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I don't think there are many people out there who are itching to doing heroin and crack but don't because of legality. On the other hand, there are a whole lot

I don't think there are many people out there who are itching to doing heroin and crack but don't because of legality. On the other hand, there are a whole lot of people out there who already do heroin but are dying because they're getting fentanyl instead, due to a lack of quality control and unscrupulous vendors who care more about a quick buck than the long-term survival of their customers. Not to mention all the violence, which comes from criminals vying for territorial control, rather than users.

robbrown451 6y ago
You think if heroin and other opioids could be bought in any store as easily as alcohol, there wouldn't be a lot more use than there is today?
- c22 6y ago
  I agree with the grandparent that there wouldn't be more informed use. However if the legal purveyors are allowed to market these substances in the same profit-motivated manner in which they currently move products (including dangerous and addictive existing legal products) then I agree we likely would see more use. Since basic common sense policy that should lead to a safer and freer world is being pragmatically limited by this profit-driven system perhaps it would pay to examine that other problem as well.
- Xylakant 6y ago
  Maybe. But if people switched from alcohol as a drug to heroine or morphine, that’d be a net win. They’re substantially less damaging to your body than alcohol.
alexilliamson 6y ago
I agree with your first sentence, but without data, it's a super hard sell to the folks who think that the laws are the only thing keeping people from descending into hedonism. I wonder there is way to put some numbers behind it. Typically, this is where natural experiments are valuable, where somewhere legalizes something and another places don't. Then you compare. But it's hard enough to imagine any jurisdiction legalizing crack or heroin, let alone doing so AND systematically capture data to answer these questions.
- caymanjim 6y ago
  While decriminalization isn't the same as legalization, places like Portugal and to a lesser extent Switzerland have demonstrated that it doesn't result in an increase in consumption.

robbrown451 6y ago

You think if heroin and other opioids could be bought in any store as easily as alcohol, there wouldn't be a lot more use than there is today?

c22 6y ago
I agree with the grandparent that there wouldn't be more informed use. However if the legal purveyors are allowed to market these substances in the same profit-motivated manner in which they currently move products (including dangerous and addictive existing legal products) then I agree we likely would see more use. Since basic common sense policy that should lead to a safer and freer world is being pragmatically limited by this profit-driven system perhaps it would pay to examine that other problem as well.
Xylakant 6y ago
Maybe. But if people switched from alcohol as a drug to heroine or morphine, that’d be a net win. They’re substantially less damaging to your body than alcohol.

alexilliamson 6y ago

I agree with your first sentence, but without data, it's a super hard sell to the folks who think that the laws are the only thing keeping people from descending into hedonism. I wonder there is way to put some numbers behind it. Typically, this is where natural experiments are valuable, where somewhere legalizes something and another places don't. Then you compare. But it's hard enough to imagine any jurisdiction legalizing crack or heroin, let alone doing so AND systematically capture data to answer these questions.

caymanjim 6y ago
While decriminalization isn't the same as legalization, places like Portugal and to a lesser extent Switzerland have demonstrated that it doesn't result in an increase in consumption.