For those of us in the addiction and recovery field, we hear the latest rant by John Walters, and are left wondering whether he’s delusional on the drug issue specifically, or just insane in general.
The Drug “Czar” has blamed marijuana smokers for creating political turmoil and government assassinations in Mexico, for indirectly supporting the Taliban, and for fueling the growth of cocaine cartels in Columbia. At his present pace, I suspect six months from now, Mr. Walters will have formed a solid correlation between illicit drugs and the reason we can’t confirm or deny the existence of Bigfoot, or get a decent sonar reading on the Loch Ness Monster.
But the truth is, John Walters is neither delusional or insane. In the vernacular of hard-core politics, Mr. Walters is a “message force multiplier,” which is a nice euphemism for “highly paid liar with a ten ton agenda.”
His job is to go out and keep selling the exact “war on drugs message” his administration wants sold, because there’s tens of billions at stake annually. They know very well that while drug policy reform makes a lot of sense, it doesn’t make a lot of money for the people who are benefiting from the Draconian drugs laws that now prevail.
Luckily, public opinion is changing, albeit at a glacial pace. But slowly but surely, the average person is finding a few moments every now and then to tear themselves away from American Idol or Oprah to realize that the “war on drugs” has done more to reduce the quality of life for the average citizen than any other piece of social policy in history.
For now, we can only guess how we could have improved society had we not washed hundreds of billions of dollars down the “war on drugs” drain.
And I wouldn’t look for any change in the next year or so either. As the recession fully kicks in, you can rest assured that somehow the noble Drug Czar will connect that to illicit drugs as well, because it’s all in the name of the “war on drugs.” And as a wise Greek said many years ago, “In war – truth is the first casualty.”
Jim Stephens
Chief Information Officer
All Positive Options
For those of us in the addiction and recovery field, we hear the latest rant by John Walters, and are left wondering whether he’s delusional on the drug issue specifically, or just insane in general.
The Drug “Czar” has blamed marijuana smokers for creating political turmoil and government assassinations in Mexico, for indirectly supporting the Taliban, and for fueling the growth of cocaine cartels in Columbia. At his present pace, I suspect six months from now, Mr. Walters will have formed a solid correlation between illicit drugs and the reason we can’t confirm or deny the existence of Bigfoot, or get a decent sonar reading on the Loch Ness Monster.
But the truth is, John Walters is neither delusional or insane. In the vernacular of hard-core politics, Mr. Walters is a “message force multiplier,” which is a nice euphemism for “highly paid liar with a ten ton agenda.”
His job is to go out and keep selling the exact “war on drugs message” his administration wants sold, because there’s tens of billions at stake annually. They know very well that while drug policy reform makes a lot of sense, it doesn’t make a lot of money for the people who are benefiting from the Draconian drugs laws that now prevail.
Luckily, public opinion is changing, albeit at a glacial pace. But slowly but surely, the average person is finding a few moments every now and then to tear themselves away from American Idol or Oprah to realize that the “war on drugs” has done more to reduce the quality of life for the average citizen than any other piece of social policy in history.
For now, we can only guess how we could have improved society had we not washed hundreds of billions of dollars down the “war on drugs” drain.
And I wouldn’t look for any change in the next year or so either. As the recession fully kicks in, you can rest assured that somehow the noble Drug Czar will connect that to illicit drugs as well, because it’s all in the name of the “war on drugs.” And as a wise Greek said many years ago, “In war – truth is the first casualty.”
Jim Stephens
Chief Information Officer
All Positive Options
Comment by Jim Stephens — Friday, May 2, 2024 @ 2:41 pm