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[gekko]

Did you really mean that?

You just equated drug use with drug abuse.  Or is any use of recreational drugs abuse in your book?

Some people are undoubtedly irresponsible, whether they are using drugs or not.  But it is a big leap to suggest that all drug users are irresponsible 'out-of-control' people.

And, do let us keep children out of the discussion?  The 'age of adulthood' has many ways to be defined, but protection of children is an issue that we can, I think, achieve agreement in principle, even if we might disagree on specifics.
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I don't think we can keep children out of this sort of discussion. Most drug experimentation is done by young teenagers. I would say that at that age, most teenagers don't have the mental capacity or control to make smart, responsible decisions about drug use. Between peer pressure and someone else having the brain cell that day, kids make really dumb decisions. The problem with drugs is that a string of stupid decisions when you're 17 can lead to a lifetime of drug abuse very easily.

I can't believe that people actually don't see a difference between hard drugs like cocaine and alcohol, for example. While it's technically true that people can become addicted to almost anything, it's NOT true that all addictions are equal. Drugs like cocaine are very, very addictive, and the effects of that addiction are very damaging, both physically and mentally.

Again, I stress that there ARE drugs that can be used and not abused. Alcohol is one of the most accepted. However, there are drugs that cannot be.

gekko