[Rocksalt]

"They're already getting them despite the War On Some Drugs."

Your wish for more libertys and personal responsibilitys is commendable.It's just I feel your solutions are not realistic.Addiction to narcotics is much more rapid and compulsion to use sets in alot quicker than alcohol.You can't refute that point ace.

"So the rest of us should bear the costs (monetary and otherwise) of the War On Some Drugs because of your fact-free "feeling"? Sounds like liberal emotionalism-as-policy to me."

No,this is common sense.Look at it this way-you make an effort to keep the deadly poisons in your kitchen such as pipe cleaner out of the reach of small children.They don't have the ability to discern what they are,and need to be protected from them.But you would make no effort to keep deadly poisons out of reach of people who cannot discern what is good for them.I'm all for personal freedoms,but the fact is,with dangerous drugs,many others besides just the user are impacted.Over dose is much easier than with alcohol-no comparison.The WOD is costly no doubt.But would the costs of taking care of people addicted to narcotics be good either.You can't say don't care for them,let them die,because alot of decent people get hung up on drugs and do recover.

"I feel some people DO need to be protected from themselves.Either that or we can adopt a don't care attitude and let people drop like flys.That [...] would show we really don't care about people."

"Sounds like liberal Nanny State-ism to me."

Maybe my attitude on this issue does reek of liberal state-ism,but I am not defending the WOD,just giving my own spin on what the realitys of this situation are. As I said before,I am all for personal libertys and as little goverment control as is reasonable.I repeat reasonable. But some laws are necessary in order to have a civilized society.And some laws exist for the common good.Storm troopers busting into peoples houses in search of drugs is abhorable,this is true.Taxpayer money being wasted on the WOD is something I do not like to see.The real solution longterm would be for people to stop using drugs and there would be no market for them.This will never happen,granted,but I do not feel making them more available is a solution.
I have a friend,a fellow I worked with who is currently doing 7 years in a state pen as a result of drug addiction.He is an extremely bright young man,who was the head teller at the bank.He handed the money out at the beginning of the day,and counted it at the end.He also worked at a computer store where he was the top salesman.Drugs took over his life and he lost control quickly.He made his choices,true,but all this really impacted his family and friends.Drug users cause alot of chaos in everyones lives.The reality is drugs are poisons and they cannot be used safely.I'm all for people who are already addicted having access to them instead of having to commit crimes to get them.But no civilized country I'm aware of has legal narcotics available for anyone who desires them.There is a reason for that.

[MrLeRoy]

Addiction to narcotics is much more rapid and compulsion to use sets in alot quicker than alcohol.

Provide evidence for your claim; according to Dr. Jack E. Henningfield of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, alcohol produces more sever withdrawal syumptoms than heroin or cocaine and greater tolerance than cocaine. (And tobacco produces greater tolerance than heroin or cocaine.)

drugs are poisons and they cannot be used safely.

According to data from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Serices Administration, fewer than half of heroin users are addicted.

Anyway, who are you or the government to say that adults may not do "unsafe" things?