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Humanity has a long history of self-medicating distress. At first this was mostly with alcohol. America's prohibition efforts started in the early 1900's: prohibition, Harrison Narcotic Tax Act, etc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chasing_the_Scream#Background_...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_drugs#20th_century

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Is any regulation considered an act of 'war'?

I pay taxes, do you call that a War on Income? If so, when did it start?

Federal income taxes in the US started around the beginning of the 20th century.

Taxation is built right into the Constitution. Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution (the "Taxing and Spending Clause"), specifies Congress's power to impose "Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises".

No one ever called this a War on Income. My point is to the OP that claims the War on Drugs has been going on for a hundred years by pointing to any regulation of drugs. Lots of things are regulated and we do not generally call regulation a 'War on' something. It is okay to tone down the hyperbole.

The parent comment can hardly be credited with the phrase. When Nixon announced his new policies he called it a war on drugs. A catchy phrase that stuck. Far too late now to try to rename it for some sort of pedantic consistency.

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