It’s not even a controversial position, as it’s been stated publically by the people who crafted and implemented the legislation that this was the stated aim.
And the US demanded that other countries adopt our drug policy laws and they followed our lead.
This cognitive censorship is something to be outraged about - flies directly in the face of the Establishment Clause of the first Amemdment and is deeply detrimental to our democracy.
Even William F. Buckley was against the War On Drugs.
What we ought to pour those resources into is a “War on Trauma” (if we still require branding things as a ‘war’ to garner political support.)
Trauma is what underpins the majority of mental health issues including depression, suicide, and addiction.
Drugs without trauma isn’t a problem, it’s when the drugs become a proxy for self regulation that we run into issues.