I'll say it straight up, there are some drugs that are bad for the body and mind but some illegal drugs could be good for people if given in a controlled manner by a physician. Some drugs are highly addictive and cause damage to the body and mind (e.g. meth, coke, crack, heroin) to name a few. However, other drugs, such as cannabis, do zero damage to the body and for many or even most people cause no harm psychologically even when used heavily. It is medically impossible for anyone to overdose on cannabis, and it is entirely possible for one to drink themselves to death and overdose on alcohol. Yet cannabis is still illegal.

Also, some drugs, such as MDMA, have important uses in psychotherapy. While I have never used it and have had no need to, it helps many people to get over trauma that they have suffered and recover from PTSD. However, the drug is still illegal even for therapists to administer. Additionally, psilocybin mushrooms have also helped many people to heal from mental health conditions when given in a theraputic setting, but it is impossible for people to get this treatment due to drug laws. Other illegal drugs have important medical and psychological applications but are banned by the law.

In addition, legal drugs, such as oxycodone, cause a lot of harm. However, they are still prescribed by drug companies regardless of negative effects that are far worse than their alternative that can be used in some cases (cannabis).

Drug laws also target minorities and other individuals that cannot get a lawyer. In many minority neighborhoods, people are arrested and jailed long term for using and selling small amounts of drugs. This results in voter suppression and the inability to participate in our society.

I had a good friend that got charged for selling a dime bag of weed to his cousin in a parking lot. Lucky for him he was white and able to afford a lawyer, but he was facing a felony charge (luckily he got it down to a misdemeanor). Had it not been for being able to spend nearly ten thousand dollars on a lawyer, he likely would have been imprisoned for a couple of years and would have lost his voting rights. If he were a minority or unable to find a good lawyer, my friend likely wouldn't have voted again and could be in jail right now.

Furthermore, some cops in minority areas go around looking to shake people down for drugs to get them sent to jail for their own sick power trips. I feel that the drugs laws are an active attempt to suppress members of society and keep those in power more powerful. In the case of cannabis (and maybe some other illegal drugs), the substance is not very hazardous. Yet it is banned in order to keep people from thinking from themselves and to be used as an excuse to send minorities to prison and prevent them from participating in society and having an influence in our world. That is why I feel every drug should be legalized.

Also, philosophically, I do not believe that drugs should be banned even if they are harmful. Some drugs are very harmful. However, even those that are should be legal because it is everyone's choice to do with their body as they please. Even if heroin and crack were legal, I wouldn't be smoking and/or injecting them. However, I think that if one chooses to make such a bad decision, the government shouldn't punish them over it. The person should instead be encouraged by their doctor and/or others around them to make better choices.

This has been proven to be a far better model. In portugal, where all drugs are essentially legal for personal use, use is down. Why? because doctors and even cops simply encourage people to give up their illicit vices rather than arresting them. This has caused drug use to drop and those addicted have easier access to rehab/detox facilities to get clean. When an individual is arrested for drug use, it causes them to lose connections with society and actually ends up encouraging drug abuse rather than discouraging it.

I know seriously. It will not be long before all freedoms are taken away, if congress blindly goes along with him. If he did not have congress holding him back, the guy would probably declare himself king as he is such an incredible narcissist. Even with congress holding him back, I think there will be significant changes that drastically reduce all freedoms of the constitution. There is one way that we can ensure free speech lasts and people do not get brainwashed. For one, all people must remain strong minded and not get brainwashed by mindless rhetoric.

Second, if free speech is censored, the past government created a fail safe during the 1990s to protect free speech in other countries (or here if it was ever taken away by an oppressive regime), and it is now funded by a non profit organization. It's called Tor, and it ensures that all citizens of the world have access to unbiased information and is able to get around all government firewalls of all kinds. I personally believe that all citizens should download this software as soon as possible, and it available for free from the Tor project. Search for it on DuckDuckGo. Contrary to misconception, Tor is not slow at all. It runs great. I'm using it right now, and it works fine and also offers a vast amount of privacy

Mental hospitals are likely not the answer, as once you go into one, getting out is quite difficult. Plus, who defines what deems one "crazy" anyways. I think the best way to deal with mental illness is for there to ensure that mental health medications and counseling are covered by private insurance and/or state insurance programs, and this will ensure that people will have access to mental healthcare and also have a chance of recovering from their condition without being locked up in an institution for life. In many cases, when people have access to adequate mental healthcare outside of an institution, it is possible for those with even the most serious conditions to recover from their illness. In comparison, when one is institutionalized on a long term basis, it is nearly impossible for anyone to recover from their condition.

I actually used to suffer from issues that would likely be deemed "mental illness". While I largely stayed out of the system, I went to a few psychologists. The only diagnosis I got was depression. However, I actually experienced highly detailed auditory hallucinations for several months and even had full conversations with them. I was able to recover from this completely, but I doubt that this would have happened had I been hospitalized.

The disability application should be streamlined to ensure that people are not waitlisted that truly need it for mental or physical conditions. However, with the current administration, this is unlikely to happen. Instead, disability benefits will likely be repealed in entirety and/or there even could be programs aimed at ensuring that those with mental disabilities are unable to be employed..... possibly HIPPA will be repealed ensuring that the corporations will be able to see all records, including mental health records.

I think that it will not be long before democracy is nearly unrecognizable. It is sad to say, but I see democracy could go away completely in the future. The Voter ID requirements take voting rights away from some, but hacking could potentially take voting rights away from everyone. I also see it in the future that the Republican congress could connect voting machines to the internet, thus enabling the Russians to control the elections remotely through hacking. I hope this is not the case, but I think we all need to prepare for this scenario.