of reality make them too dangerous for the rest of the people they come in contact with. Things like meth and drugs that are hallucegens are far too dangerous for people to be on for the rest of those of us they come in contact with.
I'd argue that very drunk people are just as dangerous. Any physical altercation I've had in my life was started by a drunk person. It can just make people violent. Should we do something about that?
But in that case, would you keep "the system" the way that it is, or change it up? I think far too many people are incarcerated for small amounts of drugs. The war on drugs has led to drugs as more of an excuse to lock people up than anything. Blacks are arrested for drug times four times the rate of whites, despite drug use between blacks and whites being more or less equal. It's less about "Keep this country clean, get those drugs off the streets!" and more "Keep this country clean, get those thug-lookin kids off my streets!" Drugs are just the excuse. Nobody should be facing prison time for having a small amount of any drug on them.
Also I wouldn't put hallucinogens in with drugs like meth. I've dropped acid on two occasions and, don't worry, nobody was in danger. I was too busy trying to understand the inter-connectivity of the human race while staring at the stars.
Very drunk people can be just as dangerous, and truthfully, being that drunk is against the law. It's called drunk and disorderly conduct. So, there are measure to discourage people from becoming that drunk, just like it should be discouraged for people to use the types of drugs I mentioned.
As for the war on drug points you brought up, I would agree that there are flaws to the system, but I would argue that we should fix those flaws, not throw the entire thing out with the trash.
Also, I wasn't putting hallucinogens and meth in the same category, just to say they are both very dangerous for the people that use them and those around them. As for your experience with drugs, I would just say that not everyone's body responds to drugs the same way. I can cite plenty of stories where people using acid has led to violent and sometimes deadly instances.