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My former sister-in-law is a junkie and she'll be 60 this year. She's been using since she was around 18. The longest she's gone clean is two months on the occasions when she's been in jail or court-ordered rehab. She's also survived breast cancer.
She's completely burnt-out moron and unable to carry on an intelligent conversation and has been that way for years, but she IS still alive. It's amazing.
I put most of the blame for those things on the draconian drugs laws and the so-called drug war of this country.
I personally belive no government should tell its adults citizens what to do with the domain of their own bodies.
Drugs have been around since the time of memorial and demand for drugs will NEVER cease to exist.
So in that regard I think politicians are even more guilty than your regular drug user.
Now Bridget has a point and called you out on it.
Are you socially responsible and buy EVERY single product in your household from a fair trade source? If not, you should be aware that you are probably contributing to abusive labor practices abroad including but not limited to; child labor, poor working conditions, excessive working hours and so on.
Every time you are at the store does the inciting price makes close your eyes and allows you not think where it came from?
If you are not buying fair trade...do you feel the guilt?
I think you are maybe correct, not sure, have been mulling this over for years, right about legalizing drugs.
As a matter of fact, I am a person who tries to buy Fair Trade chocolate, coffee and gifts (and the former two are much more expensive that way) and I am well aware of the practices of horrific labor conditions and the use of kids, even, in Southeast Asia, China (who also uses prison slave labor - there was a plea for help sent out by a slave laborer in China, he stuck a note into a Halloween fake gravestone package and a woman in Ohio found it in her package), and elsewhere.
We are monthly donors to the human rights organization Amnesty International and we write letters and call Congress on human rights issues. Not that this is much, but we do try.
But as far as your in any way saying Bridget is "calling you out", I am not touched by that. I think that anyone who starts to use drugs needs to stop and say, "Hey, wait a minute: what are the social consequences to innocents when I buy these from what is essentially the end of the line of the drug cartel." She is addicted so she can't stop, it seems. But how many times do we hear public health ads not only saying "this is your brain on drugs" but also "here is what you are helping along...a murderous drug cartel whenever you decide to buy" ? I think that people need to feel a little guilt for knowing that there are beheadings in Mexico, forced use of innocent people to ferry drugs, and then get killed or sent to prison for life, etc. Gee, I tend to think that it's a nice idea for a drug user to stop and think about what they are helping along: pychopathic killers.
"Are you socially responsible and buy EVERY single product in your household from a fair trade source? If not, you should be aware that you are probably contributing to abusive labor practices abroad including but not limited to; child labor, poor working conditions, excessive working hours and so on."
I am a master's level social worker. Right now, my graduate school of social work, Boston College, is involved in international social work addressing the very issues you speak of, with field places all over the developing world and working toward human rights. So, I certainly know about what you write.
But I also want to point this out to you: You make a false comparison: We must buy some items, sneakers, clothing, etc. for ourselves and our families, and, of course, we must try not to buy from vendors whom we know are exploiting (which is the majority, I know) others as they are made. But drug addicts did not have to buy drugs in the first place. They, when they start, or before they are truly addicted, are directly and without question aiding and abetting in the horrific acts of the big time drug lords in Mexico and elsewhere. No one needs to do drugs and every act of purchasing is, for sure, supporting a murderous trade.
Last edited by Martha Anne; 07-09-2013 at 07:46 AM..
So you've been maintaining for several years now. That's really not a fun place to be in Bridget. I realize the great effort you're putting in to stay in the life but have you ever thought about getting out? With all the safety checks your doing just to maintain I think you have what it takes to get yourself free.
And how do you know that she isn't telling the whole story about how much she uses and is affected by the drugs. One of the hallmarks of the addict is lying. I am sorry, but it is true.
I think you are maybe correct, not sure, have been mulling this over for years, right about legalizing drugs.
As a matter of fact, I am a person who tries to buy Fair Trade chocolate, coffee and gifts (and the former two are much more expensive that way) and I am well aware of the practices of horrific labor conditions and the use of kids, even, in Southeast Asia, China (who also uses prison slave labor - there was a plea for help sent out by a slave laborer in China, he stuck a note into a Halloween fake gravestone package and a woman in Ohio found it in her package), and elsewhere.
