# Why are drugs illegal in every country? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 29, 2013, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517 "2013-08-29T17:55:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![theorange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@theorange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theorange)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/1 "2013-08-29T17:55:41Z")
It’s surprising that _every single_ country in the world keeps drugs like cocaine and heroin illegal – even the ultra-liberal Scandinavian countries that permit, for example, euthanasia. What forces drive that? You would think, for example, that at the very least poor countries could make a killing by legalizing drugs. Why is there no “Las Vegas” of totally legalized drugs? ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/2 "2013-08-29T18:05:07Z")
They’re not. > [@Wiki](#): > > Under the chemical names diamorphine and diacetylmorphine, heroin is a legally prescribed controlled drug in the United Kingdom, and is supplied in tablet or injectable form for the same indications as morphine is, often being preferred over morphine due to its lower side-effect profile. It is also available for prescription to long-term users as a form of opioid replacement therapy in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, and Denmark, alongside psycho-social care—in the same manner that methadone or buprenorphine are used in the United States or Canada—and a similar program is being campaigned for by liberal political parties in Norway. > [@Wiki](#): > > The production, distribution and sale of cocaine products is restricted (and illegal in most contexts) in most countries as regulated by the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, and the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. In the United States the manufacture, importation, possession, and distribution of cocaine is additionally regulated by the 1970 Controlled Substances Act. > Some countries, such as Peru and Bolivia permit the cultivation of coca leaf for traditional consumption by the local indigenous population, but nevertheless prohibit the production, sale and consumption of cocaine. In addition, some parts of Europe and Australia allow processed cocaine for medicinal uses only. ---
**Author:** ![theorange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@theorange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theorange)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/3 "2013-08-29T18:13:19Z")
Ok right, there is a little medical decriminalization or grandfathering of traditional uses in religious contexts. But this is a far cry from actual, positive, large-scale legalization. ---
**Author:** ![miss\_elizabeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/838e76/32.png) [@miss\_elizabeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miss_elizabeth)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/4 "2013-08-29T18:20:21Z")
I was under the impression it was decriminalized in a lot of places. Is that wrong? Anyway, my answer would be that there’s just not a movement to legalize these drugs, since they are addictive and so few people use them regularly. There are movements to get users classified as people in need of medical help, rather than criminals who should be in jail. As for a Las Vegas for legal drugs, I just don’t think most people are interested. Since these drugs are addictive, few people want to try a little heroin while on vacation, and people who are addicted will just use at home instead of spending extra money (money you could spend on MORE DRUGS) to go to another country and use. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/5 "2013-08-29T18:20:51Z")
The amount of pressure the big players put on everyone else is pretty strong. When Canada was making noises about allowing pot possession to be legal, the pressure from the US government was fairly strong. Plus, unlike alcohol, there is no valid legitimate reason for drugs other than, “like wow, man…”. People make pretentious noises about wine and whiskey taste, etc. Beer is a satisfying drink well before you start to see double and puke everywhere. There’s no such redeeming arguments for injecting yourself with heroin, and cocaine can have serious side effects - like paranoia. Plus, addicted persons will become desperate for a refill and make inappropriate and self destructive choices. Impaired persons can be dangerous operating the wrong equipment; at least drunk is easier to spot. Look how often employers in the USA test their employees. I think it’s more for the protection of the weak-minded and to prevent the spread of addiction. As we saw in the 1920’s some people would also like to stop the use of alcohol as a drug too. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/6 "2013-08-29T18:23:24Z")
> [@theorange](#): > > You would think, for example, that at the very least poor countries could make a killing by legalizing drugs. You answered your own comment. 😃 > [@](#): > > Why is there no “Las Vegas” of totally legalized drugs? So who is going to pay for, and clean up the mess, of widespread drug use? ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/7 "2013-08-29T19:31:01Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > So who is going to pay for, and clean up the mess, of widespread drug use? This is the answer. A “druggie’s paradise” would be hell for anyone who _isn’t_ a heavy drug user, which is most people. Even places like the Netherlands only tolerate mostly-harmless stuff like pot, and only so long as it doesn’t become a nuisance. (If people in Amsterdam were constantly stumbling over passed-out stoners, you can be damn sure pot would get re-criminalized in a hurry.) ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/8 "2013-08-29T20:31:17Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > This is the answer. A “druggie’s paradise” would be hell for anyone who _isn’t_ a heavy drug user, which is most people. Even places like the Netherlands only tolerate mostly-harmless stuff like pot, and only so long as it doesn’t become a nuisance. (If people in Amsterdam were constantly stumbling over passed-out stoners, you can be damn sure pot would get re-criminalized in a hurry.) Look at the history of Platzspitz in Zurich. The Swiss government allowed it to be zone where drug use and sales were legal. It rapidly turned into a chaotic shithole which had to be shut down. As far as I can tell Switzerland still has one of the most permissive drug laws in the western world but this experiment showed what a totally hands off approach could lead to. ---
