This Year's Libertarian Gift Guide: 23 Ideas for 2023
In today's innovative economy, there's no excuse for sending a gift card. The staff at Reason is here with some inspiration.
Drugs
How a Law No One Understands Brought Down Florida Drug 'Kingpins'
Jordan S. Rubin's Bizarro tells the story of the men who tried and failed to challenge the government's arbitrary rules on synthetic drugs.
Ohio Republicans Drop Last-Minute Effort To Derail Voter-Approved Pot Legalization
As of today, adults 21 or older in the Buckeye State may possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana and grow up to six plants at home.
DeSantis Gets Sex Trafficking Wrong at GOP Debate
"We're going to build a wall...I am not going to sit there and let sex trafficking go unabated," DeSantis said.
Justice O'Connor's Parting Dissents Highlighted the Twin Perils of Local Tyranny and Federal Overreach
The late Supreme Court justice eloquently defended property rights and state autonomy.
OxyContin's Reformulation Linked to Rising Suicides by Children
The study is one of several documenting the perverse impact of an intervention aimed at reducing substance abuse.
A Los Angeles Jail Let a Woman Die of Withdrawal, Then a Coroner Allowed Her Body To Decompose
“I couldn’t believe it was my baby,” Amanda Bews' mother said. "She looked like she was mummified."
Two 15-Year Sentences Illustrate the Ugly Interaction of Drug and Gun Laws
The Supreme Court mulls how to apply a mandatory minimum for gun possession by people convicted of drug felonies.
Shane Mauss: Is the End of the Drug War Inevitable?
Comedian Shane Mauss on the democratization of mushrooms, LSD, cannabis, DMT, and ketamine
Review: Painkiller Falls for Drug War Misconceptions
The series foregrounds cases of OxyContin addiction, despite their rarity.
Prosecutors of 6-Year-Old Shooter's Mother Claim Gun-Owning Pot Users Are 'Inherently Dangerous'
Deja Taylor is going to federal prison because of a constitutionally dubious gun law that millions of cannabis consumers are violating right now.
Mississippi Makes It a Crime to Advertise Legal Medical Marijuana Businesses
Clarence Cocroft filed a lawsuit this week challenging the state's virtual ban on advertising medical marijuana businesses, arguing the law violates his First Amendment rights.
The 'Monster' Isn't the Drug, It's the Prohibition
Intoxicating drugs never do as much damage as the laws that impotently attempt to eradicate them.
The Two-Party System Abides
Plus: A listener asks the editors why the Libertarian Party waits until election year to nominate its presidential candidate.
The New York Times Credulously Embraces the 'Super Meth' Theory
There is no solid evidence that P2P meth is more dangerous than pseudoephedrine-derived meth and no reason to think it would be.
Civil Forfeiture Defendants Have the Right to a Jury Trial, Says the Indiana Supreme Court
That prosecutors in the Hoosier State successfully denied people this due process is a reflection of how abusive civil forfeiture can be.
Ohio Becomes the 24th State To Legalize Recreational Marijuana
Voters approved a ballot initiative that will allow possession, home cultivation, and commercial distribution—assuming that state legislators don't interfere.
State-Licensed Pot Suppliers Say Federal Prohibition Is Unconstitutional As Applied to Them
A federal lawsuit argues that it is time to reassess the Commerce Clause rationale for banning intrastate marijuana production and distribution.
How Vexatious Government Demands Can Lead Your Bank To Refuse To Do Business with You
The government treats its endless appetite for information about citizens as more important than people's ability to conduct business in a normal fashion.
Matthew Perry, Drug Abuse, and Prohibition
The death of the Friends star should remind us of the costs of the war on drugs.
Review: When a Fentanyl Thief Slipped Through the Cracks, Women Suffered
A New York Times podcast tells a story about both the drug war and institutional incompetence.
Take It From Brazil, Biden's Ban on Flavored Cigarettes and Cigars Will Be a Disaster
Brazil now has one of the largest cigarette markets in the world, despite its efforts to rid the country of cigarettes through prohibition.
