Poll: Governments killing natural fun

[d4rkxy13x]

Today, I was just looking up drugs and their dangers on the internet, and I read that a lot of states and countries are banning salvia, a hallucinogenic variant of sage which has as much proven danger as cannabis, and why ? Because there are videos an youtube of people having fun taking it. I understand that some people might be anti-drug, but as long as people don't drive under it's influence, there shouldn't be any problems (even if there are dangers, are you at risk ?). Anyway, isn't the point of life to have fun ? Harder drugs that have a really negative impact on the body and mind, I understand, but if class C drugs were legalised, drug cartels would halve their revenue=less crime. Everyone wins, right ?

 

[AnarchistFish]

Drugs such as Cannabis should be legalised completely.

When it comes to harder drugs, outright bans don't work. It just means money goes to the drug dealers and it puts the addicts in my danger. I'm not saying they should be legalised but there should be more effective programs put in place to help people struggling with them.

 

[Esotera]

My friend took salvia once and nothing happened. Then 15 minutes later he realised he was chasing a squirrel up a tree.

Personally I think all drugs should be legal, but relatively hard to get. If you really want to try it out every now and then, you should be allowed...but with really addictive stuff like crack & heroin it should be well regulated. What they're doing in Portugal seems to work quite well.

This should apply to most areas of dangerous fun. Pistols at dawn should be allowed, if two people really desperately want to kill each other.

 

[alrekr]

Well I'm against the sale of most drugs including many legal ones. The thing is if its legal it may be more likely for young people to try them. For example I know loads of people around my age (16) who smoke despite knowing all the health risks; if a number of similar drugs were made legal it wouldn't be that odd if they started getting into harder drugs. In fact even with illegal drugs its not hard for alot of them to get cannabis and the like.

I'd love to ban smoking and at least limit the sale of strong alcohol (I know it does have health benefits but many of those studies were carried out by beer companies)

drug cartels would halve their revenue=less crime.

Thing is they wouldn't stop selling the drugs and you stated that not all drugs needed to legalised so they would still have a market. Also if anything they would invest in legal outlets to sell the legal stuff and the illegal stuff round the back. The other problem with making some drugs legal and others not is that people can use the same arguement that say got cannabis legal to get heroin legal.

Back to the drug you mentioned: hallucinogenic drugs can cause some serious problems, even if there is little actual damage to the body the mind can take some serious damage. LSD for example doesn't have a set amount at which you OD as it doesn't damage the body at all. However even a single trip if it's bad enough could gakk your mind up to the point you need help afterwards (such as severe depression).

 

[Zach of Fables]

If you guys have seen the History Channel shows on the history of drugs in America, they pretty much make it clear that everything was banned because of racism and not because they were too dangerous. That being said, I'm not in favor legalizing the hard stuff, but cannabis and weed and so forth is acceptable. Mostly because they are not dangerous enough to justify the expenditure necessary to keep (or fail to keep) people from using them.

That being said, this thread topic is a loaded question.

 

[Phlakes]

...and I read that a lot of states and countries are banning salvia, a hallucinogenic variant of sage which has as much proven danger as cannabis, and why ? Because there are videos an youtube of people having fun taking it.

...That... I can't even begin to describe this. I went into this thread with an open mind, but... Just no. A really, really big no.

 

[darkonnis]

In an ideal world drugs would be banned. Some people, jimmy hendrix etc etc where fantastic and the drugs probably helped them find the bits of themselves they needed to to be so creative. That said, for every 1 of these there are about 10 million who crash and burn on the way side. Also, drugs may be fun for those on them but incredibly annoying for everyone else who isn't on them. Most drugs have more negative effects than positive ones. Cocaine is pretty much endemic the world over, especially in the UK. Its effects turn what are probably nice people into absolute idiots, whether that be because ofthe side effects or because thats what its meant to do i just dont know.

This isnt an ideal world though, and as i say drugs are everywhere you look. If you don't see them it is literally because you aren't looking. They'd do better to legalise it and have done with it. Have set areas where you can do it legally, safely etc etc. As it is now its on the street, unregulated, unsafe and risking the safety of normal people. Legalising it would pretty much remove alot of crime. this coupled with harsher controlled substance laws would probably help to fix alot of problems in society.

If you read that, you'd probably think im against drugs, but really. I'm not, I have just seen the effects of drugs end negatively more than positively.

 

[Neverhoodian]

Personally, I wouldn't mind that much if governments made the use of such narcotics legal, but kept it regulated. If people wish to jeopardize their health for a temporary high, then that's their business. That still won't stop me from thinking that it's a fucking disgusting habit though, and that they'd better respect my wishes and not toke up when a non-user like myself is around.

 

[lacktheknack]

So drugs = natural fun?

I don't see it. I'm thinking more along the lines of sports = natural fun, but maybe I'm taking it too literally.

Anyways, no one give a flying care about my opinions whenever I say them, so I'll just say that drugs are bad, mmmkay?

