Page 7
E S S A Y S
By The Number
e23
The RELIGIOSITY PRIMER
A Guide to Existencism
Nonspecific Generalism
0.I The Secularists
0a. Atheists
0b. Agnostics 0c. Empathetics & Sympathetics 0d. Conformists & Nonconformists 0e. Hedonists 0f. Witches & Wiccans 0g. Satanists 0h. Supernaturalists 0i. Pragmatists 0j. Buddhists |
Omniscient Creationism
0.II The Religionists
0a. Roman Catholics
0b. Protestants / Episcopalians 0c. Lutherans 0d. Mormons 0e. Methodists 0f. Christian Scientists 0g. Jehovah’s Witnesses 0h. Hindus (Hinduism) 0i. Muslims (Islam) 0j. Sectarians 0k. Nonsectarians |
Individual Universalism
0.III The Secular Religionists
0a. Religious Humanism
0b. Secular Creationism 0c. Scientologists 0d. Libertarians 0e. Natural Law 0f. Unitarians 0g. Universalists 0h. Diests |
e24
RELIGIOUS HUMANISM versus SECULAR CREATIONISM
The Advent of INDIVIDUAL UNIVERSALISM
Certain precepts of evolutionary/philosophical doctrine are made problematic by the temporary absence of specific fragments of information crucial to a complete and credible explanation for the existence of all that is. Until such gaps are made whole by demonstrable theories and provable facts, the origins of life in general, and of human beings in particular, will remain clouded by superstition and religious dogma.
The atheist relies on faith to the same degree as does the most devout Christian. The enigma of existence is more a mystery of why we are here, why now, and why us. And in addition, why it, why them, why this or that? Some possible answers include: Why not here, why not now, and why not ourselves? Precisely because it is this and not something else, because it is these and not an unknowable that or those.
Though the cosmos is apparently based on diversity, within parameters governed by a set of strict physical laws, it does not seem unreasonable that everything would be interrelated in similar if not identical ways. Given that the laws of physics operate in the same way everywhere, then everything should evolve by virtue of a single or very similar model.
This topic also touches upon notions and concepts of multi-dimensionality. The existence of multiple dimensions would function according to different models understood only at the dim fringes of comprehensibility. For the purpose of this essay, only matters reasonably understood will be dealt with. Grasping the significance and meaning of known territories which are themselves largely unexplored, without trails, absent a compass or guide, represents a duly sufficient challenge.
Much of the cosmological history of our world is known. Much of what is not understood is nonetheless illuminated by a multitude of theories, hypotheses, and educated guesswork. Most discoveries and events responsible for what we do understand -- on many levels -- remain largely incomprehensible. The situation is similar to how one can be taught to operate and drive an automobile, yet possess little or no knowledge of how or why the vehicle itself works. Only that it moves under its own power when operated appropriately.
In like fashion, the processes of change that continually happen all about us, and to us, are observable, predictable, and documented in terms of the fossil and geological record. Though such changes can be cataloged and measured (the car can be made to go), explanations as to how and why they take place represent one of the great scientific challenges yet to be deciphered. Only the world’s religious communities find the quest for such answers mostly futile and irrelevant. They believe that faith and scriptures already reveal the only truths that need be known.
Good men and women of honorable heart and decent intention persist in the misguided belief that science and religion are not necessarily in conflict with one another. That each somehow complements the other. This temporary and popular viewpoint is possible and true only because science has yet to answer the “big” questions, to fully strengthen the somewhat rickety framework of evolutionary thinking. Such ideas are temporary because science is on the thresholds of numerous, virtually unlimited discoveries and inventions that will finally force irrevocable changes in traditional religious teachings.
If God is to survive the coming onslaught of new truths, He, She, or It must shed a cloak of “judgmental omnipotence” in favor of a more predictable omnipresence. An anthropomorphic status as Supreme Being, the Almighty, must be relinquished in favor of a Purity of Being, of simply being. And all the while, being simple to understand, embrace, and worship.
The atheist relies on faith to the same degree as does the most devout Christian. The enigma of existence is more a mystery of why we are here, why now, and why us. And in addition, why it, why them, why this or that? Some possible answers include: Why not here, why not now, and why not ourselves? Precisely because it is this and not something else, because it is these and not an unknowable that or those.
Though the cosmos is apparently based on diversity, within parameters governed by a set of strict physical laws, it does not seem unreasonable that everything would be interrelated in similar if not identical ways. Given that the laws of physics operate in the same way everywhere, then everything should evolve by virtue of a single or very similar model.
This topic also touches upon notions and concepts of multi-dimensionality. The existence of multiple dimensions would function according to different models understood only at the dim fringes of comprehensibility. For the purpose of this essay, only matters reasonably understood will be dealt with. Grasping the significance and meaning of known territories which are themselves largely unexplored, without trails, absent a compass or guide, represents a duly sufficient challenge.
Much of the cosmological history of our world is known. Much of what is not understood is nonetheless illuminated by a multitude of theories, hypotheses, and educated guesswork. Most discoveries and events responsible for what we do understand -- on many levels -- remain largely incomprehensible. The situation is similar to how one can be taught to operate and drive an automobile, yet possess little or no knowledge of how or why the vehicle itself works. Only that it moves under its own power when operated appropriately.
In like fashion, the processes of change that continually happen all about us, and to us, are observable, predictable, and documented in terms of the fossil and geological record. Though such changes can be cataloged and measured (the car can be made to go), explanations as to how and why they take place represent one of the great scientific challenges yet to be deciphered. Only the world’s religious communities find the quest for such answers mostly futile and irrelevant. They believe that faith and scriptures already reveal the only truths that need be known.
Good men and women of honorable heart and decent intention persist in the misguided belief that science and religion are not necessarily in conflict with one another. That each somehow complements the other. This temporary and popular viewpoint is possible and true only because science has yet to answer the “big” questions, to fully strengthen the somewhat rickety framework of evolutionary thinking. Such ideas are temporary because science is on the thresholds of numerous, virtually unlimited discoveries and inventions that will finally force irrevocable changes in traditional religious teachings.
If God is to survive the coming onslaught of new truths, He, She, or It must shed a cloak of “judgmental omnipotence” in favor of a more predictable omnipresence. An anthropomorphic status as Supreme Being, the Almighty, must be relinquished in favor of a Purity of Being, of simply being. And all the while, being simple to understand, embrace, and worship.
e25
An EVOLUTIONARY MODEL of PROCESS
In the Beginning . . .
THE QUESTION IS THE ANSWER.
The Four Forces Of The Natural World: Gravity, Electricity, the Strong & Weak Nuclear Forces.
