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Comment by photochemsyn | Hacker News Reader

Individuals using drugs in a remote facility where screwups can lead to fatal results is a terrible idea. Yes, alcohol is entirely comparable to opiates, it has a similar endorphin-like effect. Beer is like opium, wine is like morphine, liquor is like heroin. As I see it, you might as well have photos of an opium den with some heroin needles lined up for the customer's use.

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> As I see it, you might as well have photos of an opium den with some heroin needles lined up for the customer's use

Clearly you have never been in an opium den (nor have I, but I know people who have). The patrons smoke the opium (not heroin) from pipes.

I agree that alcohol can be just as destructive and life altering as opiates. But, there does seem to be a higher percentage of alcohol users that can remain at least somewhat responsible users, perhaps some biological or other factors.

I'm also confused by the categorization of beer->opium, wine->morphine, liquor->heroin. A dedicated alcoholic is able to get as drunk as they need to with any of the three. Sure, the alcohol content is higher as you move right, but beer is potent enough to do the job.

There is also a larger percentage of the population in general that use alcohol, mostly due to drug scheduling

Well here's one guy I wouldn't want to have a beer with, in Antarctica or elsewhere.

More reasons to not normalize alcohol consumption:

> "People with alcohol dependence often experience "brain shrinkage," which is reduced volume of both gray matter (cell bodies) and white matter (cell pathways) over time."

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33424857

Makes sense to want to ban alcohol if no one wants to have a beer with you, it's okay.

I don't think any drugs (including alcohol) should be banned at all, except in places where the consequences of being drunk/stoned/doped/disoriented could be very serious - operating ships (Exxon Valdez's drunk captain), for example. I can imagine people holed up in a insulated box for months during the Antarctic winter would want some relief, but maybe playing video games is a better option than booze or other drugs.

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