Criminal drug laws aren't stopping the opioid epidemic, and they prevent us from asking the real question: why is it that so many people prefer an opioid stupor

Criminal drug laws aren't stopping the opioid epidemic, and they prevent us from asking the real question: why is it that so many people prefer an opioid stupor to being productively engaged in our society? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Park https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Park Note the overlap between the suicide maps and the opioid overdose maps: https://morecrows.wordpress.com/2016/05/10/unnecessariat/ https://morecrows.wordpress.com/2016/05/10/unnecessariat/ People are killing themselves. Heroin and fentanyl are just tools. What's happening in those red areas of the country? Economic collapse and social alienation. If people want to check out and slowly (or quickly) kill themselves making drugs illegal won't stop them. They'll get them anyway or they will find other methods. As far as mushrooms go: they are not particularly addictive. There is not and never has been a 'shroom epidemic. I highly doubt there ever will be. They can be a little bit dangerous, especially if you have latent psychological problems. They're not some kind of panacea either. But they're not really that bad and they're definitely not worth putting people in jail over. The fear that we have of mind altering substances is totally irrational, especially when placed next to the lack of fear or stigma that we have for so many other more dangerous things. If you drop acid or 'shrooms you're a demonic criminal even though the worse you'll get is a bad trip and maybe some psychological disturbance, but if you kill yourself cave diving or rock climbing you're a hero. Would I want my kids doing them? Not until they're adults and not without care. It would worry me a bit. It would worry me a lot more if they got a motorcycle. I see crosses and candles by the road all the time. I've never read about anyone dying from 'shrooms.