01. The Four Forces (laws) of Nature reside within an infinitely large, cold, vacuous void.
02. The premise that an absolute absence of motion (velocity) results in time that "flows” at or near an infinite rate of speed.
03. Gravity compresses (leans) inward, from everywhere, towards theoretical centers. Such centers are cumulative, gravitational hubs.
04. Based upon some, as yet unknown unifying principle/law that governs and joins together the Four Forces, a critical threshold is possibly attained that allows for the creation of the first anti-particles of anti-matter of anti-mass. Negative particles, negative matter, the composition of Dark Matter.
05. Via Natural Selection, the instantaneous, simultaneous creation, compression, destruction, re-creation of true subatomic proto-particles of matter with little or no mass. The emergence of light and presence of heat accompanies all processes.
06. Elapsing, ever-progressive rate of time gradually slows.
07. Rapid gravitational collapse of all material toward gravitational centers.
08. Countless fusions, recombinations of exotic particles, mostly short-lived and unstable. Natural Selection continues to select for more heavy, complex, stable particles, molecules, compounds. Production of proto-atoms and simple, light-weight proto-elements.
09. When the Big Bang bangs, it bangs everywhere (and nowhere) simultaneously.
10. Final annihilation of unstable material, creation of stable atomic structures and heavier elements.
11. Chain reaction proceeds as explosion expands from “Infinity Central” and ignites into surrounding empty space.
12. Big Bang grows as a series of widespread events. As each progresses outward, it involves an adjacent area (region)
13. Time continues to slow down.
14. Process cools and results in an ever-expanding, non-uniform aggregate of all observed and theorized components believed to comprise a material universe.
The foregoing sequence of events transpire in a single first-moment of time, then clicks forward. No past exists when time elapses at or near an infinite rate. It proceeds from an infinitely distant past, to the present, within the span of a single moment, a single event. Concepts of years, eons, epochs, or millennia are meaningless flickers of non-time in such a scenario. A million millennia pass (elapse) at the same rate as a single nanosecond. And vice versa.
Minus my personal claim to possess such knowledge, an appreciation for the basic mechanics of Einstein’s theories of General and Special Relativity, the subtle correlations of differing time rates, plus ramifications as measured on galactic scales, are likely crucial to comprehending a universe prior to the awakening of human consciousness.
Fossils prove that big, modern dragons evolved from small ones.
Fig. 1. Credit: ramy.deviantart.com
e26
The PRIMORDIAL EARTH
Fortuitous Happenstances & Mathematical Probabilities
DARWINIAN NATURAL ASCENSION
Darwin’s principle of Natural Selection, as a concept, is a skeleton key that unlocks a single door, but one which leads to numberless rooms filled with infinite possibilities, probabilities, and uncertainties.
01. Once known by the obsolete, inaccurate, and static description, survival of the fittest.
02. Natural Selection refers to a fractal, fuzzy logical, non-random Chaos process by which a specific environment (niche) selects for (favors) genetic characteristics and attributes best suited for survival, at a particular moment in geologic time. A dynamic, ever changing sequence of events.
03. Via subtle mutation, migration, sudden geologic catastrophe, or types and numbers of offspring, a species gains dominance or competes sufficiently among predators and prey.
04. More importantly, an environment selects out (culls to extinction) any species which lacks certain innate qualities, or becomes maladapted by virtue of small or large changes in its home environment.
Geologic Versus Biologic: The Perpetual Challenge Of Nature Pitted Against Itself.
The “Golden Keystone Species” (GKS) breaks the genetic chain of environmental vulnerability and total dependence. Harsh but fertile ecosystems are the sole spawning ground of advanced life forms. Mutation and adaptation are forced upon surviving species where random and subtle changes become uniquely suited to a wide variety of conditions. Situations whereby the original characteristics of a species which at one time worked to its advantage, now make it vulnerable to new predators, diseases, climatic changes, or the disappearance of a vital food source.
Which came first? The Chicken or the Egg?
Eggs are a very old method of reproduction which predates modern chickens. Some form of ancestral egg-laying animal splintered (evolved) from vaguely chicken-like kin and over long periods of time, eventually resembled a near-chicken, then became one. This principle is so fundamental to evolutionary thought, that to ask the question demonstrates a lack of understanding at the most basic of levels.
Perhaps the most common mistake (misunderstanding) about evolution is the belief that “environment” directly causes (influences) physical genetic changes (inheritances) within the DNA of living creatures. Rather, bodies already well suited for survival must, if they are to continue as a species, respond to (accommodate) changes in environmental conditions via random but fortuitous mutational improvements (adaptations). Another response can be in the form of additional offspring, or the increased survival rate, for whatever reason, of that offspring. A lengthy past record of extinctions demonstrates the indifferent efficiency of Natural Selection as both an equal opportunity employer and destroyer.
01. Once known by the obsolete, inaccurate, and static description, survival of the fittest.
02. Natural Selection refers to a fractal, fuzzy logical, non-random Chaos process by which a specific environment (niche) selects for (favors) genetic characteristics and attributes best suited for survival, at a particular moment in geologic time. A dynamic, ever changing sequence of events.
03. Via subtle mutation, migration, sudden geologic catastrophe, or types and numbers of offspring, a species gains dominance or competes sufficiently among predators and prey.
04. More importantly, an environment selects out (culls to extinction) any species which lacks certain innate qualities, or becomes maladapted by virtue of small or large changes in its home environment.
Geologic Versus Biologic: The Perpetual Challenge Of Nature Pitted Against Itself.
The “Golden Keystone Species” (GKS) breaks the genetic chain of environmental vulnerability and total dependence. Harsh but fertile ecosystems are the sole spawning ground of advanced life forms. Mutation and adaptation are forced upon surviving species where random and subtle changes become uniquely suited to a wide variety of conditions. Situations whereby the original characteristics of a species which at one time worked to its advantage, now make it vulnerable to new predators, diseases, climatic changes, or the disappearance of a vital food source.
Which came first? The Chicken or the Egg?
Eggs are a very old method of reproduction which predates modern chickens. Some form of ancestral egg-laying animal splintered (evolved) from vaguely chicken-like kin and over long periods of time, eventually resembled a near-chicken, then became one. This principle is so fundamental to evolutionary thought, that to ask the question demonstrates a lack of understanding at the most basic of levels.
