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comment by alchemicalfix
alchemicalfix  ·  4502 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: The Heretic: On the Benefits and Ban of LSD Research
Well, for starters, as James Fadiman said in this article, the only way someone can legally access psychedelics is if they are really ill: PTSD, advanced cancer, profound OCD, etc. The beneficial results are staggering and largely accepted by the medical community.

If psychedelics work so well for people who are quite sick, needless to say, they will work for those of us who are relatively healthy, too. I do not think that, of all the healthy people in the world, only elite researchers should be granted legal access to psychedelics.

It seems that to legalize all psychedelics tomorrow might be a bit of a leap for our society today. But there is international precedent for reasonable polices that can begin to at least remove the unjust and draconian penalties associated with psychedelic drug use, such as the decriminalization measures adopted 11 years ago in Portugal. (Note: decriminalization is not the same as legalization). http://www.businessinsider.com/portugal-drug-policy-decrimin...

As to what happens after tomorrow: If you're interested, I could probably find links and such to some of the more visionary thinkers who posit how of psychedelics could be safely integrated into Western societies - including the recurring idea to legalize regional facilities where people are carefully screened and then permitted to experience guided psychedelic voyages.