DRUG ADDICTION

by

John Roberts (1998)

Drug addiction, at the close of the Twentieth Century, is a persistent and ever-present evil . The use of all forms of stimulants, narcotics, tobacco and alcohol is commonplace.

When Walter Raleigh brought tobacco to Europe during the sixteenth century, he unwittingly released a terrible scourge upon mankind. How happy our parents were, and particularly our male forebears, to indulge themselves in this expensive and useless weed. It was generally considered harmless and, if one had suggested the contrary, fifty or so years ago, one would have been ridiculed with remarks to the effect, e.g.,"My grandfather smoked a pipe every day of his life, from the age of fourteen years, and lived to be ninety-five!" "I have been smoking for thirty-years and have never had a day's illness in my life!"

The use of other drugs was commonplace in the l9th-Century. Many people of impeccable social-standing, regularly used laudanum, (Tincture of Opium), for a variety of maladies. Opium was freely available from the local apothecary's shop. Medical opinion was, perhaps, in favour of its use, when there was little else to alleviate severe pain. Nor, indeed, had medical science developed the skills regarded as commonplace today. Our fathers and mothers did not fully appreciate the danger in which they placed themselves and others in the use of drugs.

Alcohol has, of course, been used in Christian Societies for generations, both for social and for medical purposes. Its effects, when used to excess are well-documented and most people know what it is to suffer a severe hangover, after a night of over-indulgence: even if they do not remember their shameful behaviour of the previous night, under the influence of the uninhibiting fluid.

During the last fifty years, the use of heroin and addiction to barbiturate drugs has become commonplace, in spite of severe legal penalties for the supply and use of both "hard" and "soft" drugs in most countries. From time to time, new drugs or "hotted-up " versions of pre-existing drugs come on to the market.

Society is well aware of the effects of the excessive use of hard drugs. I myself have acted in court proceedings in many cases involving serious or minor addiction to heroin. I have witnessed the morally and spiritually destructive effects of heroin upon highly intelligent and gifted young people. Once addicted to heroin, there is little hope of a permanent return to normal life. The heroin addict remains a parasite and a menace to other members of the community. Deceitful and manipulative, he regards other people as legitimate prey, in the pursuit of the gratification of his own twisted priorities.

We attempt to provide a solution to this problem, by keeping addicts happy. They are placed on Methadone programmes and given a periodic dose of this drug, in the belief that methadone is less harmful to the addict. The addict himself regards this as a temporary form of relief and will take it whenever he can. In addition, he will also use any other drug to which he may be able to obtain access.

There are certain residential centres, which cater for addicts on a long-term basis: this being, sensibly, recognized as the only way in which to possibly "cure" an addict. Many patients enter these places with an initial determination to remain for the full twelve months, or so, of the prescribed drying-out period. Sadly, after a few weeks, many relapse into renewed drug use. And so the unhappy tale continues.

In the meantime, more drugs come on the market: cocaine and its derivatives, "Crack", "LSD", "Ecstasy", etc.. Addicts will not hesitate to try these drugs if they get the chance.

There has been great debate regarding the use of Indian Hemp, (Marijuana or Cannabis). Many users claimed that this drug is harmless and that the prohibition of Cannabis use is unfair and unjust to social smokers. This, in spite of a massive body of medical evidence, which suggests that the use of this drug is much more dangerous than was originally believed. Used regularly, it is addictive. That it is a trigger for schizoid mental conditions is well known. It builds up rapidly in the fatty tissues of the body and brain and the effects of casual use continue for months. It is a carcinogen: causes lung-cancer and possibly other forms of cancer.

One serious by-product of cannabis use, is the fact that it encourages users to try other, more dangerous substances. One does not need to be a psychologist to understand that a person who is weak enough to indulge in cannabis, knowing something of the possible risk to his or her health, would be quite as likely to try heroin or cocaine, if offered to him. This possibility is enhanced if the person has been recently indulging in cannabis use or drinking hard liquor. In that event, the normal defences of the reason are affected and the subject is in a much more vulnerable state of mind. To deny this, is to white-wash the obvious.

One further criticism of Cannabis use is that it encourages the adoption of a careless attitude towards the responsibilities of life. Young people, who become accustomed to smoking marijuana, frequently lose interest in their studies: university students drop-out and the whole course of their lives is affected. This is no idle tale: there is plenty of evidence of brilliant lives ruined by this simple and "harmless" pastime.