Perhaps the most common mistake (misunderstanding) about evolution is the belief that “environment” directly causes (influences) physical genetic changes (inheritances) within the DNA of living creatures. Rather, bodies already well suited for survival must, if they are to continue as a species, respond to (accommodate) changes in environmental conditions via random but fortuitous mutational improvements (adaptations). Another response can be in the form of additional offspring, or the increased survival rate, for whatever reason, of that offspring. A lengthy past record of extinctions demonstrates the indifferent efficiency of Natural Selection as both an equal opportunity employer and destroyer.
e27
PUNCTUATED EQUILIBRIUM
01. Environments and ecosystems tend to remain unchanged for long periods of time.
a. This favors a wide range of successful life forms.
b. The downside is the dependence and reliance on a narrow range of food and climatic conditions, a limited number of predators, with offspring whose characteristics are based on prolonged and static conditions.
02. Geological environments change slowly over very long periods of time, and are universal/cosmological in scope.
a. Uniformitarianism.
03. All otherwise static environments are subject to large and sudden changes.
a. Catastrophism / Gradualism / Punctuated Equilibrium.
04. Slow and gradual, versus swift and dramatic. Environmental pressures that strain survivability, favor subtle, beneficial improvements via mutation. Over time, subtlety becomes common diversity.
05. Lesser species that, because of competing foragers and dominance of larger animals, plus highly adapted predators, develop the abilities and assets to survive within a broad range of both harsh and friendly environmental conditions.
06. Greater demands or requirements foster keener, more plentiful talents and attributes. Tree dwellers need (are selected for) stereoscopic color vision, manual dexterity for maneuvering through trees. Such virtues act as additional, albeit coincidental, benefits when creatures descend to ground level. An enhanced but unintended set of survival qualities. Incidentally fortuitous attributes.
07. Small size is also helpful. In a prehistoric world where brute force is a common, thoroughly evolved trait, diminutive stature plays an equally powerful, significant role. Fast and cunning outwits and outruns large, less intelligent predators. Many carnivores and omnivores (snakes, reptiles, cats, dogs) are also small, and feed on an abundance of small prey.
Three prominent land animals once outnumbered all others, but only one dominated all of its rivals.
01. Small dinosaurs.
02. Small mammals.
03. Large dominant hybrids (pig-like) that are part dinosaur, part mammal. Most successful of the three.
Times of periodic small and large extinction events.
01. Types of pigs, which embody mammalian/reptilian characteristics, grow dependent on specific types of food.
02. Big extinction events produce major changes/big opportunities for both plants and animals.
03. Small extinction events produce minor changes that may result in large ripple effects.
04. Keystone species, deprived environments, impoverished environments, stressed environments and species.
05. Survival favors those already most adapted to change. Those whose offspring, via previous adaptations, are suitable to newer, wider ranges of change.
06. Change favors separation of dinosaurs and mammals. Each is uniquely adapted to ever more stressful demands of ever-changing ecosystems.
07. Pigs go extinct during next crisis event. Dinosaurs then take over as dominant species.
08. Dinosaurs also mimic limitations of pigs. The price of dominance is remaining in highly defined niches for too long. Bodies adapt to precise requirements which then disappear suddenly during the next extinction event.
09. Mammals (also pig descendents) trade places, take over from dinosaurs.
After common, domesticated cats were introduced into the Hawaiian ecology, they decimated the uniquely adapted life forms that possessed no defenses against these previously nonexistent predators. Most species have gone extinct as a result of this and other intrusions, whose sudden appearance did not allow for a gradual and more natural process of assimilation. As a result, biologists consider Hawaii as an impoverished environment, meaning the ecosystems that remain contain relatively few varieties of plant and animal species, many of which are themselves endangered. As a result, four distinct groups have emerged as successful, opportunistic life forms:
01. Cats.
02. Scavengers who eat dead cats.
03. Those who scavenge on the leftover carcasses of animals killed by cats.
04. Those who are good at hiding from cats.
Hawaiian cats, who have no natural enemies, except humans, have undergone an explosion of their feral population. Given a hypothetical extinction event where cats die off, life-forms dependent on cats, uniquely adapted to their existence, then wither and also go extinct. Subsets of predator and prey thrive, occupy newly open niches now available from the absence of cats. Some of those previously adapted to the former circumstances, where cats reigned supreme, may, because of slight differences among them, be well suited to an onset of new changes. All others are doomed. A system that is elegant in a fiercely efficient way.
a. This favors a wide range of successful life forms.
b. The downside is the dependence and reliance on a narrow range of food and climatic conditions, a limited number of predators, with offspring whose characteristics are based on prolonged and static conditions.
02. Geological environments change slowly over very long periods of time, and are universal/cosmological in scope.
a. Uniformitarianism.
03. All otherwise static environments are subject to large and sudden changes.
a. Catastrophism / Gradualism / Punctuated Equilibrium.
04. Slow and gradual, versus swift and dramatic. Environmental pressures that strain survivability, favor subtle, beneficial improvements via mutation. Over time, subtlety becomes common diversity.
05. Lesser species that, because of competing foragers and dominance of larger animals, plus highly adapted predators, develop the abilities and assets to survive within a broad range of both harsh and friendly environmental conditions.
06. Greater demands or requirements foster keener, more plentiful talents and attributes. Tree dwellers need (are selected for) stereoscopic color vision, manual dexterity for maneuvering through trees. Such virtues act as additional, albeit coincidental, benefits when creatures descend to ground level. An enhanced but unintended set of survival qualities. Incidentally fortuitous attributes.
07. Small size is also helpful. In a prehistoric world where brute force is a common, thoroughly evolved trait, diminutive stature plays an equally powerful, significant role. Fast and cunning outwits and outruns large, less intelligent predators. Many carnivores and omnivores (snakes, reptiles, cats, dogs) are also small, and feed on an abundance of small prey.
Three prominent land animals once outnumbered all others, but only one dominated all of its rivals.
01. Small dinosaurs.
02. Small mammals.
03. Large dominant hybrids (pig-like) that are part dinosaur, part mammal. Most successful of the three.
Times of periodic small and large extinction events.
01. Types of pigs, which embody mammalian/reptilian characteristics, grow dependent on specific types of food.
02. Big extinction events produce major changes/big opportunities for both plants and animals.
03. Small extinction events produce minor changes that may result in large ripple effects.
04. Keystone species, deprived environments, impoverished environments, stressed environments and species.
05. Survival favors those already most adapted to change. Those whose offspring, via previous adaptations, are suitable to newer, wider ranges of change.
06. Change favors separation of dinosaurs and mammals. Each is uniquely adapted to ever more stressful demands of ever-changing ecosystems.
07. Pigs go extinct during next crisis event. Dinosaurs then take over as dominant species.
08. Dinosaurs also mimic limitations of pigs. The price of dominance is remaining in highly defined niches for too long. Bodies adapt to precise requirements which then disappear suddenly during the next extinction event.
