don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

Many years ago, in a series of editorials in the Ardell Wellness Report, I made the case for a wellness approach to the drug war in America. Among other things, I suggested declaring a peace. Part of my proposal was to give drugs to those who wanted them, but to do so in special environments that would offer positive, attractive and enjoyable self-management programming. Amazingly, the government leaders did not embrace my ideas.

This, however, does not mean that there was no merit to my plan, only that the timing was off. Perhaps it is time to resurrect it. Perhaps you know a high government official, and will pass this advice along to him or her.

Personally, I think my ideas for the creation of wellness centers for drug addicts were truly on target and impeccably reasoned, morally superior and intellectually rock solid. I'll never understand why my plan was ignored at the highest and lowest levels!

I still think decriminalizing drugs and dealing compassionately with users is a bona fide wellness quest. To paraphrase Browning, let me count these ways that lead me to this conclusion:

We're losing the drug war; greater spending, tougher penalties and all the rest have not stymied the flow of drugs into the country nor slowed drug usage.

The current model is one primarily based on law enforcement. The idea is to seize drugs and imprison drug offenders. This has led to large numbers of arrests, incarcerations and seizures. Despite all this, drug overdose deaths have increased 540% since 1980 and drug-related problems have worsened. Fortunately, the latest government plan, called the Effective National Drug Control Strategy, advocates more of a public health approach to drug control.

Too many people go to jail who don't belong there; in a truly free society, it is not for government to protect us from ourselves. Instead, we want the privacy and freedom to engage in any activity that does not interfere with the rights of others.

According to the National Household Survey, in 1999, 26.7 million Americans aged 12 or over used an illicit drug. Of these, 19.1 million were White, 3.3 million were Black, and 2.6 million were Hispanic. A lot of Americans want to use these drugs, even though we don't approve of them. Most don't approve of professional wrestling either, but we don't make it illegal.

The popularity of this war is waning; in some jurisdictions, 40% of judges favor lifting restrictions on drug use.

Prohibition is a failed policy; education would be better.

Legalization would eliminate the drug dealer's trade and give the military other things to do, such as downsizing!

Legalization would prevent future exercises in waste and incompetence like the taxpayer-sponsored reigns of federal drug czars. Even Dan Quayle considered this office a waste.

Harm to innocents would be reduced, as junkies would not have to commit crimes to obtain funds to satisfy their cravings. In 1996, there were a total of 9,794,149 arrests reported to the FBI, and 7,600,241 arrestees. Of these, 66.6 percent -- 5.01 million people -- were drug users. Also in 1996, there were a total of 2,166,630 drug arrests, and 1,678,174 arrestees. Of these, 82 percent -- 1,379,624 offenders -- were estimated to be drug users. (If cigarettes were illegal, many nicotine addicts would be forced into criminal behaviors to obtain the means to get their fixes from black market sources.)

Illegal drugs are actually less dangerous than alcohol and tobacco, which if invented today would almost surely be classified as hazardous substances and banned from the market. (In 1992, 71 percent of drug-related deaths were connected with tobacco; another 28 percent with alcohol. Illegal drugs, including cocaine, marijuana and heroin, accounted for less than 1 percent!) In fact, tobacco smoke has just been identified by the EPA as a Class A carcinogen and a hazard to non-smokers.

Resources no longer devoted to interdiction and punishment could be used for education and treatment -- for abuses of all drugs, including the two already noted that do serious damage.

The drug war has witnessed serious assaults on constitutional protections; forfeiture laws, mandatory sentences, "no-knock" drug raids and the rest are leading to greater police power and the diminution of personal liberties.

Ultimately, the justification for proscribing certain drugs is insulting, namely, that citizens are too irresponsible to take care of themselves, that without Big Brother, vast numbers if not all of us will become druggies.

• Education is being tried, especially with the young. The 21st Century Community Learning Centers, which provide grants for after-school care, was funded at $200 million in FY99. Many believe these programs are crucial to reducing drug and alcohol use among the nation's youth. The Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) budgeted $2 billion for reducing youth drug use last year.
• In summary, the drug war is much ado about nothing whose effects ARE really something. Legalization is no panacea. Nothing is, but, doing so would save a fortune, protect our rights FROM unreasonable search and seizure and our rights TO due process, make drug use less devastating to those who choose it, cut revenue for organized crime, reduce corruption abroad (and here, too), boost the economy, cut the deficit, eliminate the drug cartel and discourage governmental intrusion on our personal freedoms. All of these reforms would serve the common good. All are surely environmental or framework wellness concerns. For these reasons, I think we should promote the decriminalization of all drugs.

A few years ago, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution released a resolution signed by a variety of scholars that characterized the long drug war as a pitiful failure. Their report noted that drug use and drug-related crime has increased and that the huge revenues generated by the illicit drug trade are undermining legitimate governments worldwide.

Making drugs illegal has not worked. It is not going to work. Legalization should be a wellness issue. It may sound ridiculous given the death and disease they breed, but I believe that even alcohol and tobacco should remain legal, and these two drugs are REALLY dangerous!

All the best. Be well and look on the bright side.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the PHYSICAL DOMAIN under the skill area of adaptations and challenges. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

 Send e-mail to Don Ardell