 

[poleboy]

What really needs to happen is a proper evaluation of the different kinds of drugs based on science and facts, not prejudice and tradition. Of course it's never going to happen, because alcohol and tobacco companies would be hit very hard if this was ever to happen. And because their brand of mind-altering substance pays taxes, they're exempt from (severe) criticism and legislation.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

The people who want to take drugs will take them whether they are legal or not, and visa-versa. So the argument that legalising drugs will turn us all into mindless addicts is ridiculous. Tobacco and Alcohol are legal, but we're not all smokers and alcoholics, and I assure you even if my local supermarket started selling Heroin I would have no urge whatsoever to buy any, because I've watched Trainspotting.

Also, legalising drugs of all brings them out into the open and stops them from being a taboo. Because of this it will be easier to spot the point when someone starts turning from a casual user into an addict and get them the help they need. I predict a lot of lives will be saved by society being able to spot the danger signs before it's too late. People who are just starting to use drugs won't have to hide it, and therefore they can be given the necessary information and support to make an informed decision, in order to keep themselves as safe as they want to be.

It will cut crime too. The users will no longer need to steal to get their fix, and the cartels will either have to drop their prices dramatically or go out of business. Either way, the loss of revenue will make their influence so much weaker.

Finally, even if drugs are made legal there can still be restrictions placed on them by the state (just like with Alcohol and Tobacco) to keep the vulnerable safe.

I personally don't think the argument of 'Does the Government have the right to tell us what to do in this instance?' is all that important. In my opinion all drugs should be legalised because it just fucking makes sense.

 

[Togs]

I fully endorse taking "light drugs"- they offer an easy way of experiencing altered perspectives that can be profound in their beneficial nature.
But then again the risk involved is large- even something as "harmless" as cannabis can have drastic and dreadful consequences on certain people, and whilst it could it could be argued that alcohol or nicotine is no less risky its uncertain if either of those substance should be as abundant as they are.
Ive no idea if they sure should be illegal or just stringently regulated but in no way should taking them be considered lightly.

What really needs to happen is a proper evaluation of the different kinds of drugs based on science and facts, not prejudice and tradition.

This- Im not sure about other countries but in the UK the current system was devised in a rush and on nothing but the subjective feelings of the policy makers.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

Well if they are going to legalise such drugs they should do it like they do in The Netherlands and breed the plants back down to original potency as at the moment they have been bred to have a much greater effect than say 40 years ago.

Obvious stuff like heroine and cocaine is a no go. Better testing needs to be done on all drugs to find out if stuff like weed does give schizophrenia and what not.

 

[Cenequus]

Legalizing drugs(or anything for that)means not only you're cutting money that would normally go to organized crime but you actually control the quality of the said drug(doesn't matter if light or hard drug).Most drug related deaths come from overdose,and even in that case it's because you have no idea of how pure/concentrated the stuff you take is.Easy example is drinking alchool not knowing the percentage or drinking pure alchool(90ish degrees)thinking it's normal vodka(40ish degrees),you'll pretty much end up dead if not taken care of. This not to mention "lesser" but still important thing like minor criminality to fund drug addiction,or ever stupid things like freedom to do what the hell you want to yourself.

Still,taking away money from organized crime and having controls(like there is for tobacco,alchool,coffee etc)are more than enough reason to legalise all drugs. Thing is while it's discussed as a moral or criminal thing the actual reasons they aren't doing anything it's because it's an easy "escape goat",something easy to blame,not only from a goverment point of view but even comunity or family wise.

 

[Tortilla the Hun]

First off, if there is danger then of course you're at risk.
Second, the reason drugs like that need to be banned is because people are stupid, plain and simple. Someone (no matter how well a drug is regulated) will end up either hurting/killing themselves or another person. I for one believe that it would be better to prevent such an accident happening rather than let it happen and have everyone pointing fingers at who's to blame. I'm not saying the prevention methods that are in place now are particularly effective, I'm just saying that it's great that they're there so that way the government won't take any flak just because they "allowed" it to happen. Now if someone were to die of a drug-related incident, the only one(s) to blame are the individual(s) that partook that drug/activity/what have you. Again, not saying it's a great system, but it's better than the alternative.
Thirdly, and certainly the most prominent, stupid people and mind-altering drugs do not mix well. It'd be like tossinga lit match into a powder keg that has been heavily soaked in alchohol. Maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but you get my point.

 

[Sarah Frazier]

Some drugs do have medicinal properties without all the harsh side effects that mainstream drugs have. Some definitely have a relaxing or energizing affect, and there's definitely enough stress and demand on one's energy that any edge in a crunch would be good but ONLY when it's needed. Relying too much on drugs, legal or otherwise, makes it so you need more and more to get the same effectiveness.

If certain drugs do become legalized, they can then be taxed and that money put to whatever use any money ever goes towards. Even a few cents out of every sale, if demand stays high (no pun intended), can add up to a million dollars in a short period of time. That money can easily go towards cracking down on street dealers, paying for education or at least rehab clinics, or padding the pockets of the people who voted the bill in.