09. Mammals (also pig descendents) trade places, take over from dinosaurs.
After common, domesticated cats were introduced into the Hawaiian ecology, they decimated the uniquely adapted life forms that possessed no defenses against these previously nonexistent predators. Most species have gone extinct as a result of this and other intrusions, whose sudden appearance did not allow for a gradual and more natural process of assimilation. As a result, biologists consider Hawaii as an impoverished environment, meaning the ecosystems that remain contain relatively few varieties of plant and animal species, many of which are themselves endangered. As a result, four distinct groups have emerged as successful, opportunistic life forms:
01. Cats.
02. Scavengers who eat dead cats.
03. Those who scavenge on the leftover carcasses of animals killed by cats.
04. Those who are good at hiding from cats.
Hawaiian cats, who have no natural enemies, except humans, have undergone an explosion of their feral population. Given a hypothetical extinction event where cats die off, life-forms dependent on cats, uniquely adapted to their existence, then wither and also go extinct. Subsets of predator and prey thrive, occupy newly open niches now available from the absence of cats. Some of those previously adapted to the former circumstances, where cats reigned supreme, may, because of slight differences among them, be well suited to an onset of new changes. All others are doomed. A system that is elegant in a fiercely efficient way.
Fig. 2.
e28
SUBSTANCE ABUSE
Any non-clinical essay that dares to tackle the problems associated with addiction and substance abuse, be they in the form of alcohol, tobacco, or other intoxicants, is immediately thwarted by a complex duality of circumstances. Two separate but connected conditions which make such a discussion extremely difficult to conduct succinctly and with clarity. Both mind and body, mental and physical changes, reactions, interact with drugs and other addictions in a type of bio-mythological dance whose steps require no learning or practice. Whose pace and rhythm are autonomous, and one need only “go along for the ride”.
Some people use various substances to alleviate symptoms as powerful as severe mental anguish, or as petty as mere boredom. Others to ease great physical agony or simple discomfort. The vast majority of users/abusers fall outside societal recrimination because their drugs of choice, ingested for exactly the same reasons as those prosecuted as lawbreakers, are either legally prescribed by a qualified, often sympathetic physician, or purchased directly off a store shelf.
Due to its wide availability and legal status, alcohol (and alcoholism) involve such a wide variety of factors, including genetic predisposition, that the focus of this essay is primarily on the host of pharmaceutical type drugs, the use of which can lead to a combination of physical and psychological dependencies. For similar reasons, I have not attempted to deconstruct other kinds of addiction such as gambling and other behavioral aberrations that do not involve actual substances. Although many of the same principles are surely in play, enough differences exist so as to warrant a separate discussion and evaluation.
Concerning the degree to which people involve themselves with any number of different drugs, it is the intricate, fragile, and subtle dialogue between mind and body that complicates an otherwise straightforward understanding. It is why everyone does everything in like fashion, but for slightly different reasons. Akin to a combination lock, each person possesses a unique set of numbers that opens and closes their willingness or refusal to indulge in certain activities. These numbers, however, are not solely an inborn propensity. Rather they are involuntarily calculated, formulated over a period of time, based upon experiences and observations.
Aspects of strong or weak character come into play, whereas a person makes a conscious choice to deny temptation simply because it is judged as morally or ethically repugnant. Also a learned condition, but again a situation made nearly incomprehensible by the unknown degree to which we are governed by our nature, versus the extent of our earlier nurturing.
For these and many other reasons, the so-called demand for drugs remains endless and unceasing. To defeat causation would entail a successful assault on mind and body, biology and spirit, all of which are inextricably intertwined and melded as a unified, interdependent whole. No wonder that no single, heavy-handed solution has been found to resolve this plethora of intricacies.
Ultimately the final answers begin and end with the individual, their willingness to learn and understand the consequences of their behaviors, both good and bad, and proceed accordingly. Such answers are only partly under the control of the person, and of those that are, these must include an appreciation for the importance of “price tags”. That nothing in the world comes freely, and the penalty for severe indebtedness is often a nightmare from which many never escape.
PART I
Consider that every moment of living, whether in good health or poor, injured or injury free, involves some level of physical pain. Normally such discomforts are nominal, inconsequential, and remain mostly unnoticed. Add to this the psychological/emotional sufferings of equal degree that affect our daily routines, and pain thus prevails as a significant presence in human life.
Occasional itching, headaches, dental pain, muscle soreness, a bruise, blemish, or other low-level irritants are easily assimilated into the activities which otherwise occupy our full attention. Only when one or more physical pains, either alone or in concert with mental distress, which may itself be the result of some malady, rises above a certain threshold that varies with each individual, do we take sudden and unhappy notice. Do we realize, on a conscious level, an uncomfortable awareness of our discomfort.
For most people, young and old alike, their bodies and minds have myriad aches and pains existing simultaneously on:
01. A subconscious level.
02. A conscious level.
03. An emotional level.
04. A physical level.
As intensity increases, all levels (planes) are affected, then affect one another. A small but annoying problem can quickly escalate in severity due to both the interaction of these four levels, and the general vulnerability/susceptibility of the individual.
As increases in the responsibilities and pressures of daily life impact our well being, usually in negative fashion, an awareness of our miscellaneous aches and pains also intensifies. Ultimately, simply living, in and of itself, immerses us wholly in a shallow wash of countless little agonies. Fortunately these tiny nuisances are largely dismissed or ignored by a busy, engrossed-in-other-thoughts brain.
No actual divisions or splits exist between body and mind, or among the four planes described. Like space-time, all are both interactive and interdependent. Every hour of every day, awake and asleep, busy or bored, the human condition as nature intends via design, is connected to reality by virtue of our physical senses and perceptions. What we see, hear, taste, smell, and touch shapes our thoughts and feelings about everything. What we consider as philosophical, ethical, moral and religious truths, are likewise derived from mental processes which are themselves a response to sensory input from an external reality outside ourselves.
Pain is how we know the world, how we sense its presence and our place within it. Consequently when this pain is diminished, either artificially or through sleep, meditation or simple daydreaming, contact with a routine reality, both its joys and sorrows, is reduced accordingly. Since discomforts are predominantly the most persistent sensations, (pleasures tend to be fleeting) their relatively sudden absence or elimination is all the more noticeable and notable.
Pain, either physical or psychological, is remarkable for its specific and unique ability to induce a sense of euphoria simply by ceasing to exist. More to the point, a temporary sense of extreme well being, far beyond the norm, results when pain is affected in two particular ways:
01. The rapid easing of severe, preexisting pain.
02. The total extinguishing of ordinary, negligible pain. The greater the pain, the more heightened the feelings of euphoria, elation and rejuvenation. An overwhelming, albeit short-lived experience. Similar to the happiness experienced when a specific pain is alleviated, the rapid absence of all pain is itself a source of intense joy.
