the War on Drugs

I will delve a little deeper into this issue on another blog- synthetic realities.

I think our war on drugs is rediculous. It represents a humanitarian crisis as thousands of non-violent offenders (victimless in a fundamental way) are placed in prison.

In light of the prescription drug rampage in the commercial media which promotes the use of drugs for purely recreational purposes (i.e. Botox, Viagra, etc.) I think we should de-criminalize "controlled" substances like marijuana. This is FAR less harmful than alcohol and tobacco (and less addictive), and actually enhances the quality of life for those who use them.

The truth is that our society is becoming increasingly more synthetic. Future prescription drugs will allow users to retain more in memory, think quicker, focus (as in Adderall). These types of drugs are already under some form of research, and it's only a matter of time before they hit the market. We use drugs to keep us alive longer, to keep us healthy, to keep cholesteral low, to maintain weight, to avoid pregnancy, to supress heart burn... the list goes on and on. I find it a tragic contradiction that while we encourage the use of mind altering drugs to help kids "focus" in school, we simultaneously imprison others who buy, sell, or use drugs outside of the accepted capitalist paradigm. This must change for the sake of all that is right, just, and good (thanks Army for the propaganda!).

I will continue this later.