Why does this article describe these stimulants as "narcotics"? They are neither opioids nor illegal when prescribed, so it seems like a needlessly provocative, and factually incorrect, description.
It's cop talk. The current US DEA emerged from the "Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs" which came from the "Federal Bureau of Narcotics" which came from the "Federal Narcotics Control Board" established by the "Narcotics Tax Act" in 1914, back when Prohibition was a thing and they were worried about opium. Law enforcement culture has thus gone off into the weird by themselves, and they use "narcotic" to mean "any forbidden substance".
Because the authoritarian state uses an in-language to signal virtue, overstepping denotations. These are the same people who call non-cops "civilians."
Yeah, that never ends well. Vets have a certain ability to destroy someone's entire existence using nothing but words and gigantic balls, leaving nothing but a burning crater in the ground, without having to have any imposing threat of violence (ie, how cops are trained to escalate the situation through intimidation, vets don't need such a tactic).
Also, it's counter to basic english/etymology. Narcotics are drugs with sleep-inducing properties. Easy way to remmber that: it's the same base as narcolepsy.