The mind, however, is never completely liberated due to an infestation of prior memories that recall specific agonies, both mental and physical. Especially their more recent bouts. True freedom, in this sense, only arises from a total loss of low-level, rudimentary pain. It is the source of the “awakening mind”, a truly human experience, both at one with, yet utterly separated from the natural world.
PART II
My earliest recollection of real pain is a childhood memory when, at five years of age, I was stung by a honey bee. An older neighborhood kid suggested I catch and hold one of the insects in my closed hand. To this day I vividly remember the shock of what happened a moment later. I also recall how good it felt once the pain had gone.
For me, this was an important first lesson on how life, as part of a very mysterious world, is basically a matter of feeling good or feeling bad. One might feel physically poor, but be happy about something. Or one could feel very fit and well, but be quite despondent over some unhappy event or situation. True happiness was feeling both healthy and joyful. And real unhappiness the exact opposite.
Three vital elements are relevant:
01. If happy, normal physical feelings are largely ignored.
02. If unhappy, normal physical feelings are largely ignored.
03. If unhappy and unwell, normal pain is amplified and exaggerated. Negativity escalates via a preoccupation with how bad we feel as a whole, accompanied by a loss of hope. Thoughts often incorporate related, plus unrelated sources of anger or sadness.
The entire matter is an extremely complex process of inter-effected, inter-affecting elements, all of which produce at any given moment, an individual’s current state-of-mind. A condition whose further definitions include:
01. Happy, relatively carefree people are generally not attracted to inducements which offer some added level of pleasure.
02. Unhappy people, relatively disinterested in a difficult attainment of status or prestige, are very attracted to enticements which offer immediate thrills or pleasures in a variety of forms.
03. Due either to a lack of personal initiative, or readily available activities with which an individual could involve him or herself, many persons will settle for artificial methods of coping with what is perceived as a confusing, cruel and uncompromising world. Synthetic choices fall into two categories:
a. Pursuance of behaviors that, in and of themselves, produce false feelings of exhilaration/exaltation.
b. Pursuance of behaviors that result in genuine but potentially dangerous and destructive feelings of exhilaration/exaltation.
PART III
Addiction might be defined as the conscious or deliberate, ultimately autonomic choice of one version of reality over another. A comparison between sobriety and an altered state of consciousness whereby artificiality is considered preferable to actuality. Realistic versus reality.
01. Mild forms are reversible, avoidable. Examples exist in the animal world where intoxicants are occasionally indulged, then abandoned.
02. Strong forms cross a natural mental/physical threshold of resiliency, of a resistance to dependency.
03. The absence of pain allows for disconnection from reality, but health consequences are integral.
04. Endorphins pose as clues to natural versus dangerously psychotic addiction.
05. Not the drug that addicts, but the feelings derived. Ingestion of cow dung if results were the same.
06. Usage without dependence.
PART IV
Though drugs exist in many forms, produce a multitude of symptoms, and affect mind and body in varying degrees, both beneficial and detrimental, biochemicals act upon human nervous systems in the following six ways:
01. They cure illness
02. They cause physical harm or death.
03. They relieve pain.
04. They cause pain.
05. They induce hallucinations.
06. They produce sensations of physical pleasure and/or psychological euphoria.
Again, pain must always be considered as an inseparable joining of both physical and mental. Though neither can act independently from the other, each can be affected as a primary source which in turn, “infects” the other.
The elimination of severe discomforts is no less complex than what is accomplished by the most exotic medical cocktail designed to combat or cure any number of pathogenic ailments. It is not so much that a psychopharmacological agent produces an altered state of consciousness, but rather that it induces a condition of being that is, to varying degrees, utterly free of the common aches and pains present on both conscious and unconscious levels.
In addition to the virtual deadening of overall pain, some drugs simultaneously stimulate certain pleasure centers of the brain. In many instances, pleasure and pain may cancel the solitary effects produced each from the other; on occasion, they might well complement one another.
Whereupon the absence of pain is nearly absolute, and the presence of pleasure is maximal, a state of being is achieved whose lasting impact is extremely seductive and often irreversible. It must, however, first be experienced by anyone and everyone who wishes to debate the merits and/or inherent dangers involved. It is meaningless and senseless to argue for or against, when opponents have no actual experience to draw upon. Or by which to make comparisons. Examples are the celibate priest who gives advice on sexual or marital problems. Or the childless adult who discusses matters related to children, or the raw recruit who goes into battle with preconceived notions, the wealthy obese who feign concern for the starving masses. Worse, the reformed abuser who ignores personal lessons learned and prosecutes those who merely mimic their accuser’s own behavior.
PART V
For the majority of people, true bliss and sensual pleasure are rare commodities, with synthetic versions of the same usually affordable and available only in the form of alcohol and tobacco. Many substitute marijuana for either or both, while others indulge in all three.
Far fewer, but still large in number, experiment with and subsequently acquire a taste for more potent substances. So-called “hard” drugs that can be inhaled through the nose, applied to the skin, or injected via a hypodermic needle. These pain-suppression/hallucinogenic agents diminish physical discomfort, plus enhance sensations of pleasure achievable in no other way. It is this “in-no-other-way” where the situation becomes increasingly problematic.
Among various ancient taboos, some warn against explorations that lead to knowledge or visions we are not meant to know or see. That to do so runs the serious risk of never again returning to the world in the same way as before the experience. That one can never regain their virginity, or reacquire their childhood innocence after witnessing the pain in the world. In some cultures, American Indians by example, such experiences are viewed as gaining powerful insights into the deeper meanings of life, of an afterlife, achievable by no other means.
PART VI
For reasons mostly associated with survival concerns, human beings possess certain potentialities that can only be tapped via specific conditions. It is an oddity of nature that under normal circumstances, most people live their lives without ever recognizing the demons and angels who lurk deep within their psyches. Once unleashed, neither devil nor saint can again be ignored or forgotten. A peaceful coexistence is the best that can be hoped for.
Depending on the individual, their overall spirit is usually governed by one or the other, by whichever exerts the greatest influence. When a person enters such intimate territories of the mind, they place themselves at the mercy of their own discoveries. As the saying states, you should be careful about what you wish for; you just might get it. Unaware of our most latent, nightmarish monsters within, one should take equal care about enticing them into the light of day. The higher angels within us may also appear, are certainly sought by most delvers, but it is a risky proposition.
Again the majority of people, given a choice, refrain from investigating their innermost thoughts and feelings, either sober or while intoxicated. Among those who choose to be “explorers”, they do so for one or more of the following reasons:
01. Minimum skills, aptitudes, lack of motivation or religious convictions which produce a self-loathing, self-destructive boredom with life, which is seen as tedious, monotonous, dishonest, corrupt, perverse.