We are monthly donors to the human rights organization Amnesty International and we write letters and call Congress on human rights issues. Not that this is much, but we do try.
But as far as your in any way saying Bridget is "calling you out", I am not touched by that. I think that anyone who starts to use drugs needs to stop and say, "Hey, wait a minute: what are the social consequences to innocents when I buy these from what is essentially the end of the line of the drug cartel." She is addicted so she can't stop, it seems. But how many times do we hear public health ads not only saying "this is your brain on drugs" but also "here is what you are helping along...a murderous drug cartel whenever you decide to buy" ? I think that people need to feel a little guilt for knowing that there are beheadings in Mexico, forced use of innocent people to ferry drugs, and then get killed or sent to prison for life, etc. Gee, I tend to think that it's a nice idea for a drug user to stop and think about what they are helping along: pychopathic killers.
"Are you socially responsible and buy EVERY single product in your household from a fair trade source? If not, you should be aware that you are probably contributing to abusive labor practices abroad including but not limited to; child labor, poor working conditions, excessive working hours and so on."
I am a master's level social worker. Right now, my graduate school of social work, Boston College, is involved in international social work addressing the very issues you speak of, with field places all over the developing world and working toward human rights. So, I certainly know about what you write.
But I also want to point this out to you: You make a false comparison: We must buy some items, sneakers, clothing, etc. for ourselves and our families, and, of course, we must try not to buy from vendors whom we know are exploiting (which is the majority, I know) others as they are made. But drug addicts did not have to buy drugs in the first place. They, when they start, or before they are truly addicted, are directly and without question aiding and abetting in the horrific acts of the big time drug lords in Mexico and elsewhere. No one needs to do drugs and every act of purchasing is, for sure, supporting a murderous trade.
First off, I apologize if I sounded too confrontational, you seem to have good intentions and I didn't mean to make my post sound like an attack to you.
Having said that, I reiterate that without draconian drug laws, we probably wouldn't have these 'murderous cartels' running the drug trade. And like I said before, politicians are more guilty than the users for all the blood shed. It's the laws that they have enacted that keep fueling drug violence.
There's a saying that says 'those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it"
And from history; we've already seen what happened when Alcohol was illegal in the U.S. Al Capone and the American mafia flourished.
In the same way The Mexican cartels don't want legalization. That would ruin their business.
And I only brought up the fair trade issue because I see that many people like to behave in a self-righteous way on this forum, while unknowingly they are as guilty of the same or similar things they are accusing other people of.
Those who own apple products -and we all know that Apple products are not a necessity- are in a way guilty of contributing to the poor working conditions I mentioned on my previous post.
Did you know that Foxconn (the company that makes most apple products) had to install a safety net in one of their buildings due the amount of workers jumping off attempting to kill themselves?
I realize that we as a society like to point the finger at those who we think of less, or inferior. Drug addicts are an easy target in that regard. But what many people fail to realize is that addiction is a disease. A heritable disease, actually.
In any case, I agree with you that most people should stay away from drugs. Especially the hard ones like Heroin, but pointing the finger only at the addicts and blaming them solely for the violence abroad is not a fair accusation. I believe it's more complicated than that.
I think you are maybe correct, not sure, have been mulling this over for years, right about legalizing drugs.
As a matter of fact, I am a person who tries to buy Fair Trade chocolate, coffee and gifts (and the former two are much more expensive that way) and I am well aware of the practices of horrific labor conditions and the use of kids, even, in Southeast Asia, China (who also uses prison slave labor - there was a plea for help sent out by a slave laborer in China, he stuck a note into a Halloween fake gravestone package and a woman in Ohio found it in her package), and elsewhere.
We are monthly donors to the human rights organization Amnesty International and we write letters and call Congress on human rights issues. Not that this is much, but we do try.
But as far as your in any way saying Bridget is "calling you out", I am not touched by that. I think that anyone who starts to use drugs needs to stop and say, "Hey, wait a minute: what are the social consequences to innocents when I buy these from what is essentially the end of the line of the drug cartel." She is addicted so she can't stop, it seems. But how many times do we hear public health ads not only saying "this is your brain on drugs" but also "here is what you are helping along...a murderous drug cartel whenever you decide to buy" ? I think that people need to feel a little guilt for knowing that there are beheadings in Mexico, forced use of innocent people to ferry drugs, and then get killed or sent to prison for life, etc. Gee, I tend to think that it's a nice idea for a drug user to stop and think about what they are helping along: pychopathic killers.
