08-09-2017, 11:08 PM
(08-09-2017, 10:09 PM)samhain Wrote: I'm not really an anti-drug guy, but I totally agree about the implementation of Narcan. Many moons ago when I was experimenting with this and that, I always subscribed to the great Hunter S Thompson quote: "Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride".
You really never know what's going to happen when you ingest a psychoactive substance. Whether it's a hallucinogenic trip that goes upside down b/c of general weirdness in your presence (usually shitty company), or just the plain and obvious fact that you never can be sure what's in the powder or pill you just bought, drugs aren't supposed to have a safety net. There's no FDA regulation on what gets sold on the street. No drug dealer is going to be held accountable for what happens to you after you consume his/her product. It's your decision and responsibility when you use.
I think drug use should should remain seedy and scary for prospective users. It encourages people to weigh consequences. If you think the cops or paramedics are just going bring you back from the brink of death, then it takes a key part of the experience (and a valuable one) away.
Personal philosophies aside, overdoses serve a purpose. If enough people die, then I tend to think that the general public's desire to do the drug will wane. Waves of drug popularity ebb and flow. Crack and meth have trashy stigmas and pretty much failed to become long-term epidemics across all demographics. When enough picks of dead bodies and little kids watching their parents turn blue start becoming prevalent, then perhaps the message will get out. If a person knows enough OD victims, maybe the idea gets through.
People already know cigarettes, alcohol, and illicit drugs can kill you, but people continue to use cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs. People know the dangers of speeding, drunk driving, riding a motorcycle without a helmet; yet, people still do all those things. Every year, people drown in the same part of the Chattahoochie River near where I live and it doesn't stop people from going to that same part of the river.
