Depends what society you are talking about. One toke off a hashish pipe will get you the death sentence in some countries. I think in Western countries, the perception of traditionally illegal drugs is in the middle of a transition, from one of hysteria, close mindedness and ignorance, to what we have been seeing in places like Portugal, Uruguay and the United States on a policy level, which seems to reflect a broad agreement amongst the people that the old ways of dealing with drug use as a public scourge is not effective, and is, in fact, damaging to society at large. Even crusty old conservative hardline Drug Warriors have publicly stated that there needs to be a complete overhaul of drug laws, to the point of decriminalizing cannabis (for starters), and maybe even other drugs. And in Washington state and Colorado, it's happened. I believe in 15 years, cannabis will be fully legal nationwide in the USA, and not just on a state level, but with the federal stamp of approval.