It is a strange world isn’t it. In Britain, like many other countries, taking ‘mind bending’ drugs is against the law these days. It didn’t always be like that of course – in past eras, quite even top or famous individuals (royalty, explorers, and writers) took well known drugs like cocaine. Such drugs are banned nowadays however, because their use has become endemic and drug addiction destroys millions of people, their families, their communities, and even our societies. [Getting on for ten percent of Britains have actually taken the World’s favourite drug – cocaine – and a dozen million in total have taken drugs!].

There has been a so called ‘War on Drugs’, since about nineteen seventy (President Nixon), but IF there is one in actuality, then it is not just in trouble, no after fifty years it is totally LOST unfortunately. Why the heck is that? Simply because the drug trade is run by ‘criminals’ and you can’t defeat that kind of army without totally killing them off can you?

Drug producers, drug traffickers, drug suppliers, drug dealers, and the like, are all part of a global criminal fraternity, who financially feed off the ‘victims’, drug users. Drug users never intended to become an ‘addict’ did they? No they thought they could handle it, and enjoy so called ‘recreational use’ only to find that that is a road to hell.

Why DO people start to use drugs? Sometimes it is escapism, sometimes to fit in. sometimes to have a weird experience, and at the rich end to ‘party’. But for all of them – the poor, the haves, or the rich, the uneducated, the qualified, or the intellectuals, it turns out to be the same story – an escalator down to ill heath, poverty, family destruction, disgrace, jail, and sometimes death itself (and by then they often don’t even care).

‘Well known’ individuals sometimes get caught out when they are drug users, some even might a few times end up in court, and others even die of an overdose. But they never seem to go to jail do they? They even sell their stories to the newspapers, when they admit their usage, and they still don’t go to jail! Why is that for goodness sake? Even worse, our ‘war on drugs’ enforcers never seem to establish WHERE and from WHOM they get the drugs do they? These celebrities or rich bods or the aristocracy linked, don’t go down dark alleys to buy their stuff off the street do they? No. someone gets if for them, someone who is paid for the job, someone who is accountable for the consequences – but they are never brought to justice (they and the followers-on do it because there is ‘no risk’ you see).

By contrast, the down & out druggies will often face challenge from the police and others, will regularly end up in court or banged-up – understandable, because they are at the bottom of the pile so they have to get into crime (including violence and prostitution) to feed their ‘habit’. So they present an extra ‘threat’ to society, but the rich who don’t have to steal to pay for their drugs are allowed to get on with it, aren’t they? So basically we have one law for the Rich and another for the Poor. Comprehendible, but NOT RIGHT surely in a equal society?

Apologists for drug use always point to alcohol (a drug form which is NOT illegal), its abuse, and similar impacts on everybody. They are correct of course, but remember there are two significant differences; the genie is already out of the bottle regarding alcohol & we will never be able to put it back in; alcohol is a naturally occurring phenomenon in nature when fruit sugars get amoured with naturally yeasts floating around in the air – mankind of course has found clever ways though of utilising that to flood the World with commercial alcoholic products, with devastating effect of course.

So just because the wild animal of Alcohol is on the loose, doesn’t mean we should release another killer as well does it?

Is there any answer to our drug use? Well, there is ALWAYS an answer to ALL problems – the difficulty is whether or not the answer is understood or acceptable isn’t it?

Drug users are NOT criminals – surely they are the victims? The drug pushers are the real criminals perhaps? In the same way prostitutes are not criminals – just other victims (their money grabbing pimps and the uncaring punters are the real criminals perhaps?). In some countries they shoot the drug dealers – that has an effect greater than simply eliminating the dealer killers doesn’t it, because it discourages those other evil money makers, desperate to take their place, as well?

We won’t do that in the UK (unfortunately?), but perhaps nevertheless our focus should be totally on the supply and not the user? The world’s BIGGEST source of opium (made from poppies) by far is Afghanistan – we, with the Americans have been there a dozen or more years to ‘protect our interests’ apparently (with many lives lost in the process it might be said) and we have not only NOT stopped drug production – we have indeed allowed it to INCREASE every single year! Then we spend billions on combating such drug introduction & use on our shores – do you think that is sensible or logical?

[When there is a medical illness endemic, we treat those ill certainly, but we also urgently establish the source of the infection, and immediately eliminate it – but NOT with drugs for some obscure reason?]