why are drugs even illegal?

i have never fully understood why drugs are illegal. especially why possession is illegal, there's a large majority of the US population that is in prison for years even though they were never distributing or producing the drugs.

alcohol is arguably worse than a majority of drugs, and almost 200,000 people a year die from alcohol abuse and nobody has a problem with that. plenty of people drink underaged, and that's never cracked down on, and alcohol is socially acceptable, so it's okay?

also making things illegal just creates an unsafe and dangerous underground market for it that results in countless deaths. education is a way better tool. teach people why something is dangerous and they will not want to do it.

i've never really heard a great argument as to why drugs are illegal, and i would like to hear one.