Oh, right. Totally we have to revise our talk as they get older and I'm sure they'll understand. They actually get the idea that some things are too complex for us to explain right now. Mostly I just want them to a) not drink beer out of the refrigerator and b) tell us if someone tries to get them to take a pill. And since getting taller and smarter, plus not going to jail, are really big things for kids their age, it works out fine. At this point, I think that security -- giving them the idea that laws and adults are there for benign reasons -- is more important than teaching them the nuances of political agendas.
But when they're older I'm going to be honest with them -- specifically that I think it's stupid that marijuana's illegal and you bet I've smoked it but things were really different when I was a kid because if you got caught (and didn't get sent to a mind control cult), there were really pretty minor consequences. You might have to appear in juvenile court and pay a fine, but that was pretty much it. Whereas now you can get caught at 16 and spend 20 years in prison, thanks to mandatory minimums. Part of being an adult is accepting that some rules are stupid, but it's easier to follow them than not.
You are 100% right about the problems from prohibition, which is why I don't EVER want my kids to take a pill from someone. Again, it's just not safe anymore. I had a long conversation the other day about the declining quality of meth with a former addict. She'd been a Hell's Angel's mama -- has the tattoos and the sun damage and the permanent track marks -- and she was just appalled at the crap they're selling today. It's mostly battery acid, which IMO is why we're seeing so much violence. People aren't strung out, they're brain damaged.
FYI, You can actually still get meth if you have ADHD, it's called Desoxyn. I wonder why we don't hear more about it.