Drug Use for Grown-Ups Quotes

“Rarely do we find [people] who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“I discovered that the predominant effects produced by the drugs discussed in this book are positive. It didn’t matter whether the drug in question was cannabis, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, or psilocybin. Overwhelmingly, consumers expressed feeling more altruistic, empathetic, euphoric, focused, grateful, and tranquil. They also experienced enhanced social interactions, a greater sense of purpose and meaning, and increased sexual intimacy and performance. This constellation of findings challenged my original beliefs about drugs and their effects. I had been indoctrinated to be biased toward the negative effects of drug use. But over the past two-plus decades, I had gained a deeper, more nuanced understanding. Sure, negative effects were also possible outcomes. But they represented a minority of effects; they were predictable and readily mitigated. For example, the type of drug use described in this book should be limited to healthy, responsible adults. These individuals fulfill their responsibilities as citizens, parents, partners, and professionals. They eat healthy, exercise regularly, and get sufficient amounts of sleep. They take steps to alleviate chronic excessive stress levels. These practices ensure physical fitness and considerably reduce the likelihood of experiencing adverse effects. Equally important, I learned that people undergoing acute crises and those afflicted with psychiatric illnesses should probably avoid drug use because they may be at greater risk of experiencing unwanted effects. The vast amount of predictably favorable drug effects intrigued me, so much so that I expanded my own drug use to take advantage of the wide array of beneficial outcomes specific drugs can offer. To put this in personal terms, my position as department chairman (from 2016 to 2019) was far more detrimental to my health than my drug use ever was. Frequently, the demands of the job led to irregular exercise and poor eating and sleeping habits, which contributed to pathological stress levels. This wasn’t good for my mental or physical health. My drug use, however, has never been as disruptive or as problematic. It has, in fact, been largely protective against the negative health consequences of negotiating pathology-producing environments.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Clearly, many people consume psychoactive substances “in the pursuit of happiness,” a right the government was established to secure, to protect. So why then is our current government arresting one million Americans each year for possessing drugs? Why are so many drug users hiding in the closet? This reality does not align with the spirit of the Declaration”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Albert Einstein’s words are fitting: “In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they are not.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“The key is to keep the focus on people's actions, on their behaviors, rather than speculate about their motives. Trying to determine what's in a person's head or heart is a pointless distraction. It's impossible to know for certain the heart's inner secrets.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“After reading this book, I hope you will be less likely to vilify individuals merely because they use drugs.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“I am an unapologetic drug user. I take drugs as part of my pursuit of happiness, and they work. I am a happier and better person because of them.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“essence, the war on drugs is not a war on drugs; it’s a war on us.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“GIVEN SOCIETY’S RETURN on the twentyfold increase in our drug-control budget, we could reasonably conclude that the war on drugs has been a complete failure.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“It is certainly possible to die from an overdose of an opioid alone, but such overdoses account for a minority of the thousands of opioid-related deaths. Most are caused when people combine an opioid with alcohol, an anticonvulsant, an antihistamine, a benzodiazepine, or another sedative. People are not dying because of opioids; they are dying because of ignorance.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“My time at Parklife got me thinking about drug users who do not have access to such drug-related services and education. The amount of money required to attend a festival, especially when entrance ticket, travel, and food costs are included, is prohibitive for most. Consequently, it is not surprising that the highest drug-related mortality rates in the United States are found in regions, including Appalachia and Oklahoma, with lower rates of university completion and greater economic distress.12 Attention-grabbing headlines claiming that opioids (or any other drug) are killing people are wrong. Ignorance and poverty are killing people, just as they have for centuries.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“As with previous “drug crises,” the opioid problem is not really about opioids. It’s mainly about cultural, social, and environmental factors such as racism, draconian drug laws, and diverting attention away from the real causes of crime and suffering. As you’ll discover throughout this book, there’s nothing terribly unique about the pharmacology of opioids that makes these drugs particularly dangerous or addictive. People have safely consumed them for centuries. And, trust me, people will continue to do so, long after the media’s faddish focus has faded, because these chemicals work. Fatal overdose is a real risk, but the odds of this occurring have been overstated. It is certainly possible to die after taking too much of a single opioid drug, but such deaths account for only about a quarter of the thousands of opioid-related deaths. Contaminated opioid drugs and opioids combined with another downer (e.g., alcohol or a nerve-pain medication) cause many of these deaths.”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“The philosopher John Locke once noted that pursuing happiness is “the foundation of liberty.” This idea is at the core of the Declaration of Independence, the document that gave birth to our nation. The Declaration asserts that each of us is endowed with certain “unalienable Rights,” including “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness,” and that governments are created for the purpose of protecting these rights. The
use of drugs in the pursuit of happiness, in my view, is arguably an act that the government is obliged to safeguard.

