Indulgence

For the clarity of what is to come, allow me to express what I consider to be a “drug”.  Many think of a drug as those crazy plants or pills people consume to experience a superhuman and unnatural high.  Unlike the social norm, I take a much more broad approach to what drugs are: any substance (chemical or organic) that alters the body or the mind from its normal functioning form.

If one wished to get picky, one could even argue that simply sugar in large amounts can be a drug – a statement I would personally consider valid.  The effect a substance on a human doesn’t have to be very profound or even noticeable, just so long as it has the potential to alter a human on a fundamental internal level is enough for me to consider it a drug.

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You will probably notice that I refer to society quite a bit, almost to the point where it would seem I exclude myself from the group.  I assure you, dear reader, that this is not the case.  For the sake of convenience, accuracy, and fairness, I hope to remove myself and my personal opinions from injecting bias into my conclusions.

This being said, it is undoubtable that society has been altered by drugs.  To elaborate on this with my definition of what a drug is would be to venture though history and digress into contemplation of how some king’s cholesterol ridden diet may have made him cranky and thus strove headlong into war.  For the sake of argument, I will assume the definition that a drug is a “substance used to treat an illness, relieve a symptom, or modify a chemical process in the body for a specific purpose” (Thank you Wiktionary).  Drugs have brought splendors and plagues to our society: medicine has extended the life of people worldwide and illicit drugs (and some licit drugs too) have shortened lives or have worsened the human conditions.

Not all affects have been negative.  Drugs have brought entire societies together, or at minimal, forced societies to recognize the effect they have.  Substances such as marijuana, ecstasy, and alcohol have formed innumerable subcultures and have been the source or topic of many forms of entertainment for a populace at large.  Like most progress, it comes at a price.  Misuse of drugs has caused heartbreak and sorrow for many as they watched their loved ones overdose, wither away, or die as a consequence of another’s drug use.  Our own United States has been polarized on the topic.  Some choose the side of freedoms, others choose the side of morals and ethics.  It is indeed impossible to avoid or ignore the effects drugs have had on our society, our economy, and our ways of living.

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This is where you might out-right assume that I’m a hippie or a libertarian or a pot-head.  If that is the taste this leaves in your mouth, that’s fine by me, but at least hear me through:

I do not condone anything illegal, nor do I condone anything irresponsible.

I do, however, feel that drugs* usage** should be legalized***.

*: See first definition of “drug”.

**: This includes consumption, trade, and manufacture.

***: See the following paragraph.

There is a reason I added quite a few “catch-22s” on that statement.  There is quite a lot I wish to explain about my standpoint on the issue that cannot be summed up so briefly.  “Legal,” in the sense that I used it, doesn’t mean “free-for-all get drunk and take bong hits till you pass out while shooting up on heroin” and getting away with it.

Cigarettes are legal.  Alcohol is legal.  Sugar is legal.  Dietary supplements are legal.  Each of these I would classify as a drug, and each of these have their own control measures for “usage”.  Let drugs be integrated into our society, but not irresponsibly.

Substances would have to undergo clinical tests (as most drugs already do through the FDA) and then be categorized (similar to drug scheduling) and have certain laws, stipulations, and warnings attached to them.

I will use alcohol as an example: to consume or purchase, one has to be at least 21 years of age.  To sell and manufacture alcohol, one must have expressed government permission and adhere to all laws and regulations that apply.  Even the usage of alcohol is controlled: one cannot be drunk while driving, one cannot be drunk at work (or maybe they can, they’d have to check with their boss), one cannot be drunk in public, and so on.  Alcohol (should, not does) warns the imbiber that the substance can be potentially harmful when mixed or taken in substantial amounts.

I feel that this sort of control should be exercised on all substances.

Opinions may vary, results not typical, consult a medical professional before arriving at a conclusion.

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If drugs were legal in the sense that I have described above, I may find myself quite predisposed to sample some of them.  I chose the word “sample” because it quite accurately described my attitude: I would choose to indulge in a substance if I found its usage to be beneficial to myself in some way, whether it be some form of self-enlightenment or just to be able to say “been there, done that, its not worth it/over-hyped/enjoyable”.

There are quite a few ways one can screw up their life, and over-indulgence is one of the more expedient ways to do so.  Although I would find myself sampling drugs, I would hopefully have the will power (as I assume I do) to resist becoming addicted or dependent on them.  Even if a substance presented no physical repercussions for dependence, I’d rather it not damage my societal life in any way; I’d like not to lose a job over “Drug X” addiction, and I would sure hate to spend all of my money on it too.

In short, I’d sample it, but only out of sheer curiosity, and I would do so with the utmost of precaution and responsibility.

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I’m not a pot-head, I’m a scientist.

-M.