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| quote: | Originally posted by Halcyon+On+On
I completely agree here. There are some substances that justify their draconian penalties. But does substance possession/abuse truly deserve how it is handled by government?
I think drug addicts are sick, and need help - and are only a danger to themselves (though of course addiction truly affects everybody). Prison-time is not only utterly undeserving, but I don't think it does anybody any good whatsoever. I have yet to see a single rationalization otherwise.
Pot has been persecuted in the US for decades now. I think that once it gains legal acceptance, some reparations are in order here. |
Agreed. (my first post was quite tongue-in-cheek)
| quote: | Originally posted by Halcyon+On+On
Though I totally agree with you, drugs are interesting because they have the ability to tranquilize people, in a sense.
Laws do exist to keep people in line in order to thwart violence in most forms, and it is that very dynamic which seems under attack by the advent of mass-produced substances. Man, as an animal, is pushy, belligerent and domineering, especially when empowered by his or her society - just as you said, stupid. But drugs can circumvent this; they can make a strong man weak and a weak man weaker - they make people both care and socialize less and less. In this sense, it seems to me that laws prohibiting said substances are not the same as any other law we create...
Perhaps it was certain substances that caused violence and desperation and our worst monkey nightmares to come alive in the first place though - likely the shortage of which that caused panic. And everything else is merely taboo by association. |
Good points! You also have to wonder if there's some element of state-sponsored sanctionned use of substances too (if you read into the conspiracy theories). The US, UK and French governments used to be big into the opium trade. Then it became illegal. I have a hard time that they got out of the business entirely though.
Drugs can act as a wet blanket over certain elements of society, in order to keep them "down" etc (again, elements of conspiracy theory here).
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Paul
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