At the very least, I feel like not throwing someone in jail for being a drug addict or smalltime dealer would be a good start. Too many people resort to drugs

At the very least, I feel like not throwing someone in jail for being a drug addict or smalltime dealer would be a good start. Too many people resort to drugs to escape despair (if only temporarily) or poverty (through working the only business that seems to be "hiring" in your town). Addressing the root causes of this is indeed difficult, but you exacerbate the problem when those same people who need solutions are saddled with criminal records for life.