The problem isn’t the existence of activities and substances that offer escape; it’s the need for relief and the learned pattern of seeking it that matters. Consequently, trying to fight addiction by criminalizing particular drugs is like trying to suppress repetitive behaviors in autism by punishing them. A child with autism may seem more typical if he stops flapping his hands—but this by itself doesn’t alter the underlying reason for the activity or change his autism. As a result, the behavior will either be hidden or replaced by a substitute action if the real driver of the behavior isn’t
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