Pubdate: June 2001 Source: Reason Magazine (US) Copyright: 2001 The Reason Foundation Contact: http://www.reason.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/359 Section: Letters Authors: Randy Hoffman, Mark C. Gribben REGARDING - NEGOTIATING TRAFFIC While agreeing with Nick Gillespie's critical assessment of the drug war, I experienced a strong visceral reaction while reading it. He goes beyond defending the right to choose intoxication, to outright championing of the intoxicated state itself. He reveals himself as an apologist for stupefaction. I find this at odds with REASON's masthead, which promotes "free minds and free markets," not bad choices. I believe that we are called to a life of virtue and that the value of reason is to help sort through all the noise that inhibits virtuous decisions. If reasoned thinking does not have this practical application, then it is just so much mental masturbation. Such thinking is not an easy endeavor, and it requires a disciplined commitment to intellectual awareness. As a child of the '60s, I have observed that substance-induced intoxication does not enhance one's mental acuity. In fact, it invariably dulls the senses, leading to a state of "comfortable numbness." As Roger Waters of Pink Floyd passionately pleads, "This is not how I am." Our basic being is obscured, not revealed, by intoxication. Further, connecting to reality in receding waves of awareness is the antithesis of reason. Maybe we can tolerate this mind-altered state in an editor-in-chief, but I doubt if anyone would encourage it in more critical citizens, such as doctors, airline pilots, judges, teachers, and parents. Randy Hoffman Seaford, VA As a recovering addict, I am incapable of understanding Nick Gillespie's assertion that there is such a thing as recreational drug use. Most people in my position can never comprehend how a social drinker can have just one glass of wine-it just doesn't compute. But I do agree that the current approach to fighting drug use is misguided and largely unsuccessful. I do not support legalization, but rather a redirection of forces and resources. Arguing from a utilitarian perspective, decriminalization still does not compute. Sure, most people who use recreational drugs don't become addicts who burden the state. But the occasional weekend toke on a joint or dose of Ecstasy at a rave has consequences far beyond the brief escape from reality. The economic costs of drug use, including legal drugs like alcohol and tobacco, are staggering. The Center for Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University recently found that states spent more than $83 billion "shoveling up" the wreckage of substance abuse. Most of that sum was devoted to the criminal justice system, foster care, and social services (not including treatment). More than three-quarters of the average state's criminal justice spending and 25 percent of health spending was related to substance abuse. In Colorado, for example, 95 cents out of every dollar spent on substance abuse went toward cleaning up the mess, while just five cents was allocated to prevention and education. I will grant that for many, drugs are fun and harmless. But a drugless society would be a better society. It may be more enjoyable to sit at home and get stoned or go to a bar to drink, but doing so means foregoing myriad opportunities for personal growth, public service, and communitybuilding. I enjoy concerts and sporting events without ingesting mood-altering chemicals, and I can be productive the next day instead of nursing a hangover. The rewards I get from making my community a better place far outweigh any drug high. We need to demonstrate that it is possible to enjoy a chemical-free life; there are alternatives to participating in a drug-based economy. But most importantly, Americans need to redirect our resources toward prevention and treatment or we will never win this war. Mark C. Gribben Lansing, MI - --- MAP posted-by: Keith Brilhart