02. Hedonistic risk-takers who must make life interesting via dangerous, suicidal thrills and activities. The opposite of the former, but shares the same conclusion about life in general.
03. Genuinely unhappy people who are philosophical about their own unhappiness.
04. Genuinely happy people who yearn for truth, knowledge, and wisdom that, whenever possible, are achievable, accessible, through first-hand empirical revelation. An opportunity to easily and quickly gain unique forms of knowledge, of both the world and oneself, that can be attained only by the use of mind and body-altering chemical agents. Ancient cultures whose religious practices include the use of drugs, by example.
One of the reasons societies limit drug use is determined by outdated survival imperatives, and not simply a matter of moral choice. The manner in which some animals only flirt with occasional intoxication as an example. Any species would otherwise be quickly doomed to extinction.
PART VII
In summation, simply being human is, in and of itself, very seductive in nature. Possessed of enriched and enhanced faculties, life is especially appealing if and when our worries and concerns are suppressed. Temptations and appetites normally restricted, restrained by consequences of real life survival matters, can easily be entertained as possible indulgences (acting out fantasies). Unrestricted, the human animal slips willingly into an uninhibited, hedonistic pursuit of constant and immediate gratification. Though fun, it is anti-survival, anti-evolutionary and above all else, insatiable.
Though a return of hunger follows feasting, the persistent craving to feed other, less vital needs is in the worst interest of the individual. Striving for what is in our best interests, plus that of society and the world, ought to be the singularly golden rule by which our fragile lives are led.
Lastly, most addictions can be "cured" in much the same way as they were acquired. Dependence is typically the result of dosages of one thing or another taken over a long period of time. The process is gradual and cumulative, usually necessitating a steady increase in the amount of intoxicant required to produce the desired effect first obtained with lower doses. Weaning is the conscious (or forcible) act of reversing the very mechanism by which addiction happens in the first place. Gradually reducing the quantity, potency, and number, or a combination of all three factors as they might relate to one substance or another, can be an effective, long-term solution to addiction. Unfortunately the remedy is not foolproof with a 100% success rate. Alcohol and tobacco (nicotine) are two of the more problematic drugs where gradual reductions in quantity seem to have little or no effect. But this gives us insight into the deceptive nature of substance abuse itself, which cannot be defined -- or cured -- based solely on singular factors alone. It would appear, however, that in those cases where weaning is ineffectual or unproductive, that strong psychological components are responsible. Likely the same mental states, when sober, that found numbing relief via intoxication originally. This latter condition is generally referred to as an "addictive" personality.
It is also possible, if not probable, that genetics plays a role in the process of substance abuse, just as an inborn sensitivity may make one allergic to a drug, so might a propensity for pleasure derived from various and altered states of consciousness be hard-wired into a person's brain. How obnoxious, ludicrous, and insane is a law-enforcement system that defines drug abusers as criminals? When in reality, these are people who in most cases, had no more control over their congenital weaknesses than do the obese over what foods they eat.
This story is far from over and utterly incomplete. I hope my menial summary has a certain value for some, maybe offers a new perspective for others. The whole subject of drugs and dependency is certainly one of the defining issues of our age. And will be for decades to come. So what is the ultimate resolution as I see it? Were someone to ask me. Many will not like my answers, but I stand behind them. First would be a rational (meaning government regulated) legalization of all drugs. All of them. The worst and the best of everything. Pretty much a libertarian position, with very harsh penalties for violators of the few laws that would remain. Secondly, the situation is largely a health issue, first and foremost, where people not only endanger themselves but others as well. Resolve the negative health effects and the biological dependency factors, and 90% of the problem will disappear very quickly. Such solutions represent technological advancements which should become available in the near future. Mental illness is its own dilemma and will always manifest itself in any number of ways, only one of which includes drug addiction. Too often are the two things confused and allowed to represent a cause and effect relationship.
My final word on the subject is that given the steadily increasing pace of the world, the rapidity at which all things are changing, adapting, and improving, it is only a matter of time -- and not that much -- before many of the current social ills that plague us the world over, will soon be yesterday's news.
Some people use various substances to alleviate symptoms as powerful as severe mental anguish, or as petty as mere boredom. Others to ease great physical agony or simple discomfort. The vast majority of users/abusers fall outside societal recrimination because their drugs of choice, ingested for exactly the same reasons as those prosecuted as lawbreakers, are either legally prescribed by a qualified, often sympathetic physician, or purchased directly off a store shelf.
Due to its wide availability and legal status, alcohol (and alcoholism) involve such a wide variety of factors, including genetic predisposition, that the focus of this essay is primarily on the host of pharmaceutical type drugs, the use of which can lead to a combination of physical and psychological dependencies. For similar reasons, I have not attempted to deconstruct other kinds of addiction such as gambling and other behavioral aberrations that do not involve actual substances. Although many of the same principles are surely in play, enough differences exist so as to warrant a separate discussion and evaluation.
Concerning the degree to which people involve themselves with any number of different drugs, it is the intricate, fragile, and subtle dialogue between mind and body that complicates an otherwise straightforward understanding. It is why everyone does everything in like fashion, but for slightly different reasons. Akin to a combination lock, each person possesses a unique set of numbers that opens and closes their willingness or refusal to indulge in certain activities. These numbers, however, are not solely an inborn propensity. Rather they are involuntarily calculated, formulated over a period of time, based upon experiences and observations.
Aspects of strong or weak character come into play, whereas a person makes a conscious choice to deny temptation simply because it is judged as morally or ethically repugnant. Also a learned condition, but again a situation made nearly incomprehensible by the unknown degree to which we are governed by our nature, versus the extent of our earlier nurturing.
For these and many other reasons, the so-called demand for drugs remains endless and unceasing. To defeat causation would entail a successful assault on mind and body, biology and spirit, all of which are inextricably intertwined and melded as a unified, interdependent whole. No wonder that no single, heavy-handed solution has been found to resolve this plethora of intricacies.
Ultimately the final answers begin and end with the individual, their willingness to learn and understand the consequences of their behaviors, both good and bad, and proceed accordingly. Such answers are only partly under the control of the person, and of those that are, these must include an appreciation for the importance of “price tags”. That nothing in the world comes freely, and the penalty for severe indebtedness is often a nightmare from which many never escape.
PART I
Consider that every moment of living, whether in good health or poor, injured or injury free, involves some level of physical pain. Normally such discomforts are nominal, inconsequential, and remain mostly unnoticed. Add to this the psychological/emotional sufferings of equal degree that affect our daily routines, and pain thus prevails as a significant presence in human life.
