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Alcohol and nicotine kill far more.
Exactly. And that is because they are legal, not in spite of it.

This is your best point, and has made me stop and think for a few minutes. Then I realized where the difference of opinion comes from. You seem to be indicating that it is the job of government to regulate, criminalize, or control almost any inanimate object that could injure the user when it is used or abused. Many here disagree, wanting the government to have as little to do with our daily lives as possible.

Is it the government's job to protect us from ourselves doing unhealthy things?

Many pro-WOD would say that drugs harm more than the user. My response would be that law enforcement should handle those effects without making the item in question illegal. Auto accidents kill 55,000 per year but cars should not be declared off-limits. Police regulate the cars speed; legislatures control the safety, emissions, and licensing; individuals are left to enjoy the "privilege" of driving as they see fit after that. Many are abusive, and are punished for those abuses. Why aren't drugs controlled, monitored, and enforced the same way (controlling their potency, content, and strength; punishing those who used them in ways that harmed or endangered others after the fact; and leaving citizens the freedom to use recreationally)? Yes, the number of deaths may increase... so what? It is not the government's job to make us as healthy as possible against our will.

BTW, I'm merely discussing policies, logic and philosophy. I'm perfectly happy to keep drugs illegal, as long as the very damaging WOD is ended. No-knock raids, confiscation of THE TITLE TO property, and the ability to jail he smallest infractions (kinda like jailing someone for going 5mph over the speed limit) are all doing more harm to our liberties than good.

You seem to be indicating that it is the job of government to regulate, criminalize, or control almost any inanimate object that could injure the user when it is used or abused. Many here disagree, wanting the government to have as little to do with our daily lives as possible.

No. What I am saying is legalizing drugs will only get more people killed. You think it is bad dealing with drunk drivers? Try someone plowing into a school bus filled with kids because they could not miss their morning dose of LSD.

What I am saying is I have had it up to here with people that are of the opinion the "war on drugs" is not winnable, so we should just surrender and give up. That is just like saying instead of trying harder to protect our borders (like by placing a military presence there), we should just give in and let everybody come completely freely (never mind the higher crime rate and the people flying planes into heavily populated buildings). Or perhaps deciding at Normandy Beach we were not going to take the Nazis, so we should throw up the white flag (of course, none of us would have been born).

That is not merely completely f*cking crazy, that is unbelievably f*cking stupid.