How the Drug War Banned my Religion
by Ballard Quass, the Drug War Philosopher
May 4, 2021
Not only is the Drug War the establishment of a religion (namely, that of Christian Science), but it bars me from practicing my own religion, for my religion holds that the mind can gain metaphysical insight through the use of psychoactive plant medicines and that it is my responsibility as a human being to pursue that insight. Why? Because I believe with Plato that the unexamined life is not worth living. The Drug War, however, prevents me from living this examined life by denying me access to precisely those plant medicines that I hold to be sacred and inspiring in this regard, plant medicines that have inspired entire religions in the past and been the source of metaphysical inspiration for such western icons as Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, and Plutarch.
The Drug War is therefore intolerable to those who believe in freedom of religion 1, not to mention the Natural Law upon which America was founded. For if anything is truly a natural law as defined by Jefferson and Locke it is an individual's right to access the plant medicines that grow at their very feet.
Notes:
1: Freedom of Religion and the War on Drugs DWP (up)
Ten Tweets
against the hateful war on US
Harm Reduction is not enough. We need Benefit Production as well. The autistic should be able to use compassion-enhancing drugs; dementia patients should be able to use drugs that speed up and sharpen mental processes.
The drug war is a meta-injustice. It does not just limit what you're allowed to think, it limits how and how much you are allowed to think.
We need to stop using the fact that people like opiates as an excuse to launch a crackdown on inner cities. We need to re-legalize popular meds, teach safe use, and come up with common sense ways to combat addictions by using drugs to fight drugs.
The Drug War is a crime against humanity.
In response to a tweet that "some drugs cannot be used wisely for recreational purposes": The problem is, most people draw such conclusions based on general impressions inspired by a media that demonizes drugs. In reality, it's hard to imagine a drug that cannot theoretically be used wisely for recreation at some dose, in some context.
FDA drug approval is a farce when it comes to psychoactive medicine. The FDA ignores all the obvious benefits and pretends that to prove efficacy, they need "scientific" evidence. That's scientism, not science.
I've been told by many that I should have seen "my doctor" before withdrawing from Effexor. But, A) My doctor got me hooked on the junk in the first place, and, B) That doctor completely ignores the OBVIOUS benefits of indigenous meds and focuses only on theoretical downsides.
American businesses judge people, not by the color of their skin but by the contents of their digestive systems.
Trump is the prototypical drug warrior. He knows that he can destroy American freedoms by fearmongering.
If I want to use the kind of drugs that have inspired entire religions, fight depression, or follow up on the research of William James into altered states, I should not have to live in fear of the DEA crashing down my door and shouting: "GO! GO! GO!"
Click here to see All Tweets against the hateful War on Us
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Copyright 2025, Brian Ballard Quass
Contact: quass@quass.com
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