marcv@reed.UUCP (10/30/87)
In article <591@auscso.UUCP> johnm@auscso.UUCP (John B. Meaders, Jr.) writes: >Why do you complain about drug laws? If you want to see why we have >them why don't you ride with the police in your city during a deep night >shift in a "bad" part of town. When you see the "dirtballs" who have anything >to do with drugs you will understand why we have laws against them. >Why do you need chemicals to have fun? Can't you just "get high" on being >alive. In some sense, I agree with you-- drugs are not a prerequisite for enjoying life. However, humankind *needs* some method for achieving a state of altered consciousness, an alternate reality. I know of no society throughout history (with the possible exception of the Eskimoes, at least until white man came with his alcohol) that did not or does not have some substance to achieve this desired state of mind. Amazon Indian tribes used various hallucinogens, such as DMT; the middle east has hashish, the far east has opium, the west has alcohol and tobacco. But referring back to your article, in particular the reference to those "dirtballs" who have anything to do with drugs. I can only take this to be the most *absurd* generalization I have come across as of late-- not all people who partake of drugs look like Guido, the killer pimp, ready at the slightest provocation to slip a knife into your side. The vast majority of people connected with drugs are "normal," non-violent people like (or so I assume) yourself. They do it because it provides them a path of release, a path of exploration-- it is a chance to experience emotions, thoughts and physical effects not felt during the normal course of reality. Admittedly, there are those people who fit the mold of "dirtball;" there are those who would kill at the slightest provocation. However, I submit to you that it is the stupidity, the sheer absurdity, of the current pack of drug laws that is a fundamental driving force behind the rise of these "dirtballs." By making drugs (excepting tobacco, caffeine and alcohol) for the most part illegal, the door is opened for those who are clever enough to make a quick buck-- a need must be met, and they, in spite of the supposed legal risks, have no qualms in fufilling it. And, in the process of making a quick buck, they deal out poor or deadly quality drugs at over-inflated prices, defending, in many cases, their sales with the poignant tool of violent force. If we were to come to our senses as a nation, and realize the folly of our current situation... If we were only to understand that people will seek out drugs anyhow, no matter how illegal we make them... If we were to realize that, if legalized and properly controlled, our government stands to make a large profit from the proceeds of drug sales... If, if, etc. What galls me most of all, John, is the inherent hypocrisy within your article. Tell me, do you consider alcohol and tobacco among those "chemicals" denounced by yourself? Do you ever partake of these drugs? Assuming you do-- and the odds are highly in favor of this conclusion, as these are all socially condoned methods for altering our regular state of consciousness-- consider this: these two "drugs" are among the most deadly known to man. Tobacco-- nicotine! Realize that there is enough nicotine within the average cigar so that, if the cigar were allowed to dissolve within a glass of water, and the water were subsequently drunk by an average male, that male would *die.* Alcohol-- I need not elaborate. The thousands upon thousands of deaths attributed to alcohol every year stand as witness to my argument. And now, we turn to those drugs, those chemicals which most people use to achieve this altered state of reality-- marijuana, and various forms of hallucinogens. I will not rehash all the statistics presented by other readers of this newsgroup-- suffice it to say that there have been no attributable deaths to marijuana in human beings; that marijuana has many beneficial medicinal properities; that deaths via hallucinogens are *extremely* rare; that hallucinogens are non-addictive (unlike the socially acceptable killers, alcohol and tobacco); etc. Granted, the increasingly prevalent "hard" drugs, such as crack, or Mexican Black Tar, are, without a doubt, deadly. I do not do these, nor do I have any wish to do these. Death via drugs does not seem like a very suitable way to achieve this altered consciousness (then again :-)). These drugs pose a problem, but once again, our current crop of laws stand as monumental testemonials of failure in dealing with said problem. But would it not be better to quit wasting uncounted man hours and huge sums of money on trying to eradicate the use of marijuana or hallucinogens, which are far less detrimental than alcohol and tobacco? I'd much rather see someone get extremely stoned that extremely drunk, for the former can be a productive, enriching experience, while getting very drunk usually results in an absurd display of sick clumsiness. Further, by freeing up this money and manpower, will we not be able to deal much better with drugs that *truly* pose a threat to society? This has perhaps gone on too long, and I have much I would still like to say. I only recently discovered this newsgroup, but I am grateful for its presence. To have an open forum for the discussion of drugs is an essential, a neccessary device for coming to terms with drug use within American culture. So, John, I would hope that next time, before you make such sweeping generalizations, you consider the facts first, and not blindly succumb, as the majority of the American populace unfortunately does, to governmental manipulation via the path of forceful propaganda. As an intelligent individual, you owe it to yourself to carefully investigate into the facts, and not the hype. If then, and only then, you can prove to me, via the use of unbiased, factual research, that your generalizations hold true, I will proffer forth my most humble apologies. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Marc Visnick | UUCP path | | Box 615, Reed College, Portland, OR 97202 | ...!tektronix!reed!marcv | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------