----------------

What then is Society doing about the problem?

Many nations have severe penalties for the illegal distribution, vending and possession of prescribed drugs. Such penalties are enforced to a variable degree, depending upon the view taken in each jurisdiction as to the severity of the crime. The type of drug sold or used, the quantity in the possession of the offender, the criminal record of the accused: his social and economic background. All these factors are taken into account in dealing with offenders, when and if they are caught, and often result, particularly in the more liberal-minded jurisdictions such as Australia, in the imposition of lenient sentences for crimes of a grave nature.

Witness the ludicrous situation that arises, from time to time, when drug traffickers are sentenced in overseas jurisdictions to death or life imprisonment, which is often commuted to a nominal prison sentence. After a short spell of gaol, they return to Australia, free to resume the iniquitous life they have previously led. How much better would this society be if they had remained incarcerated overseas? But, we are told, how inhumane is this attitude, which would result in drug pedlars spending years in overseas gaols. How awful for them!

What steps are Governments taking to reduce the level of drug related crime? Here in Australia, the Conservative Federal Government, (bent on destroying the Commonwealth Public Service) which is responsible for the maintenance of Customs surveillance, has drastically reduced the numbers of Customs personnel and Commonwealth Police Officers, who were engaged in combating this menace. It, apparently, costs too much to maintain Drug Enforcement agencies. The result is that Australia has become a haven for the transportation of drugs, which pass through our Ports with a minimum of interruption. This country is wide open to the drug-lords and their legion of pedlars. As a result it has become a major distribution centre.

My own experience, is that drug addicts appear before the courts, repeatedly, on relatively minor charges: involving the supply or use of small quantities of drugs. However, they never learn: they will promise to reform: will undertake whatever course of remedial treatment is offered to them, without hesitation. They convince the Judge or Magistrate that, this time, they have really seen the light. He himself does not wish to send this poor, unfortunate creature to prison. The Judge is a compassionate man (or woman.) He is easily induced to be lenient to these victims of society's errors. The result is another Bond and Probationary supervision. No sooner is the offender outside the courtroom, than he is thumbing his nose, once more, at the system, which has failed Society again. It is not long before he is back in court once more. And so the story continues...

What this and every other society has to realize, is that drug pedlars and addicts are a threat to the stability of the community as a whole. It is high time that every civilized nation on this Earth adopted a ruthlessly systematic approach to the question of illegal drug use. Severe penalties have not only to be placed on the Statute Book, they have to be inflicted upon those involved in the supply and abuse of drugs. I do not advocate the reintroduction of the Death Penalty, but certainly, penalties for drug-related offences must reflect the community's abhorrence of such crimes. Nor, indeed, should those committing armed-robberies, to fund the purchase of drugs, receive the short periods of imprisonment, which are commonly imposed. These people are well aware of what they are doing: there can be no excuse for this type of criminal activity.

There may well come a time when Governments will fully co-operate, internationally, in the struggle against drug traffickers, even to the extent of engaging in all-out warfare against the drug-lords, who have presented such a problem for drug enforcement agencies. Some attempts are being made in South America and in the Far East, to persuade farmers not to cultivate crops such as Opium, Coca and Marijuana. These endeavours will need to be strengthened by international funding of alternative cropping systems.

A word about the use of drugs to enhance sporting prowess:

Once upon a time there was an idea current, that sport was the preserve of the amateur sportsman. The ancient Greeks were the first people to idolize the concept of the godlike athlete: a mirror image of the perfect God: physically fit and endowed with remarkable powers of endurance. This was reflected in the organization of the Olympic Games: a religious festival as well as a public spectacle. Great honour was awarded, in the form of the laurel wreath, to the successful athlete.

Formerly, too, the man-in-the-street revealed a partiality for the twin subjects of religion and politics: both of which occasioned heated debate from time to time. This, possibly dangerous, interest has been replaced by a passionate attachment to popular sport. During the last hundred years or so, this trend has been encouraged by Governments, with the support of the various Media organizations. The result is that "Sport", in one form or another, is now the principal world religion. It is a fact that billions of dollars are spent and earned, each week, by those participating in sporting activities and their related gambling and business interests.

It has become essential, for reasons of national prestige, that sportsmen perform to the utmost of their capacity. Records must be seen to be broken from year to year. Great pressure is imposed upon athletes, in the form of propaganda and rewards, to produce results. Governments provide funding and scientists have produced substances which, quite definitely increase physical stamina and improve performance.

