this post was submitted on 06 Feb 2025
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Colombian President Gustavo Petro said during a government meeting that cocaine is “not worse than whiskey” and that it's only illegal because it comes from Latin America.

Colombia, the world's largest producer and exporter of cocaine, has spent decades fighting drug trafficking, but the country's left-wing president claimed the drug was being scapegoated by American politicians, who have waged the war on drugs for decades.

“Cocaine is illegal because it is made in Latin America, not because it is worse than whiskey,” Petro said during a six-hour-long government meeting.

“Scientists have analyzed this: cocaine is not worse than whiskey,” he added, suggesting that the global cocaine industry could be “easily dismantled” if the drug was legalized worldwide.

The thing is, he's absolutely right. There was a suppressed 1995 study by the World Health Organization on cocaine and its effects. The US threatened to pull out of the WHO at the time since the findings didn't match US drug policy. Instead of losing the US, the WHO quietly shelved the study.

https://www.brucekalexander.com/articles-speeches/cocaine/181-who-cocaine-study

https://web.archive.org/web/20090618160146/www.tdpf.org.uk/WHOleaked.pdf

From the conclusions section:

A continuum can be identified for cocaine use, which includes:

  • experimental use
  • occasional use
  • situation-specific use
  • intensive use
  • compulsive/dysfunctional use

Experimental and occasional use are by far the most common types of use, and compulsive/dysfunctional is far less common. Compulsive or dysfunctional users often have serious relationship, work, legal and health problems.

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[–] Deconceptualist@lemm.ee 10 points 23 hours ago (5 children)

Okay, but the combination of coke and alcohol dramatically increases your risk for a heart attack, so having both really available is potentially an even worse health crisis.

[–] x00z@lemmy.world 2 points 5 hours ago (1 children)

If drugs are legal, education on such stuff could be done in schools, just like sexual education.

It also allows people to be honest about their usage in case of heart problems. For example, I live in a country where you can simply tell your doctor or hospital about drugs in your system and they will not call the police for it. It's much safer.

[–] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

just like sexual education.

Not off to a great start there for ~~a major part of the~~ soon to be the entire USA 😉

[–] x00z@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago (1 children)

USA only has 4.2% of the world population. And the article is about the Columbian president and his stance.

[–] NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world 1 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago) (1 children)

It's also about how the US threatened to pull out of the WHO over the report.

Edit: Sorry, the summary had someones opinion/comment on that matter including a different artcile, not the actual article.

[–] x00z@lemmy.world 1 points 3 hours ago

Maybe you got confused by other comments in the thread here. No worries.

But yeah, in some countries there is already drug education in school, albeit very basic. Most of it is stuff like how you shouldn't mix uppers and downers and that you should drink a lot of water.

The Netherlands has some great drug education though. They even allow stuff like this: https://www.youtube.com/@Drugslab

[–] Lumiluz@slrpnk.net 7 points 11 hours ago (1 children)

And the risk of alcohol and cars dramatically increases your risk of death and yet...

[–] Deconceptualist@lemm.ee 3 points 8 hours ago

I know, it's such a shame there's never been a campaign to inform people about the risks of drunk driving... /s

[–] Donjamos@lemmy.world 6 points 14 hours ago (1 children)

If both were legal you could educate people about them way better. Give your fellow men some more credit.

If someone who has been informed about the dangers of a drug decides to take it its neither your business nor mine. If someone wants to go free climbing or drove a motorcycle we don't say anything against that either.

[–] Deconceptualist@lemm.ee 1 points 8 hours ago* (last edited 8 hours ago)

I think ethically, legal status should not be a barrier to education about drugs. Sadly, in reality it often is (this includes research as well).

I'm not advocating for intrusive policing, if that's what you think. The system we have now in many places is horribly broken and abusive. Instead I'm saying we should decriminalize but keep policies that are essential to public health (e.g. don't give hard drugs to children), provide better resources for doctors and other healthcare workers, and deliver robust (and scientifically accurate) informational campaigns.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 4 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago) (1 children)

And so doesn't having prescription medication and booze, yet those are completely commonplace with people. We trust them to use them responsibly. Some do abuse them yes, but if they're caught, we try to fix the issue. Not throw them in jail.

Well more the risk with pills and booze is actually the autonomic nervous system getting sedated and you just not breathing after falling asleep. But the amounts for ods are actually kinda high tbh. Not that anyone should do that, we exaggerate risks a tiny bit for a proper purpose; you shouldn't go seeking for your personal limits on something like that.

But like having a half of a mild sedative before a few classes of wine really isn't drug abuse in anything but the technical sense. If you do that every night you've prolly got a problem though.

Anyway the point is most people can be responsible and the government should stop treating us as children just because a minority can't handle their shit.

Edit also I don't use coke never really saw the point as I'm an overconfident and energetic asshole even without it so idk why the fuck id pay so much for something I already have. Have tried several times but just not my thing. And it was good face numbing shit. But I do advocate for legalising it. I'd so like to have a coke with the original recipe.

[–] Deconceptualist@lemm.ee 0 points 15 hours ago

Prescription meds generally aren't party drugs. At least not the ones I know about. So that's not quite the same.

[–] Gold_E_Lox@lemmy.world 6 points 18 hours ago (1 children)

ok but having a [INSERT THING HERE] dramatically increases your risk for [FUTURE HEALTH ISSUE].

fuck punishing someone for ingesting a substance, im an adult and in control of my own body, silly shit.

actually youre right, i am not in control of my body. Institutions of control will always be forcing their will upon me.

[–] Deconceptualist@lemm.ee 2 points 15 hours ago* (last edited 15 hours ago)

Oh, I 100% believe that drugs should be decriminalized and treated as a health issue instead. Meaning both individual health and public health. Like how Portugal does it, IIRC.

Booze and cocaine are both party drugs and people already use them together, but I think there's a larger public health concern if they were both readily available because that population would spike. People should have a little more knowledge of the risks. Plenty of folks out there think uppers + downers just cancel out 🙄 We don't need more 20-somethings in the morgue.