In the days following the publication of our harms paper, several newspapers ran headlines along the lines of “Professor Nutt says Alcohol Worse than Drugs,” as though alcohol weren’t a drug itself. This false distinction is a large part of the communication problem I encounter whenever I try to emphasise how harmful alcohol is. It has a separate language – you get “high” on drugs, but “drunk” on alcohol, drug addicts need a “fix” but alcoholics need a “drink.”

ecib:

No way it would be legal if it were a manufactured product just created/discovered.

It's a drug, pure and simple. People ingest it to get high. We have entire buildings erected where people flock to on weekend nights to all get high together. It is culturally interwoven with communal sporting events, and getting high while watching them is part of our culture. The vast majority of our politicians, leaders, heroes, cultural icons, religious leaders, luminary thinkers, bosses, CEOs, etc, get high. In younger years, especially in college, we drink and try and get as fucked up high as humanely possible. Eventually we grow up and only want to get moderately high, less often (but still want to get high).

Being one of the oldest drugs on Earth (maybe THE oldest?) made from ingredients available in every culture across the globe throughout civilization kind of gives it a leg up on all the other drugs I guess.

posted 4244 days ago