Some could even be bought from the Sears Catalogue. But Americans realized that these legalized drugs were harmful to individuals and society, and drug laws were enacted. Legalization proponents would have these statutes repealed and make opium readily available. The experts believe that legalization of drugs would decrease the perception of risk currently associated with drug use. The group strongly endorsed the notion that the government should help protect people from substances and activities that are harmful to them, the community, and society at large.
Cocaine is a much more addictive drug than alcohol.
England's experience when heroin is widely available, shows that use and addiction increase. When Great Britain allowed doctors to prescribe heroin to addicts there was an explosion in the rate of use, and by the mid-1980s known addiction rates were increasing by about 30 percent a year. This was a program in which heroin users needed a doctor's authorization to get their drug. Legalization was given a lengthy try closer to home when the Alaska Supreme Court ruled in 1975 that the state could not interfere with a person's possession of marijuana in his home for personal use. Enforcement was permitted only when the quantity possessed exceeded four ounces - this in a state that, because of the long, sunny days of its brief growing season, produces extremely potent marijuana.