Saltpetre & individual
and alcohol? and tobacco? Are you saying neither are part of modern life?
Your arguments make me think of one used back in the 60's. It went something like, "Is your ashtray handy? How's your drink? Right, let's talk about kids and drugs."

Halduell,
I gave up Camel Plains 20 years ago & so far as alcohol goes I have a few cans every day. I can honestly say I haven't had my daily beer let get the better of me. I know more than enough sober people who are sillier than me even if I had a couple.
Most of my co-workers are the same. We've had beer since we were 14. Yet we now have some idiots in bureaucracy telling us we'd be deemed drunk after two pots. Get lost morons.
They want us to drink soft drinks with our counter lunch. If I drank as many soft drinks as I have beers I'd now be a fully blown, useless fat twerp with Diabetes. Maybe that's what these morons want ? Maybe they're just hellbent on wasting more & more taxpayers' money on useless fat people & forcing decent workers to become fat & useless also.

individual
There are many good reasons to allow the responsible use of recreational drugs - yours among them.
Enjoy your beers.

Dear Halduell,

<<There are many good reasons to allow the responsible use of recreational drugs>>

I can't see any good reason to allow, but I can list 20 different reasons why the state should not forbid that use. Good parents, on the other hand, should forbid their children to use drugs.

Yes indeed, drugs are a part of the modern life - and that's just one reason (among others) why modern life stinks!

Also among the ills of modern life are police helicopters hovering over your house, looking for suspicious patterns of light/heat that could possibly be related to hydroponic drug-operations, loud rotor noise and strong flashes of light penetrating the night's rest.

Why accept such a life-style with either being part thereof?

Atman says "No way would I want a Pilot or Surgeon I use to be a casual Ecstasy user. Seriously this is complete lunacy!"

Unfortunately the only lunacy here is from Atman.
Why would it be an issue for a surgeon to be a casual ecstasy user any more than a casual drinker? Provided they are not intoxicated at the time they perform surgery or fly a plane then the fact they have used ecstasy in the past is completely irrelevant.

Individual bemoans the restrictions on his own liberty. Fortunately his choice of poison is one which he can be honest about without risking arrest, being fired or having his property confiscated. This is the problem the author was pointing out. Individual can defend his habits and his liberty to enjoy them whilst those whose habits are currently illegal cannot even join the debate. Just as Individual clearly finds life with beer better than life without, there are many drug users from all walks of life who feel that their drug of choice improves their quality of life. Except for addicts (who make up only a tiny minority of users) they wouldn't use these drugs otherwise.
It appears that the most avid anti drug people are also the most ignorant, almost always being non-drug users themselves. If we let the teetotallers make the rules regarding alcohol, this drug too would be on the banned list

<<If we let the teetotallers make the rules regarding alcohol, this drug too would be on the banned list>>

That's unfair, Rhys, I am a teetotaller and would never contemplate doing that. On rare occasions I even serve my guests with wine.