Oh I'm not apathetic about legalization at all. Morally, logically, and economically some kind of radical departure form the status quo is long overdue. The worst side effects of many criminalized drugs is being forced into a cage for days, weeks, or possibly the rest of your life. This has wrought nothing except decades of unconscionable human misery, all for nothing. I don't think most people recognize just how awful current policy is.

The once-great History Channel did a series called 'Illegal Drugs and How They Got That Way'. Its prob on youtube now. Its great. I just wanted to point out that each drug has its own logic for regulation, and cultural differences in drug use need to be accounted for.

> [opiates kill around] 30 per 100,000 people)

Also for reference: the murder rate is ~5 per 100k, suicide is ~11 per 100k. The opiate epidemic is terrifying.

> deaths would go down tremendously.

While I'm in favor of broad decriminalization/legalization/policy-reform for all drugs, I'm not 100% sold on this claim for opiates. Your claim could be correct, but historically opiates have uniquely ravaged whole societies. The book "Ten Drugs" talks about 2000 year-old medical description of how useful opiates can be, noting 'it is hard to get patients to discontinue use'. The book also notes the cycle of opium use in history, swinging from 'this time it'll be safer' to 'way to many people are addicts now' (See Laudanum; OxyContin).

Current policy has definitely incentivized Fentanyl trade and made billions for murderous cartels. Safe-use areas with government provided heroine were helpful in combating the Swiss heroine crisis in the 1990's. However the additive potential of opiates is up there with drug nicotine, only much more destructive.