[LevinFan]

Does this quote, a basic truth, mean nothing.

Your freedom to wave your fist ends at the beginning of my nose.

If most of these self harms were only to one’s self, I would not disagree. But that is rarely the end of it. A drug user, addicted to his fix, will do ANYTHING to get his fix. Steal, hurt, kill, sell ten minutes with his daughter. While high, he can cause untold harm to others. To his family, to other bystanders. He doesn’t give them the choice of whether they pay the price for his self destruction. A DUI driver doesn’t ask if his victims want to get hurt or killed.

A drug dealer, obtains his gain my preying upon another’s addiction, and the harm his addicts will cause. I’ve known people taken advantage of by such trash. He will kill anyone for his gain, use his money for power over others. He is nothing but a parasite, and not worthy of any consideration or freedom. He is less than a dog. Make no mistake about that.

Very few ruin themselves in total isolation. They take others to ruin with them. Most of these vices cause massive problems, directly related to them. It can’t be ignored.

The moment what you do can affect me, mine, or someone else who has no choice or options, is the moment I don’t care about your sense of freedom. You’ve already chosen to take that from your victim.

[bamahead]

If most of these self harms were only to one’s self, I would not disagree. But that is rarely the end of it. A drug user, addicted to his fix, will do ANYTHING to get his fix. Steal, hurt, kill, sell ten minutes with his daughter. While high, he can cause untold harm to others. To his family, to other bystanders. He doesn’t give them the choice of whether they pay the price for his self destruction. A DUI driver doesn’t ask if his victims want to get hurt or killed.

The moment any individual becomes guilty of most of the transgressions you speak of is the point where his liberty ends. Whether or not that person is on drugs is irrelevant to the fact that they committed a crime.

Your choice to make the use of said drug a crime is what encroaches on the individuals' liberty to do as they please with their own body.

Fact is - many responsible people DO consume drugs and alcohol every day, and do none of the things you mention.

Yet under what some call 'moral' laws...they are automatically a criminal in the same class as those who steal, maim, and destroy. Despite the fact that the individual might never do any of those things and simply may be looking for a temporary thrill.

Your rationale for 'moral' drug law basically is prejudging an individual, because they do the drug - which inherently affects nobody but themselves, if they do it in their own home and are responsible with it's use. Not because they will commit a crime.

You are painting all drug users with an extremely broad brush there, if you presume all drug use ends up in crime. And that broad brush has no respect for the liberty of the responsible individual.

Jefferson's quote is very applicable to the case you made:

Rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law', because law is often but the tyrant’s will, and always so when it violates the rights of the individual.-- Thomas Jefferson