From a pure reading perspective, I'm enjoying everyone's responses.
Feredir, I think I meant that I believe someone can't truly understand how alcohol is a drug unless they've had other drugs. It may be completely untrue but I've found it true for myself. I used to drink a lot, not like an alcoholic, but get wasted with friends sometimes. It was "fun", but I never liked the side effects. I've never really had an anger problem, but alcohol doesn't help me become less angry when something irritates me. Now I just realize that if I want to chill then alcohol is no longer my drug of choice. I barely drink anymore. I find it harder to control myself when drunk and sometimes have little self-control. I'm NOT proud to admit it and I hope to god it never happens again, but I have driven a couple times when I've drank too much. When I'm high though I can see clearly and I just say, na, I'm not driving. I'm able to have that control. And perhaps that scenario only applies to me, or maybe not, I don't know.
MH, I'm certainly not going to disagree with your experiences. In fact I understand them really well. That's why I've always supported a 21+ age minimum for pot. I do think it can kill ambition, grades etc. But just like any other drug, you have to be mature enough to understand how doing something will affect your life. That's why we have minimum ages for driving, drinking and other things. Thinking of my youth, pot distracted me for a while, so did booze, so did girls. Anything can interfere and I don't think that something like pot should be available to you when you're in school working out your life. It should be a more mature decision.
Kids try it and yes it often can mess them up young cause it distracts from what they should be doing. That's another reason I'm for legalization. Because instead of lying to kids and showing anti-drug commercials like I see on TV here that shows toking up leads to rolling on extasy and snorting coke all the time, we could actually educate on drugs. I've love to see a drug education class in school the same way we have sex-ed. That way they may decide not to and if they decide to still try it (which they might have anyway) then at least they'll be educated on how to do it safely.
The connection with the illegality surrounding drugs and the illegality of drugs is many faceted. Part of the breakdown of ethical behavior you note is the result of their being illegal, because making unnecessary laws breaks down the basic respect for the law, and that breaks down repect for laws that have a point such as laws against theft and murder.
CG, I agree %100 with what you say. I was brought up to respect the law, and I do (mostly), but when laws like this exist its hard to respect the system. Even moreso when its not enforced, showing that even the authorities have little respect for the same laws. In Toronto we have vapor lounges. You pay $5 to get in, bring your own weed and you can go sit on a couch and use one of the house vaporizers (something I really like to do because its healthy, allowing all the cannabanoids to enter your body, sweet tasting, has no strain on the lungs and also very relaxing). They don't sell weed or bake it into any products (one did once and got completely shut down and I agree with that). They also don't serve alcohol, they just sell drinks and munchies. I know why the police don't shut it down, because the 10 highest people that walk out of there pale in severity to the 10 drunkest people that walk out of the bar next door. The law here sees it, I really think its only a matter of time before its incorporated into our system more efficiently.