Drug
The druggies' drug of choice these days seems to be meth, but the drug warriors' drug of choice is still pot * The druggies' drug of choice these days seems to be meth, but the drug warriors' drug of choice is still pot. Dr. Sally Satel, of the American Enterprise Institute, explained why in a recent essay in the New York Times. The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, she says, endorses "the gateway theory of addiction." Since hard-drug users generally start with marijuana, if we crack down on marijuana, hard-drug use will drop. This model does not jibe with her clinical experience, however. As a staff psychiatrist for a methadone clinic in Washington, D.C., Satel has taken the histories of over 500 addicts. "They were staggering under the weight of a chaotic home life, and had dropped out of school, committed petty crimes, and battled depression. These problems, not marijuana, led them to hard drugs." What problems, one wonders--chaotic thought? petty politics?--lead the federal government to ineffective drug policies?
COPYRIGHT 2005 National Review, Inc.
COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale Group
|
