At Chacruna: Why Are Some Drugs Legal, and Others Illegal?

Alexander Dawson, Ph.D.When Spaniards first arrived in the Americas, they encountered an array of mood altering substances, from tobacco, to chocolate, peyote, and ololiuqui. They debated the essence of all of these substances, and ultimately concluded that some were diabolic, and others ok. The diabolic were banned, and those caught using them, or even talking about, them became targets of the Spanish Inquisition. The others gradually entered everyday use, within a few short years losing any trace of an indigenous taint... continue reading.