Occasional itching, headaches, dental pain, muscle soreness, a bruise, blemish, or other low-level irritants are easily assimilated into the activities which otherwise occupy our full attention. Only when one or more physical pains, either alone or in concert with mental distress, which may itself be the result of some malady, rises above a certain threshold that varies with each individual, do we take sudden and unhappy notice. Do we realize, on a conscious level, an uncomfortable awareness of our discomfort.
For most people, young and old alike, their bodies and minds have myriad aches and pains existing simultaneously on:
01. A subconscious level.
02. A conscious level.
03. An emotional level.
04. A physical level.
As intensity increases, all levels (planes) are affected, then affect one another. A small but annoying problem can quickly escalate in severity due to both the interaction of these four levels, and the general vulnerability/susceptibility of the individual.
As increases in the responsibilities and pressures of daily life impact our well being, usually in negative fashion, an awareness of our miscellaneous aches and pains also intensifies. Ultimately, simply living, in and of itself, immerses us wholly in a shallow wash of countless little agonies. Fortunately these tiny nuisances are largely dismissed or ignored by a busy, engrossed-in-other-thoughts brain.
No actual divisions or splits exist between body and mind, or among the four planes described. Like space-time, all are both interactive and interdependent. Every hour of every day, awake and asleep, busy or bored, the human condition as nature intends via design, is connected to reality by virtue of our physical senses and perceptions. What we see, hear, taste, smell, and touch shapes our thoughts and feelings about everything. What we consider as philosophical, ethical, moral and religious truths, are likewise derived from mental processes which are themselves a response to sensory input from an external reality outside ourselves.
Pain is how we know the world, how we sense its presence and our place within it. Consequently when this pain is diminished, either artificially or through sleep, meditation or simple daydreaming, contact with a routine reality, both its joys and sorrows, is reduced accordingly. Since discomforts are predominantly the most persistent sensations, (pleasures tend to be fleeting) their relatively sudden absence or elimination is all the more noticeable and notable.
Pain, either physical or psychological, is remarkable for its specific and unique ability to induce a sense of euphoria simply by ceasing to exist. More to the point, a temporary sense of extreme well being, far beyond the norm, results when pain is affected in two particular ways:
01. The rapid easing of severe, preexisting pain.
02. The total extinguishing of ordinary, negligible pain. The greater the pain, the more heightened the feelings of euphoria, elation and rejuvenation. An overwhelming, albeit short-lived experience. Similar to the happiness experienced when a specific pain is alleviated, the rapid absence of all pain is itself a source of intense joy.
The mind, however, is never completely liberated due to an infestation of prior memories that recall specific agonies, both mental and physical. Especially their more recent bouts. True freedom, in this sense, only arises from a total loss of low-level, rudimentary pain. It is the source of the “awakening mind”, a truly human experience, both at one with, yet utterly separated from the natural world.
PART II
My earliest recollection of real pain is a childhood memory when, at five years of age, I was stung by a honey bee. An older neighborhood kid suggested I catch and hold one of the insects in my closed hand. To this day I vividly remember the shock of what happened a moment later. I also recall how good it felt once the pain had gone.
For me, this was an important first lesson on how life, as part of a very mysterious world, is basically a matter of feeling good or feeling bad. One might feel physically poor, but be happy about something. Or one could feel very fit and well, but be quite despondent over some unhappy event or situation. True happiness was feeling both healthy and joyful. And real unhappiness the exact opposite.
Three vital elements are relevant:
01. If happy, normal physical feelings are largely ignored.
02. If unhappy, normal physical feelings are largely ignored.
03. If unhappy and unwell, normal pain is amplified and exaggerated. Negativity escalates via a preoccupation with how bad we feel as a whole, accompanied by a loss of hope. Thoughts often incorporate related, plus unrelated sources of anger or sadness.
The entire matter is an extremely complex process of inter-effected, inter-affecting elements, all of which produce at any given moment, an individual’s current state-of-mind. A condition whose further definitions include:
01. Happy, relatively carefree people are generally not attracted to inducements which offer some added level of pleasure.
02. Unhappy people, relatively disinterested in a difficult attainment of status or prestige, are very attracted to enticements which offer immediate thrills or pleasures in a variety of forms.
03. Due either to a lack of personal initiative, or readily available activities with which an individual could involve him or herself, many persons will settle for artificial methods of coping with what is perceived as a confusing, cruel and uncompromising world. Synthetic choices fall into two categories:
a. Pursuance of behaviors that, in and of themselves, produce false feelings of exhilaration/exaltation.
b. Pursuance of behaviors that result in genuine but potentially dangerous and destructive feelings of exhilaration/exaltation.
PART III
Addiction might be defined as the conscious or deliberate, ultimately autonomic choice of one version of reality over another. A comparison between sobriety and an altered state of consciousness whereby artificiality is considered preferable to actuality. Realistic versus reality.
01. Mild forms are reversible, avoidable. Examples exist in the animal world where intoxicants are occasionally indulged, then abandoned.
02. Strong forms cross a natural mental/physical threshold of resiliency, of a resistance to dependency.
03. The absence of pain allows for disconnection from reality, but health consequences are integral.
04. Endorphins pose as clues to natural versus dangerously psychotic addiction.
05. Not the drug that addicts, but the feelings derived. Ingestion of cow dung if results were the same.
06. Usage without dependence.
PART IV
Though drugs exist in many forms, produce a multitude of symptoms, and affect mind and body in varying degrees, both beneficial and detrimental, biochemicals act upon human nervous systems in the following six ways:
01. They cure illness
02. They cause physical harm or death.
03. They relieve pain.
04. They cause pain.
05. They induce hallucinations.
06. They produce sensations of physical pleasure and/or psychological euphoria.
Again, pain must always be considered as an inseparable joining of both physical and mental. Though neither can act independently from the other, each can be affected as a primary source which in turn, “infects” the other.
The elimination of severe discomforts is no less complex than what is accomplished by the most exotic medical cocktail designed to combat or cure any number of pathogenic ailments. It is not so much that a psychopharmacological agent produces an altered state of consciousness, but rather that it induces a condition of being that is, to varying degrees, utterly free of the common aches and pains present on both conscious and unconscious levels.
In addition to the virtual deadening of overall pain, some drugs simultaneously stimulate certain pleasure centers of the brain. In many instances, pleasure and pain may cancel the solitary effects produced each from the other; on occasion, they might well complement one another.
