[hmkpoker]

Drugs are considered bad because the negative effects are severe, yet uncertain. Authoritarians think that the uncertainty of the punishment is insufficent to steer people away from something dangerous, so they want to deter people...with severe and uncertain punishments.

There is no reason to believe that in a world without drug punishment, the majority of the population will degenerate into an orgy of self-gratifying heroin addicts. Very few people who are not deterred by the illegality of drugs will do the ones that are actually dangerous (speed, heroin, crack).

It should also be mentioned that during the industrial revolution, heroin was not only 100% legal, widely available and cheap; it's negative effects were also very unknown. It was sold in cough medicine over the counter to children, and the fears of modern day social conservatives did not manifest. In fact, during this time the most feared and loathed drug of the time was alcohol. It brought about more anti-social effects than any other chemical recreant in existence (and having indulged in many of them myself, I am inclined to agree).