[Rocksalt]

"Narcotics kill far more people than guns."
"Provide evidence for your claim."

Actually I found guns do kill slightly more people than drugs-big deal-What is the value of drugs to society,compared to the value of firearms for personal protection.Drugs are a drain on society,with many hidden costs,lost work,diseases,deaths,hundreds of thousands of emergency room visits,wasted lives etc.

"Then explain why, with 500,000 traffic deaths per year, "common sense" doesn't dictate that we ban cars."

Autos serve an actual useful function,whereas drugs detract from peoples functions most of the time.Lousy comparison.

"If a ban on advertising were the cost of legalizing drugs, I'd accept it; politics is the art of the possible."

Possible,true,smart and reasonable,possibly not.

"and producing the product."

"What's wrong with that?"(your statement)

Leaving it up to private industry or the goverment to produce and control the production of narcotics would only give them incentive to promote and profit off their use.
If we are going to cease the WOD,lets just cease it and let natural forces take over,NO GOVERMENT CONTROL.That would be the only true way to insure freedom from further goverment control over our lives.Otherwise let's just let registered addicts have access at registered pharmacys.

"I advocate a LESSENING of state controls"

I'm sure you do.I think we would be better off with none rather than a shifting of controls.

You raise good points and questions,thanks for debating this with me.I respect your opinions and continue to evaluate the points you raise.Happy Halloween.-RS

[MrLeRoy]

"Narcotics kill far more people than guns."

"Provide evidence for your claim."

Actually I found guns do kill slightly more people than drugs-big deal-

Ah, so if drugs killed more people the comparison would have been important, but since guns kill more people the comparison is unimportant. Very interesting how that works.

What is the value of drugs to society

Wrong question---a person's body belongs to that person, not to society, so the decision as to the "value" of drugs put into that body belongs to the person, not to society.

Drugs are a drain on society,with many hidden costs,lost work,

That's between the employee and employer; it's none of society's business.

diseases,deaths,hundreds of thousands of emergency room visits,wasted lives etc.

Self-inflicted harm is none of society's business. And if society is paying for any of these, that's society's choice---society should stop picking up the tab, rather than use SOME people's misuse of drugs to punish OTHER people's use of drugs.

"Then explain why, with 500,000 traffic deaths per year, "common sense" doesn't dictate that we ban cars."

Autos serve an actual useful function,whereas drugs detract from peoples functions most of the time.

A person's body and "functions" belongs to that person, not to society, so the decision as to the "value" of drugs put into that body belongs to the person, not to society.

Leaving it up to private industry or the goverment to produce and control the production of narcotics would only give them incentive to promote and profit off their use.

Nothing wrong with profit; as for promotion, that can be banned (as it is restricted for tobacco).

If we are going to cease the WOD,lets just cease it and let natural forces take over,NO GOVERMENT CONTROL.That would be the only true way to insure freedom from further goverment control over our lives. [...] I think we would be better off with none rather than a shifting of controls.

As much as you want to make the best the enemy of the good, it's an invalid rule and I'm not playing that game. Legalize and regulate---it works for the drugs alcohol and tobacco, and it can work for other drugs too.