The Drug War is a godsend for conservatives. Whenever social policy results in disenfranchisement and anger in leftist and liberal quarters, conservatives can completely ignore a frank discussion of the policies that caused it by focusing instead on the illicit substance use to which the despair in question naturally gave rise. Does a failure to focus on childhood education result in semi-literate adult populations with no respect for human life? No problem. Conservatives merely focus their attention on the problematic substance use that resulted from that same abnegation of government responsibility. By thus framing the public debate in terms of substance abuse, conservatives not only avoid having to discuss the topic of equitable social arrangements, but they can blame the downsides of their selfish social policies on the victims of that policy themselves.
June 4, 2022
Fast-forward two years and conservatives now have a lock on the Supreme Court, Lord help us. The good news is, these conservatives have a penchant for so-called "state's rights," which, when it comes to drugs, may facilitate continued drug decriminalization on the state level, especially after the fashion of Oregon. Also, the court is clearly open to the idea that the ritual use of psychoactive medicine in a religion cannot be infringed, as shown in its 9-0 ruling in favor of the UDV Church re: its use of ayahuasca. What we need now are some would-be religion founders to come forward, to announce the sincere creation of various new churches in which various currently illegal drugs are used ceremonially. Let's see how this court then reacts to the DEA's attempt to shut down, say, Our Lady of Psilocybin or The First Baptist Church of Ecstasy. For the criminalization of all psychoactive medicines (but entheogens in particular) is necessarily an attack on the freedom of religion 1, insofar as these kinds of substances (from coca to mushrooms) have inspired entire religions in the past. Given that back story, in fact, the criminalization of these drugs is more than just an attack on specific religions: it is an attack on the religious impulse itself and an attempt to quash the propensity for psychospiritual growth and improvement in humankind, as who should say, "We've got Christianity now, folks -- we're all good now, religiously speaking. The world does not need any more religions, thank you very much."
I'm looking for a United Healthcare doctor now that I'm 66 years old. When I searched my zip code and typed "alternative medicine," I got one single solitary return... for a chiropractor, no less. Some choice. Guess everyone else wants me to "keep taking my meds."
Americans are far more fearful of psychoactive drugs than is warranted by either anecdote or history. We require 100% safety before we will re-legalize any "drug" -- which is a safety standard that we do not enforce for any other risky activity on earth.
No drug causes addiction after one use. From this fact alone, it follows that even drugs like meth and crack and Fentanyl can be used wisely -- on an intermittent basis.
The "acceptable risk" for psychoactive drugs can only be decided by the user, based on what they prioritize in life. Science just assumes that all users should want to live forever, self-fulfilled or not.
Philip Jenkins reports that Rophynol had positive uses for treating mental disorders until the media called it the "date rape drug." We thus punished those who were benefitting from the drug, tho' the biggest drug culprit in date rape is alcohol. Oprah spread the fear virally.
One merely has to look at any issue of Psychology Today to see articles in which the author reckons without the Drug War, in which they pretend that banned substances do not exist and so fail to incorporate any topic-related insights that might otherwise come from user reports.
Materialists are always trying to outdo each other in describing the insignificance of humankind. Crick at least said we were "a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules." Musk downsizes us further to one single microbe. He wins!
The drug war is a way for conservatives to keep America's eyes OFF the prize. The right-wing motto is, "Billions for law enforcement, but not one cent for social programs."
The best harm reduction strategy would be to re-legalize opium and cocaine. We would thereby end depression in America and free Americans from their abject reliance on the healthcare industry.
The healthcare industry turns all the emotional downsides of drug prohibition into "illnesses."
I'm looking for a United Healthcare doctor now that I'm 66 years old. When I searched my zip code and typed "alternative medicine," I got one single solitary return... for a chiropractor, no less. Some choice. Guess everyone else wants me to "keep taking my meds."