[Al Swearengen]

This article only serves to confirm what many of us already knew, namely that many of the illegal drugs have beneficial applications. Personally, I've always resented the hell out of someone, anyone, telling me what I can or can't do. You all understand what I'm saying, right? If I want to drop acid, smoke grass, or shoot heroin into my veins, what the bloody hell business is it of yours or the government's? And I'm talking strictly personal use here, so please, lets not have any comments along the lines of "but what about the children?" When you cut thru all the crap and get right down to it, the main objections to people pretty much doing whatever they want (provided nobody else is harmed or their rights infringed upon) are 1. We can't have people engaging in anything that smacks of original thought (in other words, we can't have people thinking TOO damn much about how inept and incompetent the establishment is at running things)...and 2. If we can't figure out a way to tax it, lets make it illegal.

Say what you will about the Europeans, but theres just no denying the fact that they're always a step ahead of us when it comes to "better living thru chemistry". They're always "setting the pace". Case in point, ABSINTHE!