Blowing smoke : rethinking the war on drugs without prohibition and rehab

Author / Creator

Reznicek, Michael J., 1958-

Available as

Online

Physical

Summary

Alcohol, opiates, cocaine and marijuana, among other drugs, have been used and abused for millennia. Before the disease-model approach to drug addiction, which posits that addiction is a psychologi...

Alcohol, opiates, cocaine and marijuana, among other drugs, have been used and abused for millennia. Before the disease-model approach to drug addiction, which posits that addiction is a psychological and biological problem and that sufferers are victims, societies had a workable solution: let people consume what they want, and let informal cultural controls reinforce responsible behavior. Legal sanctions were reserved for any use that affected the safety of others. Blowing Smoke proposes an approach to the war on drugs that returns us to the pre-disease-model era. Dr. Reznicek debunks the disease model, arguing that it has exacerbated the problem, and provides a new framework, more consistent with current neuroscientific knowledge: the habit model. Habits are practiced as long as they provide comfort, and are abandoned when they cause pain. Dr. Reznicek recommends the legalization of drugs for adults and the implementation of social practices to dissuade abusers, and shows how such an approach can work for us today.--From publisher description.

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