**Author:** ![Blakeyrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blakeyrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blakeyrat)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2013, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/9 "2013-08-29T20:48:17Z")
Any place with zero drug laws would be too dangerous for tourists to consider visiting. For example, you can take all those drugs to your heart’s content in Liberia right now-- would you? Is a couple weeks of heroin worth being kidnapped, tortured, or killed? ---
**Author:** ![Nippless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/df788c/32.png) [@Nippless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nippless)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/10 "2013-08-30T07:30:42Z")
> [@Duckster](#): > > So who is going to pay for, and clean up the mess, of widespread drug use? Who pays for and cleans the mess left by alcohol? It doesn’t need to be a ‘hard’ drug paradise, but allowing psychadelics, MDMA and the like, there is nowhere on the planet for this. But we can all get drunk. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![clairobscur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/839c29/32.png) [@clairobscur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clairobscur)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/11 "2013-08-30T08:50:18Z")
> [@miss\_elizabeth](#): > > I was under the impression it was decriminalized in a lot of places. Is that wrong? > . Decriminalized isn’t the same as legal. It only means you won’t be prosecuted for using drugs. You still can’t sell them. I believe that even in the Netherlands, marijuana production, sale and use isn’t technically legal but only tolerated. I could be wrong, though. ---
**Author:** ![Crazier\_Catlady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Crazier\_Catlady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crazier_Catlady)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/12 "2013-08-30T10:57:29Z")
Sale of marijuana in the Netherlands is perfectly legal in places called coffee shops (for some reason), but those coffee shops are only allowed to have a stock of 500 grams. Large scale production is still illegal and does get prosecuted, but owning no more than 5 plants is allowed. ---
**Author:** ![Alba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea666f/32.png) [@Alba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alba)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/13 "2013-08-30T11:22:00Z")
> [@Crazier\_Catlady](#): > > Sale of marijuana in the Netherlands is perfectly legal in places called coffee shops (for some reason), but those coffee shops are only allowed to have a stock of 500 grams. Large scale production is still illegal and does get prosecuted, but owning no more than 5 plants is allowed. Plants are not allowed for private use. If the police find out you have plants they will take them away. If you have them in excess of 5 they will prosecute you. Also, buying soft drugs isn’t legal. It is decriminalised. [Dutch Link](http://www.rijksoverheid.nl/onderwerpen/drugs/vraag-en-antwoord/ben-ik-strafbaar-als-ik-drugs-bezit-gebruik-produceer-of-verhandel.html) OP might want to move to Columbia… [New drug bill ‘to decriminalise ecstasy’ in Colombia](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-21254907) I believe coca leaves are legal there too. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/14 "2013-08-30T15:11:52Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Look at the history of Platzspitz in Zurich. The Swiss government allowed it to be zone where drug use and sales were legal. It rapidly turned into a chaotic shithole which had to be shut down. As far as I can tell Switzerland still has one of the most permissive drug laws in the western world but this experiment showed what a totally hands off approach could lead to. But if it were allowed anywhere, then no place would suffer like that. Just for the record, is Platzspitz the park behind the Landesmuseum that I always heard called “needle park”. I remember that park quite fondly when I was in Zurich for six months in 1967, ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/15 "2013-08-30T15:50:46Z")
> [@theorange](#): > > … the ultra-liberal Scandinavian countries that permit, for example, euthanasia. We do? Since when? ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/16 "2013-08-30T16:00:26Z")
> [@Nippless](#): > > Who pays for and cleans the mess left by alcohol? > > It doesn’t need to be a ‘hard’ drug paradise, but allowing psychadelics, MDMA and the like, there is nowhere on the planet for this. But we can all get drunk. :rolleyes: How far would you like to shift the goalposts? The OP specifically mentioned heroin and cocaine. And, as mentioned, there have been efforts in other countries and in several US states to decriminalize marijuana. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/17 "2013-08-30T16:31:46Z")
> [@Great\_Antibob](#): > > How far would you like to shift the goalposts? The OP specifically mentioned heroin and cocaine. The question is why almost every country considers the same set of substances to be illegal drugs. The OP mentions heroin and cocaine, but it seems like the “softer” drugs where there aren’t hugely obvious reasons for prohibition would be more illustrative. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/18 "2013-08-30T16:38:45Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > This is the answer. A “druggie’s paradise” would be hell for anyone who _isn’t_ a heavy drug user, which is most people. Even places like the Netherlands only tolerate mostly-harmless stuff like pot, and only so long as it doesn’t become a nuisance. (If people in Amsterdam were constantly stumbling over passed-out stoners, you can be damn sure pot would get re-criminalized in a hurry.) Not that I agree with the OP, but this isn’t accurate either. Legalizing hard drugs doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to legalize public consumption, possession, or intoxication. You get busted for any of those with alcohol. Legal heroin doesn’t mean that a guy can shoot up on a park bench. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/19 "2013-08-30T16:55:28Z")
In the US both cocaine and morphine (pharmaceutical grade heroin derivative) are legal and available for medical purposes and highly controlled. They are not legal for self-medication. ---
**Author:** ![nanguta3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9e8a1a/32.png) [@nanguta3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nanguta3)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-drugs-illegal-in-every-country/667517/20 "2013-08-30T17:11:42Z")
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