from: http://www.themestream.com/gspd_browse/browse/view_article.gsp?c_id=104894&id_ list=&cookied=T Click Here: <A HREF="http://www.themestream.com/gspd_browse/browse/view_article.gsp?c_id=1048 94&id_list=&cookied=T">Confessions of a Drug User.</A> ----- Confessions of a Drug User. by Marq Elias July 11, 2000 I use drugs. That's a statement that many are afraid to admit to, and others are horrified to hear. Drug users are considered as criminals, and worse. Funny, I use drugs and I don't feel like a social leper. We constantly hear about the war on drugs. Every day we pass by humans-turned-car wrecks by the overpowering evil force that is illicit drugs. Nothing seems to rile up the masses than condemnation on those pesky drug addicts screwing up our cities. But for every car wreck you slow down to see, there are three more people using, and living productive lives. Drugs, if used properly, can take you to places of enlightenment-like jail (just kidding). And on the flip side, they can take you down faster than Pauly Shore's fifteen minutes of fame. As humans we tend to lack self control when it comes to certain things-money, alcohol, sex, drugs, Themestream, etc.. That is part of our nature, and one that-if we work at it-we can control. Supporters of the NRA always say that guns don't kill people, people kill people. I like to think of drugs in the same way. Drugs can be used to experience things of great beauty, and they can put a hole in your head if you're not careful. Sick people get sicker on drugs-that is obvious. But there are many others who don't destroy their lives, and actually gain from the experience. When it comes down to it-right or wrong-experience is what it is all about. The route I choose may not be yours, and that is cool with me. There is a reason why I have never car-jacked someone, or knocked over a 7-11 in pursuit of toxic elan-I know right from wrong (based upon my own perceptions and experiences of course). Other than the consumption of illicit substances, I do not break any laws-ok I have played a few pranks in my time that may have strayed into petty crime, but if the statute of limitations can forgive me, I am sure you can too. I've helped a little old lady cross the street a time or two in my life. I'm no saint, but truth be told-no one is. I'll stack my reputation up against anyone in congress any day. On second thought that's a bad example-but you get the point I am trying to make. I take responsibility for my own actions. That is why I have a problem with drug laws such as they are today. To me the war on drugs say this, "You are incapable of making decisions on your own. You don't need to take responsibility for your own actions We will do it for you." Thanks Uncle Sam but I can make some decisions for myself. There is a difference between the use (in every sense of the word) of drugs, and the abuse of drugs. Just as there is a distinction between a social drinker and a raving alcoholic (Hi dad!), in my eyes a drug addict-like an alcoholic-is someone without backbone. They have bought into the idea that if you do such things in excess you are no longer responsible for your actions. How many times have you heard the excuse, "I was drunk," or "it wasn't me, it was the rock?" It is never an addict's fault. It's never the alcoholics fault they wound up in that bar at 8am. Those people are weak, and they need help-help in the form of treatment rather than a crash course in "How to be a violent criminal 101" that our prison systems seem all too good at providing. Comedian Mitch Hedburg has a routine in his act that goes like this, "Alcoholism is the only disease you can get yelled at for," go ahead and add drug addiction as well, "(yelling now) Johnny you're an alcoholic! Johnny you have Lupus! One of these doesn't sound right." This article is not a "hey kids run out and grab that crack pipe," narcotics uber alles manifesto. The only person I tell what to do is myself, and what works for me may not-in fact probably won't-work for you. I don't believe that drugs are good or bad. They are inanimate objects without feelings, and therefore cannot maintain human ideals such as "good" or "bad." The point of this article is simply, hopefully, to make people stop and think. The fact that someone does drugs does not immediately make them a horrible person. Remember what they say, don't judge a book by it's cover-even if it has a big pot leaf on it. ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, All My Relations. Omnia Bona Bonis, Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End Copyright Marq Elias About the author: I am a 28 year old writer, gypsy, poet, and maniac, currently residing in the Pacific Northwest. My interests are as varied as they could possibly be. I am prone to being a dreamer, and like Dr. Evil's father, I wish to take credit for the question mark. I am currently working on two screenplays, and a collection of thoughts and experiences based on the many adventures I have gone on across the country. I freelanced for MTV for two years, and my poetry has been published in several underground literary rags. Get to know me. I am always available for writing assignments. You can reach me at [EMAIL PROTECTED] <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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