Some people want to control others and just don't care what the reality is.
They would never ban alcohol, they consume it.
They would never ban cars; they drive them.
They would never ban fast food; they eat it.
They will never ban sugar; they love it.
All of these things have cause a million times more misery than opioids ever have, by all measurable statistics (deaths, injury, domestic violence, etc)
But if there is something someone is doing that they aren't, their measurement of pros and cons will change. Statistics and comparable things of pleasure/damage will never be considered.
HN is also guilty of this in otver contexts.
The issue with perception is universal. We all feel these things.
How we act though? That's a choice. We can choose to read statistics and let our 'slow thinking' brain take over. But it has to be a choice and that lies with each of us.
Do you notice you are replying to a comment about somebody that did, right?
Not every problem is simple.
Your refusal to believe that illnesses can affect the brain is obsolete thinking.
If you don't eat you die. Do you die if you don't consumer pain killers? No you don't.
This is similar to the nonsense peddled by people who claim anti-depressants are the same as insulin and various other snake-oil salespeople.