Why the war on drugs will never be won

[hmkpoker]

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What benefits do heroine and crystal meth provide individuals? What benefits do they provide society?

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METH: Increased alertness, athletic ability, attention, weight loss, recreation. It's a schedule II drug (like oxy) which can be prescribed by a doctor, usually under the name desoxyn.

HEROIN: Pain relief, stress relief, recreation. Its precursor, morphine (which heroin immediately converts to when it enters the brain), is widely used in hospitals.

I've never done either, but a lot of people I know have tried one or the other, and the majority just did it once or twice and didn't let it ruin their lives.

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Like I said, alcohol is in a completely different category than crystal meth et al.

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This is completely stupid. Alcohol is a recreational drug just like the others, it can massively [censored] you up, it has the same addictive potential as many other drugs (I think opiates are a little worse, but not much. Interestingly, alcohol is one of the few non-opiate drugs where a high-tolerance cold-turkey withdrawal can be fatal). It was the third highest cause of death in 2000, beating out "illicit drug use" by 400% or thereabouts.

And personally, it's a pretty lame drug. Alcohol has the worst after effects of any drug I've ever tried.