Hacker News Reader

Comment by phaemon | Hacker News Reader

The argument is not: "These drugs are safe, therefore they should be legal."

The argument is: "These drugs are unsafe, therefore they should be legal because making them illegal makes things even worse."

View on HN

I'd s/therefore/but/ in the second case.

A black market around heroin and meth will be really small as soon as better and less harmful drugs are cheaper.

Society can hardly intervene in every individual's self destruction. But it cannot allow drugs which are not useful for anything BUT self destruction.

"it cannot allow drugs which are not useful for anything BUT self destruction."

You've stated the government's position exactly, and they can provide some helpful additions to your list of dangerous drugs.

Methamphetamine is useful for non-self-destructive activities, which is why it is legal by prescription. Medical methamphetamine is used to treat narcolepsy and ADHD. On top of that, pharmaceutical methamphetamine is much safer, even at recreational doses, than black market drugs because the production process is well regulated.

Well actually there is a world of difference between Methamphetamine and Amphetamine (Adderall). They are in the same family like MDMA but the addition of a methyl group makes Methamphetamine a neurotoxin. "Methamphetamine is a potent neurotoxin, shown to cause dopaminergic degeneration."[1] So they although they share same traits, their hazardous effects are no where close to each other.

This is why drugs are complicated and different. Blanketing all "drugs" as bad while drinking Coffee, Whisky and Aspirin is just hypocritcal and dangerous.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methamphetamine#Pharmacology

I am aware of the difference between methamphetamine and amphetamine, but the reality is that methamphetamine is used medically and that in small doses the harm is below the measurement threshold. I do not doubt that harm is caused at recreational doses, but vastly more harm is caused by the adulterants in black market methamphetamine.

This is not actually true. Both amphetamine and methamphetamine are neurotoxic: methamphetamine is both more potent and less neurotoxic per 'dose'.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22289608

Also, as an anecdote, I have received d-amphetamine by prescription and have taken Desoxyn about five times. They're not that different, Desoxyn is subjectively 'cleaner'.

I stick to caffeine though, and roughly half a Modafinil every two weeks. Amphetamine is just not my friend. Your mileage may vary.

> Society can hardly intervene in every individual's self destruction. But it cannot allow drugs which are not useful for anything BUT self destruction.

Why not? Should I not be permitted to destroy myself if I so choose?

Because society needs you and who are you thinking you can take decisions for yourself not asking the government for permission? Get in line, you dangerous anarchist hippy, and be a good cog. And if you try to harm yourself again, we will put you in the cage with most violent and sociopathic people we could find and keep there until you understand we're doing this for your own good. That provided we don't kill you while trying to take from you dangerous chemicals that aren't good for you.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com