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Notes -
It is, in fact, possible and consistent to have legal drugs which are illegal to consume in public. It's even enforceable, and in some cities (or parts of cities) enforced with respect to alcohol. The only reason there's a slippery slope from decriminalization to junkies shooting up in the street with impunity is that the powers that be want there to be one.
Worth a mention on the illegality and relative enforcement levels, some of the open container laws are enforced in with a very light touch as long as people aren't doing something too egregious. There are quite a few parks where open containers are technically illegal, but no one will give you shit for having a beer with a picnic. If the raison d'être of a get together is drinking, yeah, you're going to have an issue, but enforcement is ultimately discretionary and there is no law of the universe that the discretion has to be maximally retarded.
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