Idiocy. Clean-up aisle 4.
Human beings enjoy changing consciousness. That's just the way it is. It's something we've done for the full extent of our history. No society has been immune. We like it, and more importantly we like it in variety. Ever since the first person left a basket of fruit too long in a cool and dry place, or the first person used a cannabis or a tobacco plant for firewood. Earlier than that even; the first proto-humans to munch on some magic mushrooms.
But today we're not allowed. Official decree from the United States federal government is that if any person is significantly changing consciousness for "recreational" purposes, if the substance they're using is anything other than alcohol, that person is not fit to live in society and needs to be put in a little cage.
So what do we have? A "substance abuse" problem. As in we've trained ourselves to go apeshit over substance use and/or abuse; a passtime which we've found particularly enjoyable since forever.
Now, I know this is not a cut-and-dried issue. There is a balance. Substance abuse is potentially a very bad thing regardless of the substance being abused. And some are really quite horrible.
In my opinion, at this time there are a few names on the Schedule 1 list which belong there.
But there is one that doesn't. Balance.
Repeal the treaties. Change the laws. Legalize marijuana.
(h/t to VictorLaszlo for this comment)
crossposted at The Hammershop