"Are you socially responsible and buy EVERY single product in your household from a fair trade source? If not, you should be aware that you are probably contributing to abusive labor practices abroad including but not limited to; child labor, poor working conditions, excessive working hours and so on."
I am a master's level social worker. Right now, my graduate school of social work, Boston College, is involved in international social work addressing the very issues you speak of, with field places all over the developing world and working toward human rights. So, I certainly know about what you write.
But I also want to point this out to you: You make a false comparison: We must buy some items, sneakers, clothing, etc. for ourselves and our families, and, of course, we must try not to buy from vendors whom we know are exploiting (which is the majority, I know) others as they are made. But drug addicts did not have to buy drugs in the first place. They, when they start, or before they are truly addicted, are directly and without question aiding and abetting in the horrific acts of the big time drug lords in Mexico and elsewhere. No one needs to do drugs and every act of purchasing is, for sure, supporting a murderous trade.
I quite strongly agree with you and would add the following.
The greatest obstacle against creating positive change is precisely the "all or nothing" attitude, which one of my Swiss friends calls "American-type" thinking. "EVERY," and all. It's a shame, and illogical and destructive.
One of the biggest things I attempt to communicate to my students involves counteracting that attitude, and aims toward them understanding that everything they do counts. Awareness of each and every decision, and at least an attempt to consider alternative decisions once in a while.
Take, for example, the ridiculous over-consumption of animal products, which has created health, environmental, humane, economic, (etc.) issues. Does this mean that every person must embrace veganism, and right now ? No, it does not. Certainly, we have not. But, if every person elected to eat one non-animal meal a day, or not to purchase that 4th leather sofa, instead choosing something else, or some other small thing, the impact would be quite great.
After one class discussion that touched on the environment, one of my students, actually a convinced meat-eater from Texas who had at first been horrified at the idea of restraining himself even once, produced a study for the class he found somewhere that proved exactly that fact - if everyone made a slightly different choice for one meal or one day, the impact would be considerable. Water, pollution, and so on.
Funny story but true - when asked, What do you think is a grave world issue ? One of them said, We are running out of food. So I asked them ... Well, what could we do about that ? Not one of them said, Eat less meat ! But several of them expressed that cannibalism might be a solution in the future, eating dead people.
And how do you know that she isn't telling the whole story about how much she uses and is affected by the drugs. One of the hallmarks of the addict is lying. I am sorry, but it is true.
Of course she's not telling the whole story, at least not in any single post. Read all her posts on this thread and it goes from her earlier posts where she boasts of a normal life using heroin responsibly, to having experienced some of the dark side, to now admitting that she's just maintaining and her words, easier said than done. She even admits that she'll bump up her dose for special occasions. If you put all her posts together it isn't hard to realize where she's really at.
She's a young lady in trouble and like all addicts at her stage of addiction she is in denial. All the things you have said are true, but there's nothing any of use can tell her to get some help. She will rationalize it away until she hits her bottom.
Funny story but true - when asked, What do you think is a grave world issue ? One of them said, We are running out of food. So I asked them ... Well, what could we do about that ? Not one of them said, Eat less meat ! But several of them expressed that cannibalism might be a solution in the future, eating dead people.
Respectfully, of course, I must take exception to the myth that everyone who abuses or is physically dependent on mood altering substances is destined to hit "bottom".
There is a lot of goal-post moving that goes on to prop up this fallacious argument.
For example, if one day some person just up-and quits using and/or drinking, when they are at the top of their game, and finds prolonged success, we are told they have a "high bottom".
Conversely, if an alkie or addict has been jailed, been disowned by their family, and is suffering from AIDS/HCV/cirrhosis/liver cancer as a direct result of using, and yet they continue to use, they are determined to have a "low bottom".
So the whole notion of "hitting bottom" has been defined into meaninglessness by those who advance it.
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