I know several guys (all men) who smoked pot in their youth, and some still do. Some are my age, one is my older son's age (30s. It ruined their lives. The belief was that it's not addictive. Maybe not addictive physically, but psychologically it is. It definitely seems to be connected with destroying one's motivation. Granted you can also destroy your life with alcohol. Personally, I think we need to create a culture where people don't want or need to alter their consciousness. We need to create beauty. I am alcohol and drug free. I remember once someone said to me, "You mean, your consciousness is the same from when you wake up until when you go to bed at night." Interestingly, that guy quit imbibing alcohol a few years after that.

People who need medical marijuana can get it, just like we can get morphine if we need it for medical purposes. That discussion clouds the issue.

Re: our legal system -- It has some strengths to it, but one big weakness is that it's all about the letter of the law. And if the law isn't written exactly so, then you can find a loophole -- it has nothing to do with truth. The French system is about the act in context and the results of it, not whether the act was performed exactly as proscribed by law. It seems more about truth than the British (our) system.