The War on Drugs, much like Prohibition, has failed the US.

It has done nothing but makes drugs

stronger, more expensive, and disenfranchise many of our citizens. Some of these individuals who
suffer are the highest educated professionals. This ranges from PhDs to finance. These people are high
functioning adults and unfortunately, they do put their careers at risk. I do not believe that these
competent individuals should have their careers put at risk merely for experimenting with what the
market has to offer. This is especially true within a common law, democratic, and capitalist country.
For instance, is there a difference between a man who uses marijuana and alcohol on the weekends?
The only difference is that one has biomarkers which stay in your system for up to 2 months and one is
classified as a Schedule II drug which, despite its legal status in many states, can strip them of their
license to practice.

Allow me to illustrate my points with outside evidence:

According to the household survey of 18-to-25-year-olds, the people most likely to have used
cocaine in the previous month in 1982 were those who graduated from college. The least likely to
have used cocaine were those who never finished high school. Among college graduates, 13 percent
said they had used cocaine in the past month, while among those without high school diplomas, only
4 percent had used cocaine.
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/30/us/rich-vs-poor-drug-patterns-are-diverging.html?pagewanted=all

Approximately 10% to 12% of physicians will develop a substance use disorder during their careers, a rate
similar to or exceeding that of the general population. Although physicians' elevated social status brings many
tangible and intangible rewards, it also has an isolating effect when they are confronted with a disease such as
addiction, which has a social stigma. This isolation can lead to disastrous consequences, both in delaying the
recognition of and in intervening in the disease process, as well as in the attendant risk of death by inadvertent
overdose or suicide."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2704134/

Provigil is the American brand name for the compound modafinil, the latest in a
long and mostly undistinguished line of substances ranging from cocaine
(commended by Freud) to amphetamines (assistant to Kerouac for 'On the Road')
to Ritalin (long a college student favorite) to good old caffeine, consumed to fuel
binges of productivity. Originally designed to treat narcolepsy, a disorder that
leaves people perpetually sleepy, Provigil is also prescribed for those suffering
from sleep apnea or for shift workers who can't get proper shut-eye during the
day yet must stay alert enough at night so as not to kill people with heavy
machinery. The air force, meanwhile, dispenses it as a "go pill," used by pilots to
stay sharp. In July, the technology news site TechCrunch speculated that Provigil
was becoming the "entrepreneur's drug of choice around Silicon Valley," powering
20-hour workdays. In other words, Provigil is already renowned for its ability to
keep people awake. Lately, however, the drug is getting attention for doing more
than that. It seems that a lot of people are taking Provigil to make themselves
smarter.

http://www.mensjournal.com/magazine/how-fighter-pilots-stay-sharp-20131205

Is 1/10 of every educated professional dangerously incompetent? Every soldier is incompetent? I

sincerely doubt it. Malpractice rates for all professions are much lower than that. Unfortunately, these
individuals who have substance abuse issues are unable to get help due to the stigma and legal
ramification surrounding it. Every addict is not a criminal. Addiction, while having physical
components to it, is largely mental. Your view regarding this subject is objectively, ethically, and
legally incorrect. It is this kind of view which quite literally makes the problem worse.

Here as some options which you can utilize to help the people in need which is actually supported by the
evidence:

https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/principles-drug-addiction-treatment-research-based-guide-
third-edition/evidence-based-approaches-to-drug-addiction-treatment
https://sencanada.ca/content/sen/committee/371/ille/presentation/ucht-e.htm

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26202542
Choice, is not as easy as you put it. Cognitive science suggests that there are many factors which both
support and oppose the idea of free will itself. Stating that, it is not as easy to put addiction as a choice.
People cannot control the foods or music which they like let alone whether or not they have a proclivity
towards addiction to alcohol or meth. Addiction is rooted within psychological dysfunction which likely
requires therapy. Some individuals are able to shake this and I applaud them; however, assuming that it is all
up to the person themselves is utterly reductionistic.

https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/criminal-justice/science-drug-use-discussion-points

Your stance on tolerance of drug use is predictable, but lacking correlation with evidence. If we promote an
environment where people can admit drug use and seek help without crippling their future, we see that
people get better and return to functional lives. They become productive citizens again. This is much quicker
and more cost effective than arresting some one and putting them in a cage. Unfortunately, roughly 11% of
people with substance abuse issues and recidivism rates are high.

Overall, I would say the criminal justice system has been an abject failure at functioning at much of anything
other than creating a large prison population. That prison population is then used for disgustingly cheap
labor and has become state subsidized wage-slavery. It has failed to function as a correctional facility and
often cripples the inmates future.

I am sorry that you feel scared of my viewpoint. I value liberty and beneficence. While you threw people into
cages for drug use, I help people with opioid abuse every day. I see the aftermath of supply side
management strategies. Instead, I focus on harm reduction and improving the human condition. I will leave
you a quote from Yoda