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The Animal World Has Its Junkies, Too
Phoghat writes "Research scientists have used many animal species in investigating mind-altering drugs, but it may come as a surprise to learn that animals in the wild — from starlings to reindeer — also make use of psychoactive substances of their own accord. It seems that many of these species have a natural desire to experience altered states of consciousness, and man may well have found his way to some of his favourite recreational drugs by observing the behaviour of animals."
It wasn't that somebody just decided "You know, we should just not have fun!", but there are reasons why these things are considered bad. The first hint is your conscience, but the reason behind it is that they are simply, as the Bible explains, inconvenient.
Sex, for instance, is perfectly fine within the lifelong bond of marriage. However, when we use it as a source of pleasure, we find ourselves in all sorts of painful and distracting situations. As for intoxication, there are several problems. Other than the fact that you are out of control (depending on the intoxicant), you also have the tendency to get wrapped up in it and become less productive.
One may argue that there are drugs that are not adictive and cause no lasting damage. That may be the case, so they may not be so bad. The real problem is trying to define your life by pleasure, which is fleeting. It is one of the things, such as money, fame, etc. that people set their sites on that have no lasting benefit. In that sense, it is inconvenient at best.
Sadly, I have known many people who have had their life ruined by drug addiction. It is their experience that has told me the harm that those things can cause. Am I therefore advocating laws against drugs? Not necessarily. I'm just saying that they are a potential snare, and I thank God that He loves and forgives even the worst and will remove them from the things they can't leave on their own.
There are 10 commandments: 01)Thou shalt love the Lord Thy God 10)Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.Matt22:34-40
The only problem with the drug war is that we do not treat it like a war. We do not kill the enemy, nor do we try to.
As far as I am concerned, if we really wanted to end drug abuse, we would summarily execute drug traffickers, drug dealers, and habitual drug offenders.
Drug addicts generally don't want treatment. And, sentencing people to drug treatment doesn't work. One can lead a horse to water but one can not make it drink.
As for "it" having worked with tobacco, etc., no it has not. While the numbers of smokers is going down, smoking is by no means going away. If you think alcohol abuse isn't a problem, I suggest you look at drunk driving arrests. While you are at it, you might want to look up the number of AA meetings and other alcohol abuse treatment centers. And, the number alcohol related deaths. You mention gambling as an addiction, which I don't agree with, but assuming it is, look at the explosive growth of gaming in the U.S. and on-line. The same can be said of porn.
Ignoring the pervasive negative effects of something that is legal does not make those negative effects cease to exist. It just means you are ignoring them because they are inconvenient to your cause.
I will say this, if people exhibited more personal responsibility, my opinion might be different. But, they don't. I know someone going to prison for drugs. She deserves to be going to prison. She occasionally admits this. The rest of the time, she talks about how it was not her fault. She violated her probation and said she wanted to go back on probation. I asked if she would follow the rules of probation and what those rules were. She said she would follow them, then said:
I had to remind her that the rules were actually "Be home during curfew hours" and "Don't use illegal drugs, don't take drugs for which you don't have a prescription, and take the drugs you are prescribed as prescribed."
Like all other drug abusers I have met, she feels she was not doing anything wrong, the law is wrong, and it is not her fault she got in trouble. She does not take responsibility for herself, her actions, or the fact that it was her behavior that landed her in prison for 30 months at the age of 29 for transporting heroin. Which, by the way, she feels should not be illegal in the U.S. because it is a prescription drug in other countries.
So, until you know an addict and have experienced life with them, please shut the fuck up about how drugs should be legalized.
Then, I guess he is not so proud of using drugs, now is he? If he is not willing to stand behind his words, then his words are meaningless. If his drug use is private, then he should keep it to himself. If he wants to publicly comment on his drug use and how good it was for him, then he should do it publicly under his own name, not cower behind a false front. Until he is willing to state publicly who he is and what drugs he has done, he can STFU.