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Be careful of a possible false dichotomy; People don’t need to have a drug.
by imoverclocked 2y ago
Be careful of a possible false dichotomy; People don’t need to have a drug.
- ndileas 2y agoHey, speak for yourself, buddy. More seriously, I think there's ample historical evidence that drugs (with a liberal definition, beer, etc) are very popular across various times and places.
- kube-system 2y agoAnd religion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_of_the_people https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_of_the_people
- ikanreed 2y agoThat very wikipedia article you links makes it clear it's not intended to mean religion is a "Drug" in the sense of being addictive, but rather a sociological pain killer. A tonic that limits how much people react to their own suffering.
- kube-system 2y agoAbsolutely. And smart phones are also not literally a drug. Drugs, video games, alcohol, and religion, are all used as a part of coping mechanisms for many, however.
- vacuity 2y ago> a compulsive, chronic, physiological or psychological need for a habit-forming substance, behavior, or activity having harmful physical, psychological, or social effects and typically causing well-defined symptoms (such as anxiety, irritability, tremors, or nausea) upon withdrawal or abstinence (Merriam-Webster, "addiction") It might be stretching it somewhat, but I think video games, social media, and religion can manifest a habitual need to indulge, negative effects from doing so, and negative effects from not doing so. Perhaps not in most people. Coping mechanisms/painkillers can naturally cause some people to be "in too deep" because they keep using it and become dependent.
- _Algernon_ 2y agoPopularity doesn't necessarily imply a need.
- BriggyDwiggs42 2y agoIf you want to get technical, doesn’t it? When some particular variety of thing is popular across all human cultures, doesn’t this point to it addressing some deep desire we might put on mazlow’s? What distinguishes a deep, innate human desire from a need?
- s1artibartfast 2y agoOne way to distinguish them is the retrospective analysis of the outcome. What happens when someone obtains or goes without each category? To go deeper, I think one needs to more fully defined "need”. Need for what? Are we talking about needs.. to sustain biological life? Are we talking about needs... To sustain happy and productive lives? If we take the second definition, there is a pretty clear difference between a desire and a need. Satisfaction of a desire does not necessarily advance that goal, and can very well be counter to it.
- BriggyDwiggs42 2y agoI would just argue that “happy and productive“ is vastly too reductive. This seems like a very difficult definition to nail down, but those needs which are not required for survival would probably be defined as something like “those things which increase the flourishing of, maximize the potential of, and/or contribute to a valid and lasting feeling of deep satisfaction in the individual.” From this definition, it seems like some drugs and some uses of drugs are most certainly not necessary while others seem to be contributing to a real psychological need. Some drugs can give people insight into the nature of their own mind or of their experience, or reshape their worldview for the better. They can allow us to experiment with our own consciousness, which seems to be something that we derive a lot of satisfaction and even utility from. In these cases, drugs may be fulfilling a need. Simultaneously we can recognize that drug use intended more just to anesthetize or produce blind pleasure is most likely not contributing to a need, as it was defined above.
- behnamoh 2y agoOP didn't say that.
- pwillia7 2y agoWho like hermits and people that follow asceticism?
- vouaobrasil 2y agoThat's fair. But I was only referring to those that tend towards drugs, since the entire study is about a reduction in drug use.
- dpndencekultur 2y agoIndoctrination into a dependency mindset fits the "buy a solution" model that our societies run on. We are already primed for this indoctrination from the moment mother puts a pacifier in our mouths. Then constantly looking up at her approval, that constitutes the beginning of our need of approval from the women in our lives. We are programmed and primed from day 0.
- nozzlegear 2y agoWe're just missing a cigar and a dream about trains here.
- sandy_coyote 2y agoWhat's the reference here? I thought Pink Floyd at first.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]
- FooBarBizBazz 2y agoQuoth the AI: > According to Freud, dreaming about trains often symbolizes the journey of life, with the train representing the progression of time and the destination representing death, and the act of riding a train can be linked to unconscious sexual desires due to the sensation of movement and confinement, particularly when experiencing anxiety about missing a train or being trapped on one.
- mindslight 2y agoAny exceptions for when you had train wallpaper as a kid? Asking for a friend.
- nozzlegear 2y agoYes, Freud was who I was referencing; the references to the mother, pacifier, and constantly looking for approval from women made me think of Freud's fringe theories about the Oedipus complex. He was also big into the symbolism of dreams, and thought that one explanation for trains in your dreams were the phallic representations of your repressed sexual desires.
- layer8 2y agoSo what‘s your drug of choice?
- techfeathers 2y agoI really found it interesting that in the engineered society of Brave New World, everyone got a drug. I guess my personally opinion is that I disagree with you, that in a world where you know about drugs, drugs are a sort of need.