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I am pro legalization. I say we don't give the cartels a choice in the matter. Much of the harm from drug use comes from the illegality of them. Consistent qual

by KGIII 9y ago

I am pro legalization. I say we don't give the cartels a choice in the matter. Much of the harm from drug use comes from the illegality of them. Consistent quality supplies would go a long ways. Tax, educate, and treat. I use 'safe' drugs, namely Suboxone. I doubt I'd change back to other opiates because I like the protection Suboxone offers me. Namely, I can pretty much only do it. It then blocks the receptors and doing additional opiates is mostly futile. I like that control.

tcj_phx 9y ago
I've heard suboxone doctors are difficult to find, because of artificial restrictions... How did you find your suboxone doctor? (Are you in the US?) My friend was on Methadone when I met her. After six months she realized she "hated everything about Methadone", which I understand has all of the addiction of heroin but none of the thrill. This is my most recent comment about her: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15024780 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15024780
- KGIII 9y ago
  I was able to find them by casting a wider net. I live in a very, very remote area. He has a practice that he visits that's not too far away. When he is up, he makes the drive to my house and we chat for an hour, usually over a small meal. Sometimes, I go down to see him but he enjoys the drive and coming to visit me. I am in the US. I am retired in Maine. I am fortunate in that I sold my business and am financially secure. So, I can afford some of the best medical care. I've since helped to seed another program, at a not terribly distant medical facility, that helps treat others with addiction problems. It's a bit of a money sink, but it makes me feel good. The provider is a different person, however. I never liked methadone. Of course, when I tried it last, I was using fentanyl and methadone couldn't come close to helping because my tolerance was so high. Suboxone doesn't really get me high, it just keeps me from getting sick. I am allowed to take enough to get high, but I seldom do. My doctor is pretty cool about stuff like that. Again, the goal is harm reduction and not strict sobriety. Finding a doctor interested in that was key for me. It took some phone calls, some false starts, and some time. I can't stress this enough - it helps to have money. Insurance would not cover much of this. I pay my doctor in cash. I'm pretty sure I spend more now than I usually did when using illegally.
tjorganism 9y ago
Funny how addicts are always pro legalization.
- KGIII 9y ago
  Would you expect something else? I'm not seeing anything funny about it. The vast majority of harm comes from the illegality, not from the drugs themselves. Do you want to reduce harm, or do you want to impose your morality on other people?
  - tjorganism 9y ago
    Well since you asked, no, I would not expect something else. Their (your) addiction has affected the organ that they use for making decisions. I would expect an addict to find any way he or she can to find access to more of the addictive substance their now compromised brain demands. Being smart or high functioning only means they can find even more clever and inventive ways of achieving their desires. You say that the vast majority of harm comes from the illegality of drug use. I don't see any reason to believe that is true. You haven't presented an argument or evidence to persuade me one way or the other. On the contrary, I think addiction is itself harm. It removes the ability to choose. It attacks the very organ that makes your choices. You have access to resource, so you can mitigate the consequences of your actions more than others. Remove your resource, or replace it with a $40,000/year salary and a tough service industry job, and the consequences will find you. I think eventually the consequences will find even you, however much resource you have amassed. You should make a pact with yourself to see if in 20 years (assuming you make it that long) you still think your life is as good as it could have been without your addiction. Do I want to reduce harm or impose my morality on other people? My answer is YES. I want to reduce harm by imposing my morality on other people. Any time you vote you are imposing your views on ethical issues onto society. Let's all agree that everyone imposes their own views on morality onto others. You are doing it to me right now, and for that I thank you. Let's duke it out in the public square. If you convince more people with your arguments, your views will be codified into law. If I convince more people with my arguments, then my views will be codified into law. This form of reasonable discourse is how we avoid solving our issues with violence.

by KGIII 9y ago

tcj_phx 9y ago

I've heard suboxone doctors are difficult to find, because of artificial restrictions... How did you find your suboxone doctor? (Are you in the US?) My friend was on Methadone when I met her. After six months she realized she "hated everything about Methadone", which I understand has all of the addiction of heroin but none of the thrill. This is my most recent comment about her: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15024780 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15024780

KGIII 9y ago
I was able to find them by casting a wider net. I live in a very, very remote area. He has a practice that he visits that's not too far away. When he is up, he makes the drive to my house and we chat for an hour, usually over a small meal. Sometimes, I go down to see him but he enjoys the drive and coming to visit me. I am in the US. I am retired in Maine. I am fortunate in that I sold my business and am financially secure. So, I can afford some of the best medical care. I've since helped to seed another program, at a not terribly distant medical facility, that helps treat others with addiction problems. It's a bit of a money sink, but it makes me feel good. The provider is a different person, however. I never liked methadone. Of course, when I tried it last, I was using fentanyl and methadone couldn't come close to helping because my tolerance was so high. Suboxone doesn't really get me high, it just keeps me from getting sick. I am allowed to take enough to get high, but I seldom do. My doctor is pretty cool about stuff like that. Again, the goal is harm reduction and not strict sobriety. Finding a doctor interested in that was key for me. It took some phone calls, some false starts, and some time. I can't stress this enough - it helps to have money. Insurance would not cover much of this. I pay my doctor in cash. I'm pretty sure I spend more now than I usually did when using illegally.

tjorganism 9y ago

Funny how addicts are always pro legalization.

KGIII 9y ago
Would you expect something else? I'm not seeing anything funny about it. The vast majority of harm comes from the illegality, not from the drugs themselves. Do you want to reduce harm, or do you want to impose your morality on other people?
- tjorganism 9y ago
  Well since you asked, no, I would not expect something else. Their (your) addiction has affected the organ that they use for making decisions. I would expect an addict to find any way he or she can to find access to more of the addictive substance their now compromised brain demands. Being smart or high functioning only means they can find even more clever and inventive ways of achieving their desires. You say that the vast majority of harm comes from the illegality of drug use. I don't see any reason to believe that is true. You haven't presented an argument or evidence to persuade me one way or the other. On the contrary, I think addiction is itself harm. It removes the ability to choose. It attacks the very organ that makes your choices. You have access to resource, so you can mitigate the consequences of your actions more than others. Remove your resource, or replace it with a $40,000/year salary and a tough service industry job, and the consequences will find you. I think eventually the consequences will find even you, however much resource you have amassed. You should make a pact with yourself to see if in 20 years (assuming you make it that long) you still think your life is as good as it could have been without your addiction. Do I want to reduce harm or impose my morality on other people? My answer is YES. I want to reduce harm by imposing my morality on other people. Any time you vote you are imposing your views on ethical issues onto society. Let's all agree that everyone imposes their own views on morality onto others. You are doing it to me right now, and for that I thank you. Let's duke it out in the public square. If you convince more people with your arguments, your views will be codified into law. If I convince more people with my arguments, then my views will be codified into law. This form of reasonable discourse is how we avoid solving our issues with violence.