If only the divide were as strong, clear, and deep as you make it out to be. Sure, what you're saying may be true of coffee vs. cocaine and aspirin vs. heroin,

If only the divide were as strong, clear, and deep as you make it out to be. Sure, what you're saying may be true of coffee vs. cocaine and aspirin vs. heroin, but there are plenty of pharmaceutical companies establishing new markets in the vast swaths of grey that lie in between. That's the whole point here. And it's not just the drugs themselves that are being carefully engineered, but the social contexts and suitably sanctioned delivery systems that go hand in hand with the chemicals themselves. The really interesting thing here has less to do with the drug war in particular, and more to do with the way its increasingly anachronistic qualities stand in sharp contrast to what we're becoming as a society and a species. Discussing that shift - which is the real point of this piece - goes waaay beyond eroding the support for prohibition. Other HN readers: please don't let this nitwit who completely missed the point turn you away from something that actually really well written and well worth your time. Indeed, the Aeon is becoming a great source for some of the best writing online. If you enjoy this, please know that there's a lot more where it came from.