Whereupon the absence of pain is nearly absolute, and the presence of pleasure is maximal, a state of being is achieved whose lasting impact is extremely seductive and often irreversible. It must, however, first be experienced by anyone and everyone who wishes to debate the merits and/or inherent dangers involved. It is meaningless and senseless to argue for or against, when opponents have no actual experience to draw upon. Or by which to make comparisons. Examples are the celibate priest who gives advice on sexual or marital problems. Or the childless adult who discusses matters related to children, or the raw recruit who goes into battle with preconceived notions, the wealthy obese who feign concern for the starving masses. Worse, the reformed abuser who ignores personal lessons learned and prosecutes those who merely mimic their accuser’s own behavior.
PART V
For the majority of people, true bliss and sensual pleasure are rare commodities, with synthetic versions of the same usually affordable and available only in the form of alcohol and tobacco. Many substitute marijuana for either or both, while others indulge in all three.
Far fewer, but still large in number, experiment with and subsequently acquire a taste for more potent substances. So-called “hard” drugs that can be inhaled through the nose, applied to the skin, or injected via a hypodermic needle. These pain-suppression/hallucinogenic agents diminish physical discomfort, plus enhance sensations of pleasure achievable in no other way. It is this “in-no-other-way” where the situation becomes increasingly problematic.
Among various ancient taboos, some warn against explorations that lead to knowledge or visions we are not meant to know or see. That to do so runs the serious risk of never again returning to the world in the same way as before the experience. That one can never regain their virginity, or reacquire their childhood innocence after witnessing the pain in the world. In some cultures, American Indians by example, such experiences are viewed as gaining powerful insights into the deeper meanings of life, of an afterlife, achievable by no other means.
PART VI
For reasons mostly associated with survival concerns, human beings possess certain potentialities that can only be tapped via specific conditions. It is an oddity of nature that under normal circumstances, most people live their lives without ever recognizing the demons and angels who lurk deep within their psyches. Once unleashed, neither devil nor saint can again be ignored or forgotten. A peaceful coexistence is the best that can be hoped for.
Depending on the individual, their overall spirit is usually governed by one or the other, by whichever exerts the greatest influence. When a person enters such intimate territories of the mind, they place themselves at the mercy of their own discoveries. As the saying states, you should be careful about what you wish for; you just might get it. Unaware of our most latent, nightmarish monsters within, one should take equal care about enticing them into the light of day. The higher angels within us may also appear, are certainly sought by most delvers, but it is a risky proposition.
Again the majority of people, given a choice, refrain from investigating their innermost thoughts and feelings, either sober or while intoxicated. Among those who choose to be “explorers”, they do so for one or more of the following reasons:
01. Minimum skills, aptitudes, lack of motivation or religious convictions which produce a self-loathing, self-destructive boredom with life, which is seen as tedious, monotonous, dishonest, corrupt, perverse.
02. Hedonistic risk-takers who must make life interesting via dangerous, suicidal thrills and activities. The opposite of the former, but shares the same conclusion about life in general.
03. Genuinely unhappy people who are philosophical about their own unhappiness.
04. Genuinely happy people who yearn for truth, knowledge, and wisdom that, whenever possible, are achievable, accessible, through first-hand empirical revelation. An opportunity to easily and quickly gain unique forms of knowledge, of both the world and oneself, that can be attained only by the use of mind and body-altering chemical agents. Ancient cultures whose religious practices include the use of drugs, by example.
One of the reasons societies limit drug use is determined by outdated survival imperatives, and not simply a matter of moral choice. The manner in which some animals only flirt with occasional intoxication as an example. Any species would otherwise be quickly doomed to extinction.
PART VII
In summation, simply being human is, in and of itself, very seductive in nature. Possessed of enriched and enhanced faculties, life is especially appealing if and when our worries and concerns are suppressed. Temptations and appetites normally restricted, restrained by consequences of real life survival matters, can easily be entertained as possible indulgences (acting out fantasies). Unrestricted, the human animal slips willingly into an uninhibited, hedonistic pursuit of constant and immediate gratification. Though fun, it is anti-survival, anti-evolutionary and above all else, insatiable.
Though a return of hunger follows feasting, the persistent craving to feed other, less vital needs is in the worst interest of the individual. Striving for what is in our best interests, plus that of society and the world, ought to be the singularly golden rule by which our fragile lives are led.
Lastly, most addictions can be "cured" in much the same way as they were acquired. Dependence is typically the result of dosages of one thing or another taken over a long period of time. The process is gradual and cumulative, usually necessitating a steady increase in the amount of intoxicant required to produce the desired effect first obtained with lower doses. Weaning is the conscious (or forcible) act of reversing the very mechanism by which addiction happens in the first place. Gradually reducing the quantity, potency, and number, or a combination of all three factors as they might relate to one substance or another, can be an effective, long-term solution to addiction. Unfortunately the remedy is not foolproof with a 100% success rate. Alcohol and tobacco (nicotine) are two of the more problematic drugs where gradual reductions in quantity seem to have little or no effect. But this gives us insight into the deceptive nature of substance abuse itself, which cannot be defined -- or cured -- based solely on singular factors alone. It would appear, however, that in those cases where weaning is ineffectual or unproductive, that strong psychological components are responsible. Likely the same mental states, when sober, that found numbing relief via intoxication originally. This latter condition is generally referred to as an "addictive" personality.
It is also possible, if not probable, that genetics plays a role in the process of substance abuse, just as an inborn sensitivity may make one allergic to a drug, so might a propensity for pleasure derived from various and altered states of consciousness be hard-wired into a person's brain. How obnoxious, ludicrous, and insane is a law-enforcement system that defines drug abusers as criminals? When in reality, these are people who in most cases, had no more control over their congenital weaknesses than do the obese over what foods they eat.
This story is far from over and utterly incomplete. I hope my menial summary has a certain value for some, maybe offers a new perspective for others. The whole subject of drugs and dependency is certainly one of the defining issues of our age. And will be for decades to come. So what is the ultimate resolution as I see it? Were someone to ask me. Many will not like my answers, but I stand behind them. First would be a rational (meaning government regulated) legalization of all drugs. All of them. The worst and the best of everything. Pretty much a libertarian position, with very harsh penalties for violators of the few laws that would remain. Secondly, the situation is largely a health issue, first and foremost, where people not only endanger themselves but others as well. Resolve the negative health effects and the biological dependency factors, and 90% of the problem will disappear very quickly. Such solutions represent technological advancements which should become available in the near future. Mental illness is its own dilemma and will always manifest itself in any number of ways, only one of which includes drug addiction. Too often are the two things confused and allowed to represent a cause and effect relationship.
My final word on the subject is that given the steadily increasing pace of the world, the rapidity at which all things are changing, adapting, and improving, it is only a matter of time -- and not that much -- before many of the current social ills that plague us the world over, will soon be yesterday's news.
* * * *
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