I’LL START FROM the assumption that we want to redeem people trapped in drug addiction—and that redemption can be something other than an addict’s complete abstinence from addictive chemicals, a goal that’s not always realistic. Under current conditions it hardly ever is for most hardcore substance users, although I believe our success rate could be much higher if we abandoned our present intolerant and self-defeating social attitudes toward addiction and the care of addicted people. Even in cases where abstinence is not achieved, redemption would mean the reintegration of the user into the
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