THE REALITY

A war on drugs will not work. Maybe a war on indifference. Perhaps a war on negativity. Or how about a war on injustice? But a war on drugs is doomed to failure from the very start. Because no matter how many drugs you intercept, no matter how many pesticides you drop on marijuana or poppy fields, or how many walls you build to keep drugs out, or how many people you put in prison, we will not stop people from wanting to use drugs. It seems to be human nature, to want to feel different, to want to feel better, be happier, to wanting to find a shortcut to answering "the great mystery." We get fooled into thinking that drugs offer all that, and than some.

I've always figured that life is about finding happiness. Not the tee-hee kind of happiness, but "the happiness," that contentment, satisfaction, love, security, joy, on top of the world kind of happiness. It's hard to maintain, but I'm sure you've felt it, at least on occasion. That kind of happiness doesn't come cheap. Because the path is filled with challenges, one looks for a shortcut. And there is no more available hope for immediate relief than drugs. Drugs can take you away from your troubles, away from the challenges, the pressures, the failures, the poverty, in a way that nothing else can. It's available, fast, but unfortunately, unforgiving. The "happiness" is short lived, if at all. What seems like a heavenly experience soon turns to hell. You find yourself on a one-way street to nowhere. No one who becomes dependent is spared the trip. Not the rich, the poor, black, white, female, male, grandma, grandpa, husband, wife, kid. The line goes straight down in an indiscriminate manner.

People look for that high. While physiologically explainable, a high is pretty much different for every addicted person. I suppose it's not so much that the high is different, as it is the high is used for different purposes: to forget, to remember, to have energy, to settle down, for sleeping, for to stay awake, to have more sex, to not wanting to have sex, to looking for God, to forgetting about God. The reasons are endless. This is one of the unfortunate problems. There is an easy answer to ending drug use-simply don't use anymore. But there is no easy answer to why a person uses in the first place. This complicates treatment, making it hard to get at the root causes. But than again, maybe you don't need to get at root causes. Just quit.

The high numbs us to our pain. It transports us to a place we think is good, but turns out bad. As it ends up, the high can be approached in numerous non-drug ways. Runners talk about getting to a high at a certain point in their run, meditation, yoga, relaxation, can get you there. The mountains, the ocean, the forest, make people feel high. Achievements, accomplishments, successes, excelling at something, be it guitar playing, basketball, quilting, cooking, writing....a whole host of things can produce this "natural high." Of course, you have to do those things, you have to work at it. It's easier to walk out to the street corner, go to the bar, or get a prescription from a doctor that you know you're not going to use correctly. It's faster, it's immediate, but it's not real.

You can stop one drug only to find yourself addicted to something else. To gambling, to working, to sex, to religion. To all the above. Addiction is the mistaken belief that we can solve our longings for a better life, for a happier life, that we can "fix" ourselves, with a drug rather than with "blood, sweat, and tears." Such a belief is always a mistake.

The reality is there are hundreds of reasons why people use drugs. So where does this leave us? How can we beat something people want so badly? What can we do? Where do we get "the fix."

THE MYTH

People have some odd notions about drugs, drug use, and what can be done about the problem. I'm going to be brutally straight forward, in a three part series,discussing the myth, the reality, and the fix. No statistics, no fancy theories, just some thoughts, observations, and feelings from 20 years of experience.

THE MYTH: When people think of drugs, they usually are referring to cocaine (crack), methamphetamine (meth), and/or cannabis (marijuana, grass, pot). The fact of the matter is, alcohol, nicotine, and prescription drugs are the most used and abused in America. The primary reason for this is that they are legal, making them more widely available. Often, prescription drugs are sold on the street, having been acquired in a legal manner with a doctors prescription. Combined, the three cause enormous problems for our society. A good argument against legalizing all drugs.

THE MYTH: Cannabis is a "gateway drug." This is something of a half-truth. If you're looking for the major "gateway drugs", look no further than cigarettes and alcohol. People usually start their drug careers using one or both. The research is split concerning cannabis being a "gateway" to more potent drugs. It would appear to be about a 50/50 argument, with half the studies saying, maybe cannabis users will move on to other drugs, and half the studies stating, no, cannabis users are content to stay with cannabis.

THE MYTH: I can use just a little bit of a drug, to help get over the rough times. It usually doesn't happen that way. If you're using drugs in a habitual manner, whatever drug, you will not be able to control it. It will eventually control you.