[So] why is our government arresting hundreds of thousands of Americans each year for using drugs, for pursuing pleasure, for seeking happiness?”
― Carl Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“The setting for such events was usually in white communities. And almost without fail, psychoactive substances—both legal and illegal— served as social lubricants. The availability of drugs abounds. I assure you, though, drugs have not destroyed these white people or their communities. The folks to whom I am referring are some of the most responsible and respectable people I know. They are scientists, politicians, educators, activists, entrepreneurs”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Black people are much more likely than their white counterparts to be arrested for drugs, even though both groups use and sell drugs at similar rates.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Abby told me she had brought the drug with her on the plane and that this has been her habit for many years. “Fuck, I’d be too petrified to do that,” I said. “Aren’t you?” She replied, “Carl, look at me . . . I’m white, old, and rich. Who’s gonna fuck with me?”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“and sympathetic treatment for others, has a long history. RACISM”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“More than 90 percent of those convicted under the Rockefeller laws were black or Latino, even though they represented a minority of drug users.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“By 1992, though, more than 90 percent of those sentenced under the harsh crack-powder laws were black.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“the war on drugs has been hugely beneficial for some.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“drugs has been a financial boon for these individuals, as well as for certain regions that are dependent upon the prison economy. Most prisons in the state of New York, for example, are located in rural, white communities”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Today, the American taxpayer spends approximately $35 billion each”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“year fighting this war.1 Yet the drugs in question remain as plentiful, if not more so, than they were in 1981, when the sum total of America’s annual drug-control budget was a mere $1.5 billion.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“It’s impossible to talk about drugs without addressing the elephant in the room—or, more aptly, the albatross around the necks of specific groups—the war on drugs. The ostensible goal of this U.S. government–led campaign is to eradicate certain psychoactive drugs.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons. Fyodor Dostoyevsky”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Heroin and other opioids, such as oxycodone and morphine, bring me pleasurable calmness, just as alcohol may function for the drinker subjected to uncomfortable social settings. Opioids are outstanding pleasure producers; I am now entering my fifth year as a regular heroin user. I do not have a drug-use problem. Never have. Each day, I meet my parental, personal, and professional responsibilities. I pay my taxes, serve as a volunteer in my community on a regular basis, and contribute to the global community as an informed and engaged citizen. I am better for my drug use.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“In fact, regarding the relatively small percentage of individuals who do become addicted, co-occurring psychiatric disorders—such as excessive anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia—and socioeconomic factors—such as resource-deprived communities and un- and underemployment—account for a substantial proportion of these addictions.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5)—a person must be distressed by their drug use. In addition, the individual’s drug use must interfere with important life functions, such as parenting, work, and intimate relationships. This use must take up a great deal of time and mental energy and must persist in the face of repeated attempts to stop or cut back. Other symptoms that the person may experience include needing more of the drug to get the same effect (tolerance) and suffering withdrawal symptoms if use suddenly ceases.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“this is a book for grown-ups. By that I mean autonomous, responsible, well-functioning, healthy adults. These individuals meet their parental, occupational, and social responsibilities; their drug use is well planned in order to minimize any disruptions”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear

“have learned that recreational drugs can be used safely to enhance many vital human activities.”
― Carl L. Hart, Drug Use for Grown-Ups: Chasing Liberty in the Land of Fear