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Response to "Drugs: Typical Alternative Route"

by Schraff


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Chilo Metropolis brings up many excellent points in his piece on the downsides of drug use. I agree that there are two major problems with the drug underground:

One, drugs are the ultimate free market. Business models for the underground mimic corporate models, with equally unethical results. Prices are often inflated as much as the market will allow, having the effect of "keeping poor people poor". Those highest in the chain of command are only interested in profit margins, not providing a quality product.

Two, drugs are used in a self-destructive manner by many youths who seek to rebel. Chilo cited well-known examples of celebrities such as Jimi Hendrix imploding due to this slow suicide.

The mass media, as Chilo mentioned, shows drugs in two different lights.

Firstly, there is the idea of drugs as a fun waste of time for hip young slackers. This attitude is prevalent in nearly every pot-driven comedy in recent memory. Alcohol is also often depicted in this manner.

Secondly, there are the "scare" advertisements. There's a new ad campaign in America with such laughably over-the-top histronics that I cannot but shake my head in wonderment. A print ad from this campaign shows two pictures: One of a homeless man huddled on a street corner with the caption "It doesn't always end like this...", and a picture of an adolescant being offered a joint with the caption, "...but is often starts like this."

These two attitudes have one thing in common; they both send the message that there is absolutely no such thing as responsible, thoughtful, purposeful drug use. It's either part of a self-destructive spiral or a means of partying. Even the people selling seem to have no respect for their product- it's just another high-demand consumer good, like beanie babies or Pokemon merchandise. Where do these attitude come from?

When I think of other cultures with severe drug crises, two spring to mind: alcoholism in Native American culture, and opium in China. Alcohol, as we all know, was introduced to native Americans by European settlers. In helping my brother study for his Japanese/Chinese history class, I happened upon an excerpt citing that poppies are not native to China. They are Euopean in origin. There are many theories that the Euorpeans introduced opium to Aisa as a means of control, but that is difficult to prove. The link between these two cultures, however, is that a substance was introduced by foriegners. The significance of this is that if a substance is suddenly available, and there's no cultural reference on how it should and should not be used, it would seem it tends to be abused.

I then thought of cultures with no drug crises. The ones that first came to mind was various tribes native to Mexico and South America, namely the toltecs and the tribes native to the Andes region. The Andes region is where ephedra, a stimulant used as a main ingrediant in some varieties of crystal meth, is native to. The Toltec use of peyote, mushrooms, and other psychotropic plants is well documented. Despite the fact that drugs were literally growing everywhere, there is no evidence of drug wars or negative ad campaigns on the evils of such substances. Why? What's the difference between Western and Shamanic thought?

One of the things I love about American life is how secular it is. Nobody can tell anyone what to worship, or if they need to worship at all. Still, one of the major differences between modern America and pre-colonial South America is the prevalence faith. Shamans believed that plants were very much a spiritual entity, containing spirits of various capriciousness. Peyote and other plants were revered for the power they had. They were to be ingested at very specific times for very specific purposes, with very specific ways of interpreting the results. Drugs were not an end, but rather a means to an end- enlightenment, awareness, hightened consciousness. Shamans showed their gratitude for these gifts by not abusing the powers made available to them.

Am I saying you have to be a religious nut to use drugs responsibly? Of course not. But think for a moment on what qualities religious adepts (shamans, monks, etc) had, especially in nonChristian faiths. To become proficient in faith, one must have the inner discipline to meditate for hours on end, to seek answers when all around you are questions. The mind of a Shaolin Monk is like the body of a weightlifter- honed to incredible focus and strength through years of grueling training. If you can lie on a bed of nails and walk on coals, using drugs without indulging in self-dustructive, nonproductive behavior would come easily.

Think about what the term "drug abuse" really means. It's the drug that's getting abused, not the user! It's like blaming the battered woman for "corrupting" her husband into "a lifestyle of gruesome violence". Clearly, in this case, the husband had some personal problems before even getting involved with the woman. Why is it that, when drugs are concerned, the abuser is called the victim?

At the risk of sounding like your parents, I think the three things missing from American drug culture (at least, the way it is presented to the casual observer) are self-respect, respect for the powers you're dabbling in, and the discipline to use them responsibly. If we try to mimic successful models of behavior, then the way drugs are perceived in this culture will change for the better.

*****

afterword:

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Acknowledgements:

1) Shoutout to CRaZyAmishMaN for helping me figure out how to submit an article. I'm still a stranger in these waters...

2) Thanks to Chilo for providing me with the catalyst for finally writing out my thoughts on the subject. I'm actually planning to write a research paper on this topic. Expect a more formal, fleshed out version of this post- complete with bibliography- in the next few months.

*****

 
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