[ntluser]

Though drugs, cigarettes and alcohol can have a detrimental effect on your health there will always be people who are happy to use them and accept the risk.

The problem is that though they accept the risk for themselves it is the non-users who actually suffer.

Drugs play a big part in drug related crime, where addicts and users steal from other people to pay for their habit.

As far as cigarettes go, we all remember Roy Castle, a non-smoker dying of cancer, from passive smoking not to mention the large number of smokers dying from lung cancer.

Watching the incidents of binge drinking on the TV, it is the sober policemen, landlords and other members of the public who have to deal with their antics. Further, a fair proportion of domestic violence is alcohol-related, not to mention the number of deaths and injuries caused by drink driving.

All three substances harm the users to some degree ( whether they admit it or not) but they also harm other people affected by their actions.

Their widespread usage means that a large number of people are affected either as users or victims.

The creation of the skunk variety of cannabis means that perhaps without knowing it recreational users are moving on to harder drugs even though it's not heroin, ecstasy etc.

The ongoing problem is that because of the addictive quality of drugs, cigarettes and alcohol this situation will be with us for some time.

Maybe the only way to solve it is for the victims of users to take out civil law suits to seek redress or for users to recognize that they are addicted and to seek medical help to address the problem.

It will be interesting to see how it all turns out.