Meth-Laced Halloween Candy Is a Very Unlikely Danger for Kids
These kinds of poisonings are rare to nonexistent.
President Trump Freed Drug Offenders. Candidate Trump Wants To Kill Them.
The FIRST STEP Act signed by Trump eased drug sentencing. He's running away from that accomplishment in the 2024 election.
Shane Mauss: Finding the Humor in Psychedelics
The psychedelic comedian talks cognitive liberty and the mind-blowing pace of legalization efforts.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom Nixes Psychedelic Decriminalization and Cannabis Cafés
Newsom vetoed both reforms, which he deemed excessively permissive.
The Shady Statistics Behind the War on Painkillers
The government has doubled down on failed policies, citing deeply flawed studies and misrepresenting data.
The Sindex: Price of Booze Away From Home Up 6.6 Percent Since 2022
The Reason Sindex tracks the price of vice: smoking, drinking, snacking, traveling, and more.
Minnesota's Top Court Rebukes Cops Who Searched a Car After Claiming To Smell Pot That Wasn't There
In light of the state's marijuana reforms, the court says, the odor of weed is not enough to establish probable cause.
Weed Is Legal in Illinois. Police Searched His Car Anyway.
An officer conducted the search of Prentiss Jackson's vehicle after claiming he could smell "a little bit of weed." It ultimately resulted in a lengthy prison term.
Both Parties Agree the Marijuana Industry Status Quo Is Untenable
The SAFER Banking Act is trying to address dual legality of cannabis laws between the federal government and the 38 states that have some form of legal cannabis.
The 'Whack Jobs' Were Right
Plus: A listener asks the editors to weigh in on a hypothetical executive order to establish an American Climate Corps.
Cops and Reporters Are Still Hyping the Halloween Threat Posed by Strangers With Cannabis Candy
A 2022 Canadian case involving what looks like a stoned mistake seems to be the closest real-world example of this purported danger.
Despite Debunking, Rainbow Fentanyl Myths Continue
Just as there are adult reasons for vape companies to sell flavored vape pods, there are adult reasons for drug dealers to color their fentanyl.
On Guns, Drugs, and National Security, Dianne Feinstein Was Consistently Authoritarian
The late California senator always seemed to err on the side of more government power and less individual freedom.
The Truth About Ron DeSantis' Fentanyl Horror Story
The culprit is prohibition, not lax border policing.
Ban Teenagers From Social Media, Vivek Ramaswamy Says, Because Fentanyl
The Republican presidential candidate ignores the lethal impact of the drug policies he avidly supports.
A Study Finds 'No Evidence' That Decriminalization Boosted Drug-Related Deaths in Oregon
The researchers reached a similar conclusion about overdose trends in Washington, where penalties for simple possession were reduced in 2021.
Oregon's Drug Problems Were Not Caused by Decriminalization
Prohibition is at the root of the hazards that have led to record numbers of opioid-related deaths.
Erika Dyck: Are We Living in a Psychedelic Renaissance?
Historian Erika Dyck contextualizes the deep roots of and battles over LSD, psilocybin, and other psychoactive substances.
Rick Perry on Psychedelics: 'These Are Medicines That Were Taken Away for Political Purposes'
The former Texas governor spoke with Reason's Nick Gillespie at the Psychedelic Science 2023 conference in Denver.
Fake Sudafed Is Bullshit, Just As You Suspected
Legal restrictions on pseudoephedrine have not reduced meth use, but they have driven people with colds or allergies toward substitutes that seem to be completely ineffective.
Rick Perry: The Conservative Case for Psychedelics
The former Texas governor on helping veterans with PTSD, increasing legal immigration, and the illegal drug he'd most like to try
The Secret History of Psychedelics
Historian Erika Dyck wants to document the deep roots of and battles over LSD, psilocybin, and other psychoactive substances.
The Best of Reason: The DEA at 50
For five decades, drugs have been winning the war on drugs.
