Dear Saltpetre,

<<I would rather see a world without marijuana, opium, heroin, cocaine, meth, Ice, Ecstasy, etc>>

Me too, but I'm unwilling the pay the costs involved.

As Rhys Jones just mentioned, "some people think altering your consciousness is morally evil". I am one of those. Indeed, altering one's consciousness with chemicals IS evil, but it is not right to set up one evil (the state and its laws) against another.

Talking of evil, my personal priority is to see a world without smoking and without meat-eating. However, I never contemplate achieving this by violent/coercive means (including legislation).

Others, including some members of OLO, often express their desire to see a world without religion. If you believe that you have the right to take away their drugs, then what morally stops them from taking away what they believe is ours?!

<<the recognised minority suffering pain from a physical condition (and who should therefore be under medical care)>>

Poor fellows, not only do they already suffer physical pain, now they also have to suffer the medical system...

<<Would a drug-free society not be a worthwhile objective>>

No, because I only care for people, for individuals, rather than for their artificial constructs such as "society", "culture" and "nation". It would of course be very nice and convenient for me to live without any drugs around, but that's just my selfish preference: it would only be worthwhile if it could be done without coercion.

It seems some are confusing decriminalisation with legalising drugs. If a drug is decriminalised it would/could mean that personal use is condoned. Of course, that raises the issue of where does one source the drug of choice? I maintain that having them dispensed by a pharmacist would be the safest way to do it. Ah, I see you saying, what about those who wish to try a drug for the first time or are occasional users? Good question. Again, if the sale of a drug is controlled it means assurance of quality (one would hope). As it stands there is no means of quality control, which is often the cause of death by overdose or poisoning.

Ideally we would have a completely drug free society, and that includes alcohol and tobacco. The reality is that some humans, for whatever reason, seek mind altering substances. It is why the alcohol and tobacco industries are so rich. It also explains why the drug cartels are so hell bent on market control. I think the death toll in Mexico is around 44 000 due to the drug industry. That is amazing, not to mention incredibly disturbing. Surely society as a whole should be looking at ways to eliminate such atrocities. And so far prohibition hasn't worked and will not work: history shows us that and can we not at least learn from history?

That's such a good post Yuyutsu.

I think the 'troubled soul' assumption that non-drug users perceive about drug users is massively overdone. I would say a soul that is never troubled or someone that has never experienced any kind of adversity or personal problems hasn't really lived any kind of life. Life is messy, it's half the point. Which is why I wonder why people search for 'happiness' like it's some end in itself.

Sure, there are addicts, but, or people who 'abuse' drugs rather than use them, but I have taken a lot of drugs in my time and been around a hell of a lot of users, and I could only really identify around 15% who had a problem with their drug use. It must not go unmentioned that this problem was often temporary too.

I consider I may have at times been developing a problem in 'abusing' drugs, but I removed myself from the drug supportive environment, limited my access to them, and cut down on or ended my use.

Perhaps heroin is more addictive than the drugs I was taking, as I have only ever tried that once or twice, but that's a small subset of 'drugs', and every other drug I have been able to enjoy without too many problems. Ecstacy, coke, Ketamine, marijuana, amphetamines, LSD, I have used them all, and I have certainly never behaved too badly (No doubt been obnoxious at times, no more so than some straight people) or caused any injury, been violent or abusive or anything like that.

I have cause no more societal problems than a caffeine addict.

I can honestly say it's been 99% harmless fun.

squeers I don't think there is a reality that I could be monogamous with. I don't see this as any shortfall of my sober self or my enjoyment of it. Variety is the spice of life, and the good lord has given me ways to mess with my serotonin and dopamine levels.

Houellebecq,

I'm not sure if you meant to refer to moi in that last paragraph (rather than Yuyutsu, who's too complacent by half for my taste), or Squeers is like your "King Charles' head"?
I'm grateful for the attention, though, as I felt I'd been left out when minotaur harangued the rest of you : (

I can only express my admiration for your fearless adventures and regret I've only ever used cigarettes, marijuana and alcohol myself. I agree with the gist of your post and have always thought addiction is all in the mind. It's a curious banality that we only crave our poison when we're idle and think about it. The idea crosses the mind, which immediately goes to work rationalising an excuse to indulge, and since humans are capable of rationalising any enormity, substance abuse is a synch.
In a perfect world I would have no sympathy for addicts, nor for murderers or villains generally, believing as I do that we should take responsibility for our actions. Even in this world I have little sympathy for miscreants, providing the exactions for their misdeeds are reasonable. Indeed I see the addict or the criminal or the supercilious git as exercising free will, choosing a path in life and daring to hazard the misadventures he may encounter along the way.
I do think drugs should be decriminalised, but one should be at liberty "and" take responsibility, that is take care the behaviour doesn't break serious laws or impose unduly on others. Then the individual should be taken to account. Otherwise leave him or her to explore the depths.
The problem is it's not a perfect world, idleness and reckless/conspicuous consumption are cultivated and moral laws like the work ethic and modesty and abstinence are antiquated. The work ethic, where it survives, consists only in the right it affords to be a bore and a glutton. And then there are a great many bent on self-destruction, or refuge from this appalling reality in their drug of choice.

A bit late, Squeers, but thank you for your great post 3 days ago.

Indeed, if having a society is such a great thing, how come practically each one of us is using one form or another of escapism?

Each of us carries existential pain, which psychiatrists call "ontological pain". Obviously life, for the most part, is painful.

We are in full agreement that giving in to that pain and taking temporary measures to avoid it, should not be criminalized.

- But giving in and avoiding the pain should not be admired either, nor become a subject for envy!

Psychiatrists refuse and are unable to treat ontological pain, considering it "normal". They will not tell you that there is a permanent way out it, because the way out would be incongruent with their role of preserving society. If this pain is canceled, they (correctly) claim, then "the deep meaning of existence will be lost" (http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1744-859X-10-9.pdf).

The first step in overcoming this pain is to recognize it and face it. Taking drugs or any other form of escapism jeopardizes this step. Next, we realize that the source of this existential pain is our attachment to the world, our addiction to existence (doctors and politicians do not like you to make this discovery because it unglues society, so they rather keep you on drugs and prescribe you the legal variety). The rest of the journey is to work our way not just out of this drug or the other, but out of this mega-addiction altogether. This is the realm of religion, but I'll stop here because it is beyond the scope of this topic about "Drug policy".

As I stated previously, I have sat on 3 juries in the last year (1 rape, 2 horrific murders), all of which involved the use of both alcohol and legal or illegal drugs.

Try giving that a gecko before pushing for decriminalisation of drug use.

Large pharmaceutical cartels make their profits from other people's suffering. A lot of prescription drugs do more harm than good.

I think my dance coach was correct when he stated a few years ago:

"We have returned to the Roman Days of sodomy and debauchery (drunkenness)."