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> The social and medical problems of drug abuse are a matter of increasing global concern. citation needed Frankly I don't think people take enough drugs. We

> The social and medical problems of drug abuse are a matter of increasing global concern. citation needed Frankly I don't think people take enough drugs. We could do with a few more open minds instead of the horrific mess the squares have got us into.

bottled_poe 11y ago
And what mess might that be?
- chillingeffect 11y ago
  Falsified nutrition and health info. Dysfunctional schooling. Nuclear proliferation. Chronic institutional racism. Legalized lobbying and corporate fundraising. Disintegration of the middle class. Ubiquitous debt. Corporate financial corruption. A widespread movement of empathy and egolessness (inspired or not by psychedelics) would help us share, help one another and redirect our values to and not waste so much time and resources.
irremediable 11y ago
A citation wouldn't be used for that sentence, by convention, because it's in the article's abstract, rather than in the article proper. Moreover, regardless of what you think about drug (ab)use, it is a matter of increasing global concern. That doesn't imply anything about enforcement, legalisation, etc; it's just a statement of fact.
- Retric 11y ago
  As far as I can tell it's a matter of decreasing global concern. US pushed a huge swath of global drug policy, and now that it's backtracking more reasonable responses are becoming common.
  - irremediable 11y ago
    Maybe now, though the article's from 2008 and it's only comparatively recently in history that the drug war began. I mean, fair point, but it seems we're just quibbling about a background sentence. Even if it did oversell the problem/motivation, that's not unheard of in academic papers...
    - Retric 11y ago
      It's a minor point, but this trend has been picking up steam for a while. Not going though the full list, but 2008 was in the middle of this. Several states had already long allowed medical use by 2008. Maine 1999, Nevada and Hawaii 2000 etc. But, Massachusetts decriminalized in 2008. 2009 Maine " further decriminalized cannabis when Governor John Baldacci signed legislation (LD 250) which made possession of 2.5 ounces or less a civil infraction.[27][28]" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_cannabis_by_U.S._jurisdiction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_cannabis_by_U.S._j...
pavel_lishin 11y ago
I don't think anyone's going to argue that drug abuse is a matter of increasing concern. In America, at least, prescription drug abuse seems to be getting out of hand. Drug use is a whole different story.
anon4 11y ago
It is of global concern. It might not be of global public concern and indeed, it might be the case that most of the global public would be up for not calling it abuse, but there is definitely a global body of people who are concerned with it.
willholloway 11y ago
I think this argument needs to get more granular. With our newfound increased ability to look under the hood of the brain with things like fMRI, the research is getting pretty clear that there are few activites in life more irrational than compulsive use of certain types of drugs. Drugs that down-regulate brain systems, like amphetamine, cocaine, opiates or benzodiazepines. In those cases, what goes up must come down, and you end up with less of what you wanted than when you started. For example, chronic cocaine administration results in lower dopamine levels which means a muting of pleasure from ordinary experiences. People try to self-medicate a need, and end up worse off neurochemically, and the financial, legal and social cost can end up finishing them off. What is really needed, in my opinion, is new research and development of new classes of safe, sustainable, mood brightening drugs. We would get very far just by developing new classes of drugs that could reverse the damage done by chronic stress, depression and trauma. Just the ability to restore a normal, healthy brain would eliminate the desire behind a lot of compulsive drug use. The SSRI class works partly by kickstarting hippocampal neurogenesis. The currently in clinical trial NSI-189 is an improvement in that regards. Work should also be directed at finding ways to restore youthful dopamine levels in aging humans. We could put an end to the truth behind lyrics like "Life goes on, long after the thrill of living is gone"

bottled_poe 11y ago

And what mess might that be?

chillingeffect 11y ago
Falsified nutrition and health info. Dysfunctional schooling. Nuclear proliferation. Chronic institutional racism. Legalized lobbying and corporate fundraising. Disintegration of the middle class. Ubiquitous debt. Corporate financial corruption. A widespread movement of empathy and egolessness (inspired or not by psychedelics) would help us share, help one another and redirect our values to and not waste so much time and resources.

irremediable 11y ago

A citation wouldn't be used for that sentence, by convention, because it's in the article's abstract, rather than in the article proper. Moreover, regardless of what you think about drug (ab)use, it is a matter of increasing global concern. That doesn't imply anything about enforcement, legalisation, etc; it's just a statement of fact.

Retric 11y ago
As far as I can tell it's a matter of decreasing global concern. US pushed a huge swath of global drug policy, and now that it's backtracking more reasonable responses are becoming common.
- irremediable 11y ago
  Maybe now, though the article's from 2008 and it's only comparatively recently in history that the drug war began. I mean, fair point, but it seems we're just quibbling about a background sentence. Even if it did oversell the problem/motivation, that's not unheard of in academic papers...
  - Retric 11y ago
    It's a minor point, but this trend has been picking up steam for a while. Not going though the full list, but 2008 was in the middle of this. Several states had already long allowed medical use by 2008. Maine 1999, Nevada and Hawaii 2000 etc. But, Massachusetts decriminalized in 2008. 2009 Maine " further decriminalized cannabis when Governor John Baldacci signed legislation (LD 250) which made possession of 2.5 ounces or less a civil infraction.[27][28]" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_cannabis_by_U.S._jurisdiction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legality_of_cannabis_by_U.S._j...

pavel_lishin 11y ago

I don't think anyone's going to argue that drug abuse is a matter of increasing concern. In America, at least, prescription drug abuse seems to be getting out of hand. Drug use is a whole different story.

anon4 11y ago

It is of global concern. It might not be of global public concern and indeed, it might be the case that most of the global public would be up for not calling it abuse, but there is definitely a global body of people who are concerned with it.

willholloway 11y ago

I think this argument needs to get more granular. With our newfound increased ability to look under the hood of the brain with things like fMRI, the research is getting pretty clear that there are few activites in life more irrational than compulsive use of certain types of drugs. Drugs that down-regulate brain systems, like amphetamine, cocaine, opiates or benzodiazepines. In those cases, what goes up must come down, and you end up with less of what you wanted than when you started. For example, chronic cocaine administration results in lower dopamine levels which means a muting of pleasure from ordinary experiences. People try to self-medicate a need, and end up worse off neurochemically, and the financial, legal and social cost can end up finishing them off. What is really needed, in my opinion, is new research and development of new classes of safe, sustainable, mood brightening drugs. We would get very far just by developing new classes of drugs that could reverse the damage done by chronic stress, depression and trauma. Just the ability to restore a normal, healthy brain would eliminate the desire behind a lot of compulsive drug use. The SSRI class works partly by kickstarting hippocampal neurogenesis. The currently in clinical trial NSI-189 is an improvement in that regards. Work should also be directed at finding ways to restore youthful dopamine levels in aging humans. We could put an end to the truth behind lyrics like "Life goes on, long after the thrill of living is gone"