DRUGS, MORALITY, & EPIC FINGER-WAGGING

Should "right" and "wrong" be part of the drug discussion?

The "War on Drugs" essentially is based on moral arguments about the
ethical legitimacy of drug use. It is an argument tantamount to those
surrounding abortion and homosexuality. The assumption is that humans
are irrational and animalistic creatures.

Without proper "moral" guidance, they will fall into depravity and
orgiastic hedonism.

Our drug laws have been informed by these types of foundational
assumptions which have their origins in the Temperance Movement,
racism, and Puritanism. Yet in 2009 and beyond should we base our laws
on such pessimistic and archaic moralizing? Or should we move towards
an evidence-based approach with roots in medical, psychological, and
sociological research?

Although it would seem that we are on the cusp of a new era in drug
policy there is still this tendency for our population to moralize
drug use. The dialogue surrounding the issue is always articulated in
ways that find focus in the ethical.

Even those who support drug policy reform and regulation get trapped
in framing all drug use outside of socially normative models (i.e.
medicine, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol) as problematic and morally/
ethically wrong. This is symptomatic of over 30 years of "just say no"
ads and D.A.R.E. programs, which have created a national psychology
entrenched in the "evil, bad, depraved, reprehensible" dichotomy of
all nonsocially sanctioned drug use. The national drug policy
dialectic as it stands assumes, without even questioning, the
reprehensible nature of drug use.

Yet before we can truly formulize a correct, rational, and measured
response to drug consumption we must first abandon the assumption that
drug use in itself is a moral issue.

To which categorical imperative or objective reality can we appeal to
support such an argument?

Only puritanical ideologies based in the Temperance Movement and an
archaic Western appeal to "God" as a morally stabilizing force.

Herein lies the problem: who receives the right to espouse "God's" (or
whatever's) moral directives? Maybe the Taliban and their version of
Shariah law? To whom should we look for theological or transcendental
guidance on our legislation? Or could we assume that "God" (or
whatever) gave us the rational capacity to utilize research in an
effort to establish socially edifying legislation? The bottom line is:
do we want legislation based on theocratic, transcendental, and
culturally biased dogma?

Or should we dare to orientate ourselves towards scientific and
research-based principles?

This demoralization of drug use has gone into full swing in the U.K.
with the "nice" people at release.org. uk. They have put forth a
full-fledged advertising campaign entitled "Nice People Take Drugs."
This statement is a great first step in reformulating the dialectic
surrounding drug use. It is incredibly easy to point a moralizing
finger at Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES). The socially labeled
"depravity" of drug use in the DTES is epitomized, and habitually
referred to by naysayers and moralizers of drug use. To such ignorant
people it is the only place any definable drug use takes place and
displays the inevitable result of all drug use; however, the United
Nation's Office on Drugs and Crimes' 2009 World Drug Report states
that less then one per cent of the world population are serious drug
users.

Beyond this one per cent, the UN estimates that an additional 154 to
212 million people around the world use "illicit" drugs.

Who are these non-problematic recreational drug users?

CEOs, lawyers, doctors, teachers, politicians (former Edmonton
Conservative MP Rahim Jaffer to name one), and other "respectable"
members of society ingest drugs for recreational/spiritual use. Nice
people do take drugs and not out of addicted dependency. Is it so
wrong to take some Ecstasy and have a good time? What about a few
shots of liquor?

What's the bloody difference?

Besides, not only can ecstasy be fun but it can potentially also be
therapeutic. Dr. Rick Doblin, president of the Multidisciplinary
Association for Psychedelic Studies (maps.org), has been attempting to
de-moralize drug use, recreational or otherwise, for decades.

He did his PhD thesis at Harvard on "The Regulation of the Medical Use
of Psychedelics and Marijuana" and has studied different methodologies
concerning spiritual, recreational, and therapeutic psychedelic drug
use.

Dr. Doblin is now spearheading groundbreaking research into the
therapeutic legitimacy of ecstasy use in people with post-traumatic
stress syndrome and has been cleared by Health Canada to do one study
here in Vancouver. Despite this, Dr. Doblin has been fighting an
uphill battle for decades to get such necessary and potentially
liberating research done due to the irrational perception towards, and
moralization of, psychedelic drugs.

Sadly, owing to the inculcation of moralistic and demonizing
propaganda perpetuated by world governments, we are in the dark ages
of psychedelic research.

We need to end this illegal/legal dichotomy of these morally inert
substances.

Yet what can Canada do against such absurd international - or more
specifically, American - pressure?

Canada must look at its "illicit" drug production as a positive way to
undermine the moralization of such use. Ecstasy, when used properly
and responsibly, is just as safe as alcohol. Both drugs and alcohol,
when used improperly and irresponsibly, can have devastating physical
and social effects.

Neither drugs nor alcohol are inherently moral by nature.

We need to end this irrational national reaction of abhorrence towards
Canada's "illicit" drug production and use. We need to legalize,
regulate, and tax recreational drugs.

The only abhorrent aspect of Canada's illicit drug trade is that it is
controlled by a myriad of socially antagonistic, self-interested, and
violent gangsters.

The actual production and export of internationally illicit drugs in
Canada is not the issue.

The issue is the vile degenerate segment of society who currently
controls the production, distribution, and profits of these drugs.

Canadian Students for Sensible Drug Policy at SFU (CSSDP: SFU) will be
hosting CSSDP's national conference at the Burnaby Campus on October
23 to 25. We will be discussing these and other drug policy related
issues.

Some of our speakers include the aforementioned Dr. Rick Doblin, Dr.
Gabor Mate, MP Libby Davies, VCH's Mark Haden, and many others.

Please visit www.cssdp.org for more information.