Sportsmen and their trainers have been quick to take advantage of these drugs, so much so, that we observe that world-records have been broken repeatedly in recent years, by athletes who have, quite obviously, been using performance-enhancing substances. There has been much hypocritical commentary by sporting authorities world-wide, regarding the unfairness of this practice. However, it now appears that the vast bulk, if not all, athletes, in every professional sporting activity, have been taking Steroids or other PED's, on a regular basis.

This practice makes a mockery of the principle of fair play in sport and raises doubt regarding the valued attached to sporting activity, in general. Is it not all an utter farce? Why should ordinary people bother themselves with supporting sporting bodies, when they are aware that the players are all high on dope? So much for the Greek principle of honour in sport. It all boils down to the question of money: who is profiting by such an abuse of sport? The athletes themselves must be aware of the fact that they are cheats to a man (and woman). This is not to mention the danger to their health from the abuse of substances: a danger which is akin to that of the heroin addict. It is well known that there have been cases of heart failure from the use of Steroids.

So long as one athlete is taking drugs, the concept of the Olympic Games, as an honourable contest, is brought into contempt. Why not just close down the whole hypocritical and hopelessly expensive performance? Why not, indeed, encourage working men to abandon their lunatic pursuit of their sporting idols and return to the time-honoured interest in religion and politics. It would be a far more worthwhile activity.

-----------------

In conclusion, might one add: the question of drug use is ultimately, as with all social questions, one for the individual to decide. Society must teach young people that drugs, in any form, whether they be Barbiturates, Cannabis, Tobacco or Alcohol, are intrinsically harmful to mankind. One has only to observe the number of young people still smoking cigarettes, to understand that the problem will not disappear spontaneously. Children are impressionable and will, as a rule, follow the example presented to them by older persons.

Where juveniles can see little hope for the development of a satisfactory future career for themselves, they will readily turn to alternative means of emotional escapism. This is a continuing problem for all young people. The sense of helplessness and despair for many unemployed and half-educated, jobless youths, must be overwhelming. How easily might they be tempted to take a pull at a cannabis cigarette? This is the thin-end of the wedge. We oldies have all been young once upon a time. We also went through this period of instability, when one wrong-move might well have proved to be disastrous. Happily, we were not exposed to drugs, as are young persons today. I, personally, would not like to be in the position of modern youth, which has an overwhelming number of enticements of a superficially attractive nature: all calculated to bring about the ruin of the unwary.

What a rotten world we have created for our young people! We are responsible for this decay, just as our forebears must take responsibility for the chaos and disorder that have gone before: for the inequality and injustice which have been the lot of the poor and the underprivileged.

The drug problem is just one facet of the enormous difficulties facing future generations of humankind. The decisions we make, today, will possibly inhibit the development of the human race well into the next millennium. That is why we have to take a tough stand in dealing with unlawful drug use: not for the present generation but for those following after.

No one likes the prospect of "writing-off" human beings. It is not a welcome thought. If the future is not to write-off one or two whole generations of humankind, we have got to start thinking now about the year 2000 and beyond. The world will not be in our hands but in the control of those coming after us. If we do not act now, it will be too late to prevent those unborn generations inheriting a legacy of drug-induced chaos.

2nd September l998.

Footnote: (19th January 2000) : Recent publicity has given attention in Australia to the question of "Safe Injection Centres". These are depots in which addicts may inject themselves with drugs, using sterile needles supplied by the Community. This is, at first sight, a positive step, but clearly involves the Police and Drug Enforcement bodies in turning a blind eye to the fact that addicts are blatantly flouting the law. For these centres to succeed, the law must change to permit individual use of hard drugs. This involves a complete abrogation of the principle that the use of hard drugs is intrinsically dangerous to both the user and to Society as a whole. Such centres will, undoubtedly, become magnets for the pushers, who profit so freely from their pernicious activities. What is so badly needed is not Public Injection Centres, but a Drug Enforcement body, that has the will and the power to carry out the Community's desire to rid our cities of Drug Pedlars and Addicts. The former by identification and imprisonment for lengthy periods and the latter by enforced and, if necessary, prolonged abstention from all forms of drug abuse. Feather-bedding addicts, is merely going to prolong the agony of Society and lead to increased use of dangerous substances.

mailto:roberts.jno@gmail.com