THE MYTH: Anyone who is dependent on a drug should be written off as a no good druggie who will never get over it. I've heard that line during my entire career, sometimes from people who you would think should know better. People can get over abusive and dependent use. BUT IT'S NOT EASY. The best combination, the most successful to date, has been treatment and a support group. No magic, no frills, and a success rate, for long-term abstinence, of realistically around 25%. Any program that claims otherwise is not using long-term abstinence as a criteria, or is straight-out pulling your leg. That's how hard it is. One has to realize, quitting is not an event, but a process. A person may need 2 or 5 or 9 treatment events before it sticks. Relapses are always a possibility. The object is not to beat yourself up if you relapse, but to get back to abstinence as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, today, money rules. Treatment can be costly, and no one wants to pay for it, particularly repeat treatment episodes. Today's political and economic climate dictates that it is easier to put a person in jail or prison than it is to help them get over their addiction. This is one of our greatest failures as a society.

THE MYTH: Forcing people into treatment is wrong. Forcing people into treatment is hard on the person and hard on the counselor, but due to the nature of addiction, a necessary evil. Very few people voluntarily enter treatment. We're too proud, too sure we can beat it on our own. We don't like to look at our weaknesses, and on top of that, the drugs screw up our thinking. The first treatment episode can be thought of as an introduction to living a drug free life. Little headway may be made but the point is that it is a start. Without this start, there will likely be three outcomes: insanity, prison, and/or death. Remember, recovery is a long-term, lifetime process, that requires lifestyle changes and ongoing support. Entering it with anything less of a commitment will almost guarantee failure.

THE MYTH: All counselors and programs are the same. This is an obvious mistake. Like doctors or lawyers or carpenters, some are better than others. The level of competence one rises to depends mainly on the initiative of the counselor. Experience is the best teacher, but young, or beginning counselors have to start somewhere. The key is to have a good supervisory system in place, utilizing your most experienced counselors as teachers and mentors. Again, unfortunately, today, in many programs, that key element is missing. The focus has turned to how many clients you can see in a day, not how good of a job you can do and what you can teach the inexperienced counselors. Like recovery, building a staff is a process that takes nurturing, commitment, and guidance. So when looking around, look for continuity, dedication, and today's new ingredient, a fair price.

That's some of the myth's I've heard along the way. There are many others. Not everyone will agree with how I've answered some of them. That's fine. The point is not necessarily that we need to agree so much as it is that we need to talk about them. Exposing the myths will better prepare us to deal with The Reality.

* Wal-Mart: Too big, poor pay, anti-union, and bad for communities. They run the small, local guy of of business. However, it's hard to stay away due to the low prices and big selection. According to your circumstances, do the best you can to stay away.

* 7/11: Dropping Citgo as one of the suppliers of their gas. They didn't like Chavez calling Bush "the devil." Frankly, that's the best thing I've heard him called in 3 or 4 years. No more Big Gulps for me.

* ExxonMobil: Exploiting the oil situation for all it's worth. Making huge profits. Funny, how Bush is in office and the oil companies are making more money than they ever have. Probably an odd coincidence. Both Exxon and Mobil came for Standard Oil, the source of the Rockefeller fortune. ExxonMobil's long-time chairman, Lee Raymond, retired at the beginning of the year. His retirement and severance package was around $400 million. Having just retired myself, he edged me out by a couple bucks. Damn oil barons.

* Disney: Sorry folks. No more Mickey. I'm afraid this whole outfit has gone Goofy. They've always leaned to the right, but its gotten much worse. They also reportedly own sweatshops in various Third World countries that pay lousy wages to women and children to make Mickey pajamas that they sell at Wal-Mart. Forget that trip to Disney World. Take the kids to see a redwood tree, or the ocean, or a mountain. In the long run, they'll benefit a whole lot more.

* Philip Morris: They tell you not to smoke their cigarettes, that they will kill you, but they keep right on making them. I'm not sure how they sleep at night. Probably their mattresses are full of money.

* Pharmaceutical companies: These people get rich off of our misery. I wish we could all stop taking meds, but I suppose that is not very practical. So switch to generics when you can, and start pushing for a universal health care system and allowing us to buy drugs from other companies. After all, most of the drugs they sell us are already made in other countries.

* Ford Motor Company: Their answer to a better company-fire employees. They can't seem to come up with a good looking car that can get 50 mpg. That would take some brains, which they seem to have a shortage of.

* Add others to the list. Don't be shy.

Simplicity goes well with a lot of things. Wisdom and simplicity are closely related. Spirituality and simplicity go hand in hand. Simple living puts you right next to the mystery, the beauty. It makes you appreciate everything you see and hear and touch. A simple thing, simplicity, yet so hard to achieve. Ends up, simplicity is not simple. What can you do to simplify your life? Try to keep it, "simple."

I learned about decency from my father. Respect everyone. Hold the door open for anyone older than yourself. Pay attention to character, not color. Try to help people out. Keep your head up and say hello to everyone. While I ended up being much more liberal, and have definitely walked a different road than my father, I feel good about having learned some of the basics about being a decent human being from him.