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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: alanrs who wrote (220759)	9/22/2007 10:02:37 AM
From: alanrs	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 793729

Well, crap. I woke up with a lot of stuff in my head that I think is important for people to factor in on this subject. I know no one is forcing me to post this, and Janet will be very unhappy if I spend an hour at this, so I'll make it short and rely on you to fill in the blanks. A long time ago the government made a film called "Reefer Madness". It probably stopped a few people from trying drugs, although it was probably only those who wouldn't have anyway. When Grace Slick sang "Haven't got sick once, probably keep us both alive" that game of the government as parent (don't do it because I said so) and us as children was effectively over. Nothing the government has done since restores any of its credibility on the subject. No one pays any attention to someone who obviously doesn't know a thing about what they are talking about. This is unfortunate because there are a lot of dangers to doing drugs that aren't effectively transmitted by people without street creds. The government (or any 'official' adult) starts talking and the kids go "lalalalal I can't hear you lalalalal" in their heads. Childish? Stupid? Sure. Still, THAT IS WHAT HAPPENS. So not only is the war on drugs ineffective in stopping drugs from entering the country in massive quantities, it also drastically reduces the ability to warn and educate people about the dangers involved. One of the reasons AA is successful is that everyone there has field experience. No one is making it up. There's another movie out there, "Drugstore Cowboy". Matt Dillon. I saw that movie after I had been straight about a year. I had to leave the theater. It was during the first vacation I had ever taken as an adult, and I was visiting friends. We didn't know what the subject matter was walking in. If you want to know what it's like on that side, dig that movie up somewhere. Watch it with an open mind. By that I mean give the characters credit for being human beings. Try to put yourself in their shoes. Look for similarities between them and you, or them and someone you know. Now I'm done. I think. ARS