I disagree. The focus should
I disagree. The focus should not just be about marijuana. Indeed, many of the pro-marijuana folks are beginning to sound like the prohibitionists on the other side by arguing that their particular drug of choice is superior to all others and that other drugs like alcohol and tobacco should be banned and only pot should be legalized. This is the same argument that prohibitionist types have used to argue that alcohol is okay while other drugs are inherently evil. It's ironic that some marijuana advocates are taking more or less the same position as drug prohibitionists.
The real focus should not be on the comparative safety of particular drugs, but on the right of adults to use any drugs, so long as they are using them in a responsible manner without posing a danger to others. Folks who argue that certain drugs (LSD, cocaine, heroin, or whatever) are inherently so dangerous that they must be banned are really prohibitionists at heart.
The second issue is whether an adult has the right to alter his or her state of consciousness. The drug warriors argue that such behavior is inherently irresponsible, but provide no evidence that altering one's state of consciousness through drugs is inherently an irresponsible activity. This is why some of them accept marijuana as a "medicine," but see it as an evil thing that people should use the drug recreationally to relax. Once again, many of the pro-marijuana folks have fallen for the trap of arguing that marijuana is inherently safe and therefore can be used effectively as a medicine. Eventually, marijuana will probably be fully accepted as a medicine, but recreational use will still be prohibited, because our culture rejects the notion that it is acceptable to use substances in a recreational manner.
In reply to Redirect war by tempname_57563 (not verified)