2 ms·

As you mention, there are already many laws that make sale of certain goods or services or illegal. I believe the majority of the populace is in favor of the ma

As you mention, there are already many laws that make sale of certain goods or services or illegal. I believe the majority of the populace is in favor of the majority of those laws. While I am in favor of places trying drug legalization, and certainly think there are drugs that are currently illegal that should not be, I (and most people) are unconvinced that legalization is the correct path for highly addictive drugs like opiates or amphetamines. Oregon has recently reversed their drug decriminalization due to its perceived negative externalities and failure to reduce harm. No, this is not solid evidence that decriminalization/legalization doesn't work, but is some evidence. More data required. To the point - yes, I generally believe that the law should prevent the sale of some things due to their negative externalities. Most people feel the same.

imiric 2y ago
> I (and most people) are unconvinced that legalization is the correct path for highly addictive drugs like opiates or amphetamines But both of those have legitimate use cases and are on the legal market. The crucial part is getting the regulation right, which starts by getting rid of corruption in government agencies like the FDA that are supposed to do their job, so that criminals like the Sackler family can't market and sell them to everyone. These are all institutional challenges that governments need to tackle, but they're unrelated to how addictive a substance is. After all, we've been marketed and sold tobacco and alcohol for decades, which have done immeasurable levels of harm to our wellbeing. But it's possible to reach a place where we can all live with the personal decisions of one another, without becoming a nanny state. Whether or not most people agree with this hardly affects my opinion. Anyway, it's clear that we disagree on some political points, and I don't want to steer this way off the original topic. Cheers!

imiric 2y ago

> I (and most people) are unconvinced that legalization is the correct path for highly addictive drugs like opiates or amphetamines But both of those have legitimate use cases and are on the legal market. The crucial part is getting the regulation right, which starts by getting rid of corruption in government agencies like the FDA that are supposed to do their job, so that criminals like the Sackler family can't market and sell them to everyone. These are all institutional challenges that governments need to tackle, but they're unrelated to how addictive a substance is. After all, we've been marketed and sold tobacco and alcohol for decades, which have done immeasurable levels of harm to our wellbeing. But it's possible to reach a place where we can all live with the personal decisions of one another, without becoming a nanny state. Whether or not most people agree with this hardly affects my opinion. Anyway, it's clear that we disagree on some political points, and I don't want to steer this way off the original topic. Cheers!