By Susan Lake
Editor, the Gauntlet,
Re: "War on drugs a misguided pursuit," Jan. 17, 2002,
I am somewhat surprised at the support for the outright legalization of drugs the likes of LSD, magic mushrooms, and ecstasy. It is true that drugs such as marijuana have far less impact on the behaviour of users than psychedelic drugs (and in some cases legal substances
such as alcohol) but legalized LSD?
Mind-altering, or as you call them "mind-expanding," drugs are far more harmful than tobacco, coffee, or X-Box, and are not even closely comparable to them. Why you would be willing to sacrifice the lives of users and the safety of others for art-which usually amounts to gibberish in the minds of the sober-is beyond me. Drug-induced creativity is in no way comparable to true human creativity, as true creativity is bred in one soul and mind and not the result of a cocktail of chemicals and hallucinations.
Seeking these altered states of mind is not only taboo in today’s western society, it is often associated with the mentally ill. Sure our society encourages seeking different perspectives, but certainly not through the use of LSD, mushrooms, or ecstasy.
It is true that some people act destructively within their own means, but why should we then make drugs readily available to them? Why would you heighten and intensify the desire to act destructively by supplying them with extremely harmful drugs? It is like equipping a potential murderer with a loaded gun, simply because we also use guns for recreational purposes.
This is especially true for those who suffer from mental illnesses. Schizophrenia and LSD are not a mellow pair. If anything, that combination would produce a terrified, extremely paranoid user, whose illness-induced paranoia is only further heightened. It is scary to think of the lengths he or she could and would go to in order to rid themselves of those feelings.
I guarantee the legalization of such harmful drugs would create total havoc, and for what? A better time out with the buddies? "Creative" works? Inspiration is not found in the drug, but in the false sense of enlightenment, or Nirvana, that is created.